Punishing Vick for our crimes
A nation of outraged lobster-boilers.
by Shayne Lee
As Michael Vick was released from prison last week, pundits of every variety were hitting the airwaves. They were questioning whether the former star quarterback is truly repentant for his so-called morally reprehensible operation of a dogfighting ring.
In the spirit of this discussion, I would like to raise a basic question: What did Michael Vick do that is morally reprehensible?
Some of us forget that dogs are mere animals, and that animal mistreatment is as American as Apple iPods. Like Vick, most of us shamelessly abuse and kill animals.
Homemakers employ deadly rat traps and poisons to rid their dwellings of vermin. Chefs place live lobsters in pots of boiling water. Hunters shoot down animals in cold blood for mere sport.
In university labs nationwide, scientists inflict spinal-cord injuries on dogs and cats, inject rats with carcinogens, test dangerous drugs on monkeys, and do all kinds of evil things to guinea pigs in the name of scientific research.
Americans systematically exploit and kill animals - sometimes for scientific progress; sometimes for leather jackets, ham sandwiches, or horse-racing.
So why is one type of animal cruelty (dogfighting) more reprehensible than another (lobster-boiling)?
A nation of outraged lobster-boilers.
by Shayne Lee
As Michael Vick was released from prison last week, pundits of every variety were hitting the airwaves. They were questioning whether the former star quarterback is truly repentant for his so-called morally reprehensible operation of a dogfighting ring.
In the spirit of this discussion, I would like to raise a basic question: What did Michael Vick do that is morally reprehensible?
Some of us forget that dogs are mere animals, and that animal mistreatment is as American as Apple iPods. Like Vick, most of us shamelessly abuse and kill animals.
Homemakers employ deadly rat traps and poisons to rid their dwellings of vermin. Chefs place live lobsters in pots of boiling water. Hunters shoot down animals in cold blood for mere sport.
In university labs nationwide, scientists inflict spinal-cord injuries on dogs and cats, inject rats with carcinogens, test dangerous drugs on monkeys, and do all kinds of evil things to guinea pigs in the name of scientific research.
Americans systematically exploit and kill animals - sometimes for scientific progress; sometimes for leather jackets, ham sandwiches, or horse-racing.
So why is one type of animal cruelty (dogfighting) more reprehensible than another (lobster-boiling)?
Read the Full Essay @ The Philadelphia Inquirer
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Shayne Lee is an assistant professor of sociology at Tulane University. His first book T.D. Jakes: America’s New Preacher was published in 2005. He is also co-author of the new book, Holy Mavericks: Evangelical Innovators and the Spiritual Marketplace. Both are published by New York University Press.
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