Michael Vick

You've heard the headlines even if you don't follow professional sports -- NFL quarterback Michael Vick on trial for arranging dogfighting at his property in Virginia.

There are a lot of angles to this story:

• Vick is not only the face of the Atlanta Falcons, he is a headliner for the NFL. When he came into the league, he was supposed to revolutionize how the game was played with a quarterback's legs (never mind that Fran Tarkenton did that 40 years ago).
• Though Vick is highly publicized, he has arguably never lived up to the hype. Atlanta has been a mostly-average team. Vick's personal statistics do not jump off the page. In fact, his completion percentage is in decline. He is an interesting, but average, QB.
• Vick is not yet being accused of betting on the dogfights, rather, just buying the dogs, arranging the fights, watching the dogs die, and burying the dogs. Betting on the fights is another crime alltogether, and apparently one with a stiffer sentence.
• If this was snake fighting, would anyone care? Dogfighting is illegal. Is this illegality based on immorality? I suppose you could say it is. If you own a dog, or like dogs, you are far more outraged by this story than those of us who don't count canines as our best friends.
• This isn't Vick's only brush with controversy and the law. Last year he was in trouble for making obscene gestures to fans. In January 2007 he was detained for allegedly transporting marijuana through Miami International airport (he was cleared of any wrongdoing). While these incidents do not speak of illegality, they may speak of his character.
• Anybody remember Marcus Vicks? That's Michael's younger brother. He too was a star QB at Virginia Tech. But the younger Vick was dismissed form the Hokies for a series of boo-boos. First, he was arrested and suspended in 2004. Then in '05, he roughed up an opposing player, intentionally stomping on the leg of a player who had tackled him. Then, another arrest, for driving with a suspended license. I wouldn't be surprised is his grades were less than stellar, too. Now, Michael is Michael, and Marcus is Marcus, but the behavior of each seems to reflect the values of the other.

As I've written before, the bottom line with guys like Michael Vick is that they are living in sin, without regard to the consequences. They do not report to God ... they are men unto their own. There is no moral absolute -- I'll do what I want, when I want to do it, and try to skirt the consequences when they come.

Vick will win sympathy votes because, by all accounts, his upbringing was poor and very difficult. In fact, we should feel sympathy for any child in those circumstances. But Vick is no longer financially poor, just morally bankrupt. If we wish to feel anything for Vick, it should be hope that he will surrender his life to the highest moral authority -- Jesus -- and that future chapters of his story will reflect the miracle of God's grace.

That doesn't exclude the nature of his present predicament. The legal system should run its course. If appropriate, he should be found guilty and imprisoned (others that have been charged are essentially pleading guilty and plea bargaining lesser sentences). He should never play professional football again. He will serve as a reminder that no one is above the law.