Second Chances?

I can't stand Michael Vick. Actually, there's not a professional athlete I dislike more than Michael Vick. I think he was overrated as an NFL quarterback and he was a horrible example of how to represent yourself with class and professionalism. And I thought all of these things BEFORE we learned about his enjoyment of electrocuting and strangling dogs! Now that Vick has been reinstated to the NFL and he's signed with the Philadelphia Eagles, there seem to be hourly updates on ESPN about Vick's comeback to football. I'm already disgusted with the coverage of the mindless idiots (except Tony Dungy) who continue to talk about Vick deserving a second chance and how he's learned from his mistakes, because they're talking like the dogfighting charges were Vick's only mistake. In the famous words of Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy, "THAT'S NOT TRUE!". Let's look at a timeline of events:

2001: Vick's father said Michael held dogfighting matches in the garage of their home in Newport News, Virginia.

2004: Two men were arrested in Virginia for distributing marijuana out of a truck registered in Michael Vick's name. After the incident, Falcons coach Dan Reeves told Michael he needed to surround himself with quality people and remember his actions represented the entire organization.

October 2004: Vick and other members of his party were caught on tape stealing a watch as they passed through a security check in Hartsfield-Jackson Airport in Atlanta. After a police

report was filed by the individual who'd had his watch stolen, the watch was returned to the man and Vick's representatives prevented any further police involvement.

March 2005: A woman filed a civil suit against Vick because she'd contracted herpes in 2002 after engaging in intercourse with Vick (I guess Mike already had STD's before he even went to prison) and he failed to inform her that he was infected with the disease. Vick settled the lawsuit for an undisclosed amount.

November 2006: Vick was fined $10,000 for an "obscene gesture" directed to fans in the Georgia Dome after a game against the New Orleans Saints. In other words, Michael gave the Falcons fans his own version of the "Dirty Bird".

April 2007: Police discover evidence of dogfighting activity at Vick's property in Surry County, Virginia and begin to uncover a six-year long dogfighting ring involving drugs and gambling.

July 2007: Charges are filed against Vick for his involvement in the dogfighting ring, including financing, participating in the fights, executions, and handling money wagered on matches between the dogs.

September 2007: While awaiting sentencing regarding his felony convictions, Vick failed a drug test and tested positive for marijuana, which led to him being ordered to home confinement until he received his sentence from the courts.

October 2007: Vick failed an FBI administered polygraph test regarding questions about his involvement in the dogfighting and killing dogs.

December 2007: Vick began serving his 23 month federal prison sentence in Leavenworth, Kansas.

So Michael Vick deserves a 2nd chance huh? How many other people could go to federal prison for multiple felonies, have involvement in drug distribution and gambling, fail drug tests, steal property, and still get to return to work? Let me know the next time it happens in any business other than sports and entertainment. This is a man who invested thousands of dollars into turning household pets into vicious killers and then he electrocuted, strangled, and bodyslammed the dogs that weren't vicious enough for his liking. When he had a chance to come clean about his involvement and legal problems, Vick lied to his owner, the NFL commissioner, his millions of fans and supporters, and Federal investigators! And now that Michael Vick has served his time in prison and he has no other choice but to be remorseful, we're supposed to believe him? His past behavior shows an attitude that has no regard for the law or any sort of respect for other people, and his most recent comments indicate he still doesn't really understand the severity of his crimes.

When Vick says, "I can't understand why I was involved in such pointless activity. Why did I risk so much at the pinnacle of my career?" Michael, if I may, not only was it pointless and very risky, you forgot to mention how unbelievably cruel and inhumane you're actions were. It seems like a case of an individual who isn't sorry, he's just sorry he was caught. People might provide the argument about how we all make mistakes, but that's insanity. No, most of us don't make a number of mistakes BEFORE being convicted of federal charges and then hope to get forgiveness from our supporters and previous employer. What a world talented athletes get to live in! So while I can hope Michael Vick won't last a year in the NFL, he'll continue to get his chances. Any time I watch him play in a game, I'll hope for a free safety to take a shot at his knee and end his career, but it might not even be necessary. More than likely, Mike's true character will shine through and he'll find himself in trouble again and he'll be hoping for yet another chance. So stay classy, Mike Vick! Stay classy.