Who Let The Dogs Out

Mike Vick got out of prison today, and was therefore the number one topic on sports talk radio. I listen to sports talk radio because I’m stupid and a glutton for punishment. While I hate myself for listening to it, especially the local shows, the discourse is still light years ahead of political talk radio. But I fear for the nation because people don’t seem to be able to experience cognitive dissonance. I don’t think they’re wired for it anymore, even when the conflicting thoughts are laid out specifically as conflicting thoughts in front of them. Mike Vick ran an interstate dog fighting ring. He got caught and sent to federal prison. He did his time, and now he’s getting out. The question raised all over the country today wasn’t, “Do you think Mike Vick is a good person?” it was “Should Mike Vick be allowed to play in the NFL?” The overwhelming answer from the peanut gallery was a very loud NO!!! Tony Boselli asked the callers if Mike Vick had a right to work. The answer was yes, but not in professional sports because it’s a privilege to play professional sports. Boselli’s position is that Vick has a right to play in the NFL, and NFL owners have a right to refuse to give him, but if a team owner does want to sign him the government has no right to step in and say no. The callers didn’t like this. Boselli tried to bring a little perspective into the conversation by asking about Leonard Little, who is a defensive end with the Rams and was convicted of vehicular homicide when he killed a woman while driving drunk, then he got another DUI a few years later. Mike Vick, if signed by an NFL team, will have hundreds if not thousands of protesters at every game, even in St. Louis where Leonard Little plays ten times a year with zero protesters. People ignored the point completely. I guess they figured they had limited time on the radio so they couldn’t afford reflection on their thoughts. They also don’t see the irony in hating what Vick did, but having no problem with a hunting and fishing show that details the best tools, the best techniques, and the best places to kill animals. Mike Vick is a very bad, very stupid person. But he runs really fast and throws a football really far. That’s all that’s required of a professional football player. If we expect more out of professional athletes, or any group of people in general, no one is going to be allowed to do anything.