Fair or Not, Vick Reinstatement is Right

Vick's reinstatement is a good lesson on the value of redemption. His actions were cruel, but perhaps in his punishment, he has learned a lesson and should be able to teach it to others. It really is an educational opportunity. Let his star power be a vehicle to teach from.

I have some mixed feelings about this, probably as most decent human beings do - but I have to agree, he should be allowed to resume his career since he paid his debt. I personally DO NOT think that he served enough time for killing dogs, but it is not my opinion that counts in this matter, it is that of the justice system.

That said, when he gets booed, will I feel that it's an injustice to him? Absolutely NOT. If he wants to suit up for the game, show up for his pay check - in a sport that is fan-driven - then by all means, if you want to let him know how you feel by booing him, I, for one, am not going to stand in your way. I'm not a fan of booing, either. I don't boo at events unless something really shady happens and it's clear that someone is responsible - like when Jamie Varner said "f*ck you" to the San Diego crowd after he b*tched out of his fight with Donald Cerrone. I booed his ass, because of how he conducted himself.

And you're damn right, I would boo Michael Vick, too, because I believe he deserves to know how people feel about him. That will be his "cross to bear" so to speak, and it will be just.

I think this is another sad reason why we shouldn't be considering professional athletes as role models. My argument against him being brought back into the NFL was also the "children looking up to him" card but unfortunately the majority of those who are in pro sports, especially football and basketball continue to get away with doing horrible things. Where will the line be drawn?? The trend is even making its way into college sports. 5 DUI's? eh, we'll just suspend you for a few games. Whatever happened to representing yourself, your team, and your league on and off the field? Whatever happened to people's ACCOUNTABILITY?

Psychologists have long said that people who end up being mass murderers start out by hurting animals. How someone could drown, hang, shoot, or electrocute a dog because it didn't perform is beyond me, much less 8 dogs in a single day. Vick should be electrocuted for breaking his leg during the season. Or what about his measly 54% pass completion? That's not much of a performance there, Micky.

Vick definitely will be a PR nightmare for any team crazy enough to sign him. The loss of revenue in merchandising alone would be horrendous - who wants to sport a jersey representative of animal cruelty? And with all my biases shining through - he did terrible things and shouldn't be rewarded with a huge salary.

Mike,

First off I want to give you kudos for posting on this topic. It's a topic that many people are passionate about and anyone who gives there 'two cents' is going to have people who strongly agree or strongly disagree.

When it comes to PR – the NFL is gaining a great deal of exposure, whether they reinstated Vick or not, there would have been people happy or upset about the decision. There are people on both sides of the fence, those that want him kicked out and those that want him to have another chance. Overall, the NFL (in my opinion) will not lose anything by taking him back and if anything will play up that everyone deserves a second chance and that Vick’s a changed man bringing a fresh perspective to the league on becoming a better person. Is this true or not? Not my call. However, the NFL as an organization gains more from taking him back than shutting him out.

Now for personal opinion – when you say “he served his debt to society, splitting his time between jail and prohibitive house arrest,” that is your opinion. Not everyone shares this. I am a dog lover and spend a lot of my time volunteering for these wonderful animals as they cannot speak for themselves. His punishment, in my opinion, was not enough to “pay his debt.” His house arrest? Silly. He lives in a more plush home than most people get when they go on vacation! Now, everyone does make mistakes and everyone deserves a second chance – but he didn’t stop after 1, 2 or 3 dogs, he killed dozens. He clearly doesn’t see anything wrong with watching these dogs die or contributing to it. I have to agree with Nicole on the fact that anyone willing to abuse animals is likely to be an abusive person overall and dangerous. Only after a few years of therapy and true showing of remorse could I ever support him coming back into the NFL.

Nicole, totally hear you and see where you are coming from, but think about some of the other guys that are in pro sports leagues.

Just the other day I was watching Sports Center, and they did a segment on extreme athletes who show no fear, and put their lives on the line all the time. Should they not be allowed to BMX bike, skateboard or motor cross because little kids will want to do it too and they put them at risk of life threatening injury if they do?

Pro sports are filled with a lot of guys who characters can be questioned, but if they can be given a second chance in life, why not in sports. Just to name a few, Ray Lewis, Jamal Lewis, some of the NBA rookies who were caught smoking pot last year at summer workouts, Jason Kidd (possible domestic abuse), Kobe (suspicion of rape a few years ago in Denver), Pete Rose (will Bud Selig reinstate him), the juicers (Sosa, McGwire, Manny, A-Rod etc...).

Pro sports seems like a place for second chances, so why should Vick get one too?

So many athletes have character issues, but like Mike said above, "At the end of the day, even though he was convicted of his crimes, he served his sentence and deserves the chance to make a living. I don’t like that he can go from prison to the penthouse so quickly, but that is his legal right and I will defend that right to the fullest."

Ugh...this is a topic no one should really get me started on (lol)...but I HATE Michael Vick with a passion...because it's people like him that give my breeds of choice (American Pit Bull Terriers, Staffordshire Terriers, and Staffordshire Bull Terriers) a bad name. As a pit owner, I have to spend my life defending this amazing breed because people like Vick abuse them.

In my opinion, someone that would purposefully harm an animal would also do the same to a human...and would you want your children looking up to a football "star" that killed a person? Where's the line? How is it ok to kill NUMEROUS innocent dogs?!

What Vick did was wrong and I don't believe for a second that he's sorry aside from the fact that he got caught. Yeah, he served his time...but if he's reinstated, little kids are going to begin looking up to him again...and this is NOT someone anyone should look up to.

UGH! This makes me so angry...sorry for the rant but I don't think there is anyone in the world I hate more than Michael Vick. I would love to hear one day that he died in a dog attack...sorry but that's just how I feel about people who abuse innocent animals...especially in the very brutal way that he did! (Note: I feel the same about ANYONE involved in dog fighting)...

Another blog commented about who should represent VICK and would you represent him. I agree, he served his time, but going back to the top league is a privilege. I think the NFL has tight rules and I think they would rethink about signing him.