eagles -- for shame!

LET THE DOGS OUT ... DON'T WE WISH THIS PHOTO WERE TRUE??
I can't believe how low the Eagles have stooped. Michael Vick? Are you kidding me?
How about bringing T.O. back to join him?
Vick is beyond being a low life and Eagles fans should show their outrage by staying away in droves.
The sad thing is, of course, they won't. Even sadder ... lots of people think Vick is great and the only thing that matters is winning a football game.
Maybe they would like to read this column we ran at The Reporter recently.
Or look into the eyes of a defenseless animal...

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Down with dog killer Vick

Some people just cannot wait for dog killer Michael Vick to return to professional football. The only thing this inter-species sadist deserves is universal derision.

Let’s recap exactly why the former Atlanta Falcons quarterback pleaded guilty to running a dog-fighting ring, earning him 18 months in federal prison and house arrest until July 20.

Vick helped kill eight dogs and injure dozens of others. According to his federal court filings, “Vick agrees and stipulates that these dogs all died as a result of the collective efforts of (co-defendants Purnell) Peace, (Quanis) Phillips and himself, Vick.”

Other legal papers detail Vick’s anti-canine savagery.

In a Statement of Facts related to his Aug. 17, 2007, plea agreement with federal prosecutors in Richmond, Virginia, Vick’s co-defendant Quanis L. Phillips (a.k.a. “Q”) admitted that “In or about April 2007 ... (Purnell A.) PEACE (a.k.a. “P. Funk”), PHILLIPS and VICK executed approximately 8 dogs that did not perform well in ‘testing’ sessions at 1915 Moonlight Road by various methods, including hanging and drowning. All three participated in executing the dogs. PHILLIPS agrees and stipulates that these dogs all died as a result of the collective efforts of PEACE, PHILLIPS and VICK.”

The July 17, 2007, federal indictment against these three degenerates states that their dog-killing methods also included electrocution and “slamming at least one dog’s body to the ground.” The indictment added that on April 25, 2007, the following items were discovered at Michael Vick’s Bad Newz Kennel: “...approximately 54 Pit Bull Terriers, some of which had scars and injuries, appearing to be related to dog fighting (and) a ‘rape stand,’ a device in which a female dog who is too aggressive to submit to males for breeding is strapped down with her head held in place by a restraint...”

Dogfights, dog rapes and dog executions — all in a day’s work for Michael Vick.

It might be one thing if Vick were out carousing with friends on a Saturday night, drunkenly stumbled into a dogfight, and foolishly threw down a $20 bet on one dog or another. That might qualify as “a mistake,” as Vick breezily described his role in this carnage.

It is quite another thing to organize these things on one’s own property, and for profit.

Nonetheless, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell conditionally reinstated Vick. He may practice immediately and could play by Oct. 18.

While the souls of these dead pups look down in disgust from Doggie Heaven, Vick’s apologists sing his undeserved praises.

Responding to reports that Vick faces a four-game suspension before resuming play, Buffalo Bills receiver Terrell Owens said: “The guy’s already suffered so much. And to add a four-game suspension on a two-year prison sentence, that’s ridiculous.” He later told ESPN: “The commissioner needs to go sit in jail for 23 months.”

As USA Today reported, Owens recruited other footballers to support Vick via Twitter. Their rampant errors of grammar, spelling and syntax are preserved here for posterity:

“im in support of mike vick too man,” wrote Cardinals receiver Larry Fitzgerald. “I wanna c him back in action being the human highlight file he is. Im with ya bro.”

“Never heard him complain or wine,” remarked Minnesota Viking tight end Visanthe Shiancoe. “Let the man play.”

“He did time and lost his shoe deal,” pleaded Cardinals defensive end Darnell Dockett. “Dear Commissioner please reinstate mike vick.”

Having completed his prison sentence, Vick is even-Steven with Uncle Sam. Now the private sector must address this man’s evil.

Vick does not deserve any prestigious position of visibility, glory, or adulation.

Any team that hires this dog killer should be boycotted by dog lovers and decent people everywhere, as should that team’s sponsors. If he ever enters an athletic venue, he should be booed off the field, out of the stadium, and beyond the parking lot.

Rather than resume his multimillion-dollar sports career, someone somewhere should hand Michael Vick a mop.

Deroy Murdock is a columnist with Scripps Howard News Service and a media fellow with the Hoover Institution on War, Revolution and Peace at Stanford University. E-mail him at deroy.Murdock@gmail.com.