This is a fun Monday-morning NYT rarebit about why you, as well, should be playing computer games, or at least kibbutzing about the politics thereof. I haven't seen the Sims yet. But the online version they're making will hold 1 million players. 1 million! This is not uninteresting. This cannot but be interesting.

http://www.nytimes.com/2002/11/24/magazine/24SIMS.html