[Starter]

First of all, I apologize for the source. It was the most professional site with this news that I could find.

For those of you not familiar with the story, about a week ago, anti-game lawyer/activist Jack Thompson made a "modest proposal" for a video game, offering to donate 10 grand to charity if a game manufacturer would make a game based on an idea from Thompson. This idea involved a father whose son was killed by game players going bezerk and massacring game store employees, developers, designers, etc.

Well, some gamers took Thompson up on his offer and have created several text-based games based on the idea. Then another set of gamers made a modification to the Grand Theft Auto games (one of Thompson's favorite targets) that allowed the player to recreate Thompson's scenario. Thompson responded that his challenge was merely a "satirical piece".

Now, this response didn't sit well with the creators of the Penny Arcade website, who have been sparring with Thompson over the past week over this issue. So, they wrote a check for $10,000 and donated it to a charity in Thompson's name, while publicly announcing that they were doing so. And so Thompson has tried to sic the cops on them...

For those interested, a redacted copy of Thompson's most recent letter and the check itself can been seen at www.penny-arcade.com

[drjimmy]

Ray Davies of The Kinks said it best in this song (there are more verses, but I think you'll get the point):

Who's the fool with the cross-eyed stare,
The turned up nose and moronic glare?
Who's that simpleton standing over there?
Jack, Jack the Idiot Dunce.

Who's that dumb-looking freckle-faced runt?
Jack, Jack the Idiot Dunce.
He walks like his feet are on back to front,
Jack, Jack the Idiot Dunce.

When he waddles down the street he looks kind of queer,
Jack, Jack the Idiot Dunce,
'Cos he's got two left feet and taxi-door ears,
Jack, Jack the Idiot Dunce.

And when we laugh at the clothes he wears,
Jack just smiles 'cos he don't care.
He's a fool! He's a ninny!
He's a twit! He's a chump!
The Idiot Dunce, the Idiot Dunce.

Who is always the bottom of the class?
Jack, Jack the Idiot Dunce.
Who's a fool? Who's a boob?
Who's a kook and an ass?
Jack, Jack the Idiot Dunce.

[steve-b]

Penny Arcade's rather expensive jab at Jack Thompson has caused the Florida attorney to go off the deep end.

What do you mean, go off the deep end? That's like saying that something caused Clinton to "start" lying and cheating.

[gondramB]

I found the aol icon that Jack Thompson construed as a death threat. http://notjackthompson.blogspot.com/

[Sofa King]

Video game ping!

If you want on or off this list, Freepmail me
If it hasn't been posted yet, just to make sure people see it:

Penny Arcade Donates Ten Grand in Thompson's Name

[Dan from Michigan]

Is "Jackpeace" going to come back here and opus again?

[Quick1]

This guy's a real piece of work, isn't he? He talks about games on CNN as an "expert", not knowing what he's talking about, he calls Vice City a "murder simulator", and he's too much of a pansy ass to write the $10,000 check he promised to give to charity.

One wonders why the National Institue on Media and the Family didn't even want anything to do with him...

[steve-b]

the Florida attorney

Where the hell did this moron get a law degree? A Cracker Jack[tm] box?

[steve-b]

the Florida attorney

Where the hell did this moron get a law degree? A Cracker Jack[tm] box?

[steve-b]

a letter Jack Thompson faxed to the Seattle chief of police Gil Kerlikowske

From other reports of the story, it turned out that BatJack tried to put the Penny Arcade URL in the letter, but got it wrong. It turned out that the wrong URL he gave to Seattle's Finest leads to a site featuring lots of pictures of charming young women who have misplaced their clothes.

[Starter]

Just updating for reference:

http://www.gamespot.com/news/6136737.html

Seattle police pass on Penny Arcade flap

Florida lawyer's harassment allegations considered a civil matter on the surface, criminal investigation still possible.

Web comic Penny Arcade made headlines last week when it was the subject of an angry complaint letter sent to the Seattle Police Department alleging organized harassment and extortion. In his letter, Florida attorney Jack Thompson said he looked forward to working with the police "to shut this little extortion factory down and/or arrest some of its employees."

However eager Thompson may be for that, it doesn't look likely to happen anytime soon. A representative with the police department told GameSpot today that it hasn't found any crime to prosecute in the matter.

"Our preliminary review of the document has led us to believe that it is most likely a civil matter," police spokeswoman Deborah Brown said, "but we have forwarded it to the chief of our criminal investigations bureau to make sure that it is correct."

Unless the chief of that bureau finds some criminal activity that wasn't apparent upon first examination of the complaint, this part of the ongoing dispute between Thompson and Penny Arcade is resolved.

Calls seeking comment from the office of US Attorney for the Western District of Washington John McKay, whom Thompson also contacted for help in his spat with Penny Arcade, were unreturned as of press time.

By Brendan Sinclair -- GameSpot
Posted Oct 27, 2005 4:15 pm PT