According to What They Play, a parental gaming guide for parents, based in the progressive city of San Francisco, parents now have a greater fear of the social ills caused by certain video games than the viewing of pornography or drinking alcohol. Yes, the crusade against the video game fantasy world continues and is once again slated as the evil that will cause the inevitable breakdown of modern society.

The study of 3,000 respondents in two separate polls concluded that drinking beer and watching porn was less objectionable than certain video games. There was no mention if the potentially dangerous combination of drinking beer and watching porn at the same time was twice as bad, but let's assume that it is!

The results of the initial online poll, conducted April 4-10, 2008, found that the 1,266 participants were most offended by the following in a video game: a man and woman having sex (37 percent); two men kissing (27 percent); a graphically severed head (25 percent); and multiple use of the F-word (9 percent).

The second poll, which ran August 1-6, 2008, queried parents on what they'd be most concerned about their 17-year-old child indulging in while at a sleepover. More than 1,600 respondents revealed they're more apprehensive about their child smoking marijuana (49 percent) and playing the video game Grand Theft Auto (19 percent), than watching pornography (16 percent) and drinking beer (14 percent).

I can just about recall what I was doing when I went to a sleep-over back when I was a spritely young pup of 17, but that's an entirely different story and probably not a very good example, but it definitely wasn't playing space invaders.

This survey also caused me to ponder why it seems to be preferable in this culture to see an image of decapitated head, or any severed body part for that matter, over an image a couple having sex? Sex, it seems is almost always depicted as worse, or more offensive than violence. Quite ironic really, as one is a natural act and the other is most definitely not. Maybe it harkens back to this country's early puritanical roots. ie All sex is bad except when conducted between a married couple etc etc. Then why then in the same survey is porn and beer drinking less offensive to these parents? No consistent logic there, I am afraid.

Paradoxically the reason for the inconsistent logic is probably because parents know how to deal with these 'known' socially accepted vices, perhaps because they are more familiar to them.

Almost time to watch the synchronized diving, or is synchronized beach volleyball, I forget. On second thoughts pass me an ice cold one, flick on the skin channel and get the GTA handset. I need a sensory overload.