When video games first came out, I warned they were not appropriate for children. Since then, many parents have reported negative experiences with these devices. Here's the latest.

The parents in question have always limited television-watching to weekend nights. Their children spend lots of time doing arts and crafts, inventing things, and making up games.

A while back, Dad said he wanted to buy the kids an Xbox for Christmas. Mom resisted at first, saying she'd heard that playing video games can lead to aggressive behavior. But they agreed to limit the time with the Xbox.

The children became obsessed with their new "toy." Within a week, the first thing they were asking when they woke up was "Can we play the Xbox today?"

"Keep in mind that my kids used to wake at 6 a.m. and immediately dress and head down to their craft area to start building things and playing together," Mom says.

When they played, there would be fighting and tears. When the parents turned it off, the kids would complain of having nothing to do. Were these the same children who never had a problem entertaining themselves? They were beginning to exhibit addictive behavior.

"Then," Mom writes, "my 5-year-old started telling me he didn't like school and didn't want to go. Needless to say, I was very alarmed."

The parents decided to pack up the Xbox. "There were some sad faces at first. This morning, however, we were all in the family room; my husband was reading the paper, my boys were all building a huge tower with their magnet building blocks and laughing and talking."

Mom concludes: "I firmly believe that video games are dangerous."

John Rosemond answers parents' questions at www.rosemond.com.