Vic has demonstrated a long-term pattern of behavior that indicates that, in his view, dog fighting is perfectly okay. A little bit of jail time is not going to change that. Not to mention what kids will take from all this. They will see a man who was given a great deal of money for having a particular talent, who used that money to bankroll this dog fighting and breeding operation, and who went right back to his high-profile life of money and fame after he was caught. The net effect? An attitude that says "who cares if its wrong, all you have to do is take a little time-out, then you can go right back to the fame and celebrity."

Lets not mince words here folks, Vic is "ghetto" in the worst possible sense of the word. Yes, he is a very talented football player and yes, he has done the time for his crime. Unfortunately that does not make everything "all better." 

**UNdead/GirlCo - We'll eat your brains and look good doing it.**

I think its horrible how this whole situation turned out. He should have gotten more time in jail for what he did. And on top of that they let him back into the NFL! Its says a lot about pro atheletes and the teams that pay them. Fame in America has gotten out of hand, these people need to be held accountable for there actions not waved through the courts with a sheepish grin and an apology from the judge! I wont watch a single eagles game this year even if they make it through the playoffs to the SB. Mark Wahlberg should go there and kick the hell out of vick for even putting the uniform on!!

Jason (Jayguana)

Festina Lente

but wether or not he was just saying that, i dont know. If he somehow proves he shows remorse or makes amends, maybe back. but if he comes back the pacman should be allowed in the league.

G-Man

"I used to be obsessed with a tv show about people acting like jackasses. I think it was called dumbass" - Earl Hickey

_______________________________________________

[flickr-photo:id=3718433600,size=m][flickr-photo:id=3725895360,size=m]

 and a name of "DOG KILLER"

That might work.....

I like the no pads concept though.

________________________________________________

[flickr-photo:id=3727587091,size=s][flickr-photo:id=3274749401,size=m][flickr-photo:id=3727549381,size=s]

I figured there'd be at least some folks saying "Well, now he can use his fame to educate people about how what he did was wrong etc etc." 

Not that I'm horribly upset at the universal condemnation, mind you.

________________________________________________

[flickr-photo:id=3727587091,size=s][flickr-photo:id=3274749401,size=m][flickr-photo:id=3727549381,size=s]

 That goes way beyond athletes. Look at movie stars versus teachers, firefighters, and policemen. And you don't even want to get me started on how much the average American practically worships the almighty dollar. It's a tool, not a deity.

________________________________________________

[flickr-photo:id=3727587091,size=s][flickr-photo:id=3274749401,size=m][flickr-photo:id=3727549381,size=s]

 Who could ask for more?

________________________________________________

[flickr-photo:id=3727587091,size=s][flickr-photo:id=3274749401,size=m][flickr-photo:id=3727549381,size=s]

Look guys, we are a society of laws. Vick broke the law. Society punnished him, gave him a sentence, which he served. He has paid his debt to society. Now he is an ex-convict seeking employment. While the vast majority of ex-cons can't earn multi-million-dollar contracts, Vick can.

We don't get to pass judgement on what kind of job he should or shouldn't have. This is a capitalist society, and the free market rules. Vick has skills that certain employers want. He is free to do business with those employers. 

What he did was horrible and despicable, but, society assigned him a punishment for that crime. He did his time, and that's that. Hence, he has the right to live free and pursue happiness. 

Lastly, it is not the NFL's job to pass judgement. The NFL is a private enterprise. To not hire Vick is akin to black-balling. He is an exceptional talent, and the only way he doesn't wind up on a team is if the NFL franchises are in collusion to black-ball him. That's illegal and morally reprehensible, and a slippery slope.

And don't give me this crap about the NFL "hiring anyone" or taking "the worst of the worse." The majority of NFL players are upstanding citizens. The NFL is here to entertain, not to raise our children, not to "set an example" and not to be some psuedo-moralistic judgement board. They have rules. If you break those rules, they have the option of letting you work your way back in. It's a private enterprise.

I don't like Vick, don't like what he did, and would love to see him have to fight a half-starved pit bull that's been trained to shred humans on sight. That is what I think would be a punishment that fits the crime. But I don't set punishments (and with damn good reason, as you can see), our society does.

He did his time. Doesn't matter if we like him or not, he has a right to seek gainful employment.  

on a psychology / philosophy - induced tirade, but I figured that if I started throwing out things like Decarte & Neitzche and the complexity of indvidual actions in a dynamic social martix, heads might start exploding. Plus it would have ended up being like 15 pages long. I tend to get on a roll when I'm ranting.

I have to agree with what Scott said up above though. We live in a society of established laws and punishments, and the social contract dictates that we all agree to abide both by those laws and those punishments.  

**UNdead/GirlCo - We'll eat your brains and look good doing it.**

I completely agree with you.

as a dog owner who wants to express some "law" on our friend I want make him pay forever.

I completely agree that living under the law set forth by our forefathers and such, we must follow those laws and punishments. Alas, we also have the right to express our pissed-0ff-ed-ness at what the general populous feels is just another celebrity getting off  lightly.

and all us Junkies appreciate that you give us a place to express those feelings and the fact that you sometimes need to bring us back to reality with the truth of the matter.

Thanks, your dedicated Junkies

_______________________________________________

[flickr-photo:id=3718433600,size=m][flickr-photo:id=3725895360,size=m]

I don't want to agree with you, but I have to agree with you. Not just because you are the FDO, but because you're right. Michael Vick deserves to be hired by any team in the NFL. He qualifies for the job, or at least for the chance to earn his job.

 If you don't agree with the sentence he received, (and served) you can take it up with the lawmakers and court system. I, for one, think that his sentence was just barely on the fair side. I've seen convicted murderers get less time.

 That being said, I'm glad that my favorite team, the Steelers, didn't pick him up. I can appreciate the skills the man had, but I think he will have a hard time overcoming the fan disapproval and will create a distraction for the rest of the team. That, and I just don't like the man. 

[flickr-photo:id=3383210176,size=m][flickr-photo:id=3722083270,size=m]
And Friend of MuchAdo!

It was "What's your stance on the Michael Vick situation?"

________________________________________________

[flickr-photo:id=3727587091,size=s][flickr-photo:id=3274749401,size=m][flickr-photo:id=3727549381,size=s]

   That's how a free market economy works. If someone produces a product you don't like, you don't buy it. In this case the product is entertainment (ie football).

   I encourage anyone who disapproves of Vick's actions (or character) to boycott any game that he's participating in. That's the only real weapon the public has to voice our disapproval to his employers. If we can create enough of a financial disruption, they may reconsider their choice of hiring him. This goes for both home and away games, but especially the ones in Philadelphia.

________________________________________________

[flickr-photo:id=3727587091,size=s][flickr-photo:id=3274749401,size=m][flickr-photo:id=3727549381,size=s]

with my wolfie.  Whatever he says goes!

[flickr-photo:id=3763066856,size=m] and friend of GirlCo's official mascot

Your average company will not hire a felon, especialy violent felons. There are very few jobs in the US that pay over 20,000 a year that are not concerned with criminal records. The NFL should be held to these standards,

The NFL does hire anyone. If you dont want to believe that thats your decision. Although that is part of the problem, they wear blinders and so do most fans. That truth is they cant hold themselves to those kind of standards because there would be a lot of star atheletes suddenly out of a job, and nobody wants to see a bunch of 20 something millionaires out of a job. I know I would be crushed!

This goes for all sports, baseball players have lied to federal grand jury's with out punishment also.

If your kid killed a neighbors cat for fun would you tell them its no big deal and act like nothing happened??

"Ok God... Let me have it!"

Jason (Jayguana)

Festina Lente

"Ok God... Let me have it!"

In my opinion, this is just wrong. In our legal system, *(And I'm speaking of the US of Fucking A here), ex cons are supposed to be just that. EX cons. They still have the right to try to fit into society just like anyone else. OK, in some cases, some of their rights are revoked, but in general, they owed society a debt that was determined by our elected officials and have paid that debt to the satisfaction of the courts. This means that they no longer owe anything. They are free. I would consider any team that refused to hire Vick based soley on his court record instead of on his football record to be just as bigoted as one that wouldn't hire him because his skin is blue. Keep in mind that I absolutely do not like the man. Not because he just got out of prison. I don't like him because his opinions and beleifs and attitude grate me deeply. I don't think he has any remorse for his crimes. I do think he could still be a great quarterback. 

[flickr-photo:id=3383210176,size=m][flickr-photo:id=3722083270,size=m]
And Friend of MuchAdo!

keep this in mind!

 [flickr-photo:id=3383210176,size=m][flickr-photo:id=3722083270,size=m]
And Friend of MuchAdo!

If people didn't get away with things quite so easily then people would work harder to not make a mistake like killing 40 or 50 dogs. Making money illegaly and running a gamble and dog fighting ring.

Its funny that you would say that he has the right to start over, what if he was a rappist or child molester and he wanted to live near you or work with you? I bet thats a whole different set of personel rules for everyone.

And a corporation refusing to employ  a convict is not bigotry, its there legal right and good business.  

Sorry... Vick really pisses me off.

Jason (Jayguana)

Festina Lente

Am I not making that point clear?

You seem to be saying that there is no such thing as rehabilitation, retribution or forgiveness. I have and do work with ex cons. Several. I hired them. I respect them and treat them just like any other employees have. My May employee of the month spent 14 years in the state pokie for murder. I hired him two weeks after he got out. He's raising a fine family and works extremely hard for them.

 I'm not saying that you don't have a right to your opinion, it just differs with mine.  Legal right? Yes, it may be. Good business? Not in my case.

[flickr-photo:id=3383210176,size=m][flickr-photo:id=3722083270,size=m]
And Friend of MuchAdo!