Peta E-Card of Michael Vick

Posted on December 19, 2007
Filed Under Vick Parody Videos | 14 Comments

As I run this website, I would not claim to be a Michael Vick advocate.  However, I think that PETA’s holiday ecard of Michael Vick hits a little below the belt.  Michael Vick is a celebrity and celebrities for right or wrong or targets of parody, especially when they make stupid mistakes.  Michael Vick has made a number of those and as such has a number of parody videos ridiculing his mistakes.  It comes with the territory of fame.

All that said, I think that PETA is not serving their own cause well.  I’m not an advocate for PETA’s causes either.  As I see it, they brought Michael Vick in for sensitivity training or something a couple months back.  That took a lot of guts on Vick’s part to humble himself to do that.  PETA may despise Vick for his actions in killing and torturing dogs, but one of the few redeeming things he has done in this whole thing is to go to PETA and accept a couple lumps.

So as I see it, when they put together this video, it seems like an attack after the fact. 

What’s your opinion on this? 

  1. Did PETA screw up or
  2. Is Vick still fair game for the parodies?

If you want to view the clip go to the peta site, the ecard here.

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Did Michael Vick Breach his Plea Agreement Out of a Fear for His Life?

Posted on December 17, 2007
Filed Under Minor Developments | 7 Comments

is-vick-scared-for-his-life For over a week I have been watching a story related to Michael Vick that has not developed at all.  Sometimes news reporters sit on their half developed stories and speculation awaiting a break in news and hoping to get a scoop.

Now first off, let me state first off that I am not a journalist.  I am a blogger and speculate, hypothesize and theorize based on the news that is available or the reports that come in from the internet.  Some of that news and reports over the last couple weeks have indicated something much darker and troubling in the Michael Vick case.

The Man in the Michael Vick Case that was Murdered

It starts with the murder of a North Carolina man that sold Vick’s kennel dogs and that also fought some of his own dogs against Michael Vick’s dogs.  This North Carolina man is also believed to be one of the men that provided evidence against Michael Vick before he was murdered.

Roy_Thomas_Bud_Melton-Connection-to-vickThis man was murdered about 8 days after federal authorities searched Vick’s Virginia home and started seizing evidence.  The man was a drug dealer, but police found him dead in his home with a large amount of money and drugs on his person, which indicates that the murderer did not need the money nor the drugs.

Federal investigators and prosecutors have not been cooperating with the North Carolina sheriff responsible for this investigation.  The Sheriff made a plea last fall to anyone that had evidence step forward.  He also made a plea to the feds to share some of their evidence gained from the Michael Vick investigation so that the sheriff could rule Michael Vick and his co-defendants in or out as suspects in the murder.  There has been no confirmation publicly that the sheriff has received any support from anyone (other than this blog) since then.

 

Why Didn’t Vick Comply with the Plea Agreement?

Vick received a 23 month sentence from the Federal Judge in this case and one of the reasons for the longer than recommended penalty included the fact that Michael Vick continued to thwart investigators even after he signed the plea agreement and admitted guilt.  He gave contradictory statements about his own actions and involvement.  He was caught using marijuana via a drug test.  Plus, he did not give evidence as required in the investigations into dog fighting rings.

Why didn’t Vick give up other dog fighting gambling rings and the people involved?

Was Vick sticking to a gang banger mentality of protecting his friends?  Was he trying to protect his future in the NFL by not outing other NFL players involved in dog fighting?  Either could be possible but maybe there is something much more sinister going on here.

Michael Vick was involved in an illegal dog fighting conspiracy.  He was involved with illegal gambling.  A man involved in that conspiracy was murdered.  If Michael Vick did not murder the man and if people working for Vick did not murder the man, then who murdered Bud Melton?  Who would murder a dog fighting gambler and drug dealer that had done business with Michael Vick?  Who would murder a person and walk away from tens of thousands of dollars in cash and drugs at the scene of the murder?

One of the most likely scenarios is that the person that murdered Bud Melton was not interested in money but in protecting themselves from exposure.  By murdering Melton who may have been one of the people to provide some information to Federal investigators, someone silenced a federal witness.  They also sent a clear message to other federal witnesses.  Talk and you may die.

Vick had a lot to lose.  He lost a great deal of money.  He lost his career temporarily.  He even lost his freedom.  Michael Vick however did not give up any other people in the investigation.  It appears that Michael Vick specifically chose to accept a longer jail sentence and the wrath of a federal sentencing judge that loves dogs, so that he would not have to suffer the consequences from someone that was more threatening to Vick.

If this is true, it would indicate that Michael Vick, a federal witness himself (per the plea agreement) may have been intimidated by the threat of his own murder.  It would indicate also that Michael Vick knew enough about the shadowy characters involved in the dog fighting rings to believe that those people are capable of murder and capable of murdering Michael Vick a superstar athlete, who is now under the protection of the Federal government in a federal prison.  It might even indicate that Michael Vick knows who killed Bud Melton!

Is Michael Vick Smart Enough to Save his own Life or is he a Moral Coward?

Now, here is a rhetorical question.  If Michael Vick did know any of those facts and he purposefully withheld information from Federal prosecutors relating to dog fighting rings and a North Carolina murder then he may be guilty of more crimes, I’m not a prosecutor and can’t say for sure.  However, if the federal government was incapable of keeping a witness in this case alive, maybe Vick fears for his safety.  Maybe he kept mum to stay alive or to keep his family alive.

We don’t know why he might have kept silent, nor why he did not comply with his plea agreement.  If he did keep silent to serve himself and protect his own hide, is that actually a display of intelligence that Michael Vick rarely gets credit for? 

(note, I do not like the guy anymore, but unlike many of his detractors before this scandal, I thought he was a smart guy and capable of a great deal.)

Similarly, if he is protecting other criminals, if he is protecting murderers, it hints a level of moral cowardice.  Vick may have been brave on an NFL football field, but many of us wake up every day and deal with much more dangerous situations than a NFL football field.  Hell, its much more dangerous to drive down an Atlanta interstate every morning than it is to play football a few dozen times a year in Atlanta.

I do not make this cowardice claim myself with out some experience in the matter.  I myself was a whistleblower for the federal government and risked my own life to provide evidence.  I know what it takes to search in your soul and do what is right.  I’m not saying that Michael Vick should risk his life.  That’s a decision that each person has to make for themselves.  But I do understand what it takes.  I had the stuff to risk doing what’s right.  So far it would appear that Vick does not.

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Judge Rewards the First and Most Cooperative Witness in the Vick Case - Is that Fair?

Posted on December 14, 2007
Filed Under Minor Developments | 4 Comments

Judge  Henry Hudson, sentenced Tony Taylor to 2 months in prison.  Taylor was the first and most cooperative witness in the investigation against Michael Vick and the other codefendants that received sentences ranging from 18 - 23 months in prison.

This sentence seems to reflect the reward for being cooperative with investigators.  It could be argued that Taylor had less to lose than Michael Vick and cooperating was an ‘easy’ option, but in my opinion, Michael Vick could have cooperated just as easily as Taylor.  In fact if Vick had been more forthcoming with Virginia prosecutors and investigations, this entire case would have never made it to Federal Court in the first place and all the defendants would probably be looking at 2 months of prison at most if any at all.

Tony Taylor of Hampton helped establish Vick’s “Bad Newz Kennels” operation and joined in killing dogs but later became the government’s chief informant in the case, prosecutor Michael Gill said at Taylor’s 10-minute sentencing hearing.

“He was the most significant source of information in this case,” Gill told U.S. District Judge Henry Hudson. “He did not hesitate in any way.” Last of 3 Michael Vick co-defendants sentenced

 

  1. What do you Think is this Fair for Taylor?
  2. Is it Fair for Michael Vick?
  3. Is it Fair for the other Defendants that also provided evidence?
  4. Is it fair for justice?
  5. Would the legal system make any progress at all if people did not cooperate with authorities in investigations?  (Keep in mind that failure to cooperate can be Obstruction of Justice, a crime itself) 

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Michael Vick Sentenced to 23 Months in Federal Prison

Posted on December 10, 2007
Filed Under Major Developments | 15 Comments

Michael-Vick-prison-bars

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Judge responsible for Michael Vick’s sentencing has delivered a sentence of 23 months, slightly less than half the total amount that Michael Vick could have received.  Michael Vick has served 1 month already of that 23 month sentence.  According to sentencing guidelines, Michael Vick must serve at least 85% of his sentence, approximately 18 months.  So Michael Vick could be out of jail as early as mid May of 2009 with good behavior.

Lies After the Accusation

Many people think that Michael Vick could have avoided this prison term if he had been more forthright early on in the investigation.  Instead Michael Vick denied any wrong doing and denied his own involvement in the dog fighting rings, in the torture of dogs, and the killing of dogs.  He lied to the public, he lied to the NFL commissioner, he lied to the Atlanta Falcons, and he lied to Federal prosecutors.

He told everyone he wasn’t involved, but the truth was buried on his property.  ~ Talking Heads on ESPN News

There is nothing wrong with a person proclaiming their innocence.  Michael Vick however according to all the evidence uncovered and offered by his own defense and prosecutors and his own admission of guilt, was guilty.  Michael Vick could have cooperated early on and probably would have only faced some fines and possibly probation in the State of Virginia.

Instead his lies ultimately brought in Federal Investigators tracking the illegal gambling circuit that Michael Vick participated and promoted that covered at least 3 states.  One person in that dog fighting ring was even murdered 8 days after investigators raided Michael Vick’s Virginia home.

The prosecutors ultimately felt like Vick intentionally misled them.  He seems to have misled all those other people.  The Judge might have given him 12-18 months per the tone of the plea deal, but instead came down with a heavier sentence although not as tough as it could have been without a plea deal. He could have been given 5 years. 

The judge cited at least 4 cases where Vick lied or was less than honest including Vick’s lies about smoking marijuana to an officer of the court. 

Actions After the Plea Deal

Michael Vick’s sentence was probably partially influenced by his own actions after he admitted guilt.  His actions all year seemed to continue to be self destructive in nature up until September. 

He tested positive for marijuana use in September.  That may have been the actual wake up call that brought Michael Vick around.  After that Michael Vick agreed to take classes with PETA and ultimately surrendered early in November and started serving prison time.

Many legal analysts thought that Vick may have received bad legal advice.  If he had been forthright early on, he could have received a better deal, but instead he held out until the end until all the witnesses caved in and testified against him. 

He could have started serving prison time shortly after admitting guilt.  If he had done that he would have avoided the marijuana usage, and might have demonstrated more sincere remorse early on.  Instead the remorse seemed to trickle out over several months, giving his critics fuel and his supporters little motivation to rise to his defense.

According to the Plea deal Michael Vick was also supposed to provide truthful testimony about other people involved in dog fighting and according to the judge, this did not happen.  If Michael Vick had cooperated with other investigations, he might have been given more leniency.

NFL Indefinite Suspension

The NFL has not yet commented on Michael Vick’s sentence.  The NFL is not doing Vick any favors here.  They are hedging their bets to see which way the wind blows.  They have managed to leave their options open so that they can welcome Vick back to the NFL if there is a player worth welcoming back.  I put a heavy emphasis on the word ‘worth’ in that last sentence.

The NFL may drop the suspension that day Vick gets out of jail or they may keep the suspension going for ever or they may match the length of the suspension to the length of the prison sentence.  They will definitely wait to see what happens with the charges in state court.  They may wait to see how fans react.  If fans think that the 23 month sentence is too harsh, the NFL may step in as a godfather and offer suspension relief after prison.

The NFL has not taken the high road in this case.  They relied on Vick’s false assertions after the fact. They never paid attention to what Vick really did throughout his NFL career.  They did not pay attention to the facts of the investigation after they came out.  They treated Vick like an investment in property hoping that they could salvage that investment if things did not turn out so bad.

We do not Condone Punishing Vick by Sending him back into NFL Servitude

Many people have said that Vick should be able to go back to his job after prison.  This site is against that because it would be a reward for Vick to go back into the limelight that helped to create this situation. A few of our commentors have suggested that we are hitting Vick when he is down with this goal.  We’d like to suggest that if we wanted to see bad things happen to Vick, which we do not, if we wanted the worst for Michael Vick, we would encourage the organization that is primarily responsible for his downfall to take him back.  If we wanted to see bad things happen to Vick as some sort of sick retribution, we’d see him go back to the NFL where they treat Michael Vick like a property investment.

Did Vick’s Upbringing or the NFL Prompt him to do Sick Things?

Michael Vick did some sick and twisted things in his private life.  It is hard to tell if he was inspired to do those sick and twisted things due to some event in his upbringing, his neighborhood, or his schooling and training before the NFL.  It is hard to tell if he was inspired to do those sick and twisted things by the culture in the NFL itself.  After he was first charged, many players came to his defense with claims that dog fighting was normal and accepted in the NFL.  Maybe the NFL culture is as sick if not more sick and twisted that Vick’s behavior from the day he entered the NFL until last spring.

Writing a New Future for Michael Vick

Regardless of what did happen, Michael Vick now has to attempt to learn from his mistakes and determine how to navigate his future.  He could go back to the culture that harbored his dog fighting, dog killing and dog gambling life style.  He could go back into the belly of the beast and work to avoid temptations.  He could also choose another path.

Michael Vick could reinvent himself and do so in a way without football.  Right now he is heavily associated with football and dog fighting and lies.  If he wants to reinvent himself, he may need to wipe the slate clean.  He does not need to be defined by his career.  If he can rebuild his character he can be defined by many other things as he goes forward and works to build a better future.

Michael Vick’s Finances - Not as Bad as they Seem

There are a lot of things that may happen with Vick’s finances, but it is unlikely that he will be broke or even poor.  A good deal of his fortune can easily be protected in a number of retirement vehicles that can not be touched by the courts (OJ is the model for this.)

Sure he has and will sell some assets that he does not need.  He has also moved to Florida where he can take advantage of lenient bankruptcy laws, but bankruptcy for Vick is more of a paper pushing exercise as opposed to truly going broke.

People all across the United States are getting foreclosed on and going bankrupt.  They will know financial troubles light years beyond those that Michael Vick will experience.  He has definitely lost a great deal of money and potential earnings by his own actions, but he need not leave prison a poor man.

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Michael Vick’s Dogs Heading West

Posted on December 8, 2007
Filed Under Dog Blogs, Minor Developments | 3 Comments

There have been several reports this week, about Michael Vick’s dogs getting place and very shelters and homes.  One of those shelters is as best as I can tell something of a ranch out in Utah that specializes in taking care of abused dogs and dogs raced for dogfighting.

Monday, Michael Vick faces sentencing for his actions and transgressions.  But for the dogs that were abused and tortured and survived, they get to start a new life.  Let’s hope, someday in the distant future Michael Vick will be a start a new life and make up for what he’s done.

Pet Connection Blog » Now this is what you would call ‘a good outcome’

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Vick caught editing 2007 out of Wikipedia entry ~ and more Satire

Posted on December 7, 2007
Filed Under Michael Vick Satire | 3 Comments

vick-wikipedia-jail  In case you are getting a little weary of the Michael Vick news, there are several humorous satire articles below,mostly from the serioussportsnewsnetwork:

 

 

 

At least I think they are satire . . . .

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Is Michael Vick Crazy? Seriously, Vick Are You Crazy?

Posted on December 4, 2007
Filed Under Minor Developments | 3 Comments

 FanNation extracted an interesting little tangent in the court filings that took place yesterday.  Vick’s attorney’s have asked the Judge to seal Vick’s Psychiatric evaluation.  Now, I am not a lawyer and do not know if this is something that protects Vick’s privacy (privacy being a bit of a legal myth as its not in the Bill of Rights) under HIPAA or something. 

Maybe this is normal, or maybe its an attempt to hide something that a client with less money would normally have exposed to the public (like that guy that strapped the flares on his chest and went into Hillary’s campaign office last week).  I would like to offer the question to Vick however. 

Michael Vick, Do you suffer from some psychological disorder that may have predisposed you to commit the crimes that you have already admitted guilt to committing and committing the acts which were wiped away legally in the plea agreement?

Here is why I want to know.  If Vick is disabled with a condition that predisposed him to commit these acts, then it will play a role in his sentencing.  He’s still responsible for his actions, but if he was off his meds and his condition can be controlled with medicine and maybe he has been self treating himself with other non-prescription drugs (like marijuana or something) then maybe there is hope that he can get the right diagnosis and return to the world someday and not be a threat to the rest of us.

However, if he is as crazy(seriously) as Charles Manson and this was just the first step along a road of evolving and escalating crimes, then maybe we should all be aware of this.  Consider that other Virginia Tech alum, whose psychological disturbances were not revealed to the public despite many behavioral warning signs that could have tipped us all off and could have tipped of Virginia Tech such that all of those murders at Virginia Tech could have been prevented or avoided.

Michael Vick may or may not have a right to privacy (its not in the constitution).  But what about those of us in the public, don’t we have a right to know how much of a danger this criminal (he admitted guilt) might be to us?  If its nothing major, then we could learn about it and feel safer. If it is something major, then it would shed a whole new perspective on this case. 

Michael Vick may not work towards an insanity plea, but it might be a mitigating condition and that could change a sentence from 5 years to 2 years and parole conditions that include requirements to take the prescribed medication.

source and inspiration FanNation | Truth&Rumors | Vick’s psychiatric report sealed

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