Now that PETA has officially denounced the re-signing of Michael Vick to an NFL contract, I am even more in favor of him playing. Why?
To me, the issue is not sincerity. This appears to be the defining factor for some folks. Is he sincere? But that question is virtually unanswerable. 
There’s only two people who know if Vick is sincere: him and God. The rest of us can only guess. But is sincerity all we need to absolve people of their crimes nowadays? Doesn’t matter if they murdered, raped, abused their children or their animals. As long as they’re sincerely sorry, they can get their job back?
No. Michael Vick should not get his job back just because he is sincere.
He should get to play again in the NFL because of precedent. The NFL is notorious for employing some questionable characters. Take Leonard Little (DE for the St. Louis Rams), who killed a woman in a DUI in 1998, completed probation for involuntary manslaughter, and six years later was arrested again for another DUI. After manslaughter, you’d think he’d have learned his lesson. Or legendary running back Jim Brown who was twice charged with rape, smashed the windows of his wife’s car after threatening to snap her neck, and was charged with allegedly throwing his fiancee off a balcony. Pacman Jones (recently employed by the Cowboys) has a long list of criminal offenses, which include assault, felony vandalism, disorderly conduct and public intoxication. Rae Curruth (then employed by the Carolina Panthers) was was found guilty of “conspiracy to commit murder, shooting into an occupied vehicle and using an instrument to destroy an unborn child.” He’s currently serving time. And who can forget the Juice. (Check out NFL Crimes Newsblog for an ongoing criminal ticker of football’s well-paid hooligans.)
The NFL already employs numerous thugs, rapists and womanizers — so why not a dog fighter?
Which leads me to my second point: Rape, murder and manslaughter are worse than fighting and killing dogs. No, this isn’t meant to downplay animal cruelty. I am an animal lover and think Vick’s mob ring was despicable. However, the reason PETA has been so vocal about Vick’s crime is that they believe dogs are equal to people, and that killing canines is as heinous as murdering humans. Heck, this is the same group that equated the slaughter of chickens with the Jewish Holocaust. But there is no equivalence between a man who abuses women and a man who abuses dogs.
Yes, Michael Vick is a criminal. But his crimes are no worse than those of the addicts, rapists, gang bangers, and womanizers the league already employs. How can the NFL rightly refuse Michael Vick’s reinstatement when they employ men who have committed far worse crimes?
If you ask me, athletes should be held to a higher standard. But until the NFL (and other professional sports) clamps down on the miscreants that comprise its ranks, there’s no reason why a dog fighter can’t join them.
True. And he did serve time. Some of the others merely got their hands slapped.
I disagree.
My feeling is, Vick has paid the penalty for his crimes. If any of us had gone to jail and done our time, we would want someone to give us a second chance as well. And there's no one better to have in your corner than Tony Dungy.