Vick reinstated in NFL. I hit a dog over the head with a frying pan once. Complete accident. I was rushing in the kitchen, hand held pan just at the hip, foster dog sprung up to say hello just as I was twisting around - WHAM! - they connected, and the pup hit the dirt. Thankfully the dog didn't hold it against me - all-forgiving pit bulls. But my dog, my pit bull - she saw it, she was horrified. She looked at me as if I'd hit her on the head - lowered her body, looked back at me over her shoulder as she slunk away into another room. OMG! Those moments that you wish you could take back.But the moment was indelible: Sally suffered for that dog; she put that event into a context I never imagined a dog could do - 'the other.' Based on what she saw, mom wasn't safe when frying pans were out and it took a long, long time - years - before she'd start to believe that they weren't going to hit her in the kitchen, too. She remembered. A dog remembered a moment, a fearful event that telegraphed down to her bones and embedded into her psyche.
I have to wonder what this dog - now named Halle - witnessed at that Moonlight Road property. And I have to guess she still remembers what she heard and saw there. The public may forget, but she won't. The dogs are watching, Mr. Vick.
There is no ghost so difficult to lay as the ghost of an injury. - Alexander Smith
Not guilty
Let us never forget that, while Michael Vick pleaded guilty to "a" dog fighting charge in his more recent hearing (11/08) in the state courts, he "also pleaded not guilty to a count of cruelty to animals" (source) Not guilty of cruelty. No cruelty. Naw. Didn't happen. Not a bit.
Halle remembers.
I don't think we need to waste our time hating Vick or the organizations that have given him a free pass. We have better things to do. Karma is much more efficient at righting wrongs, and she has a steel trap memory.
Photo: Halle during evaluations at the Hanover Pound, VA.
I wish Karma would hurry up! What became of that little sweet girl?
ReplyDeleteAll I can say is that when I heard the news I thought I was going to be sick. I normally keep ESPN on at the gym but now I'm avoiding it at all costs.
ReplyDeleteYou might want to avoid all television news for awhile, Kari. The Vick sightings alone will be headline fodder for a long while.
ReplyDeleteI can't say what I would do to him, but he would know the pain that he inflicted. For me that is the only justice.
ReplyDeleteKarma - when I cause other people/animals harm, I will harvest suffering myself. It's as simple as that.
ReplyDeleteLet's move on to the barn raising!
So glad I am not the only klutz. I once accidentally kneed my dog in the head. Then, rushing to pet her to apologize, I poked her in the eye....Labs are forgiving too, thank goodness.
ReplyDeleteI know you guys would never complain, but it must get so old sometimes spending your days cleaning up other people's shit.
ReplyDeleteThank you for your patience and always reminding us what it truly means to be human.
The Hodson Family
Who can I write to? Goodell, team that might be interested in him? I'll spend all day writing letters.
ReplyDeleteI am guilty of accidentally smackin' the dog with the pantry door. Fortunately she didn't mind (I think the glance into forbidden pantry-land was worth it). It's hard not to hate Vick, so I'm counting on BADRAP to give me lots of good barn-raisin' news to distract me. (I also vote for more pics of bully-girl Sookie, I love her smile on the available dogs page...)
ReplyDeleteAs dog owners, Im sure we have all had unfortunate accidents involving our pets. My dog tripped me down the stairs and broke my ankle but I didn't electrocute her or drown her. No, we sat and snuggled on the couch together while I was recovering. That is just the thing it was an "accident". Accidents happen all the time. What Vick did was completely disgusting and uncalled for. I will not support any NFL team that picks him up! I have written to Sports Illustrated and expressed my frustrations as I am sure many others have. That man deserves nothing!!! Just remember you pice of crap, what goes around comes around and I hope your number is up soon!!
ReplyDeleteIf I were the Judge on Vick's case, I would make him donate all his $$$$ to the Barn Raising Project and Shelters all across the world. Why should he reap the benefits of his talent when it should go into way better hands like Bad Rap? Ugh, I just sick to my stomach, every time I open your blog I see Sweet Jasmine's face on the cover of SI and think of all the horror those poor dogs endured. But then her beautiful face makes me feel better. Every day when I go home I have a beautiful and loving pit waiting for me and not once ever could I imagine her going through such pain!!!!
ReplyDeleteSuch a beautiful analogy, Donna. And the look in Halle's eyes reminds me all over again of the terrible harm that monster did ... and would probably do again. For what has he learned but to be more careful?
ReplyDeleteI hope Vick gets hurt, painfully, badly, permanently if he's allowed to play ball. There, I said it, I had to say it, with no remorse at all -- the same way he felt not a twinge of compassion for the animals he abused. And, I'm chalking up my evil wish to karma. But I'd rather think about the barn but when I hear his name I keep hoping (in a little nasty spot in the back of my brain) that the prick gets hurt.
ReplyDeleteJust terrible... At least 75% of Vick's earnings should go to Pit-Bull rescues.
ReplyDeleteA columnist on espn.com accused Commissioner Goodell of "piling on" Vick & kicking him while he's down. Here's the letter I sent him:
ReplyDeleteDear Mr. Bryant:
I'd like to point out something that you did not address in your article on ESPN.com about Commissioner Goodell "piling on" M. Vick.
There are plenty of creeps in the NFL, no question about it. But as a lawyer, I find that there is something that strongly distinguishes what Vick did. You write:
"Defensive end Leonard Little took a woman's life -- actually killed a human being -- when he drove drunk, and he was suspended eight games. Running back Jamal Lewis was involved in selling drugs, and he served a two-game suspension."
Neither of the crimes you mention is one in which a person cold-bloodedly planned to kill other creatures - many, MANY times - for entertainment, by the most violent means. He financed it, he set it up, he took part in it, and he was part of torturing dogs to death for not being sufficiently vicious. (Have you read all the details? He threw them in his pool with jumper cables on and slowly electrocuted them while they screamed and tried to escape and he enjoyed watching.)
The other two crimes you mention are ones of recklessness and greed, and arguably should have been punished much more severely than they were. But there's a reason people are reacting differently to what Vick did. It is much more similar to the work of a serial killer, even though his victims were not human. It is a totally different kind of evil.
That's why I am willing to spend a big chunk of my time that I would rather spend some other way protesting this monster. If any team lets him play, I will be out there protesting when that team comes to the Twin Cities. I know many others who feel the same way. It's not that we care about animals more than people. It's that we can tell the difference between sloppy/greedy/reckless on the one hand and cold-blooded evil killer on the other.
Very truly yours,
(pitbull friend), Attorney at Law
St. Paul, MN
Yep. MV is a whole different kind of evil.
ReplyDeleteKarma will have her day with him. It is out of our hands.
I agree we focus on that which is positive and not expend a lot of negative energy on someone who is such an insignificant being in the larger scheme of things.
The dogs whose lives were so cruelly ended by his hand will never be forgotten. We will remember and we will turn away from him. He is....insignificant.
s&b/monterey
i believe that karma will have her say with vick but at the same time i have such a hard time not hating vick.i am a redskins fan and i can tell you that if my team i have supported since i was a kid takes him i will never wear a redskins hat or shirt ever. i hope he goes elsewhere. i hope no nfl team takes him. i do hate him, i cry for those dogs he killed and tortured. as i know you guys have. i will never forget and i know that any kind hearted person out there won't either, nfl fan or not.
ReplyDeleteto the attorney who wrote that letter to espn, bravo, very well said. do you mind if i quote your letter and post it on my facebook with credit going to you of course
ReplyDeleteI bust my butt trying to make a living.
ReplyDeleteI worked hard to provide for me and my (recently passed) pit bull. Life can be very difficult even when making "all the right choices".
Then I have to listen to this guy making millions for what? I'm sorry, but are athletes really worth it?
And if they are, can we at least give those high end "jobs" to some more credible people? I'm sure there's an amazing young athlete out there waiting for the chance to make it big. But Vick will be taking up a spot instead.
He want's a second chance? Fine! Go get a job somewhere. Why does he need a second chance at NFL?
But you know what? It's the fans that are making this call really. Because the NFL is fed by their money and dedication. Vick's just the mascot to the addiction. If he was a real man (or human) he'd step down and become invisible . . . real fast.
It's hard for me to stop hating Vick. I know I should let it go and leave it to karma. But I can't. I can't because Vick puts a face on pit bull abuse. I'll never know who beat, starved, and ultimately abandoned my pit bull. I've had my girl for over a year now, and I still feel my heart squeeze she bolts form a room over a raised arm, or starts shivering when she hears raised voices. One year later, and I still wonder who it was that had her first. One year later, and I still fantasize about revenge.
ReplyDeleteBut Michael Vick? I know who he is, and what he did. I suppose that's why I can't let it go.
Karma? I htink not, I am not waiting for karma to care of Vick, I plan on boycotting any and everything associted with the NFL and I will be protesting loud and clear and often!
ReplyDeleteHello all,
ReplyDeleteI live in Philadelphia and I can't begin to describe our level of disgust and anger at the Vick signing. It has been two months since that horrible day, and we're still in shock. We have put this to good use and formed a grassroots anti-Vick campaign. We have been boycotting Eagles/NFL corporate sponsors, writing letters directly to the Eagles network, and protesting at every home game. Our next protest is on Sunday November 1st (Eagles vs. Giants). If you know of anyone in the Philly area who would like to join in, please have them contact me at rombug@earthlink.net. The more people we have out there the louder our message will be.
Thank you, THANK YOU for your support, passion, and - yes - anger at this situation. That monster does not deserve a place in the NFL or as a role model, and we want him to just go away.
Romy Nocera
Philadelphia