Should NFL let Vick play?Asset/Liability
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| Tue, 07-28-2009 - 9:39am |
Michael Vick paid his debt, but should NFL let him play?
Legally, there seems no question the disgraced quarterback's reinstatement is justified. Morally, many animal lovers will have misgivings.
http://www.latimes.com/sports/la-sp-pucin-michael-vick28-2009jul28,0,9346.story
Reporting from Kanab, Utah — Your head says Michael Vick has served his time, has suffered some punishment for his horrific involvement in a dogfighting ring and that people who have committed more serious crimes are allowed to leave prison and go back to work.
Your heart, though, remembers a May day in a large and airy kennel here at Best Friends Animal Society, and Georgia, one of the unlucky members of Vick's Bad Newz Kennels, where she was taught to fight and then, because she was so good at that, had all her teeth pulled -- by a veterinarian. That way she could serve her time as a breeding bitch, whether she wanted to or not.
Your head says from a legal standpoint it is wrong to keep Vick from playing football this season for an NFL team if a team wants him. NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell announced Monday that Vick is immediately eligible to practice with an NFL team and can play in the final two exhibition games, with the idea that he may be fully eligible to play in the NFL by mid-October. Otherwise, your head says, what's the point of thinking our justice system works?
Your heart, though, remembers listening to John Garcia, Georgia's main trainer at Best Friends, talk about the worst parts of life for Georgia and her Bad Newz Kennel mates. About how some of the dogs were swung around by the neck and killed for not fighting or not fighting well enough. About how they were beaten and forcibly bred on something called the "rape stand."
Think about that.
Your head says, these are animals after all, not humans, and pro athletes and others in our society have killed humans -- by accident or with malice -- were imprisoned for their crime, served sentences and came back to society.
My heart, though, is at home with a dog named Dillon, who has cancer, who is undergoing experimental chemotherapy and whose spirit and happiness and daily anticipation of the good things in life put a lot of humans to shame, even as he suddenly loses a little hair around the ears.
That's what the sweet pit bull named Georgia teaches people who come to see her.
Georgia, with her toothless grin and her wiggly butt and her desire to kiss anyone and everyone, has become a goodwill ambassador. She puts on a bejeweled pink collar, is hooked on to her pink leash, and Garcia takes her around the country to show how even the fiercest fighting dog can be taught something else.
All Georgia wants is to please people. When her people wanted her to fight, she did. Now when her people want her to make kids giggle and to have adults marvel at her capacity to enjoy life, she does.
Outspoken Buffalo Bills wide receiver Terrell Owens has the right to his opinion given to reporters in Buffalo over the weekend.
"I think the way the commissioner is handling it is unfair to Michael Vick," Owens said. "I think he's done the time for what he's done. I don't think it's really fair for him to be suspended four more games. It's almost like kicking a dead horse in the ground."
Did anyone else's stomach turn at that phrase?
At Best Friends, Garcia sat on the ground in Georgia's kennel and spoke eloquently about Vick's dogs.
"How they were treated," Garcia said, "humans shouldn't be capable of that."
Garcia said his head told him Vick should one day be able to have a job.
"But is it his right to make millions of dollars?" Garcia asked. "I guess it is."
While he spoke, Georgia had run to the far end of her kennel, under a shady tree. She shook her head as if to signal John and a visitor that they should come to the cool place. So we did and she settled down for some petting time.
Should Vick play in the NFL again?
This heart says no, which makes it much less forgiving than Georgia's. She most certainly would give Vick a second chance. She's given all of us humans one. In that way, I guess, she's better than many of us.



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Blessings,
Gypsy
)O(
"What is life? It is the flash of a firefly in the night.
It is the breath of a buffalo in the wintertime.
It is the little shadow which runs across the grass
and loses itself in the sunset.
- Crowfoot, Blackfoot warrior and orator
Dog fighting is cruelty, which is a human activity and a human illness.
It's not the dog's fault.
All dogs need to be evaluated as individuals."
--Tim Racer, one of BAD RAP's founders
http://www.badrap.org/rescue/
Mika Dog
"All things share the same breath;
the beast, the tree, the man.
The Air shares its spirit with
all the life it supports."
--Chief Seattle
"If there are no dogs in Heaven,
then when I die I want to go where they went."
~Will Rogers
"The greatness of a nation and its moral progress
can be judged by the way its animals are treated."
~~Mahatma Gandhi
"Life is a state of mind." ~~from Being There.
Blessings,
Gypsy
)O(
Blessings,
Gypsy
)O(
"What is life? It is the flash of a firefly in the night.
It is the breath of a buffalo in the wintertime.
It is the little shadow which runs across the grass
and loses itself in the sunset.
- Crowfoot, Blackfoot warrior and orator
Dog fighting is cruelty, which is a human activity and a human illness.
It's not the dog's fault.
All dogs need to be evaluated as individuals."
--Tim Racer, one of BAD RAP's founders
http://www.badrap.org/rescue/
Mika Dog
"All things share the same breath;
the beast, the tree, the man.
The Air shares its spirit with
all the life it supports."
--Chief Seattle
"If there are no dogs in Heaven,
then when I die I want to go where they went."
~Will Rogers
"The greatness of a nation and its moral progress
can be judged by the way its animals are treated."
~~Mahatma Gandhi
"Life is a state of mind." ~~from Being There.
Blessings,
Gypsy
)O(
I just don't expect him to be around very long. He will either screw up or someone will make his life a living He**. I would bet that PETA will be making a lot of appearances where ever he is. Read in the Sunday paper that he had an appearance last week. Only a handful of the invited people showed up. No reporters allowed. I think it said only 60 Minutes was allowed to report. They put paper on the windows, so no one could see in.
Too me, he just doesn't seem remorseful.
I did see an interview with Dante Stallworth. He does seem to be very remorseful. He was suspended for a year.
We'll see.
Okay, I get what you are saying, but I'm neutral about animals so...
...sure dog fighting is illegal in our country, but so is smoking marijuana and murder but people get off for those crimes everyday-especially the police. I remember this cop got high and called the police because the weed made him "feel funny" lol...
No, God does not tolerate any kind of ugly treatment, but I was just saying
Yes, he does live in the US and so do I, but for someone to get locked up for an animal is bogus. Period. The only punishable reason to me is if he stole someone's pet dog and made it fight-then he deserved to go to jail. Otherwise, it was a stupid jail sentence. Period.
....but for someone to get locked up for an animal is bogus. Period. The only punishable reason to me is if he stole someone's pet dog and made it fight-then he deserved to go to jail.
So as long as it's your own animal, you should be able to torture it, kill it by putting it in a cage and dropping it into water, or shocking it until it's dead, or hang it by a noose and watch it twitch until it dies?
There is more to illegal activities such as dog fighting than just the idea of animal abuse. Along with
I heard something very interesting today on ESPN radio. Tony Dungy, the ex Indy Colts coach who just retired, has now taken on the unofficial role as Vick's mentor and spokesman. He was asked if he thought Vick's speech the other day had been rehearsed beforehand in order to make sure he came across as remorseful when discussing it. Dungy admitted he thought that Vick's attorneys had grilled him on exactly what key points needed to be made in order for the general public to be a little more sympathetic.
For Dungy to have said that took me by surprise. He had visited Vick in prison more than once, and has been a huge reason that Vick was given a chance to continue playing in the NFL.
I guess in the end, who really knows whether or not he's truly remorseful for what he did? Each side has their own agenda on this, let's face it. And neither side is going to budge at all in their arguments one way or the other. As much as I hate what he did to those animals, he was raised in an atmosphere where dog fighting was looked upon as not only acceptable, but a birthright for all young men growing up in his neck of the woods. Pete Rose was raised around horse tracks by his uncles and dad....hence he later became addicted to gambling. Many other examples are out there of people being brought up around activities that look deplorable to many of us, but "normal"
As with most every issue and situation such as
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