Don’t Elect Him! He Plays Halo!

Maricopa County, Arizona. Never heard of it? Me neither. But today they have rightfully earned their place in history. For it is there that, in the midst of a local county supervisor election, Republican incumbent Fulton Brock has launched a smear campaign hilarious in its idiocy. The smear in question, you ask? The challenger, Ed Hermes, plays Halo. So you should not vote for him. Because he is a bad man. The mind boggles.

For those wondering, here’s a quote used in a campaign mailing that charges Hermes with the alleged gamery.

Skilled player of popular video game Halo. Hermes was quoted in the ASU student newspaper as saying, “I am addicted to Halo and play almost every night.”

He’s addicted to Halo, people. And as we all know, addiction is bad. People kill because of their addiction, steal because of their addiction, and generally become a burden on the social system because of their addiction. Nevermind the fact that, as gamers, we’re prone to throw out the “addiction” word just as a way to say “Man, this game is AWESOME! I love it!”

Addiction is Bad, M'Kay?

Honestly, does anyone not see the “WTF?” factor in a smear campaign like this? Is that the only thing wrong with Ed Hermes? And if it is, are we supposed to believe that he could be a saint and yet still not worthy of the vote of the good people of Maripoca Count…because he likes playing Halo every night? Or should he be doing more “politician” things, like cheating on his taxes and sending naughty e-mails to his secretaries?

Either way, I know I won’t be voting for Ed Hermes. Not because he is “addicted” to Halo, which means little more than he likes the game and enjoys playing it when he finds himself with free time. I’m not voting for him because I don’t live there. And if I did live there, I would have the common sense to recognize that there are far worse things to be “addicted” to than playing a little Halo every night. I sure hope the people of Maricopa County have that precious common sense too.