Some people want Atlanta Quaterback Mike Vick's head already, based on the gruesome indictment of dogfighting. But as we have seen too often before, cops and prosecutors can make a big something out of nothing. We have not heard from Vick, and with these prosecutors seeming to be playing by the books so far, we might have to wait for trial to hear his side.
I think that nobody should lose a job over an arrest, especially if that person has done nothing in public to disgrace himself with regard to the charges against him. And let's also remember that every step along the road to justice risks a misstep: innocent people get convicted (Genarlow Wilson), and guilty people get found "not guilty" (OJ, Robert Blake). When the accused's story comes to light, we all have to make our decision about the person, not just the judge and the jury. This study concludes that judges and juries "get it wrong" over 10% of the time.
When Vick's story materializes, we might find that he really did know nothing about what his friends and relations did in the house he bought them. He could be a guy like me who loves animals and abhors dogfighting, but has some friends and relations from childhood who -- unbeknown to him -- have developed into severely retarded brutes. In this context, even if he gets convicted of some technicality, I will judge him favorably and support no sanctions against him. On the other hand, an examination by us in the public may show that he supports dogfighting. In this context, even if his fancy lawyers win all "not guilty" verdicts, I will consider him scum and cheer the most extreme sanctions against him.
Only one NFL player so far has exposed himself having a retarded brain and a cruel heart in this matter, Washington Redskins' Clinton Portis who said, ''I don't know if he was fighting dogs or not, but it's his property, it's his dog. If that's what he wants to do, do it. I think people should mind their own business.''
6 comments:
There is evidence that 8 animals were killed during dogfights on property that Vick owned run by relatives and friends of Vick.
This isn't the first Vick's been in trouble so look for the NFL to suspend him before the trial and I say rightly so.
Dogfighting is barbaric and Vick isn't so ignorant that he didn't know it was illegal.
I'm going to at least wait to hear from him. However, I do assume that an innocent person makes some attempt to get out his story via third parties; nothing yet on that front.
I consider dogfighting to be more than merely illegal; barbaric is a good word. Even simply in terms of the affects on humans, it warrants outrage from intelligent people. The culture of it breeds in its human participants and spectators the general concepts of cruelty and indifference to the suffering of others.
Still waiting for the defense to somehow let out some exculpatory info about Vick. With no info so far, it looks bad, and I'm beginning to accept the charges as true.
Interesting: The righty talking heads, including Rush Limbaugh, are promoting "wait and see" and "don't rush to judge" on Vick. They are all making sure to remind everyone about the Duke case, and how prosecutors can make cases and win grand jury indictments out of little or nothing.
I notice that the anti-Vick people on these shows stress the horror of the charges against him. But the horrificness of the charges have nothing to do with the validity of the charges.
As with the Dukesboro boys, if the charges against Vick are accurate, I want him to go down, hard, even if his fancy lawyers get him off. But until I hear his side, I'm unprepared to advocate against him.
I don't think that businesses should suspend employees simply because they got arrested and accused by prosecutors. Even if the guy gets convicted, what does this have to do with playing football?
Still no claims have arisen to counter the charges against him. But I skimmed those charges, and the case doesn't seem very strong. Three or four people will testify that they attended dog fights, that they killed dogs, that they bet on these fights, and that Vick participated along with them. The physical evidence is that a house owned by Vick had lots of evidence of dog fighting, a bunch of dogs, and a bunch of dead dogs.
This leaves room for: (1) Vick didn't know; (2) the other guys are lying.
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