What a great idea for a video game! But why are taxpayers footing the bill? The Washington Free Beacon reports:
The National Science Foundation is spending nearly $650,000 on a computer game for adults where they can pretend to be a “novice world leader.”
The company that received taxpayer funding to build a zombie math game for kids is now creating a game similar to an online version of Risk that teaches users leadership skills.
“The program uses a futuristic narrative, 3D-animated multimedia, and challenging leadership dilemmas to engage learners, who play the role of a novice world leader,” according to the grant for the project. “The program provides instruction in leadership, and then learners apply their new leadership skills to build an alliance among warring factions and collectively solve a global problem.”
“A series of game quests test learners’ understanding, and they receive immediate feedback on all decisions and actions,” the grant continued. “Learners communicate through social media tools with other players and, at the end, participate in a virtual synchronous debriefing exercise with peers and trained facilitators to ensure full comprehension. An administrative dashboard provides real-time performance data. The game is scalable, accessible, and designed for repeat playability.”
The purpose of the game is to “improve the leadership skills of individuals in science, education, the military, government, and industry.” The makers will test the game on high school students and corporate leaders.
With the nation trillions of dollars in debt and running a deficit every year, maybe it would be better to leave such enterprises to the private sector...
But common sense isn't the federal government's strong suit, despite their claims to the contrary. It's up to the people -- acting through their state legislatures -- to curb wasteful spending projects through an Article V Convention of States. At such a convention, delegates can propose constitutional amendments that force D.C. to be fiscally responsible. With a budget to balance, do you think they'll continue spending money on video games? We don't think so, either.
