WARNING: SOAPBOX ALERT!

I agree that too many kids today rely on electronic entertainment. When I was a kid, there was no cable TV...and what we DID watch was decided by my parents. And no TV was watched during daylight hours, no matter what the weather conditions were. If it was raining, we read a book or played games. OK, admittedly, we watched Saturday morning cartoons. But even those were over by noon or earlier. I spent most of my hours of free time outside learning about the physical world. If it was raining and I couldn't go out, I was usually reading.

Regarding video games and electronic entertainment in general, I have a theory. Admittedly, it's just my own and I have no scientific training...so take it for what little it's worth.
Think about this: Have you noticed how prevalent diagnoses of ADD/ ADHD are these days? Anyone ever hear of that more than 10- 15 or so years ago?

Any number of studies have shown that the human brain is more receptive to learning certain types of material at certain ages. No matter what the type of material being learned, the best opportunities to learn all pass after adolescence. Note that I didn't say one COULDN'T learn, only that the window to learn the most easily had closed. I suspect that our kids today have brains which are not being given the chance to develop naturally. Think about it: If their brains constantly have images and sounds hurled at them via some electronic interface, what chance do they have to develop the ability to think or learn independently? It's no wonder that they have short attention spans! They've never learned to think on their own...or entertain themselves absent some electronic input.

Scary.