"We're all human, we all make mistakes." Yeah, but there are mistakes (I forgot to take the garbage out) and there are mistakes (running a dogfighting ring out of your house and relishing the torture of innocent creatures). Whenever a celebrity or politician commits some horrible act, you will always here the apologists utter that opening phrase. True, we are all human, and true that we all make mistakes, but most civilized human beings don't make the kind of "mistakes" that Michael Vick made. I guess that's why I get so frustrated whenever I hear that phrase. It is often used to sweep whatever was done under the rug without addressing the act in question. It comes across as equalizing all bad acts. Yes, I will forget to take out the garbage. Yes, I will be short with my wife on occasion. But no, I don't think I will ever drench a dog with water and then electrocute it.
I've been following the Michael Vick saga with disgust. I am an animal lover. But even if you aren't, I think most people can see why Michael Vick is such a degenerate human being. I wasn't going to post about it, but friends JMW and ANCIANT each wrote recent thought-provoking posts (here and here, respectively), and so I was inspired to chime in as well.
I don't buy the excuses Vick has proferred. "Well, it was in my culture growing up." You know, there is a fundamental human moral compass that exists regardless of background. Deriving pleasure from the brutal torture and mutilation of any feeling creature, be it canine, feline, human or whatever, is just plain disgusting. There is something fundamentally wrong with a person who would enjoy hanging creatures by their necks and electrocuting them. People make mistakes, sure, but this is no "mistake." This is morally reprehensible behavior.
"Vick served his time. Isn't that enough?" Serving his time entitles him to no longer be in prison. That's it. It should not entitle him to a multi-million dollar contract. I guess if Vick follows through on his promise to become an outspoken advocate against dogfighting and animal cruelty generally, some good can come of this. I will be interested to see if he is still interested in this advocacy a year from now after the furor has died down. Some things I just don't forgive. This is one of them. What do you think?
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
7 comments:
Dez-
Thanks for the link (though I notice it's a dead one. Whereas AWSOBA's works. Hmmm.) I've updated and added to the post since you read it, so feel free to take another look. It features 25% more hatred now!
No no.
I'm basically in agreement with you. The thing that provides a glimmer of hope is his talk about working to stamp out (or at least 'educate' people about) the evils of dogfighting. I guess that is at least possible.
Also, the movie list draws nigh. I promise.
You are just a racist Dez. You don't understand his culture.
OK. I am a big animal lover, too, but I believe anybody who does his jail time deserves a second chance. You don't have to forgive him or like him, but you can't take away his right to earn a living and you can't put restrictions on how much he is allowed to make.
I hate what he did and I think he deserved his sentence, but I hope he can turn his life around and I wish him success.
You are correct that he can't be restricted from making a living. But there are employment restrictions as to ex-cons. Further, the NFL and one of its teams decided to hire him back. He can't be prevented from working, but they could have made the choice not to hire him again.
I'm not familiar with the employment restrictions for ex-cons, but I would hope it just prevents certain ex-cons (depending on the crime) from getting certain types of jobs (e.g., a child molester cannot work at a child care center or a school). I doubt the restrictions limit the amount of their income. At least, I hope not. Personally, I see no reason why a convicted dog molester shouldn't be allowed to play in the NFL. That doesn't seem to put dogs in further danger.
If everybody was opposed to hiring ex-cons, we'd have an even bigger crime problem than we already have.
Again, I'm glad the Eagles signed him and I hope he is able to do well.
Does it also piss you off that the ex-con Martha Stewart was able to return to her highly profitable career?
Nope. Nature of the crime. Surely you don't think all crimes are equal? Of course there are no restrictions on amount of income, but there are some restrictions along the lines that you guessed. Obviously there is no legal barrier against Vick returning to the NFL, I just think it was a poor decision by the NFL and The Eagles.
He could have become a dog catcher or a worker at the SPCA. It will be interesting to see how the fans react to his return on the field. Might not be pretty.
Post a Comment