PETA, of course, is making a huge deal out of it because you know, if PETA can make a huge deal out of President Obama killing a fly (did anyone ever tell PETA that flies carry germs and diseases?), then a convicted dog fighter will get a whole mess of attention from PETA. To be fair, though, outside of the PETA sphere of influence, many rabid (pun intended) dog lovers are upset by Vick's signing, too.
But the fact is that Vick served his prison time; he has served his debt to society, according to our laws. Therefore, if he has served his debt to society, why are people still so outraged? In a country that "prides" itself on forgiveness, this doesn't sound very forgiving. In fact, Vick was sentenced by a judge who wanted to make a statement and as such, Vick likely got a harsher sentence than someone not of his fame might have. Whether the 2 year prison sentence was long enough is a debate for another day, though I seem to remember reading polls at the time that people felt that the sentence was long enough.
Naysers have said things like: Vick is famous and that his signing makes it seem like just because you're famous, you can do some heinous crime and still get back into the NFL and make big bucks. This is not a good role model for our kids!
I contend the opposite. The fact that Vick was convicted of a crime, spent two years in jail, and has not been fully reinstated by the NFL is showing kids that if you commit a crime, you will pay consequences for it! You might not get your job back. Vick's salary is contingent on his playing *games* and currently, the NFL is not allowing him to play *games*. No big bucks there. AND, if Vick becomes an anti-dog fighting spokesperson, his fame would serve the cause very well.
The ethical part of this is interesting to me, but I obviously lean toward the "he's done his time, so let him re-join society and make a living and pay taxes like the rest of us". So I'm done with that part of the saga.
What I am finding more intriguing is that an NFL team was willing to take on the Public Relations nightmare known as Michael Vick especially since Vick didn't pan out to be that good a quarterback as predicted by his being the #1 draft pick back in the day.
NFL stadiums where the Eagles will play are going to see PETA protestors. I'm sure there will be derrogatory signs held by fans in the stands. There is no shortage of dog lovers in an NFL fan base, and I am sure there are plenty who are really upset that a convincted dog fighter get to make millions again playing in the NFL. And Eagles fans are not fair weather birds... they are hardcore and vocal. This signing had the potential to alienate a large chunk of their fan base and bring a whole lot of bad press to the Eagles organization.
So why do the Eagles feel the Vick signing won't hurt them? Chris Mortensen of ESPN.com wrote an excellent article explaining why the Eagles can weather signing someone as controversial as Vick. It comes down to 5 major factors that takes a ton of the risk out of signing Vick, according to Mortensen:
It had to be a team with a strong owner. A strong organization. A strong head
coach. A passionate fan base. And, yes, an established, stable quarterback.
Philly has all of those things, and not one of those things is more important than the other. It's a win-win situation, though the win for Vick is far more than the win for the Eagles.
I will be watching the Eagles this season to see how Vick developes and matures under McNabb's guidance.
And I will be watching to see how well our prison system rehabilitated a convicted dog fighter.
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