The Nation's Pulse
Man Bites Dog
The strange and sad case of Michael Vick.
The strange and sad case of Michael Vick got a bit stranger this week when the newly-signed Eagles quarterback appeared on 60 Minutes -- complete with a spokesman from the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) -- to deliver his obligatory mea culpa to a waiting world. What makes this incident stranger than most is that America's love of animals, specifically dogs, has trumped the heretofore indestructible use of racism as a defense for wrongdoing and so has not saved Mr. Vick from the wrath of millions.
Accusations of racism have long been employed to excuse the behavior of thugs and gang-bangers who happen to populate the sports and entertainment worlds. Take the case of Allen Iverson, NBA superstar and long-time bad-boy. In trouble since his high school days when he served four months in a correctional facility for his conviction in a felony mob assault case (later overturned), this paragon of virtue once quipped, "associating hip-hop styles of dress with violent crime, drugs, or a bad image is racist." Yet, as so poignantly pointed out by columnist Bryan Burwell,
What has happened is that we let the real African American culture get buried under the darkest element of a hip-hop generation that glorified and perpetuated all the worst racial stereotypes our parents, grandparents and great grandparents took their lifetimes to erase...Now they come glamorizing thug life and prison fashion, legitimizing derogatory racial insults into the mainstream, and convincing an entire generation that the only measure of true blackness is a hard-core gangsta edge, and anyone who rejects this is either hopelessly out of touch or a sad Uncle Tom.
And, of course, should any whites agree with the courageous Mr. Burwell, they would most certainly be called racists. Still, the most curious aspect of the Vick flap remains that since his release from prison, not even the race gambit has been able to rehabilitate the rogue quarterback in the eyes of the public. After all, he did not rape anyone, he was not implicated in any shootings, nor has he been involved in any drug accusations. No, he was cruel to animals; and in America, almost no one, except maybe W.C. Fields, can hate dogs and get away with it.
Now, on the face of it, this doesn't seem like much of a problem. I mean, who would not abhor the sick acts perpetrated by Vick and company against innocent animals. But if one looks deeper, this is a most disturbing development. Of all of the ways in which the left has made inroads into the psyche of the American public, this is perhaps the most insidious: the equation of humans with animals.
In the old days, pets were looked on as welcome additions to a household; as watchdogs, or as companions for elderly adults or the children. Today, the dogs have replaced those children. Indeed, the term adoption, when applied to pets as it has been for a few decades now, should give one a clue. In my town, there is one hospital for humans and six for animals.
The left, as has been its tactic for years, has taken over formerly benign organizations like HSUS, which has shifted its emphasis from promoting the humane treatment of animals to trumpeting animal "rights." They have said, "there is no rational basis for maintaining a moral distinction between the treatment of humans and other animals."
If you doubt that they are what amounts to a wholly-owned subsidiary of the far left, check out (pdf) HSUS's most recent policy statement -- a chilling document which advocates "eating with conscience" -- where nearly two of its 13 pages are devoted to Climate Change and its effects on animals. Consider their statement on cloning:
Such experiments reveal a recklessness and hubris, rejecting the prior claims of nature and the inherent dignity of animal life. They treat animals as commodities alone, instead of as living individuals with needs and natures of their own.
Would that statements of such passion and concern be made on behalf of human life and dignity by those on the left. When, in fact, appeals on behalf of innocent human life are made by people like Pope Benedict XVI, they are derided as the ravings of religious fanatics and summarily dismissed as "politics."
So Michael Vick might yet be forgiven, but his crimes will never be allowed to be forgotten. Yet, in a world that doesn't particularly value human life; a world where many see man as the enemy of nature instead of its steward; in a society that has been increasingly lead to believe -- and tragically, acted upon -- the notion that, as PETA puts it, "a rat is a dog is a boy," charges of racism would be almost welcome.
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Ernest| 8.19.09 @ 7:49AM
Great and insightful post MS Fabrizio.
Sean| 8.19.09 @ 8:23AM
I think Vick was sentenced more to a reeducation camp than a prison.
St. Thor| 8.19.09 @ 8:56AM
That PETA and the Humane Society are filed with idiots doesn't change the fact that if Vic looses a game he should be hung from a tree and beaten with sticks and cattleprods until he is dead.
Leeny| 8.19.09 @ 9:16AM
Vick served his time at Leavenworth. That's a real prison in my book. I'm a dog owner, but I do think PETA's Ingrid Newkirk is a bit nutty, especially when she reiterates the phrase quoted above - "a rat is a dog is a boy". Human life isn't more valuable than animal life. Sorry, but if my niece and dog fall overboard on a goat, I'm saving my niece first. Newkirk won't make that distinction when pressed.
Leeny| 8.19.09 @ 9:17AM
Make that a boat. ha ha
Michael Tomlinson| 8.19.09 @ 9:18AM
One can only hope Michael Vick was somebody's "bitch" in prison.
Endo| 8.19.09 @ 9:21AM
I blame the NFL. They continue to coddle lunatics like Vick. The closest association MV should have with the NFL is selling hotdogs in the stands during the games.
ame| 8.19.09 @ 9:55AM
Vick is a felon - an unethical/immoral jerk - he had his chance and flaunted it in every disgusting way. Vick is a coward and should never have been given a second chance - that chance should go to someone else who has more talent and a conscience. Damn the Eagles - hope they crash - The NFL is also a coward that condones Vick's disgusting behavior when it allows Vick, the yellow-bellied bully anywhere near football - it's about time people in charge acted like adults and stood up for what is morally right rather than teach that anything goes - behavior does not matter, except for as the dissembling BO says - "typical white" people - The NFL is pathetic -
BUT I LOVE FAVRE - GO VIKINGS and DIE EAGLES.
Dave| 8.19.09 @ 10:17AM
Let us not forget that animal rights is neither a conservative nor a liberal issue. It is a personal "lifestyle" issue. I am a conservative, and my concern is fiscal responsibility at the federal and state levels. Low taxes. Freedom of choice. The sooner we get off the "non-fiscal" issues, the more effective we'll be as a political force.
Piper1| 8.19.09 @ 10:51AM
Right on, Lisa. From the very beginning of this case, I have been saying that if it had been revealed that Vick owned a chain of abortion clinics, he would be getting awards for his great services to humanity.
Mike in Vermon| 8.19.09 @ 10:57AM
Equating human life to that of animals is a dangerous idea whether it's considered liberal or conservative.
Vick is a minor felon. His punishment seemed way over the top to me. Whether or not he deserves a second chance in football is up to the NFL and its fans.
Dogs are stinky, filthy and slobberingly needy animals. I know. I own two unfortunately.
dasboot| 8.19.09 @ 11:06AM
I cant believe anyone expects me to get worked up about what Vick did when we live in a country that has 400 late term abortions per day. I wish Vick would quit apologizing. He more than paid his debt. Go Eagles.! Go Vick!
Dave| 8.19.09 @ 12:13PM
And here we have in the above comments of Piper1, Mike in Vermon, and dasboot the reason that we conservatives strive to win incremental victories, but lose big battles. We stupidly interleave the social crap with legitimate fiscal issues. Abortion is a personal decision -- just get the govt. out of it. I think Vick is vile and I personally only wish his demise, but the Eagles made a calculated business decision and that is their business -- not mine. Fiscal issues. Taxes. Freedom. Personal Responsibility.
Thomas Aquinas| 8.19.09 @ 12:15PM
I hope that in prison Mr. Vick was not forced to do it doggy style.
gill.Oteen07041776@gmail.com| 8.19.09 @ 12:33PM
Zeus faces the death penalty. Zeus is an absolutely gorgeous almost fully grown Great Dane that has the misfortune to be owned by a couple of dunderheads. He attacked me in the street last April and had to spend 10 days in the pound. At that time he was not up-to-date on his shots. Released back to dunderhead custody, I guess his fate was preordained. Last week, he tried to go after a neighbor who, like I, was guilty of walking down the street. This time Mrs. Dunderhead grabbed his leash and walked him up to the neighbor saying that the dog doesn’t bite and only needs to get to know him. Suddenly Zeus lunged and there are few 100 pound people who can restrain a 200 pound Great Dane with only a leash. Zeus may have been going for the throat but he grabbed the neighbor’s face instead. So he’s back in dog pokey for another 10 days, after which as a repeat offender, he’ll probably be terminated with extreme prejudice. But Zeus was just doing what alpha males do by defending his territory. Mr. Dunderhead never trained the animal that he was simply the most inferior member of the pack, and Mrs. Dunderhead was absolutely clueless. She saw the dog bite me, and yet told the neighbor that Zeus doesn’t bite. Zeus will die as a result of Dunderhead stupidity. It’s not the dog that should be licensed. It’s the owner, and just as I had to do to exercise my Second Amendment rights, prospective animal owners should be required to take basic training in how to care for these marvelous creatures and what the law requires of them.
And Dave, I don't care what a woman does with her body. I care what she does to her baby's.
Gill O’Teen ✝✡
gill.Oteen07041776@gmail.com
Don’t Tread on Me!!
Derek Leaberry| 8.19.09 @ 12:58PM
As evil as Michael Vick is, at least he did not kill unborn babies or countenance the killing of unborn babies, which is the majority position in the United States. If he had not been caught dogfighting, Vick would still be engaging in dog fights while living large as the quarterback of the Atlanta Falcons, a hero of the crowds and a very rich man. Michael Vick is a sociopath, I am sure. What does that make the bulk of Americans?
Stephanie| 8.19.09 @ 1:02PM
The courts didn't give a damn about what Vick did to the dogs. They cared only that he broke laws with organized gambling.
How we treat animals tells a lot about us as a people. He's a piece of S*it.
kingsmill| 8.19.09 @ 2:46PM
Vick is a social pariah. Private citizens rightly abhor him and his actions. If private citizens pressured the Eagles to get rid of the guy, as a conservative, I'd applaud it. On the other hand, ideological groups like PETA etc, are part of a larger Left wing movement, who ultimately want to enlist the State to enforce their idiocy. Nuts to them.
Le Cracquere| 8.19.09 @ 2:58PM
We conservatives need to stop taking stances against asinine extremists, then driving our counterreactions off the cliff. Just because Ingrid Newkirk is a fool leading a crowd of fools and villains called PETA, that doesn't mean there's anything leftish about humaneness towards animals. In a perfect world, we'd be more solicitous of born & unborn children, but being less solicitous of animals won't bring that about--it's not a zero-sum game.
So Fabrizio's hometown has "one hospital for humans and six for animals"? Build more hospitals for humans, then, but spare us the implications that the six animal hospitals are an inherent problem. (The total "beds" in those six facilities probably number less than a single unit in a human hospital.)
Similarly, if people seem to feel more affection for animals than for children these days, don't just assume that the former affection is inordinate. A far likelier explanation is that the lenient childrearing practices of recent generations have turned most modern children into something that only an obsessed James Barrie-type could love. If we've allowed the average child to become worse company than the average household pet, don't blame the latter for that.
Doorgunner| 8.19.09 @ 3:02PM
Ms. Fabrizio, thank you.
To all of you who think Mr. Vick is a piece of "S*it", or that he is "evil", or that he should have been someone's "bitch" in prison... go to Newport News, Virginia. Go on. Find say... some basketball courts. Park your car, get out, and walk six blocks. I dare you; hell, I defy you. Your pampered, sheltered, naive little asses won't make it three blocks in the middle of the day. That Michael Vick made it out of there and has only dog-fighting as a vice makes him an exceptional human being.
Janis| 8.19.09 @ 3:39PM
I think what Vick did was terrible. But animals do not have 'rights'. He has served time in a hard time prison. I say he has served his time. If the Eagles want him, let him go there. All this will be forgotten if the Eagles win.
gene hauber| 8.19.09 @ 4:06PM
I'm with St. Thor, 8/19/09 8:56am.
Nothing else needs to be said.
Vick is a sick puppy, we have not learned the last of his sickness yet.
ncatty| 8.19.09 @ 4:06PM
He would have made a great Oakland Raider.
Rich D| 8.19.09 @ 4:09PM
If Vick, a dog, and a goat fell overboard, I'd have a hard time choosing between the dog and the goat... ;-)
William 5| 8.19.09 @ 4:53PM
Gill - I like your idea for required basic training for all dog owners. Now how 'bout the same for parents?
Derek Leaberry| 8.19.09 @ 5:24PM
If I know human nature at all, I'm willing to bet that if Dexter McNabb is injured during the long football season, Philadelphia Eagles fans will firmly support Michael Vick if he leads that team to gridiron glory. For many, the reflected success of one's football team is central to their happiness.
Bob K.| 8.19.09 @ 7:39PM
There is a long tradition for this type of stuff.
Let's start with the top: If the Horse won't run it is killed and sold for dog food which helps defray some of the costs associated with entertaining the Aristocracy at races like the Travers in Saratoga not to mention the Southern Gentlemen and Belles at Churchill Downs!
If the Rooster won't fight it is killed too. It keeps this trait out of the gene pool.
If the Greyhound or Whippet doesn't run well enough to win it is killed if the rescuers don't get there in time to find it a new home.
And finally if the dog won't fight it is killed but that is where the outrage boils over. Probably because it is practiced by poor blacks predominately and not by members of the Country Club set, or peoples of the Islands.
Did you notice that all of them involve gambling?
Dog Fighting is to Horse Racing like Crack Cocaine is to a Silver Bowl full of Cocaine on top of a Grand Piano at a party of the movers and shakers in Foggy Bottom!
Bob K.
Tara| 11.5.09 @ 10:32AM
Bob-
First let me say I am against using animals for gambling endeavors. This never ends well for the animals. But to say that euthanizing an animal (whatever your reasons) is equitable to torturing an animal to death is stupidity at best.
When a racing animal is put down it is euthanized. The racing horse was not 'put down' by first being tied to a 'rape-stand' while a bunch of thugs stood around getting excited and laughing and then its head submerged in water while it was electrocuted.
Only a moron could draw a parallel. PS EVERYONE is sick of the race card. Please get an actual and legitimate argument based in reality. Thanks!
Patrick D| 8.19.09 @ 8:33PM
Refraining on going off on a rant about HSUS and/or PeTA, I will simply say.. I will never watch an Eagles game again!
Pete Rose lost it all for betting on some games. Vick was the ring leader of an organized gambling operation. He will now end up as an American hero and role model. He is a cruel and heartless monster with no respect for life, nor a shred of conscience.
Shame on HSUS, shame on the Eagles, but mostly SHAME SHAME SHAME on Vick!
Jeremiah| 8.20.09 @ 1:14AM
No one has the right to kill a human being including a pregnant woman. Dave, lucky for you that your mom didn't think abortion was just "social crap." Screw you.
Libertarians suck.
Janie| 8.20.09 @ 1:21AM
I've read that serial killers start out by torturing and killing animals; and I believe the cruelty Vick visited upon those animals was evil.
There's something wrong with Vick, and it's absurd to say that the 'ghetto did it to him'. If that's true then why don't all poor people from the inner city engage in that kind of sadistic behavior?
What a stupid comment.
Tim| 8.20.09 @ 4:55AM
What's Michael Vick's favorite movie comedy?
Old Yeller.
stephen winstead| 8.20.09 @ 5:11AM
how come people and Peta never get upset over these dog attacks and maulings. animals are not humans,our sick country puts them equal with humans.
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dasboot| 8.20.09 @ 10:15AM
Bob K is right on target with his last comment. Its ok for say the Manning family to dress in a seer sucker suit and go to churchill downs. Part of this to is the idea that quarterbacks should be golden white boys-the brain of the team. Also, the comment that the government only cared about the gambling aspect was a major factor in how Vic has been prosecuted. Its all hypocritical.
Linda| 8.20.09 @ 7:16PM
Vick is sick. He is cruel and evil.
A person who tortures any living creature for entertainment, excitement, or money is less than human and lacks a soul. Vick shows no real remorse; he recites from his script. Send him to Afghanistan or Iraq where he can be useful - or lock him away.
Linda| 8.20.09 @ 7:16PM
Vick is sick. He is cruel and evil.
A person who tortures any living creature for entertainment, excitement, or money is less than human and lacks a soul. Vick shows no real remorse; he recites from his script. Send him to Afghanistan or Iraq where he can be useful - or lock him away.
BenZonah| 9.10.09 @ 1:32PM
RE:"Would that statements of such passion and concern (on behalf of animals) be made on behalf of human life and dignity by those on the left."
Would that ANY statement be nade from ANY political party or its supporters - of passion, obligation and concern for the protection of the animals of our planet, who are exploited and tortured in institutional research, forced to exisit in misery from birth until death in industrial animal production/transport/slaughter and homeless companion animals thrown into inadequately funded animal pounds where they are killed by the millions each year. I don't hear any outcry from either party, and don't expect to, given the tone of the cruel and non-compassionate remarks here.
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