[quote name='Mr Unoriginal']I don't really see a problem with this. Government already acts as the parent in the case of movies and alcohol. As long as the government doesn't start deciding what is mature, we shouldn't have too much of a problem.[/QUOTE]
Government doesn't regulate movies IIRC, and alcohol is a potential harmful substance, not a form of media. In fact the major problem I often have with people and legislation like this is they make video games out to be this great evil that kids need protecting from. In this case, she puts video games along side child pornography, date rape drugs, and sex offenders. Also from the vague wording it seems like the Michigan government can interpret whatever they deem too violent and seemingly prevent the sale of it without relying on the ratings system. To quote the article:
"Though it doesn't use a game's rating to determine if the proposed law applies to it, SB 416 prohibits the distribution of "ultra-violent explicit video games" to minors."
Also I think these fines are crazy, many places don't even have fines for selling cigarettes and alcohol to minors that high. In fact, after doing a quick google it seems like the max fine for selling alcohol to minors in MI is $1000, one-fifth the fine of selling them a video game. Things like this may not be a big problem now, but more and more people in government appear to be trying to make it one.