Why the Wii is Worth it

In short, I want a Nintendo Wii.

It's the biggest-selling video game console ever, and it's made from so much biosphere-destroying garbage that I'll be scrubbing methane out of the air for the rest of my life to make up for even thinking about owning one. Plus, Wii controllers are motion sensitive, which means they strap onto your body. Every time I use my Wii -- which, I would like to underscore, I do not yet own -- I will be turning myself into a literal extension of my machine.

Do you hear that, hippies? I want to strap electronics to my body and trance out to violent imagery while I wave my arms around, killing imaginary things. That's what I want to do for the holidays.

But the Wii isn't just a consumer electronics death monster. It's also something I think everyone should own or at least try out, because it truly represents the future of technology. The fact that people can now interact with a video game simply by waving their arms -- and the video game "sees" the waving and responds to it onscreen -- is revolutionary.

The point is, the Wii is cool not because it's a video game system but because it's introduced a new way of interacting with computers. If you want to know what a home computer setup will look like in 10 years, play with a Wii. Your mouse will soon be replaced with a motion-based setup. You'll point with your finger and click by tapping two fingers together. Or by saying click.