Doggystyle

Last week, I had the opportunity to spend some time in the beautiful city of Charlotte, N.C. I was in town all week for a wedding. Aside from driving through on 85 and changing flights at the airport, this was my first time spending a significant amount of time in the Queen City. Everything I had heard about the area was true. It is a thriving city with lots of potential. Sort of like a mini Atlanta. I could definitely live there.

I arrived on Tuesday afternoon and as I sat in my hotel later on that evening I saw a breaking news flag on SportsCenter: Michael Vick indicted on federal charges.

Uh-oh

If you've been living under a rock for the past couple of months, let me bring you back to 2007. Mediocre Atlanta Falcons quarterback and fellow VA native Michael Vick has been linked to a huge dogfighting ring in Newport News. His Surry County home, which he apparently owns, but doesn't occupy, has been ground zero for this operation and has been raided several times. There, the feds have found numerous dogfighting pits and paraphernalia.

Now, one would ask, for an athlete who, when it's all said and done, will probably make over $100 million in his career, why the hell would you be fighting dogs.

The easy answer is ignorance, but it does farther than that. Dogs, particularly pitbulls and rottweilers, are seen as tough and those who possess them often feel a sense of confidence and arrogance. Obviously, this is not the case for every person who owns the dogs, but for some young black men, these having dogs is sort of a status symbol. You want to have the strongest dog on the block and you will do anything to prove this - including dogfighting.

However, it has baffled me that so many people in mainstream media were not aware this sort of thing goes on. Granted, it's not as prevalent is other areas of the country as it is the south, but dogfighting has been going on for years. It's nothing new. My dad is a veternarian so I've seen and heard about such things first hand.

In our country, everyone is untitled to due process, but we all now that's not always the case. And while Vick will certainly get his day in court, he's in deep shit. So deep, that, his career may be in jeopardy, except for Madden.

I've seen the indictment and I must say, that, if half of the stuff in those documents are true, Mr. Vick is in a world of trouble. Fans of the Falcons and Vick can only hope that somehow, this doesn't end up as bad as it potentially can eg. potential time.


Many have pointed out that it's been Vick's family and friends that have brought him down. While I usually disagree with such claims, I tend to favor this one. Vick grew up in the hood and often times when you go from hoodrich to regular rich overnight, it's hard to separate the two and you find yourself trying to maintain your hoodpass while your career has led you to the suburbs.In doing so, you try to hold on to those who have been there since day 1. There's no problem with this, you just have to be careful and understand that everyone in your circle may not be good for you and have your best interest at heart.

I just hope Mike hasn't learned this lesson too late.