Deck 26: The Gamers Dilemma: An Analysis of the Arguments for the Moral Distinction Between Virtual Murder and Virtual Pedophilia

Question 1

Explain the Gamer's Dilemma. Then, do your best either (a) to defend one of the five solutions to the Gamer's Dilemma against Luck's objection or (b) come up with your own solution.

Answer 1

Demonstrate understanding of the Gamer's Dilemma.
Develop either (a) a thoughtful defense of one of the five solutions that Luck discusses or (b) a novel defense that is clearly distinct from the five Luck discusses.
Correctly identify and defend controversial premises using sound reasoning, helpful analogies, appeals to plausible principles, etc.

Question 2

Assume that both virtual pedophilia and virtual murder are wrong. Given this, do your best to argue that it's also wrong to watch movies with gratuitous violence. Then, describe how someone might criticize your argument.

Answer 2

Demonstrate understanding of the Gamer's Dilemma.
Demonstrate the ability to extend Luck's reasoning to moves with gratuitous violence, correctly identifying and defending controversial claims using sound reasoning, helpful analogies, appeals to plausible principles, etc.
Suggest a criticism of this extension that reveals an appreciation of the objections that Luck addresses in his paper.

Question 3

The Gamer's Dilemma is both compelling and surprising-until you read about it, it probably never occurred to you that virtual murder might be morally problematic (or that virtual pedophilia might be morally okay), and it's really hard to say where Morgan Luck's argument goes wrong (if it goes wrong at all). When an argument is both compelling and surprising, how should you respond? Should you stick to your guns, assuming that there must be something wrong with it because it's so surprising? Or should you accept it because it's compelling? Or is some other response called for? Defend your answer.

Answer 3

Include a thesis that's focused and appropriate given the assignment.
Clearly and succinctly state the main argument for the thesis.
Correctly identify and defend the argument's controversial premises using sound reasoning, well-chosen examples, insightful analogies, etc.

Question 4

Why does Luck think that most of us are morally okay with virtual murder?

A) We trust that the rating system will ensure players' moral maturity
B) No one is actually harmed as a result of a virtual harm
C) We believe that players are all basically decent people
D) No one lives in fear of being murdered by a video game player
E) We have all become desensitized to virtual violence

Question 5

If, in a game, I kill someone who attacked me, then I've definitely committed virtual murder.

Question 6

According to Luck, although social conventions might explain why people are more comfortable with virtual murder than virtual pedophilia, ________:

A) They don't make sense of virtual pedophilia
B) They don't justify virtual pedophilia
C) The don't provide us with a working definition of virtual pedophilia
D) They should lead us to be skeptical of virtual pedophilia
E) They should lead us to be okay with virtual pedophilia

Question 7

Luck says that one problem with the claim that virtual pedophilia increases the likelihood of actual pedophilia, but virtual murder doesn't increase the likelihood of actual murder, is that ________:

A) There aren't enough pedophiles to make such assessments
B) It would be wrong to conduct research on what increases the likelihood of actual pedophilia
C) Virtual pedophilia might actually decrease the likelihood of actual pedophilia in some cases
D) There is a strong correlation between virtual murders and actual murders
E) There aren't enough people who play games featuring virtual pedophilia to know if this is true

Question 8

Which argument would be akin to asserting that, by virtue of the fact slavery was socially acceptable within ancient Rome, it was also moral during that time?

A) The "social acceptability" argument
B) The "competition not the kill" argument
C) The "significant likelihoods" argument
D) The "unfairly singling out a group for harm" argument
E) The "special status of children" argument

Question 9

When Luck discusses the possibility that you're harming yourself by engaging in virtual pedophilia, what does he mean?

A) You could develop some form of mental illness
B) You could injure yourself while playing the game
C) You could damage your character
D) You could injure your future self
E) You could strain your relationships with your family

Question 10

Luck argues that those who engage in virtual murder often enjoy what they're doing. He says this to point what out?

A) Virtual murderers are bad people
B) Virtual murderers are destroying their ability to empathize with real victims
C) It's implausible that virtual murderers are only enjoying the competition
D) It's implausible that virtual murderers are like virtual pedophiles
E) Virtual murderers care more about children than virtual pedophiles do

Question 11

Luck points out that one argument seems to imply that, as long as a game allowed you to molest people of all different ages, it would be OK to play it. Which argument is this?

A) The "social acceptability" argument
B) The "competition not the kill" argument
C) The "significant likelihoods" argument
D) The "unfairly singling out a group for harm" argument
E) The "special status of children" argument

Question 12

Why shouldn't we say that harming a child is always worse than harming an adult?

A) Sometimes, it's good to harm children
B) Children are always victims
C) Adults are actually more deserving of our moral attention than children are
D) Stealing a child's lollipop isn't worse than torturing an adult, for example
E) Those who kill in virtual contexts can use the same excuse to justify murder in virtual contexts

Question 13

The Gamer's Dilemma is that:

A) We should either acknowledge that acts of virtual murder and virtual pedophilia are morally prohibited or acknowledge that both are morally permissible
B) We should either acknowledge that acts of virtual murder are morally permissible or that virtual pedophilia is morally permissible
C) We should acknowledge that gamers must choose between acts of virtual murder and acts of virtual pedophilia
D) We should acknowledge virtual murder and virtual pedophilia are both morally prohibited
E) We should acknowledge that both virtual murder and virtual pedophilia are both morally permissible

Question 14

What is Phillip Zema's point in talking about Sally the acting prodigy and Bill Gates? Do you think that these examples are helpful in illustrating his point? Or do you think that they are misleading when used in contrast with the student-athletes case?

Question 15

Review Phillip Zema's three premises that support his two conclusions about the NCAA's treatment of student-athletes. Then, develop an objection to one of these premises. How might Zema respond to your objection?

Question 16

Phillip Zema argues that the NCAA does not exploit student-athletes, even if it does treat them unfairly. Do a Google search on how much money colleges and universities receive from athletic programs (you can type in, "how much do universities make from sports?"). This information might change how you think about the exploitation question. Does it? If so, why? If not, why not?

Question 17

Which of the following is NOT a claim that Zema makes about many of the prohibitions against athletes receiving compensation from non-school affiliated sources?

A) _{They are arbitrary and unfair to student-athletes}​
B) _{They are non-beneficial to student-athletes}​
C) _{They are non-detrimental to higher education}
D) _{They are not a threat to the integrity of college sports}
E) _{Zema makes all of the above claims}

Question 18

What is Zema talking about when he refers to "outside compensations?"

A) Any form of compensation and remuneration that it outside of the normal for the average university student
B) Any form of compensation and remuneration that is outside of the normal for professional athletes
C) Any kind of compensation or remuneration prohibited by the student-athlete's university policies
D) Any form of student-athlete compensation or remuneration currently prohibited by the NCAA's policies
E) Any kind of student compensation or remuneration that is extended to all of a university's non-athletes

Question 19

Which of the following is one of the reasons why the NCAA exists at all, according to Zema?

A) It protects and promotes the educational well-being of student-athletes
B) It ensures that student-athletes will have the opportunity to pursue a career in athletics
C) It helps to break down the difference between intercollegiate and professional athletics
D) It supports universities in their maintenance of collegiate athletic programs
E) It creates more jobs within the athletics industry

Question 20

Which of the following is an example of an activity from which student-athletes are prohibited from receiving compensation?

A) Entering contracts with sports agents
B) Advertising products
C) Working at a place like Academy
D) Giving personal autographs
E) Appearing in promotional videos

Question 21

Zema grants that students, free of coercion, often accept the NCAA's rules.

Question 22

What is one of the conclusions that Zema comes to with regard to the NCAA's treatment of student-athletes?

A) The NCAA exploits student-athletes
B) The NCAA coerces student-athletes into contracts
C) The NCAA mistreats student-athletes
D) The NCAA treats student-athletes unfairly
E) The NCAA routinely harms student-athletes

Question 23

What's Zema's point in talking about Sally the student actress?

A) Sally's situation is relevantly different from student-athletes' situation because acting is unlike sports
B) Sally should have an organization like the NCAA that protects her interests and education
C) Student actresses are treated less exploitatively than student-athletes
D) Sally's ability to pursue lucrative opportunities negatively impacted her academic and theatrical performance
E) Sally had not done anything wrong in pursuing lucrative economic opportunities while still a student

Question 24

Zema argues that student athletes are never well-compensated.

Question 25

What does Zema mean when he says that certain restrictions on student-athletes are "arbitrary?"

A) Non-athlete students are allowed to earn benefits that help secure both their short- and long-term interests
B) Student-athletes are randomly subjected to certain restrictions that their non-athlete peers don't experience
C) Student-athletes are made to be arbiters of their own interests and education because of the NCAA's failures
D) Non-athlete students are not given the same university-sponsored benefits that student-athletes receive
E) The NCAA has failed to give good reason for any of the restrictions or guidelines around student-athletes' compensation

Question 26

What is one of the points that Zema makes about imagining that Andrew Luck were permitted to endorse products?

A) It's worth sacrificing the integrity of college football to allow him these opportunities
B) It's hard to imagine how Stanford's academic integrity has been compromised
C) Measures can be taken to mitigate the inevitable strain that this would put on his team's unity
D) It's a disservice to the public to not be allowed to view Andrew Luck in product endorsements
E) Product endorsement would put Andrew Luck on professional teams' radars