Everyone claims to love a redemption story, until it comes to the part about remembering what that person is redeeming themselves from. Michael Vick finds himself in the NFL Playoffs today as his NFC East champ Eagles host the Green Bay Packers, and he also finds himself still in the cross-hairs, atoning for mistakes of years past (dog-fighting, if you hadn’t heard).
Several public apologies, a federal prison sentence and a delayed career later, and Vick’s indiscretions are still the storyline for some — is it OK to root for this player to succeed, when he committed such grizzly acts in his personal past?
Short answer: yes. We’re watching Playoff football today, not holding moral court. Vick has paid a debt to society, worked hard to get back to where he is, and deserves to be seen only in the context as a football player, doing his best to compete for his team and achieve a championship. Nothing more and nothing less.
Now it just so happens I’m a Redskins fan, so am I rooting for Vick? Hell no. I’ve never been one much for divisional solidarity and Playoffs or not, I’ll be rooting against Vick and his Philadelphia flock-mates every time. But is it OK to root for him? Of course. Cheering for someone on a football field is not a personal endorsement of that person’s life — just a testament that this day, you want that particular guy to fun as fast as he can and dodge more tackles than Harrison Ford in The Fugitive. That’s all.
Besides, just based on statistics, the NFL (and every other group of thousands of people) has wife-beaters, drunks, tax cheats, dog killers, and bad tippers all within their ranks. Whether you know it or not, every time you cheer for your team, you’re cheering for at least one less-than-stellar person. Somehow, you survive.
So let’s ditch our high horses for long enough to enjoy a great football game for what it is, and then tomorrow we can all return to wondering whether Vick has shown enough remorse or performed enough penance to be deemed as forgiven in the public eye.
In the meantime, just let the man run.
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Is it OK to cheer for Michael Vick? [CNN.com]
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- tlclove - Jan 9, 2011 at 11:57 PM
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No it is not okay. There is a line you just don’t cross, even though it gets crossed all the time in the sports world. Vick has a right to a life, I don’t hate him and I don’t want him executed. I hate his actions towards his dogs. It showed the worst that a man can be short of torturing and killing a human. That can never be erased from his being. He made that choice years ago. It is just something he has to live with. It’s one of the prices that has to be paid. To me it is not about forgiveness it is about doing the right thing as much as possible. You never praise or build up a person that could be that cruel to a human or an animal. There’s the potential that it will go to their head and they’ll get cocky and full of themselves all over again. There’s nothing wrong with enjoying sports but there has to be someone out there that when you look at them you don’t have to be reminded of the person they murdered, the women they raped or the the dogs they tortured and killed. I just don’t believe you can be disgusted by what Vick did and turn around and root for him in football. You can’t do both. It’s not possible.
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- frankvzappa - Jan 10, 2011 at 2:54 AM
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watching that dogmurderer choke today was a glorious experience…now can we please end all the rah rah redemption media suckuppery?
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- bangfloriohere - Jan 10, 2011 at 1:25 PM
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Vick is a scum.
I WILL say to CNN, however, that it will always be cool and hip to say “BANG IT HERE!”
But, Vick is a scum thug criminal.
