Washington Week: Student Voices (O)

COLUMN: Vick should pay for dogfighting cruelty
By Brian Murphy
The Lantern (Ohio State U.)
07/24/2007

(U-WIRE) COLUMBUS, Ohio — For his role in the unlawful dogfighting that took place at his estate, I hope Michael Vick never plays another down in the NFL. Nobody can argue that he should not be charged or punished because all of the evidence available indicates that Vick knew about it or on several occasions was personally involved. I hope this will not become yet another situation in which a rich or influential person is given amnesty for something the common man would spend years in jail for doing.

Media reports have said that Vick personally handled several of the cash settlements. One amounted to as much as $26,000. The Roanoke Times reported that the kennel headquartered on Vick's property was even named after him before it became known as Bad Newz Kennels.

It was also alleged that Vick personally helped in the murder of some of the injured dogs, which included such unusual methods as electrocution, hanging and shooting. Several neighbors even reported seeing Vick purchasing items for the kennel. Those who would say that Vick did not know what was happening at the kennel are fooling themselves.

It is truly sad that someone as talented as Vick could be so sadistic. Sen. Robert Byrd, D-W. Va., said it best when he wondered aloud on the Senate floor whether the real animals were "the creatures inside the ring or the creatures outside the ring."

What is it that compels someone to start or be involved with such a business? Could the money involved become so important that it cancels out a person's sense of right and wrong? Is the money even worth the person's fear of being punished? Apparently, Vick and his associates were either sadistic in the first place or so money hungry that they decided to take advantage of the opportunity, despite the millions of dollars that Vick is already worth.

In a time when organized or government-sponsored violence among human groups has been eradicated in the U.S., there are few crueler spectacles than dogfighting. The dogs are trained to kill and often not fed in order to increase their hunger for the other dog. In the best possible scenario, both dogs will come back brutally chewed. In many cases, dogs will return with organ damage or broken bones. After nearly every fight, at least one dog will be so badly hurt that it will have to be put down.

When it comes time to put the dog down, humane methods are not used, as we have seen in the case of Vick and his cronies. I do not believe I will ever understand what possessed them to hang and electrocute some dogs, much less shoot them.

It seems that in the end, we are forced to wonder who is watching this with such interest to place bets on the outcome. How can one sit and watch this without having any feelings of remorse or showing any sympathy for at least one of the dogs? The only answer we are left with is that these are all sick people. The people who would do this are simply despicable. We can only assume that these people have no sense of decency or restraint. I hope that some readers who disagree could shed some light on the subject or possibly prove me wrong. Unfortunately, the subject disturbs me to the point that I could not possibly write more than what The Lantern's editorial policy dictates.

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