Michael Vick Protestors

Today was a day that included a lot of talk about the now notorious Mike Vick. Yes he was involved in dog fighting, yes he was convicted of it, yes it was a shameful thing to have happened to him. But he has done his time, he completed the two year jail sentence, he is trying to work with his local humane societies, and he has made a conscious effort to improve his image and his life. Yet, after being picked up by the Philadelphia Eagles, he arrived to the practice field today to see protestors protesting him. I heard a lot of things today about how Philadelphia in a dog loving city, and how Vick is a "monster." Two things; one, virtually every city in America is a dg loving city, it would not have mattered where he went, he probably would have still faced the same amount of scrutiny as he is in Philly. Two, how exactly is Vick a monster? He has showed remorse, he has done the things that he needed to and looks as though he will continue to do the things he needs to in order to clean up his image. In his press conference prior to being picked up by the Eagles, Vick answered every question asked of him and about him without hesitation. His stood straight faced in front of the media, and made his case, one that sounds convincing enough to viably give him the second chance which he deserves.

I guess the thing that really irritated me about seeing these protestors out front of the practice facility was the fact that they did not look to be fans of the NFL. Rather, they are a handful of middle aged dog owners who care about animals more than sports. That of course is not a bad thing in the least bit, but they are protesting the man's life, his career, his source of income. What would you rather Michael Vick does with his time? Should he continue to be in and out of prison for the rest of his life like some offenders of the penal system? Should he find a job at his local burger joint making $6.50 an hour? What would you protestors rather have him do than play in the NFL. That is what Vick does, that is what he has done his whole life, and it is what he should and is going to continue doing until the end of his career. Vick has a talent that the NFL can prosper from, he is an exciting and interesting person on the field. Vick is going to continue to play in the NFL to the dismay of these protestors, there is nothing they can do to stop it, and they need to see this.

Some of the signs the protestors were holding read: "Hide your Beagle, Vicks an Eagle." Come on now people, are you serious with this? This kind of behavior is pitiful, childish, and needs to be directed somewhere else. There are people who have taken human lives in the NFL, and they have faced less scrutiny than Vick. To sum everything up, Vick has done his time, he has improved his character, and deserves to be given that proverbial second chance.