I guess what I'm trying to say is this isn't just about those 7 or those 50 odd dogs, this is about hypocricy, demonization of a celebrity, and man's belief in redemption.
One good friend of mine's response was
"Well, I don't think it's right, but I don't think he should go to jail over it. Animals have too many rights in our society already."
Yes, this is different because it's man's best friend. If he'd been fighting weasels and snakes no one would have batted an eye. I remember reading white fang 3 or 4 times as a child; and in the end it struck me that it wasn't a novel about a dog, but a novel about man's potential for cruelty and redemption. It's the story of every war and aftermath, every released convict, even of Vick's own life.
The situation now is this: the same people who hear about the crimes disapprovingly and "ooh" and "ahh" go through the pound, find a dog they like, are told the dog will be put to sleep if it's not adopted by the next day, then promptly go to a petstore and buy a puppy.
In our modern society we put a value on everything rare, abnormal, or extraordinary. A rare dog is worth $2000 in some people's eyes. This has caused a devaluation of the "normal" dog to the point that to many people a dog in-and-of-itself has no inherent value.
What's interesting to me about this whole thing is that instead of man's potential for cruelty and redemption, The Fall of Michael Vick's is a story about man's potential for cruelty and punishment. There's no potential for redemption for Michael Vick and no redemption for the abused dogs.
Instead, Michael Vick did wrong and must be punished, these dogs are bad and must die; everthing bad is punishable while a war is more important than the redemption of a country afterwards. When did our society cease to represent the values that we as human beings cling to.
One good friend of mine's response was
"Well, I don't think it's right, but I don't think he should go to jail over it. Animals have too many rights in our society already."
Yes, this is different because it's man's best friend. If he'd been fighting weasels and snakes no one would have batted an eye. I remember reading white fang 3 or 4 times as a child; and in the end it struck me that it wasn't a novel about a dog, but a novel about man's potential for cruelty and redemption. It's the story of every war and aftermath, every released convict, even of Vick's own life.
The situation now is this: the same people who hear about the crimes disapprovingly and "ooh" and "ahh" go through the pound, find a dog they like, are told the dog will be put to sleep if it's not adopted by the next day, then promptly go to a petstore and buy a puppy.
In our modern society we put a value on everything rare, abnormal, or extraordinary. A rare dog is worth $2000 in some people's eyes. This has caused a devaluation of the "normal" dog to the point that to many people a dog in-and-of-itself has no inherent value.
What's interesting to me about this whole thing is that instead of man's potential for cruelty and redemption, The Fall of Michael Vick's is a story about man's potential for cruelty and punishment. There's no potential for redemption for Michael Vick and no redemption for the abused dogs.
Instead, Michael Vick did wrong and must be punished, these dogs are bad and must die; everthing bad is punishable while a war is more important than the redemption of a country afterwards. When did our society cease to represent the values that we as human beings cling to.
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