Ugh. More of this crap, but now it’s hitting closer to home (as least for David and me).

Boston Mayor Thomas Menino is backing HB1423, a Massachusetts bill sponsored by Rep. Linda Dorcena Forry, according to GamePolitics.com. The Massachusetts legislature will be holding a hearing for the bill on Tuesday. Like some of the other bills before it that aim to restrict the sale of violent games to minors, HB1423 would essentially classify digital bloodshed in the same legal category as pornography.

This was all over the morning news programs here in Beantown, which is unfortunate. We can lobby for and build casinos without a second thought, but video games dey gots to go!

Here’s free advice that I’ve been giving ever since Jack Thompson started his pathetic schtick against video games: It’s called parenting. Do it.

Hey everyone. In addition to Infendo, GamePro, and my occasional Next-Gen work, I’ve started freelancing for a new gaming community called Crispy Gamer. The site is still in beta (more like alpha given some broken links and functionality), but it’s still a worthy visit and its editorial is ambitious — the publisher promises to never accept sponsorships from game companies to completely avoid advertiser influence.

In addition to the occasional game review and feature, I have a column called, “On The Bright Side: Blake Snow examines gaming benevolence and creative development twice monthly.” The first edition is scheduled for publish this week, followed by a feature I wrote on the excessive use of subtitling in video games, an idea that was born on Infendo Radio. Stay tuned for that.

But “why are you wasting my time with this, Blake, and where are the Pokemons?” you ask. Well, Crispy is sponsoring a megaton sweepstakes (first prize takes home six systems including a Wii, 15 games, and a 52″ plasma), and in an effort to be nice to my new friends, I thought I would voluntarily share the link with older ones. Let me know what you think in the comments.

DISCLOSURE: I have a vested interest in Crispy’s financial success; the more traffic they get, the more freelance work they can offer me. The site is currently venture funded.