Michael Vick: 'I Wouldn't Change Anything In My Life If I Could'

[hlthe2b]

Someone want to tell me again about his sincere contrition and redemption? :eyes:


Michael Vick, who served 18 months in prison and two months of home confinement after pleading guilty to running a dogfighting operation, said that he wouldn't change anything about his past.

In an interview with the Wall Street Journal, the Philadelphia Eagles star quarterback said he is happy with who he turned out to be.

"I wouldn't change anything about my life if I could," he said. "As crazy as this may sound, going to prison really changed my life. I was able to go in and come out with a plan."

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/04/15/michael-vick-i-wouldnt-change_n_849558.html

[joeybee12]

1. It's all part of his grand plan..his grand PR plan...

he was a murderous thug before and he's still a murderous thug at heart.

[ZombieHorde]

2. Better yourself with dog torture! Celebrity cultures/cults are so weird.

Unless that celebrity is Gary Gygax, then celebrity cultures/cults are perfectly normal and good. ;-)

[JoePhilly]

37. Except that is not what he said.

There are 2 key quotes ....

1) "I wouldn't change anything about my life if I could," he said. "As crazy as this may sound, going to prison really changed my life. I was able to go in and come out with a plan."

2) He also addressed his critics and said that some people will never forget what he did, but "that's just the reality of the situation" he created for himself.

The point in #1 is that he was making lots of bad decisions. Doing lots of bad things. Making lots of bad choices. And getting sent to prison made him see this, and stop.

The point in #2 is that he knows that many will never forgive him. AND he knows that situation, that reality, is one he created for himself. Through his own actions.

No where in either #1 or #2 does he claim his actions were "good".

[ZombieHorde]

43. He said would do it again in point one. He would torture those dogs so he could go to jail and

become a better guy. He would not change what happened to those dogs.

In my opinion, remorse means you would change the things you did wrong. You wish you would have never done the bad deed.

No where in either #1 or #2 does he claim his actions were "good".

I said Gary Gygax cults are good, I did not say Vick said anything was good. He simply said he would not take it back. He would not change the fact he tortured those dogs to death.

[Solomon]

3. Aw jeez. Here we go again.

Talk about beating a dead horse.

[Renew Deal]

17. 2 days ago it was breastfeeding

Yesterday was circumcision day. Today it's Vick! This has been an exciting week at DU. :)

[Solomon]

30. LOL Obama's speech stopped the outrage for a moment.

I guess we need other things to be outraged at.

[ZombieHorde]

44. You love it, or you would have clicked on the OP. nt

[xchrom]

4. he's an asshole. nt

[Goblinmonger]

5. He says that prison woke him up.

If he hadn't fought dogs and been caught, he is saying that he would be in a very bad place because of the person he was. Seems like he understands what he did was wrong and is happy for the wake up call he got in regard to life in general.

Sure I'll get flamed for this. Again.

[LanternWaste]

8. I imagine many people would realize

I imagine many people would realize that torturing animals in wrong without the need for prison. In fact, I would imagine that's the default position of our culture.


"Sure I'll get flamed for this. Again."
Well.. everyone like to play the role of martyr every once in a while I guess.

[The2ndWheel]

10. Unless it's in the name of human progress

[Goblinmonger]

13. Or cosmetics. n/t

[Goblinmonger]

14. or supper n/t

[Goblinmonger]

12. One would think that most people wouldn't be assholes as a default

but we all know that isn't the case. Some people need to change. And a lot of people do. The difference here is that not many people on DU want to give Vick the chance to change because we like dogs.

yeah, yeah, yeah, martyr schmartyr. Just amazes me that on a progressive board so many people are unwilling to give someone a second chance and allow for the possibility of reform.

[LanternWaste]

41. Doesn't matter if "people on DU" give him the chance to change or not

Doesn't matter if "people on DU" give him the chance to change or not. We are irrelevant to his action, both prior and future.

I'm not in a position to give him a second chance. The court did that. My actions and opinions are (again) irrelevant to his second chance. However, I do realize that your stating we are "not giving him a second chance" makes for very good ad copy, and simultaneously lets you ad the dramatic and compelling sobriquet of "most righteous" to your well-respected role of first martyr.

[walldude]

11. Well.. he was asked "if you could change something"

Wouldn't a better answer have been "Yeah I would have liked to learn what I did in prison without having to kill some dogs to do it?

Or maybe "I wish I knew now what I knew before I went to prison."

:shrug:


No flames, just questions.

[Goblinmonger]

15. I can agree with that

but I can understand how he wouldn't come to that conclusion on the spur of the moment. Plus that would be hard to put into soundbite words without planning it out--you could come across sounding really stupid if you stumble over that concept.

[lukasahero]

32. Exactly. Thank you.

It's always been all. about. him.

[Scout]

39. + like about a frickin' zillion n/t

[Arkansas Granny]

27. No flames from me. I think you are probably pretty close to the mark.

[Warpy]

6. Maybe he feels he needed that year and a half in prison

as a serious wakeup call. Or maybe he realizes all the bad stuff as well as the good stuff had to combine to make him who he is today.

There are things I should regret but I realize that if I'd skipped them, I'd never have learned from them.

Then again, maybe he's really as dumb as a bag of hammers and still has no insight or empathy.

[roguevalley]

31. could be. I believe in redemption for most but not the guy who

hanged a baby and sent the pix to his wife. He is beyond even an animal abuser.

[get the red out]

42. I think he's as dumb as a bag of hammers

Always have.

[Renew Deal]

7. I think he makes a legitimate point.

And the quote you posted misrepresents what he said.

[hlthe2b]

9. the quote I posted was the headline of the article...

It was his quote and worthy of all the contempt received.

[Renew Deal]

16. It's misleading.

The guy said that his prison time helped him grow as a person. It's possible for people to view this narrowly and say he likes torturing dogs, but that's not what he's saying.

[hlthe2b]

18. would you likewise defend a guy who say he regrets nothing...

after serving time in prison for torturing and killing multiple people? He didn't qualify his statement to say anything about his victims...

As always, it is all about him. Contrition? Redemption? Yeah, right. More like further evidence of his narcissism and lack of conscience.

[Goblinmonger]

20. That's not what he's saying.

He's saying he is the person he is today because of what he went through. He realizes what he did was wrong and came out a different person. He even says in that VERY short article (was that the whole interview?) that he understands why people won't forgive him and knows it is the reality he created for himself.

[hlthe2b]

21. It is what he is NOT saying. not a word of contrition....

No regrets for those who suffered at his hands. No regrets at all.

[Renew Deal]

23. lol

:banghead:

[Goblinmonger]

24. I firmly believe there is nothing he could do for some people.

The reaction to what he did is too visceral for some.

[hlthe2b]

25. No.. it only underscores that most recognize true contrition

and likewise, insincerity, narcissism and self-serving statements of "convenience." It comes through loud and clear to those not desperately anxious to believe otherwise.

It should not require a "pre-planned out statement" to remember the victims of your horrific deads. It should not take a PR person to help him prepare the proper soundbyte. Sincerity flows and doesn't need a press person to coach you.

[Cali_Democrat]

29. You're way off

smh

[hlthe2b]

33. ...

Back at ya

He was asked "if you could change something" and he said nothing. To defend that is contemptible.

[Renew Deal]

22. He doesn't need to qualify it.

Reasonable people understand what he's saying.

[Green_Lantern]

19. how did prison change him when he plead guilty to get early release..

And then weaseled his way out of serving 3 years in state prison.

His plan is how to commit crimes and do as least time as possible.

[seabeyond]

26. i have done some really stupid things in life, and in those, were huge lessons

that would not be with me otherwise.

IF he feels he is a much better person now, that something clicked after his experience, i can see him saying this and it not meaning, he does not know the wrong of the abused animals.

[KamaAina]

28. I still don't understand why the home team doesn't play "Who Let The Dogs Out?" over the PA

when the dog-killer takes the field.

[Renew Deal]

34. Has he been to Cleveland yet?

I'm not sure how that's going to go. Especially with his back to the dogpound.

[Goblinmonger]

35. Yes, and the irony of those people complaining about killing dogs while eating animal flesh

will be lost on them for sure.

[KamaAina]

36. People and dogs have had a special relationship for at least 10,000 years

maybe longer. Temple Grandin says it's closer to 100,000. No other animal can say that, not even the cat.

[Goblinmonger]

38. Some cultures eat dogs. Some cultures have those relationships with other animals.

Trying to think of a pithy twist on the Animal Farm sayings but it's been a long week.

[ZombieHorde]

45. If the the two are similar, then should both be legal or illegal? nt

[Goblinmonger]

46. If killing animals is wrong, then killing animals is wrong.

If the argument is torture and pain for the animals, then we need to make all of that illegal.

[ZombieHorde]

47. Most of us are not saying killing animals is wrong.

Many loving pet owners have their pets put to sleep when the pet is suffering from an advanced disease. So very few here think killing animals is wrong. I personally wonder about the ethics of putting suffering animals to sleep, but most DUers seem to think it is ethical.

Additionally, many DUers are not against making animals suffer, as long as the suffering furthers some fields of scientific research; e.g., cancer research.

But your original point was about food, not suffering pets or cancer research. To be honest, I am not sure many DUers really understand what happens inside of slaughter houses. Also, to further your point, nutritionally speaking, we do eat significantly more meat than we need. This is understandable for poor people with kids, but the rest of us are encouraging needless death and pain. Maybe I do agree with you. I think I would like to see a veggie America. I'll think about it.

Note: I am assuming, we are both assuming, humans and animals are two different groups, for the sake of easier argumentation.

[femrap]

40. Here's hoping he

sits on a football.....real hard. Wonder if he'll regret that.