Weighing in on Vick...

So Michael Vick signed with an NFL team, the Philadelphia Eagles. Or, more likely, the team signed him... he would have taken anyone, but there were few that would have given him anything. And the debate, the outrage, the opinions, return. Dogfighting, remorse, suspension, football, etc.

I have never really been able to put it all together to come up with one concise viewpoint. As a Christian man, I will never condone such callus brutality toward anything, but I'm not equating dogs with people, either. I struggle with good points on both sides, some leading to, "Give him a second chance," and others leading to, "Lock him back up." So I'm just going to spew ideas in this post, and maybe I (or one of my 1.5 regular readers) will be guided in one direction or another.

• I can stand definitively on one point: the NFL, particularly its commissioner, can do whatever it wants. Playing in the NFL is a high-paying job, a privilege, and it is a business. If you are bad for business, it has no obligation to you. If Commissioner Goodell wanted to suspend Vick longer, by all means, I'm behind him. If no team wanted to sign Vick, regardless of the reasoning, by all means, there's no conspiracy or blackballing. When you take a job, you must protect your job, and you must be good for business, even outside of the workplace.
• As for the dogfighting issue, I happen to love dogs. I grew up with a dog. Growing up in a typical, white suburban family, short on newsworthy drama, the dog provided a daily spark. But a dog is not a human. I believe there is clear separation in creation between humans and people. Here's where I start to offend people: animal rights activists that go insane at a story like Vick's, but don't blink when a young child is gunned down in the city... that drives me nuts. How many times did we see, as people described Mike Vick's involvement in dogfighting, as inhumane. Did we notice that the word HUMAN is right in the middle of that word?!?! That doesn't make sense to me. We watch humans do this MMA fighting, boxing, Fight Club-style stuff, and that's entertainment, but dogfighting produces. I HATE DOGFIGHTING, don't get me wrong, but isn't there something warped about that? I'm not in favor of equating dogs with people, or any other animals, for that matter. My apartment has a bug infestation right now, and I'm setting off bombs to kill them all. Am I a homicidal maniac? What animals get our love, and which others don't?
• The other side of the dogfighting issue... I think that psychology will prove that people who treat animals in such a cruel fashion tend to be heartless, cruel people. I don't think you'll find too many dogfighters getting lost and overwhelmed in worship on Sunday morning at church. Mindless, heartless cruelty is always wrong. It's funny how so many of the most notorious, sick mass murderers tortured animals when they were young, before they started killing people. I don't know exactly what all of this means, but I think there is justification to be suspicious of someone's moral compass if they dogfight.
• The bottom line on dogfighting... it is against the law. Period. If people in Virginia, or Georgia, or wherever else Vick is in trouble for dogfighting at, have a problem with his punishment, take it up with legislators. He broke the law, I don't care what supporters say, he knew it was against the law and never said he was surprised it was against the law. He deserved his punishment.
• Vick himself... it is convenient that he speaks out now against dogfighting, because obviously he is trying to repair his image in the public. It's hard also because he's not a cuddly personality with an electric smile... he's pretty inward and emotionless publicly. So people tend to think he doesn't care and he's just going through the motions to get a job back. This may be the case. Even if he had a Magic Johnson smile and Tom Brady charisma to host Saturday Night Live, I wouldn't let him dog-sit Fido. Can we trust that the change, and his remorse, is legit? Is he really sorry or just sorry he got caught? As I'm learning, repentance, remorse, and seeking forgiveness is a life-long growth process... it involves digging deeper and deeper into those scary depths of the human soul, and it's not easy. I don't visibly see him doing that digging, and he doesn't express it outwardly, at least the way I do. So I'm skeptical, but I'm not sure.
• It is a black/white thing? I don't know! Michael Vick is a black man who was never known for his friendly personality or electric public persona. Most of the paying public who spend money on NFL games is white. We like Peyton Manning, who does Mastercard commercials, and Brian Urlacher, who does Old Spice commercials. Urlacher, by the way, is no saint, and does not have the most cuddly personality. But he was marketable in a big Chicago market, and thrust into commericials in spite of, not because of, his comfort in the spotlight. Manning, Urlacher, Tom Brady, white. Would the public be more willing to give Vick another chance if he were white? Sadly, I'm just not sure of the answer at this point.
• It is a very good sign that Vick has Tony Dungy, on his sign. Dungy, the former coach of the Colts, is a man in truest, biblical, honorable sense. He is humble, he is a leader, he is insightful and honest, and he worships Jesus with every fiber of his being. He handles trials and adversity, both as a coach and in life (his son died several years ago), God's way. There is no doubt in my mind that Vick has at least one godly influence telling him of his need for the Lord, above all else. I don't know if that message has truly sunk in, but I trust the messenger and the message.