Vick Talks About Dogfighting with Students

Philadelphia QB Uses His Conviction, Prison Time to Dissuade Kids From Succumbing to Peer Pressure

(AP)  Michael Vick, speaking to a group of Philadelphia high school students Tuesday, warned against the dangers of peer pressure and offered himself as a cautionary tale of what can happen when someone is a follower instead of a leader.

The Philadelphia Eagles quarterback addressed a rapt audience of 200 freshmen on their first day at Nueva Esperanza Academy, a North Philadelphia charter school. He urged students to make the right choices and to resist the temptation to follow the crowd.

Vick used his conviction for operating a dogfighting ring as an example of the result of bowing to peer pressure. Speaking without notes, Vick told the students his decisions imperiled the goals he had set for himself since childhood.

"Growing up, I had dreams and I always wanted to have this great, lavish life and make it to the NFL, go and accomplish great things and leave a great legacy. That was my goal from a young kid," Vick said. "My future was promising ... at some point, I got sidetracked. I started listening to my friends and doing some things that were not ethical and not right."

Vick visited the school with Wayne Pacelle, president and CEO of the Humane Society of the United States.

Once the highest paid player in the NFL, Vick spent 18 months in prison and was suspended from the league following his conviction in August 2007 on charges of conspiracy and organizing the dogfighting ring. He was released from federal custody on July 20 and the Eagles signed him last month.

Several animal rights groups criticized the team's decision to sign the quarterback, saying he is a poor example for young people.

Eagles spokeswoman Pamela Browner-Crawley has said the team has an obligation to the community and work with children particularly, to discourage them from engaging in dogfighting or any animal abuse.

Vick is suspended for the first two games of the regular season. The Eagles have placed him on the exempt list and he cannot practice with the team until Week 3.

In two preseason games, Vick completed 11 of 15 passes for 45 yards with one interception and rushed for 36 yards on eight carries with one touchdown.

[displeased]

Perhaps you all should focus on people who are STILL fighting animals and stop dwelling on the past. Time to move forward.

[kweeks05]

i wish i knew where some of u ridiculous dog lover/vick haters lived so i could kidnap ur dogs and skin em all alive. then go to chinese restaurants to exchange em for fortune cookies. i bet most of u are charles manson fans.

[nordeck52]

And you're talking about kidnapping people's dogs and skinning them alive... whose the real Manson fan?

[liberty5]

Can we please send the person who wrote the headline back to school?

Try "Vick Talks to Students About Dogfighting". Word order is important in the English language. Unless Vick is trying to expand his legacy and actually get the students to dogfight.

[keiththeklam]

You are so right on! He didn't just fight them, he tortured and killed them. He might have served his sentence, but he hasn't paid his dues. Not by a long shot!

[texbelle123]

ohmygod! A criminal addressing school kids! Is this a socialist agenda plot?

Warning kids about the dangers and consequences of both stupid and illegal actions is surely as dangerous and Obama telling them to stay in school.

Somebody, do something! Isn't it time Glen Beck got involved in denouncing this?

[kevjustice]

Fans should start barking when Vick is playing.

[nordeck52]

Ha, they should!

[TheVarsityClub]

Come on CBS, enough with the Vick fell good story. If you look at his stats Vick is a sub par quarterback that turns the ball over alot. The only difference between Vick and another convict is that Vick plays football, and the reality is Vick doesn't posses the skills to lead any team to a championship. He's hyped NFL player that hasn't drifted to far, emotionally, from the area in which he was raised. The NFL commissioner should have made Vick his Pete Rose.

[lloydbest1]

by spiritwalk September 8, 2009 4:05 PM EDT
"Vick is not trying to remake his life and reset his value code. Vick is trying to make his life to go back to where it was before he got caught and reset the vaule of his income potential."

That was in response to my post immediately preceeding his(hers?).

I will not argue your premise. In fact, as things stand now, I agree with it. But I am not willing to write him off either - yet. This early on, there is no way either one of us can tell FOR SURE whether he's connin' us (again) or whether he is sincere.

If he IS sincere (and I am not sure he is) then I will summarize the following tasks I believe he must accomplish before I can say he's learned important life lessons and has grown from the experience
1. He must abandon the value code and worldview he was brought up in. It would be better if he publically repudiated it and worked to discourage anyone else from adopting it or anything similar.
2. He must continue reaching out to school children and skeptical adults and use his fall from grace (such of it as he ever had) as a cautionary example of the consequences of engaging in activities he KNEW were cruel and criminal.
3. Over the course of his football career any money over and above that necessary to maintain a lower middle class existance needs to be donated to causes advancing animal justice. I also think some of that discretionary money he earns(?) could or even should go to such as homeless shelters, food banks and other programs addressing human social needs.
4. He must expect to take years, perhaps decades of near-flawless good behavior and strong character before we can see that he has, indeed, turned his life around. He must also expect that character to be tested by people who wish heartily he falls flat on his face. Believe me, there'll be plenty of them and they will be very clever about seeing to it he fails. He will have to rise above all that.
5. He must understand under no uncertain terms that he gets no more do-overs. If he f***s up, no matter how far along in the "rehab" process; he is through.
6. He also must understand to the same degree of finality as in bullet 5 that making such a major change in one's inherent being and way of life is damnably difficult. It will take a greater degree of effort than he has ever put into anything he has done up to now. THEREFORE....
7. He can not do it alone. He will need to man up and admit he needs help. Professional help. No, Tony Dungy as a mentor is not anywhere nearly enough. Moreover he must do this on his dime and on his time. If the NFL pays for part of this treatment, fine but the responsibility to get this job done is his.

And finally,

8. No matter how successful he is at making himself over; no matter how much of a good example he sets and no matter how completely he folds into the kind of human reasonable people admire most - there will always be some who will never forgive him and dismiss him as no more than a punk and a fraud. He will have to learn to live with that.

Can he do it? Yes, I think it's possible. WILL he do it? I hope so but I'm not that confident. I guess we'll all have to wait and see.....

[spiritwalk]

Redemption is earned and not given gratis and it should never be given to someone just because of his status as a football hero.

It amazes me how, at the time, so many of the people who want to defend Vick for dogfighting showed no similar sympathy for Michael Phelps for getting high.

People were clamoring to take away every source of income Phelps had, but were ready to plug Vick right back into the money machine.

They couldn't stand to think of a guy who took a hit on a bong being on a Wheaties box, but they want a guy who tirtured and killed animals to come to their children's school as a role model.

That just does not make sense.

[displeased]

He spent less time in jail than someone who got caught with a DUI and there is no way that someone whose whole being was consumed with the sick pleasure of torturing animals was transformed by a little jail time.
by spiritwalk September 8, 2009 3:52 PM EDT

spiritwalk, I will admit I'm not an expert with DUI's but I have never heard of anybody getting over two years in jail for one. In fact, the last football player that killed somebody while driving under the influence only got 30 days. I wouldn't consider two years in jail "a little jail time". Please get your facts straight before mouthing off.

[spiritwalk]

by displeased September 8, 2009 5:01 PM EDT

spiritwalk, I will admit I'm not an expert with DUI's but I have never heard of anybody getting over two years in jail for one.... In fact, the last football player that killed somebody while driving under the influence only got 30 days. I wouldn't consider two years in jail "a little jail time". Please get your facts straight before mouthing off.

Considering that you admit that you know nothing about the subject you certainly express a lot of opinion on the subject. As for what you say about the last football player getting 3o days for killing someone in a DUI did you by chance realize that you were actually making my point for me when you wrote it.

The football hero gets a break whether he kills animals or peoples, just because you idol worshippers think sports figures are above the law.

[displeased]

So what exactly is your point? Your exact words were "He spent less time in jail than someone who got caught with a DUI and there is no way that someone whose whole being was consumed with the sick pleasure of torturing animals was transformed by a little jail time."

Is there some kind of special code we're supposed to decipher?

[pw08-2009]

Vick knows and so does everyone else that if he could do it again, he would. He paid his given time in prison, but please, let's stop this total BS Political correctness crap that no man, women or child beleives and let's get real.

The NFL, designed the whole thing to get Vick back into the NFL and that's that. Look at the timing and the short senteces, etc...just in time for the season hoooray...Good job NFL, keep the thugs at all costs and lose the non-tug loving fans in the process.

[saturn05]

Oh my god he still can't take responsibility for his actions. Peer pressure at his age, good grief. His message is like so many other athlete's. Torture and kill animals but just remember, lie and act like you are so ashamed and you will still make your millions. Like other athletes, rape, abuse your partner, drugs, etc. Oh well, I am a great player and they won't get ride of me and they don't. Makes sense, allow this creep to talk to kids, but everyone get in an uproar over our President trying to send a positive statement to students. Where are our priorities? By the way, as far as Presidents addressing students, Reagan and Bush sr. did it, so why is everyone so upset by Obama?

[displeased]

By the way, as far as Presidents addressing students, Reagan and Bush sr. did it, so why is everyone so upset by Obama?
by saturn05

Who says everyone is upset? I would say only the right wing lunatics are.

[incog-nito]

spiritwalk: You're the pompous one. You might equate the value of animals to that of human life, but most reasonable people do not.

[spiritwalk]

by incog-nito September 8, 2009 4:28 PM EDT
spiritwalk: You're the pompous one. You might equate the value of animals to that of human life, but most reasonable people do not.


And who told you that, certainly not an animal.

Humans are the only species that kills for pleasure, which makes you use of the term reasonable seem very misplaced when applied to humans.

It would seem that the rest of the animal kingdom who limits its use of killing of other species strictly to the needs of survival to appear to be the ones that the idea of reasonable behavior would be more appropriate.

But, I think most so called reasonable people would call Vick the animal and not the dogs he tortured and killed, but that may just be my pompous attitude.

[pickaguitar1]

Good job Michael!

[lloydbest1]

by lloydbest1 September 8, 2009 3:54 PM EDT

In case anyone wants to know, My remarks were addressed to incog-nito and not spiritwalk.

[slownewsday_5]

"Vick Talks About Dogfighting With Students"


Hmmm - using students instead of dogs? Interesting. Pretty sure that's still illegal...

[inketolstoy]

My German shepherd said he would put fifty on vick, unless the fifth grader he was fighting was really big and strong.

[spiritwalk]

You cannot say that you succumbed to peer pressure when it was you who running the dog fights.

The leader cannot turn around and claim he was only a follower.

All I have heard about was how everyone was objecting to Obama trying to con the students with his speech. How about a little condemnation for Vick's bs performance.

[incog-nito]

He spent time in jail. He lost a lot of money. He's speaking to young people. He paid for his crime. What more do you people want? Anything he says you'll just dismiss as insincere. Well maybe you won't "forgive" him, but it really doesn't matter in the grand scheme of things.

[spiritwalk]

In the grand scheme of things? How pompous could you possibly get?

He spent less time in jail than someone who got caught with a DUI and there is no way that someone whose whole being was consumed with the sick pleasure of torturing animals was transformed by a little jail time.

If Vick were not trying to get back in the NFL he would not be out there trying to bs the public into thinking he was reformed.

He was in that school to try to get kids to hero worship him again in order to get back on the gravy train and unfortunately, with most of the kids it probably worked.

When we have had to listen to a day of people saying that they would keep their kids home rather than have them have to listen to Obama it is sick and perverse to tout this savage off as a role model to children.

Even sicker, there were probaly a lot of parents there today who were trying to get his autograph and you probably wish you could have been there as well.

When the president is criticized for usong children to advance himself and a sadistic psychotic like this is praised the fate of our children is doomed.

[lloydbest1]

^^^^Whether or not anybody forgives him is beside the point. Vick has obligations that go far beyond imprisonment and sacrifice of his assets. He basically needs to remake his life and reset his entire value code. This is difficult enough to do when you are still in adolescence; it is doubly so when you're an adult rapidly closing in on 30.

I think it is unreasonable to criticize the skepticism many of us feel
toward Mr. Vick when he claims he's turned his life around. Ask any habitual drug user or alcoholic and you'll understand at once the effort it takes. It is not a matter of saying, "Oh alright; I'll straighten up if that's what it takes to get back to enjoying the good life I once had". It takes a hurculean effort and a sincere desire to change and there are some of us who don't believe he has yet the sincerity or can yet muster the effort.

Speaking to groups of impressionable young students is certainly a start. It's a lot better than his original denials. Having said that, I also say Michael is only just begining to pick off the low hanging fruit and even begining that long process of true rehabilitation is a long ways off.

I hope he makes it. I would love it if he became the sincere voice of animal advocacy he says he wants to be. It would go a long ways towards restoring my faith that if we try hard enough, we can accomplish great things (if unsung things) if the Michael Vick of 2020 becomes the antithesis of the Michael Vick of 2007.

That's up to him and it is his task to become that Michael Vick for his own sake and regardless of what any of the rest of us think of him.

[spiritwalk]

Vick is not trying to remake his life and reset his value code. Vick is trying to make his life to go back to where it was before he got caught and reset the vaule of his income potential.

He just jumped right back into trying to impress kids with being a big football hero and the knuclhead adults just go right along with it, the hero worshipping scyophants that they are.

Michael Phelps took a hit on a bong and the parents wanted him banned from sports for life. Michael Vick tortured animals and the parents want to have him replace Phelps on the Wheaties box.

And you people wonder why your kids cannot find a sense of morality in their lives.