Michael Vick’s statement following his guilty plea in U.S. District Court to a dogfighting conspiracy charge:
“For most of my life, I’ve been a football player, not a public speaker, so, you know, I really don’t know, you know, how to say what I really want to say. You know, I understand it’s – it’s important or not important, you know, as far as what you say but how you say things. So, you know, I take this opportunity just to speak from the heart. First, I want to apologize, you know, for all the things that – that I’ve done and that I have allowed to happen. I want to personally apologize to commissioner Goodell, Arthur Blank, coach Bobby Petrino, my Atlanta Falcons teammates, you know, for our – for our previous discussions that we had. And I was not honest and forthright in our discussions, and, you know, I was ashamed and totally disappointed in myself to say the least. I want to apologize to all the young kids out there for my immature acts and, you know, what I did was, what I did was very immature so that means I need to grow up. I totally ask for forgiveness and understanding as I move forward to bettering Michael Vick the person, not the football player. I take full responsibility for my actions. For one second will I sit right here – not for one second will I sit right here and point the finger and try to blame anybody else for my actions or what I’ve done. I’m totally responsible, and those things just didn’t have to happen. I feel like we all make mistakes. It’s just I made a mistake in using bad judgment and making bad decisions. And you know, those things, you know, just can’t happen. Dog fighting is a terrible thing, and I did reject it. I’m upset with myself, and, you know, through this situation I found Jesus and asked him for forgiveness and turned my life over to God. And I think that’s the right thing to do as of right now. Like I said, for this – for this entire situation I never pointed the finger at anybody else, I accepted responsibility for my actions of what I did and now I have to pay the consequences for it. But in a sense, I think it will help, you know, me as a person. I got a lot to think about in the next year or so. I offer my deepest apologies to everybody out in there in the world who was affected by this whole situation. And if I’m more disappointed with myself than anything it’s because of all the young people, young kids that I’ve let down, who look at Michael Vick as a role model. And to have to go through this and put myself in this situation, you know, I hope that every young kid out there in the world watching this interview right now who’s been following the case will use me as an example to using better judgment and making better decisions. Once again, I offer my deepest apologies to everyone. And I will redeem myself. I have to. So I got a lot of down time, a lot of time to think about my actions and what I’ve done and how to make Michael Vick a better person. Thank you.”
Was Michael Vick sincere in his statement and apology? Was he just going through the motions of reading a statement scripted by his lawyers to say what the courts, NFL and public wanted to hear, in an effort to mitigate his sentence, suspension and rehabilitate his image?
There is a lot of speculation and most of what I have heard in the media has been cynical. However, I will give Michael Vick the “benefit of the doubt”…. so to speak. I will believe that he was sincere in taking full responsibility for his choices and actions, and in his plea for forgiveness. I for one will wish him the best and hope that he will be successful in transforming his mind, values and spirit to become a much better Michael Vick.
Was he sincere? Maybe. Was his statement well done? Probably close to the best that is possible right now. Was it enough? Nope. Not nearly enough. I didn’t hear a single word of acknowledgement from him as to the suffering he caused the poor dogs he slaughtered. It was far more than “bad judgement”. He is apparently still unaware of the level of sadism he has evidenced by his own admission. It is a very dark heart that takes pleasure in the suffering of another living creature. I refer not only to the dogfights themselves, which is horrific enough, but also to the dogs he killed that didn’t make the grade. Champion dogs were treated for their injuries between fights. Clearly they had access to a vet and or vet supplies. But instead of putting the dogs that weren’t tough enough to sleep with an injection, they tried every other sadistic way they could think of in killing these dogs.
If I were to hang my neighbors cat, I think it shows problems far more serious than “an immature act”. And were I to kill say 6-8 animals by electrocution, hanging, drowning, etc. I think I might need to veiw it as more than “making bad decisions”. And to continue in my actions for six years ar more…
As to taking resposibility – Mr. Vick lied repeatedly. It appears he only took responsibility when there was no other viable option.
Another blog pointed out he spoke of himself in the third person at least three times in his apology. My first reaction was speaking of oneself in the third person removes the individual from their statement.
Mr. Vick did sound sincere in his statement, but he is still clearly not cognizant of why the public has reacted so strongly. To kill and torture an innocent animal for fun is beyond most of our understanding (thank goodness).
I think his truest statement was “I will redeem myself. I have to.” I do hope Mr. Vick finds redemption, and it is certainly possible… time will tell.
Adriane, excellent thought-provoking points.
Well please tell me. If the apology and the jail time is not enough, then what is?
Generally, as a child, when you begin to torture or kill animals you are on your way to serial criminality of the homocidal variety.
I’ve heard defenses for Vick on the lines of his crime being similar to dear or rabbit hunting. I dont see the similarities. Oftentimes there is a need to limit and controll the population of certain animals. Needless harm done to animals is just wrong. Yes we eat steak and wear leather but our technology, hopefully, allows us to limit the pain and suffering caused to animals. If not than it certainly should.
Vick strikes me as just another over indulged athlete with no common sense.
To quote a famous comedian, “They should’ve never gave you niggas money!”
Does anyone else think it is coincidental he found God the same day his lawyers advised him to say that???
If there is anything good about the Michael Vick story, it is that there is an emerging increased awareness about animal cruelty and animal fighting. There is so much anger about this issue. If we channel it into a positive direction, hopefully, something good can come of it. However…
I watched Vick’s public apology with my little son who USED TO wear Michael Vick jerseys to school. It is disturbing to think a certain percentage of the population is honestly going to be swayed by Michael Vick’s “enlightenment” carefully crafted by his overpaid attorneys. Call me a cynic, but I don’t believe a man who has been allegedly torturing animals since childhood coincidentally has a religious epiphany as a result of getting caught and losing his job. I hope I am wrong.
I think it is a sad commentary that we, as a culture, are using the Vick story to compare “What’s worse?” “What’s worse”, we ask, “carelessly fathering illegitimate children, or dogfighting?”. “Dogfighting or gambling?” “Dogfighting or rape?” “Dogfighting or racism?” “Dogfighting or hateful nationalism?” “Dogfighting or (fill in the blank)….?” The comparisons to dogfighting have been endless.
Dogfighting is one more piece of evidence our country is in need of a spiritual transformation (please note I said spiritual and not necessarily religious). Animals are sentient beings – they feel pain, and they suffer, just like we do. They are not more important, or less important than human beings, but like human beings, they are important, too.
Dogfighting pits one dog against another until one of them dies. The survivor gets his flesh torn off, ears ripped off, eyes pulled out, etc., and the reward for being “a winner” is to writhe in pain until the next fight. Enough said. The pictures make my flesh crawl. The losers are tortured, beaten, starved, electrocuted or drowned. For what? Because these poor creatures were unlucky enough to be born a dog!
Every major faith teaches its followers to be responsible stewards of animals and the Earth. Please help us get the word out that caring for animals, just like caring for people, is an important part of just being a decent person and citizen. If we make this a priority, there will be no more dogfighting horror stories, and no more pointless comparisons of evils. Let us all rise, together, to be better people than we are today, shall we?
Chaplain Nancy Cronk
Founder, http://www.AnimalChaplains.com
Yes, time will tell, but he deserves a second chance. He has been crucified for his actions. I don’t need to go into the fact that US officials have murdered and lied. Just read Empires Workshop or see the new film by John Pilger.
I feel you, disdudescared! Is he going to have to die on the cross before people start accepting the fact that he has paid and will pay more for his wrongdoing?
I do ackowledge that it ’seems suspicious’ when people ‘find Jesus’ in times such as these that Michael Vick is experiencing, but I just believe that the voice of God remains constant. If you truly believe in God, you will find that God can not get any stronger – nor can God’s voice . . . it’s just that it is in our darkest hour that we are more willing to listen to what God has to say.
Hungry people will eat squash – even if they abhor the taste of squash; people with an appetite tend to wait for the foods they enjoy the most – This incident created a hunger (as opposed to an appetite) in Michael Vick.