Funny Take on Kiddie Virtual World's From a "Geek Who Has Procreated"

It encourages a vapid collector mentality not only online but in real life as well. The more crappy little dolls you buy at the mall, the more crappy little virtual characters you can have. Crappy little virtual characters that exist to work virtual jobs so they can make virtual cash to spend on more useless virtual crap. Now the makers of Webkinz claim this teaches kids responsibility because their online counterparts have to earn money before they can spend it. On crap. Of course these claims are pulled from the ether as there has been no research done on these new games. Such defenses remind me of my own bullshit justifications for playing so much Galaga back in the day, "But mom, it teaches hand/eye coordination!" It seems to me the site teaches kids that money is made to be spent on superficial garbage. Sure, kids hardly need to be taught to want every shiny trinket they see on the shelves. But by making kids "work" to earn their virtual trinkets, Webkinz is legitimizing the pursuit of materialism by equating it with responsible adult behavior.
Club Penguin is guilty of this as well. You may not have to buy any stuffed penguins at the toy store, but you can buy fashion accessories for your penguin characters. And I have to shell out six bucks a month. That's real bucks, not virtual bucks.
http://www.nerdswithkids.com/2007/09/building-new-generation-of-online.html

Pappa Nerd - Doug Slack's "credentials" - hilarious! "NERD CREDENTIALS- Still own the Shogun Warriors Godzilla toy, complete with launchable hand, from 1979. Saw the Star Wars Christmas Special during it's one and only television broadcast. Have over 30 long boxes of comic books stored in the attic. Saw Evil Dead 2 in the theater three times. Once dined with Tom Savini. Wrote and illustrated my own comic book in the 90's. Spent countless lonely hours watching Night Flight and The Young Ones as a teenager. PARENTAL CREDENTIALS- Father of two daughters, ages 2 and 8."