I know this has been a popular topic of many articles, but i would like to give my take of it. Before I said i go to a catholic school. Obviously I beleive in God as the Messiah, and practice so forth. Now as we all know magic has its Characters, demons and goblins etc. This aspect of the game has made it so MTG has been banned from both the grammer school i went to, and the high school I go to now. This is because it supposivly reflects the image of Satan and Voodoo as a right thing to do, an ok idea. I myself do not look at it that way, nor do i think MTG players like Budde,Finkel or Zvi do.

From a personal expierence I had today. A friend of mine "Bob"(for private sakes) is not a close personal friend of mine, but I know him nonetheless. He plays MTG, we playtest,have fun, party and workout together. Now I know alot about Bob and I his family, i even date Bob's sister for heaven's sake,but I did not know Bob used drugs. As found out today, Bob has used them for a decent time. Now usually to me, this would mean i either cut communications with Bob or try to help his problem.

As i said before, Bob plays MTG, and when the found his drugs, they found a MTG deck. Now when the police saw this, I am told by a reliable source, they said they added 2 and 2 and said the game was what lead him to the drugs and maybe further actions in the future.

I dont know about all of you, but I dont like this story,even though I indirectly a part of it. MTG is a game, and games are meant for fun and entertainment. Many a game have goblins and demons etc, but none of them get a bad rap for violence,drugs,other crimes etc.

So why does MTG?

I think for the most part, people are scared about what they don't know. So to point fingers without knowing what they're talking about is the easiest thing to do. Since MTG like you said deals with goblins/demons and the like, it's a natural for religious people especially (not being prejudice) to relate MTG to devilish acts.

It's the same thing as people blaming music for their sons'/daughters' deaths. Remember the Marilyn Manson ordeal? Kid shoots himself, parents sue Marilyn because one of his songs has the lyrics:

"shoot, shoot, shoot <insert word>, shoot, shoot..."

Because of that line is the reason why they tried to point the finger at Marilyn, when they should have looked no further than the parents.

If people would only ask and try to understand why people are interested in certain things that are considered "weird" or "the work of the devil" with an open mind, maybe one day Magic won't be looked at through hated eyes.

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Originally posted by r0cheb0y:
I myself do not look at it that way, nor do i think MTG players like Budde,Finkel or Zvi do.

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Budde's made a pact with SOME dark force, because no human could win this much.

Seriously, though, Magic will always be a scapegoat because most people simply don't want to take responsibility for their actions. Magic, music, movies, television...isn't it much easier to blame these things for what your children do rather than pointing the finger at yourself?

Seriously though, people blaming others for their own faults is a sad fact. I know I do it sometimes, but generally try to stray away from it... stupid people who do it continuously really make me mad... and that's partly why I'm always eager to "punish" people for acting stupid, hoping to force seeds of thinking into their minds. Yes, I know I shouldn't etc., but I can't help myself. Ignorant people are worse to me than a red clothing is to a bull (figure of speech, bulls are colourblind).

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roche.

But, Magic (or anything that parents, teachers, police, etc. don't understand.) has been a scapegoat for as long as I can remember (and I've been playing since Alpha.). People who don't play, and don't understand it because they don't agree with the game, like to blame everything on it.

It happens with everything, music, video games, television, you name it, someone will find a way to play pass the blame with it. I was blessed in the sense that when I started playing, my parents were understanding enough to let me make my own judgement about the game.

I have a friend (who happens to be a few years younger than me and lives with his mother) who's mother won't let him play because she believes its satanic (so I have a seperate box and notebook for him to keep all of his cards in). And to make matters worse, his sister won't let her son play Pokemon because she believes its satanic (because the preacher of her church says it is.)

Now, I don't care for the game Pokemon (I did play it for a while, but got bored of it), but I don't see the harm in kids playing it. But this is all a matter of my personal opinion. Everyone is entitled to their opinion. I will always be a firm believer in a the saying "Lord, give me the strenth to change what I can, and the courage to face what I cannot change". That wraps up my opinion. Peace out everyone and God Bless!

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Originally posted by Trnothr:
Ooh, German people have tendency to win a lot when they get rolling... and then lose. Anyone remember Hitler?

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I can't believe that someone actually went as far to find a connection between Budde and Hitler. I mean seriously, don't you think a bit before posting stuff like this.

And the article was well written Roche and i'm sorry about your friend too, but i guess if he was doing drugs then he should've known where he might end up.

Everyone must learn to take responsability for the consequences of their actions.

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Originally posted by Blazing_Specter13:
Well, it was well written, IMO. Sorry to hear about you friend. It saddens me to think about people who use drugs to "escape" from the pressures of everyday life instead of dealing with it.

But, Magic (or anything that parents, teachers, police, etc. don't understand.) has been a scapegoat for as long as I can remember (and I've been playing since Alpha.). People who don't play, and don't understand it because they don't agree with the game, like to blame everything on it.

It happens with everything, music, video games, television, you name it, someone will find a way to play pass the blame with it. I was blessed in the sense that when I started playing, my parents were understanding enough to let me make my own judgement about the game.

I have a friend (who happens to be a few years younger than me and lives with his mother) who's mother won't let him play because she believes its satanic (so I have a seperate box and notebook for him to keep all of his cards in). And to make matters worse, his sister won't let her son play Pokemon because she believes its satanic (because the preacher of her church says it is.)

Now, I don't care for the game Pokemon (I did play it for a while, but got bored of it), but I don't see the harm in kids playing it. But this is all a matter of my personal opinion. Everyone is entitled to their opinion. I will always be a firm believer in a the saying "Lord, give me the strenth to change what I can, and the courage to face what I cannot change". That wraps up my opinion. Peace out everyone and God Bless!

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Um, would this person's mother be a baptist.

anyway, i think magic gets a bad rap because people see someone like me. for those of you who don't know me, i wear all black, a trench coat, and have long hair. quite scary if you're droping your 11 year old son off at a magic tournament which ends at the god forsaken hour of 9:30. what they don't know is that i am an eagle scout and am a very nice person.

~RPGfreak17

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