Second Chance?
I have plenty of friends from college who still think of me as the idealistic, bleeding heart liberal who walked around with his heart beating outside for all to see.
I recall arguing everything from helping the homeless (which I still believe in - if they are willing to help themselves), to abolishing the death penalty (which I also still believe in because it is a horribly unbalanced law).
Yet I certainly have changed my stance on a lot of things - even though I try and stick to an agenda that is balanced on human rights for all.
You see, the problem I'm having deals with Michael Vick. He did his crime, went to jail, supposedly saw the error of his ways, and is trying to work his way back into football.
The old me says that he deserves a second chance - we all deserve a second chance. The part of me that was in sharp contrast with the thoughts of my old college buddies, is withering away however.
He deserves a shot at redemption... he does. As I look into the big, brown eyes of my two dogs, I know that the Christian thing to do is forgive the man and hope that he has changed.
Recently a rumor was floated that the Bills were entertaining thoughts of having him join the team. The old, forgiving college boy was nowhere to be found.
I threatened a boycott! I exclaimed that I'd be on hand to protest every single game and that I'd bring my dogs down to Ralph Wilson to growl at the bastard. I wouldn't want him within 500 miles of my house, let alone in the same neighborhood.
Today comes the news that Vick is entertaining children as a condition of his rehab-I asked my wife if she'd feel comfortable if he was hanging around with our children. "I'd trust him more with the kids than the dogs, I suppose," she said.
Then I asked the boys: "Would you like to talk with him?"
"Yeah," Jake said. "I'd ask him what the hell is wrong with him."
And maybe this part of the rehab will be good because the children don't have a filter. They break things down fairly simply - almost idealistically
"What the hell is wrong with you?"
Exactly!
And perhaps the amount of forgiveness granted depends upon how that question is answered. Vick did his time. He deserves the chance to be employed, doesn't he?
I get so very confused when the ideals of yesterday crashes head-first into the realities of today.
I recall arguing everything from helping the homeless (which I still believe in - if they are willing to help themselves), to abolishing the death penalty (which I also still believe in because it is a horribly unbalanced law).
Yet I certainly have changed my stance on a lot of things - even though I try and stick to an agenda that is balanced on human rights for all.
You see, the problem I'm having deals with Michael Vick. He did his crime, went to jail, supposedly saw the error of his ways, and is trying to work his way back into football.
The old me says that he deserves a second chance - we all deserve a second chance. The part of me that was in sharp contrast with the thoughts of my old college buddies, is withering away however.
He deserves a shot at redemption... he does. As I look into the big, brown eyes of my two dogs, I know that the Christian thing to do is forgive the man and hope that he has changed.
Recently a rumor was floated that the Bills were entertaining thoughts of having him join the team. The old, forgiving college boy was nowhere to be found.
I threatened a boycott! I exclaimed that I'd be on hand to protest every single game and that I'd bring my dogs down to Ralph Wilson to growl at the bastard. I wouldn't want him within 500 miles of my house, let alone in the same neighborhood.
Today comes the news that Vick is entertaining children as a condition of his rehab-I asked my wife if she'd feel comfortable if he was hanging around with our children. "I'd trust him more with the kids than the dogs, I suppose," she said.
Then I asked the boys: "Would you like to talk with him?"
"Yeah," Jake said. "I'd ask him what the hell is wrong with him."
And maybe this part of the rehab will be good because the children don't have a filter. They break things down fairly simply - almost idealistically
"What the hell is wrong with you?"
Exactly!
And perhaps the amount of forgiveness granted depends upon how that question is answered. Vick did his time. He deserves the chance to be employed, doesn't he?
I get so very confused when the ideals of yesterday crashes head-first into the realities of today.
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