NAACP wants quick rehab for Vick

Drew McKissick — Wed, 22 Aug 2007 14:30:40 -0400

ATLANTA (AP) — An NAACP leader said Michael Vick should be allowed to return to the NFL, preferably the Atlanta Falcons, after serving his sentence for his role in a dogfighting operation.
"As a society, we should aid in his rehabilitation and welcome a new Michael Vick back into the community without a permanent loss of his career in football," said R.L. White, president of the NAACP's Atlanta chapter. "We further ask the NFL, Falcons, and the sponsors not to permanently ban Mr. Vick from his ability to bring hours of enjoyment to fans all over this country."...

"Hours of enjoyment"?? Sounds like this guy hasn't had Vick as a fantasy football quarterback before. Or maybe he was talking about hours of enjoyment of dog-fighting. Or maybe he was just holding out hope that Vick become a major donor to the NAACP in the future...

On Monday, Vick said through a lawyer that he will plead guilty to a federal charge of conspiracy to travel in interstate commerce in aid of unlawful activities and conspiracy to sponsor a dog in an animal fighting venture.
Three Vick associates have pleaded guilty to the conspiracy charge and say Vick provided nearly all the gambling and operating funds for the "Bad Newz Kennels" dogfighting enterprise. Two of them also said Vick participated in executing at least eight underperforming dogs, raising the possibility of the animal cruelty charges.

But the NAACP hasn't let those charges stop them from sticking up for this sicko just because of the color of his skin...

Last month, state and local leaders of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People urged the public not to rush to judgment in the Vick case. The civil rights organization said animal rights groups, talk radio and the news media were vilifying the embattled athlete, and that his team and corporate sponsors were prematurely punishing Vick. ...

Oh, so they never rush to judgement. My bad. The NAACP's White goes on to try and set the record straight...

White said he regretted that the plea deal will mean all the facts of the case might never be known.
"Some have said things to save their own necks," White said. "Michael Vick has received more negative press than if he had killed a human being."
White said he does not support dogfighting and that he considers it as bad as hunting.
"His crime is, it was a dog," White said.

So now he's questioning the statements of witnesses? And no, it wasn't just "a dog"...it was LOTS of dogs...and not just fighting them, but killing them...not to mention running an interstate gambling operation centered around them, etc., etc... And if he's worked up about things like this receiving more negative attention than if a human-being had been killed, well, that's what happens when you help promote a society (and politicians) that devalues human life.

As for Vick, he's an idiot and deserves what's about to happen. He should get jail time...he should never get another sponsor deal...he should have to sit out a season or two AFTER getting out of the joint, and the NFL should look into the gambling thing and see if there's reason to ban him all-together.

Michael Vick loses another sponsor

Drew McKissick — Wed, 01 Aug 2007 10:29:33 -0400

This was just too funny not to put up:

As a result of his idiocy, he's lost yet another sponsor:

ATLANTA - Michael Vick lost another sponsor — Rawlings.
The sports goods company said Tuesday it was ending its relationship with the Atlanta Flacons quarterback because of dogfighting conspiracy charges.
“Rawlings recognizes that Mr. Vick has not been convicted of the charges stemming from his recent indictment,” the St. Louis company said. “However, we have determined that ending our relationship with Mr. Vick at this time is necessary.” ...
Rawlings used Vick’s image in promotional displays in stores, and its decision is the latest commercial setback for the NFL star.
Last week, Nike suspended a lucrative contract with Vick, and Reebok stopped sales of his No. 7 jersey. Upper Deck removed all Vick autographed memorabilia from its online store and said it was removing Vick trading cards from NFL sets to be released in October.
“Rawlings is disappointed about the charges brought against Mr. Vick for his alleged participation in a dogfighting operation,” the company said. “Dogfighting is illegal and entirely unacceptable to Rawlings.”

Would that just being stupid was "unacceptable" to these sports companies. That maybe they wouldn't be so quick to hand multi-million dollar endorsement deals to complete idiots with sketchy backgrounds to begin with. Granted, it seems that more and more of these types fill the rosters of many teams these days, but it would be nice if these companies didn't add to the problem by raising their profiles even further and rewarding such people.

In the end, it's all about money. They gave him the deal so they could make money...and they're taking the deal away because it will no longer make them money. And that attitude is part of the problem.