Video games are protected speech

[Commentary] The Supreme Court waded into murky and, perhaps, treacherous waters when it agreed to decide whether the Constitution permits California to prohibit the sale of violent video games to people younger than 18.

This is a well-intentioned but ill-conceived law that not only undermines several generations of legal progress toward making free speech a day-to-day reality in this country, but also threatens an emerging expressive industry in which California and the United States currently play a leading role. More important, it's an unnecessary gesture toward child protection in an area millions of parents already are handling competently on their own.