I think Football would do an under the table deal moreso than Baseball or basketball . . .has to do with the fact that Gene Upshaw has not spine and is basically the commissioner's personal b*tch None of the other Unions would allow such a thing but In the NFL . . .the Union has no balls and the owners and commissioner can do whatever the h*ll they want Rocket River
all I can say is that pgabriel has opened my eyes more than once in this thread. Talk about trying to play juror #8
exactly. Goodell can just tell Vick "I'm going to let the Falcons cut you, and leave it at that. But you are no longer allowed to set foot onto an NFL field ever again". Of course, this still allows him to play Arena or Canadien football, where his endorsement deals and marketability/star power amounts to zilch.
Upshaw has decided that the most important thing he can do for his players is to make the most money possible. The other stuff all falls by the way side. You might disagree with those priorities - but it's a legitimate choice.
So, am I just thinking too much about baseball and gambling? One of the implications, if not in the official indictment is that he was gambling illegally on an illegal enterprise. Seems like this could go to the integrity of the game and pose the opportunity for blackmail, etc. Wouldn't surprise me if we see that as part of the justification for the inevitable suspension/ban.
Yeah if it is true that he was involved in all that ****..he can burn for all I care. Murdering dogs for sport is mindless and anyone that ever has owned one should agree with me
I understand that you think perspective is in short supply regarding the relative lack of outrage regarding Lewis and the furor surrounding Vick, but you have to understand the basic human psyche coming into things like this. I can't stand dogs, but this story has me pacing and angry and furious at Vick and his punk friends. There's genocide in Africa and a war in Iraq and yet I haven't been this spitting mad in months. I watched a kitten get run over by a car tire 11 years ago, and it still has me nervous and edgy every time I get in a car and leave a driveway -- driving or otherwise. I'm very nervous and have to check whatever driveway I'm in, whether the people in the house have animals or not. Last month, I watched the thug from the Sopranos get his head smashed under a moving truck and didn't bat an eye. It's just how people are. I just spent ten minutes reading links from the Drudge Report -- ho hum. Then I saw the link to a story about teenage girls burning a kitten while laughing, and there's NO WAY I'm going to be able to fall back asleep. We've just become so desensitized to killing of humans, animal cruelty (rightfully) really gets to us. And it's another desensitized state, one created early in life regarding animals, that creates the sort of person that doesn't mind killing humans later in life, or treating others so recklessly (driving while intoxicated, putting other people's lives in danger) that we eventually end up seeing the sort of human violence that leads to the other desensitization. The people that grow up messing with domesticated (or close) animals for perverse fun are the ones that grow up to be the sort of person who pulls a loaded gun on you for accidentally cutting you off in traffic.
Pretty hard to prove a collusion is in place, though. Even if he was effectively blackballed and the union tried to bring collusion charges against the league, that's a tough thing to prove. Latrell Sprewell was no great shakes in his last year in the NBA, but Junior Harrington was in the league two years ago, and Sprewell wasn't? And, take it to another level -- it's not "collusion" if all 32 teams individually decide that a B-level quarterback isn't worth the trouble. Falcons training camp is going to be picketed within an inch of its life next month -- there was an ass from the Humane Society on cable tonight calling for a lifetime ban. Not saying these people don't have a legitimate thing to be furious over, I'm furious too, and no team is going to want to deal with that when a nearly as-good quarterback will suffice.
Btw I totally agree. i find the whole thing just so stupid. when the story first broke I really didn't care either way, now that its coming out how indepth he or at least people he knew were involved bothers me more than anything else. you make millions of dollars and you have your hands on a dog-fighting operation. its more bizarre than anything else
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/19838234/ Brohm could be Falcons' QB of the future By Russ Lande Updated: 12:59 a.m. CT July 19, 2007 Michael Vick's indictment may seem like the beginning of the end of his time in Atlanta. But in reality the Falcons have been weighing whether Vick is their quarterback of the future this entire offseason, and plans to move in a different direction have been in the works since former head coach Jim Mora Jr. was fired. When the team began its search for Mora's replacement, it became clear that to get the top candidates to consider the job, owner Arthur Blank would have to enable the new coach to decide whether to keep or cut Vick after the 2007 season. So it follows that Bobby Petrino was brought in with the power to decide whether Vick has what it takes to lead the Falcons beyond this coming season. When the Falcons traded backup quarterback Matt Schaub, they sent a message: If Vick does not have a stellar 2007 season, he will be gone and the Falcons will use their second-round pick in the 2008 draft, along with other draft picks, to try and move up to acquire quarterback Brian Brohm. Brohm surprised many when he chose to return to Louisville for his senior season after Coach Petrino left, but we believe the Falcons are targeting Brohm. Not only is Brohm a tremendously talented quarterback who will be a top 5 pick regardless of which teams are drafting, but he played in Coach Petrino's offense at Louisville and excelled. Brohm is the complete opposite of Michael Vick in that he is a traditional, strong-armed passer who makes great decisions in the pocket; he can make every throw with zip and accuracy and is extremely consistent. The only similarity between Brohm and Vick is that both have had some injuries that have caused them to miss time during their careers. Unless Vick greatly improves as a passer and carries the Falcons deep into the playoffs this season, he will not be their quarterback in 2008 -- even if he is cleared of all the charges he is facing.
http://www.ajc.com/sports/content/sports/falcons/stories/2007/07/19/0719vickap.html This article won't let me edit/copy..but it says: 1. the NFL will take a wait-and-see approach before taking any disciplinary action; 2. a county prosecutor in VA said it was "more than likely" that Vick would be indicted on state charges as well, though he didn't specify when or exactly what charges.
Man the stuff he did is sick. People who are cruel and abuse animals are sick and disgusting. Those people really grind my gears and I got no sympathy or time for them. I hope vick gets life in prison or the death penalty. Frankly, he doesn't deserve to live, but the death penalty may be too easy of an out for him even though he deserves it. This is right up there with first degree murder in my opinion. Don't give me the crap that they're just dogs, cause some dogs deserve to live over some humans, like vick.
Damn right! Though Rover was the name of my aunt's cat who has long since passed and I'm more of a cat person myself, but I like dogs too and generally most animals. The way these dogs were killed was just sick and depraved. If they wanted to kill the dogs for losing, there were humane ways to do it, although equally as wrong, but to kill them in so many different and sadistic ways just shows what type of human beings we're dealing with - utter trash.
Someone tell me what moral differences exist between Vick's dog fighting and that of wealthy oil WASPs who pay for the luxury of dogs ripping away at declawed big game cats? I guess if you label it "Huntin" it's ok.
Actually, no it's not. I think that, in this day and age, "huntin" is just as barbaric as dog-fighting. Nobody needs to go out and kill a tiger, or a gazelle or, for that matter, a deer for sport and pleasure. It's just as wrong as what Vick did, IMO.
there is absolutely no difference at all. Both are disgusting things and should be outlawed. "hunting" a declawed tiger or whatever is the same as drugging it up and then shooting it poiunt blank.
I hunt deer, rabbit, dove and a number of other animals. I do it because I like to eat the meat. No animal or animal body has went on my wall as a trophy, hell I haven't even taken a picture of my game. Am I wrong?
I've never been hunting and have no desire to do so, but I think there's a difference between hunting to kill a tiger or a gazelle and a deer. I think there's some need for population control with deer. It may be ugly, but the fewer deer that are shot with guns, the more I suspect that will either get hit with cars or starve to death when the population is greater than the food supply. The one thing I don't get is the people who use the comparison to hunting in order to defend dog fighting. And I also don't understand the other ways people have tried to take the focus off the main concern: Is Vick guilty of this crime or not? I don't care about his color, his high profile status, his money or anything else. I care whether or not he's guilty of these charges. If he is, I wouldn't mind him becoming a high profile example of the consequences of engaging in these illegal activities.
