Nearly two weeks ago, watching the Philadelphia Eagles play the New England Patriots in a pre-season game, I heard TV commentators talking about the newest addition to the Eagles roster: dog-murderer Michael Vick.
The news soon became official. The Philadelphia Eagles signed Michael Vick, the former star quarterback for the Atlanta Falcons who just completed a 23-month sentence for running a dog fighting ring. Vick spent 18 months in prison, then served the rest of his sentence in home confinement.
Thousands of Eagles fans were outraged. “As a lifetime Philadelphia sports fan, I’m reeling from the Eagles’ signing of Michael Vick, justifiably the most hated man in sports,” wrote Dan Brown on the Huffington Post.
“I mean, the guy electrocuted, hung and drowned dogs. He only confessed to doing it after all of his buddies blew the whistle on him. He operated his Bad Newz Kennels dog fighting ring for six years.”
So who is this guy? And does he deserve a second chance?
Football star
Michael Vick is a certified football star. As a freshman quarterback for Virginia Tech in 1999, he led his team to an 11-0 season and an opportunity to play for the national title in the Sugar Bowl. After only two seasons of college football, he became a pro player, and was the first overall draft pick of the 2001 NFL draft, signing with the Atlanta Falcons.
According to Wikipedia, “Vick owns several NFL records, including the most rushing yards by a quarterback in a single season (1,039 in 2006), highest average per carry in a single season (8.45 in 2006), 100-yard career rushing games by a quarterback (eight), best two-game rushing total (225 in 2004) and rushing yards in a single game (173 in 2002).”
In December 2004, Vick became the highest paid player in NFL history when he signed a 10-year, $130 million contract extension with the Atlanta Falcons. The deal included $37 million in signing bonuses.
Almost three years later, the Falcons demanded that $20 million of the signing bonus be returned, contending that when he signed the deal, Vick knew he was engaged in illegal activity—dog fighting and gambling—which violated his contract.
Dog fighting
In 2007, officials found an illegal dog fighting operation on a property owned by Michael Vick in rural Virginia. Apparently, he’d been running an interstate dog fighting ring for six years. Vick was accused of financing the operation, handling thousands of dollars in gambling on the dogs and directly participating in the dog fights.
He was also accused of personally executing dogs that did not perform. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) reported that Vick and his associates hanged, electrocuted and drowned dogs by holding their head in five-gallon buckets of water. In fact, Vick had to drown one dog when it wouldn’t die by hanging.
According to the report, posted on TheSmokingGun.com, Vick and an asssociate slammed a red pit bull into the ground several times, breaking the dog’s back or neck, until it died.
When Vick was arrested, he denied that he actually killed any dogs. But after failing a polygraph test, he admitted that he did.
How could any human being slam a dog into the ground until it died? He would have to have no empathy, like a psychopath.
More trouble
Is Michael Vick a psychopath? Not wanting to voice an opinion on the basis of one behavior, I went looking for other signs of trouble, and found them in a nice, organized list in the Wikipedia article about Michael Vick.
- In 2004, two men were arrested in Virginia for distributing marijuana. They were driving a truck registered to Michael Vick.
- In 2005, a woman filed a civil suit against Vick, alleging that he gave her genital herpes.
- In 2006, after a Falcons loss to the New Orleans Saints, Vick reacted to fan booing with an obscene gesture.
- In 2007, while free on bail for the dog fighting allegations, Vick failed a drug test.
- Although he was earning $25.4 million per year through his football salary and endorsements, Vick’s finances were in a shambles, and in 2008 he declared bankruptcy.
But then there’s another question—is Michael Vick really a psychopath? Or is he a guy who grew up in the ”˜hood, then got too rich, too fast?
PETA’s concerns
I wasn’t the first to wonder about this. People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals—PETA—sent a letter to Roger Goodell, Commissioner of the National Football League, expressing exactly the same concern.
The last USDA report also shows that Michael wanted losing dogs killed rather than given away and that he put family pets into the pit with the fighting dogs. Rather than showing remorse for any of the suffering or death that he caused, Michael laughed when he saw dogs torn apart. He also killed dogs by slamming them to the ground, which broke their backs and necks and caused them to suffer a particularly painful, slow death.
As we told his counsel, this behavior seems to fit the established profile of antisocial personality disorder, as set out by criteria established by the American Psychiatric Association’s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, and it could change our willingness to support Michael further. In common parlance, people with this disorder are referred to as “psychopaths.”
Psychopaths lack the ability to put themselves in their victims’ place (i.e., to feel empathy), fail to conform to social norms with respect to lawful behavior, are frequently manipulative and charming, lie easily, take pleasure in the suffering of others, and have difficulty controlling their impulses. Cruelty to animals is a well-established predictor of psychopathic behavior.
As you know, Michael has broken the law multiple times, and his acts show aggression and a failure to recognize suffering in others. In addition, not only did he tell blatant lies to the NFL, he also lied on his polygraph, only confessing when confronted with the polygraph’s findings, which showed that he was lying. The USDA report shows his blatant lack of remorse before his involvement was exposed. That Michael claimed to be remorseful after being arrested does not change this fact.
The question arises about whether Michael can change. Unfortunately, the prognosis for antisocial personality disorder is abysmal. With behavior as aberrant as Michael’s, we worry that, despite our wish that it were otherwise, there is scant reason for optimism.
Should any doubt remain in this regard, a psychiatric evaluation should be arranged. It could include a structured, standardized test (e.g, the Psychopathy Checklist, developed by Robert Hare) and new brain-scanning techniques (e.g, those developed by Kent Kiehl) that demonstrate brain dysfunction. If Michael emerges from these examinations without evidence of psychopathy, that may help him demonstrate a capacity to change what has so far been the life of a man who takes pleasure in hurting and killing living beings who are incapable of defending themselves.
However, the repeated cruelty and aggression demonstrated by Michael strongly suggests that he is not the kind of person who should be offered as a role model. Severe and repeated acts of cruelty to animals are, of course, not what football fans, particularly children, need to think about when they see a football star, or buy a jersey or an autographed picture. Michael’s appalling acts of cruelty to animals will always be a part of his image. That will not go away. We look to the NFL for something very different.
60 Minutes
Michael Vick appeared on 60 Minutes on August 16, 2009. During the interview, he repeatedly said what he did was wrong. He claimed that while in prison, he cried about letting so many people down. He said he was disgusted with himself and deserved to lose his $135 million contract.
He said all these things like an automaton. I saw no real emotion.
In my opinion, the guy is a psychopath. I don’t think he felt any qualms about killing those dogs. But how much of his personality is genetic, and how much could be attributed to growing up in a public housing project in a crime-ridden neighborhood called “Bad Newz”? Are there any tiny seeds of empathy inside him that could be nourished?
Rehabilitation
As part of his “rehabilitation,” Vick is supposed to become actively involved in teaching urban youth that dog fighting is wrong. PETA may have reservations about working with him, but, according the 60 Minutes interview, the Humane Society is pressing forward. Maybe some of his message will get through—to himself.
Dr. Leedom has suggested that by doing good works, and consciously trying to behave empathetically, psychopaths may be able change some of the wiring in their brains that enables them to be so callous. Even if they don’t develop warm, fuzzy feelings for creatures great and small, they may be able to change their behavior.
Dr. Robert Hare has suggested the same thing. Psychopaths may never change through introspection or visualizing the pain their actions cause others. But if they have enough of an incentive, they may be able to control their behavior.
Michael Vick certainly has an incentive—football stardom and millions of dollars. So this is a fascinating case study—can he toe the line?
The whole world is watching him.
The nerve racking ethical decision here is whether to give a Sociopath the POWER inherent in a massive paycheck.
If he’d never had access to the insane salary of a football superstar, would he have had an opportunity to exercise his astounding cruelty on the grand scale he did? Perhaps, but it’s less likely.
The ridiculous disposable income of a football superstar assures that Vick will indeed have the opportunity to express is lack of empathy and lust for excitement on a grand scale.
It’s going to be ugly. It’s very improbable that he will change. I wouldn’t gamble on it. He’s going to do something awful, probably many things, and the world will be “shocked”. Whatever.
It’s hard to warn people about sociopathy. No one wants to believe human beings can be so awful. You have to get your nose rubbed in it before you can believe.
Amen! Elizabeth, you said it.
For anyone interested, here is the HSUS comment on this:
http://www.hsus.org/press_and_publications/press_releases/statement_of_wayne_pacelle_on_vick_contract_081409.html
Unfortunately, turning this into help for the animals perpetuates the myth that psychopaths can be rehabilitated. Hope some leave comments, though HSUS has undoubtedly read what PETA said.
Wayne Pacelle has said publicly that HSUS WANTS animal abusers to change their ways, so how could they not give Vick a chance to prove that he has changed, how could they not give him a chance to do positive things.
But still….I agree…it sounds like naive thinking from where I sit. And is not helping to educate the public.
educate the public about psychopaths I meant. But he screws up, it may then get through everyone’s thick skull. Maybe.
If he is truly a sociopath, then he will most likely run into other difficulties in dealing with team mates and so on. Given a long enough rope, sociopaths usually hang themselves with it. As a long time animal lover, I couldn’t even bear to read all of the things he did to the dogs. I can almost guarantee he will do it again.
BTW, I’m not sure where to post this, but there was a great article in Cosmo magazine this month about sociopaths and how charming they can be. I was surprised and pleased to see the word is getting out.
I had a nightmare about my sociopath the other night that I wanted to come here and share with all of you. I have been 14 months NC from my sociopath and rarely ever think about him any more. So I was surprised at how deeply he’d entered my psyche. In the dream he was in prison. The room had bars on 2 walls that came to a corner. The sociopath stood in the corner in plain view of everyone. he was just conducting his business, making cell phone calls and looking out of his cell, just calmly passing the time. All the prison wardens let their guard down around him because he was so nice. He was even sweet talking some of the female wardens. There were little stacked cubbyholes inside his prison cell where staff would leave their valuables, trusting that the sociopath wouldn’t steal them. And there I was just hanging around the prison. It was my job to warn everybody about what he was. I pulled all the wardens aside and said, “I wouldn’t talk to him. He doesn’t seem harmful, but he’s actually a sociopath.” Or “I wouldn’t put your valuables in there. You can’t trust this guy–he’s a sociopath.” There was some point when I was supposed to be in a room with the sociopath. I was afraid to be alone with him, so I was relieved to see that there were about 4 other staff members as well.
The meaning of this dream to me is that I have a responsibility to warn people and to spread the word. I watch over my reptile site (where I met the sociopath), and if he ever returns, I will warn others about him. I have already warned many people and educated them about sociopaths. No matter whether they are the violent kind or the seductive kind (like mine), they are dangerous people and should not be underestimated. It is also a reminder that even though he is out of my life, the lesson is not. The fear of him and others like him lingers in the darkest places in my mind.
wow stargazer! powerful dream.
There is more symbolism if I may?
He is standing in a cell, in a corner.
So in a way you feel you have him trapped and cornered if he tries to manipulate other people?
but you notice that he has a phone and the cubbyholes, also the bars on two sides leave him open to contact others, so you don’t feel he is completely controlled by the situation.
Oooh, good insights. It did seem like he is almost in a privileged position in the prison because he had charmed everyone so much. I do also feel as though he out of sight by not completely contained, so I will always be watching over my shoulder a little. A small price to pay for being free of him.
Vick is to dog fighting as Madoff is to ponzi scheems, Just the tip of the Iceberg!
Dear Easy,
GREAT ANALOGY!!!!