I was watching The Matrix the other day and I got to thinking, a system that traps its prisoners like that, stealing their life and making them think they are happy and progressive citizens when in reality they are just batteries sustaining the life of a higher entity is the most dangerous and corruptive form of slavery.

That system is an endangering realm where make-believe is mistaken for reality.  It’s an entire world where the actions performed and the jobs held by its players are only bi-products of the imagination.  Relationships are non-physical, non-real, only a faked sensation.  The mind is tricked by a program, a conglomeration of ifs, thens, and loops, persuading one to conform and participate in a life without meaning.  When it comes down to it, the Matrix sucks away existence day by day requiring participation in its community. 

As I watched the movie, I got an eerie feeling of familiarity.  Not the familiarity of ‘I could be in the program right now, held prisoner,’ but another form of awareness.  I suddenly made a connection.  Within my brain a nerve sparked and a sudden urgency moved my fingers to type this blog.  I thought of a program that traps its users into the most addictive fake reality.  A make-believe world where players are trapped by an obsession.  That’s right, I thought of the World of Warcraft.  Dun dun dunnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn.

We have all heard the many stories of players sucked into the addictivneess of the World of Warcraft.  The difference between the Matrix and the World of Warcraft is that you are aware of real life, and you are aware that World of Warcraft is a game.  A player makes the conscious decision to play and thereby accepts the consequences of his/her chioce.  It is important to know where a game of this kind is placed on your list of priorities.  To find out if you’re a Wow-aholic, take this World of Warcraft Addiction Test!

“You have to understand, most of these people are not ready to be unplugged.  And many of them are so inert, so hopelessly dependent on the system, that they will fight to protect it.”