I spent Sunday running Supreme Commander with my boy. Once we figured out the network issues, we had a ball. Obama advises parents to cut off the video games. That's cool. I'd advise parents to play video games with their kids.
It worked great as a parenting tool, too. The boy not only hadn't finished his homework before we started playing, he'd actually lost the assignment. I told him he could forget playing until he found his homework and completed it.
Then I told him, for good measure, that I was really looking forward to some SC games with him. He wasn't just ruining his fun, he was ruining mine too. I went out to put in my miles. When I got back, the homework was done, his school folders were organized, the clothes were folded and the bedroom was cleaned.
Resolved: It is good to play video games with your kids.
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Ta-Nehisi Coates is a national correspondent for The Atlantic, where he writes about culture, politics, and social issues. He is the author of The Beautiful Struggle, Between the World and Me, and We Were Eight Years in Power.