I refer to concerned parent Loceng Cat's letter Ragnarok - block port 5000, 6900.

I would like to firstly agree that the points asked and presented by Web Surfer in his/her letter were rather absurd and ridiculous.

But regarding Loceng Cat's comments on computer games, as a serious gamer myself, I find myself offended by his/her somewhat ignorant remarks.

Yes, games are loud. Sound effects is a big part of games just as sound effects are a big part of most movies and TV shows. If cinemas lower their sound volume during a movie playback, take a wild guess how most movie-goers will respond. Sound adds to the excitement and immersion level.

Has Loceng Cat actually tried talking to those who play computer games in cybercafes? For those who don't know, university and college students also frequent cybercafes. I can name a few people (including myself) who are scholarship holders and yet enjoy going to cybercafes for gaming sessions.

If they are failures and have family problems, I'm more inclined to believe that they lack financial or technical exposure. If you're not bright, you'll probably suck at games. In case Loceng Cat and others don't believe me, I have actually read about research regarding games (both in local newspapers and the Internet).

Apparently, those who games are actually consistently more smarter than those who aren't.

On what basis did Loceng Cat conclude that banning video games would reduce social problems? Yes, social problems exist, but cybercafes are not the cause, they are simply the outlet.

A person's character is formed at home, not in cybercafes. How one spends and manages

one's time is more dependent on how one's parents or teachers guide and discipline them. How would playing games and interacting with other players be detrimental?

And lastly, I wonder what Loceng Cat has against Ragnarok. A game doesn't cause anti-social, anti-God, and anti-establishment sentiments. If it does, every developed and developing nation in the world would be in anarchy.

If the game's content is offensive or undesirable, does Loceng Cat actually think that our not-so-open government wouldn't have banned it by now?

Being anti-God is a matter of how one was brought up and discipline. Don't blame a game for negative values if you did not instill positive values in the first place. It's not a matter of supervision, it's a matter of trust built on the foundation of love.

With that, I would like to end by saying that I do agree that cybercafes should not be allowed to become illegitimate video arcades outside of the regulatory framework.