Going to the Dogs

I haven't written anything about the whole Michael Vick dog fighting story, and truly had no intention of doing so. Everyone was piling on the guy for for the way he treated and killed some dogs. I mean what would be the point of adding my voice to the universal condemnation of the guy? And I don't care AT ALL about professional football the impact on whatever team the guy plays for or on the NFL itself means nothing to me. Though I am waiting to see what decisions regarding Vick continuing to play the league makes, I understand and appreciate their desire to wait and see what happens on the criminal front.

Then I heard a very interesting debate on Sean Hannity's radio program. (I know, who would have thought?) The guest was World Net Daily columnist Illana Mercer who wrote column not necessarily condoning Vick's actions but questioning from a property rights perspective if what Vick is alleged to have done should be illegal.

Human beings ought to care for and be kind to animals, but a civilized society is one that never threatens a man's liberty because of the callousness with which he has treated the livestock he owns. Members of a society in which peace and liberty are valued above all would have settled for boycotting Vick's games and merchandize. They might have urged the NFL to discipline, even fire, him. But they would not have called for his incarceration.

Her argument came down to animals have no rights, and the dogs were Vick's property to dispose of as he wished. Hannity of course could not accept that. He went to the absurd length of then trying to equate dogs to children as an absurd exercise in reductio ad absurdum. Mercer shot that nonsense down fairly quicky. The problem for Hannity is that he could not get past the idea that Vick had just killed the family pet. The fact is that the dogs involved in this kind of fighting are not pets. They are purpose bred and trained livestock.

Dog fighting is cruel and the way Vick allegedly treated the animals that did not perform adequately is abominable and any person who would be a part of any of it is lacking any sort of fundamental decency. If the allegations are proven it should be up to the team he represents and the league he plays in to sanction him according to their rules. Barring that it is up to those who attend football games to decide if they want to pay money to watch such a person play the game.

Posted by: Stephen Macklin at 11:43 AM | No Comments | Add Comment