How would you define responsibility? Maybe it’s taking ownership over actions or thoughts. What I want to know is why I didn’t get the memo of the new definition for responsibility: not owning up to your mistakes and blaming the first thing that comes to mind!

In the news lately, there are some wild stories about things happening to people and them blaming video games, movies, toys or the ever-so-popular MySpace. Why is it that people cannot take responsibility for their actions? There is absolutely no excuse to blame something else for your screw-up.

Let’s start off with the first thing that makes me upset. Earlier this year, an eight-year-old boy stole his teacher’s minivan during school and drove it around the neighborhood. On CBS.com, his mother said “Grand Theft Auto” was his favorite game. OK? Last year, an 18-year-old decided to go out and gun down three men in his small hometown. Why? Well, according to CBS, he played “Grand Theft Auto” day and night for months. And?

Oh yes, the video game defense. Every time some misbehaved, snot-nosed kid steals his or her parents’ car for a joyride and gets caught, the first thing that comes to mind is the video game! Why not, it’s a perfect route out, right? It irritates me so much when people try to blame video games for their children’s actions or Tom Cruise for stealing a car in one of his movies. Is it the video game though? Should it be blamed for what children do?

“Research studies suggest that the more violent the video game, the more aggressive the kids behavior will be,” said Lisa Harrison, assistant professor in psychology. “Kids model this behavior and mimic what they see on video games.”

Now for the icing on the cake, the most popular story in the news that has gotten so much attention it makes me livid. A 16-year-old girl tricks her parents into getting her a passport and tells them she’s going to Canada with her friends. Instead, she heads off to the Middle East to meet some guy she met on (you guessed it) MySpace. The reason MySpace doesn’t allow young kids on the website is to protect them from older men who might solicit young children.

If you ask me, they should enforce a law stating that if you’re dumb and willing to fly halfway around the world to meet some guy, you shouldn’t be allowed on MySpace either.

What I want to know is how ignorant you have to be to even think that it would be OK to fly to the Middle East at age 16 to meet a man you met over the Internet? MySpace gets blamed for a lot of things that happen to young children who have an account. It cannot monitor lying children, posing as adults. So why point the finger at MySpace? It’s not Tom’s fault!

Authorities need to realize that the Internet, video games and movies are not to blame for what children do. These children have minds of their own and make decisions all by themselves. They’re big kids! Taking responsibility for their actions is what these children need to do. No one takes responsibility for what they do these days, and it’s getting really annoying.

So are these children the only ones to blame? I don’t think so. When the children weren’t being scolded for what they did, and MySpace and “Grand Theft Auto” were being blamed, what were the parents doing? That is the one simple question no one seems to be asking.

“If parents have more input over what their kids do, the less aggressive kids will be,” Harrison said.

Where were these parents when their children created accounts on MySpace? Who let them watch these violence-infested movies? Who bought them that aggressive, violent video game, which you have to be 18 years of age to buy? According to assistant manager of an electronic store Bryant Maciel, identification is checked upon check-out.

“If you aren’t 18, we cannot sell you the video game,” Maciel said. “It’s our store policy and we cannot bend the rules for anyone.

“Taking responsibility is what’s needed. People need to own up to their actions and start thinking of what they’re doing. Blaming someone or something else won’t solve anything. Stepping up and owning up to your mistakes will only make others follow in your footsteps. In other words, stop blaming video games and MySpace.

Rosa Pastran can be reached at [email protected]