All you dogs out there, don't forget: "To Err is Human but to Forgive Is Canine". I'm talking about Michael Vick. Before you start a major woof-fest, let me explain. I know what you're thinking, we've all heard it: "Tommy, how could you? You can't teach an old dog new tricks." (As an aside, I'm pushing four, now, but recently learned how to 'BEG'.) I'm not going to dwell on the man's crimes; nuff's been said on that subject. But rather let's look at what I think is an apt parallel.
Once upon a time, there was this real bad breedist man named George Wallace. He wasn't very tolerant and he wouldn't let the diverse breed dogs play with his hoity-toity pure breds. Here's a picture of him (he's the one in the middle) blocking a cockapoo from entering the Tuscaloosa campus of UPS. Well, that made some people incensed and someone went so far as to plug him full a holes and he ended up in a wheel chair and it made him realize it was all because he was a bad man so he decided that he was wrong and all dogs should be able to play together. In fact, this is what he said:
"I was wrong. Those days are over and they ought to be over."Well, I think its the same with Michael Vick. He's really changed and he's a nice man now. He's been nice to dogs and he tells kids how bad he used to be. And here is what he said on that TV show:
"It's wrong, man, I don't know how many times I gotta tell, I gotta say it. I mean it was wrong. I feel tremendous hurt behind what happened. And, you know, I should’ve took the initiative to stop it all. And I didn't. And I feel so bad about that now. And I know that I didn't I didn't step up. I wasn't a leader."And I watched his football game last week and they even let him play and he threw a pass to a man who ran all the way to the end and I didn't even get mad. In fact, I just rolled over and went back to sleep.
As controversial as it is for me to say it, I believe him and I say it's time to move on.
