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A few years removed from one of the most spectacular declines in sports history, Michael Vick has the Eagles on the brink of the NFL Playoffs, and among the Super Bowl favorites in the NFC, if not the entire league. The rehabilitation is almost complete. He just needs one more thing (well, plus a gigantic contract in 2011) to feel content.
As he told one reporter:
"I would love to get another dog in the future. I think it would be a big step for me in the rehabilitation process. I think just to have a pet in my household and to show people that I genuinely care, and my love, and my passion for animals."
A new member of the Vick clan, you say?
Hmm. I'm going to go ahead and say this is a terrible idea, if not for Michael Vick's sake, then for the legions of critics that would go apoplectic seeing the PURE EVIL DOG KILLER cuddling up with a new best friend. Seriously, this could lead to our first PETA-related homicide.
Dogs are awesome companions for everyone, and Vick's evolution seems sincere, so it'd be nice to see him get a dog and come full circle. But you know that old saying? "Don't shake the hornets nest"?
Or maybe it was, "Don't become the highest-profile dogfighter in history and then try to get a dog."
The ethical debate is a whole 'nother story, but from a purely practical standpoint: It's probably against his probation for the next few years, and it's definitely just asking for trouble. Right?
7 comments
Comments
This subject is like beating a dead
horsedog.But are there any MEN associated with PETA that are
hating onprotesting Vick as avidly? Just curious.I’m not for giving people second chances, myself. Once they mess up, boy howdy, they are on my S*** List. Sorta. Blood relatives seem to get a pass for some reason. (rolls eyes)
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by CajunCavern on Dec 15, 2010 1:40 PM EST reply actions
I’m going to say it every time we pretend that Vick’s dogfighting stuff was just misunderstood because of cultural differences. Hangings, electrocutions, drowning, slamming them into the ground…etc…those aren’t normal execution methods associated with dogfightings. Something that I know because dogfighting is sadly not an unusual activity in an area close to where I live. What he did was pretty disturbing and I’d say “PURE EVIL DOG KILLER” fits quite well even if it was used sarcastically. The joy that he is said to have gotten from throwing family pets in with trained killers also doesn’t exactly strike me as “just a guy from a different culture.”
He’s more than entitled to make a living playing football or doing whatever. But owning a dog? I’m not going to get down with that idea.
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by Brent Brookhouse on Dec 15, 2010 2:30 PM EST reply actions
proximity doesn't make you an expert
Unless you’re regularly attending these dog fights that occur “in an area close” to your home, I don’t think they give you any authority to speak on “normal execution methods.”
Also, I’m pretty sure the author didn’t mention cultural differences once in the article so it just seems strangely bitter and irrelevant.
by biglbrandonbanks on Dec 15, 2010 10:08 PM EST up reply actions
Oooor…maybe I have experience with adopted pit bulls coming out of these situations.
And yes, I’m quite bitter with Vick and think he is a piece of garbage.
Editor - BloodyElbow.com - SBNation's mixed martial arts headquarters.
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by Brent Brookhouse on Dec 15, 2010 11:33 PM EST up reply actions
No buys,
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by MattHaggard on Dec 15, 2010 2:43 PM EST reply actions
Vick's free
Vick is by all accounts a changed man. If he thinks he can responsibly own a dog, he absolutely should.
In the Philadelphia area, the man can do no wrong right now. I bet that plenty of Eagles fans would be more than happy to let Vick dog sit for them if he keeps playing the way he has. The real story here is that Vick is playing incredibly well, not what he should or shouldn’t do with dogs. I’m pretty sure that he has learned that lesson.
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by SKOHR on Dec 15, 2010 4:28 PM EST reply actions
This is 1) for his daughter’s sake and 2) a PR move. I don’t know if Vick wants a dog or not, but I genuinely believe his daughter might. And people certainly have their right to never forgive Vick for what he did. It was cruel and barbaric. Teenagers who abuse animals are usually labelled psychotic, satanic, or both. To me, as a taxpayer, I would rather see him out working and leading a clean life than being in a prison supported by taxpayer dollars, then released with no job skills outside of sports and possibly winding up like his brother.
by donniethelion on Dec 15, 2010 6:43 PM EST reply actions
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