Can Vicks and Asvestas Be Rehabilitated?

Has everyone in the animal saving business gone nuts?  When I first heard that HSUS's Wayne Pacelle stated that Vicks should be allowed to have a dog again sometime in the future because he is now a reformed person, I simply just shook my head in disbelief. 

One of the 54 pit bulls taken from Michael Vick’s property. In the indictment of Vick and three others, the government said some of the dogs “had scars and injuries appearing to be related to dog fighting.”

Below are exerts from Wayne Pacelle regarding the Vick/pitbull fighting/betting/killing case.

http://hsus.typepad.com/wayne/2010/12/michael-vick-pet.html

All of that said, I do think that if his rehabilitation progresses and he handles the probation period flawlessly, it could be a good thing for Michael Vick’s family to have a pet at the end of that process [emphasis added by me]. To adopt a pet is the most cherished desire of countless millions of children everywhere, including Michael Vick’s two little girls, London and Jada. It’s the most natural thing in the world for a parent to want to grant that wish.  

I agreed with the judge’s ruling that he should not have a dog for at least a three year period after his incarceration. But the court did not decide to impose a lifetime ban, and based on the work for animals he has undertaken since his release from prison, I don’t believe he should be forever banned from adopting a dog for his two daughters. [Emphasis added by me]

There may be some who would forever deny Michael Vick the opportunity to have a pet. I understand that sentiment. But there is a larger principle at stake here. We at The HSUS are about the business of change—personal and societal change. Our work with Michael Vick is helping to change the view of pit bulls in urban communities from fighters to friends. We must be open to the possibility that rehabilitation is possible, and faithful to our hope that people can change. When that rehabilitation succeeds, it’s to the good for all involved—people and animals alike. [Emphasis added by me]

At the time Mr. Pacelle made these statements, where is the consideration for all the dogs and other small animals that lost their lives because one person decided it was okay to kill, maim, and bet money on the outcome of the pitbull battles?  HSUS is in the business of "change?"  Are you kidding me?  I thought HSUS was in the business of saving animals from sadistic animal abusers!  Open to the idea that rehabilitation is "possible?"  So it's okay to risk the lives of animals based on the "possibility that rehabilitation is possible?"

I cannot believe anyone who says he cares about animal welfare would ever want Vicks to own any kind of animal again!  Rehabilitated?  Can a murderer be rehabilitated?  If Vick's "children" want to have a pet, then they can simply wait until they move away from their father's house before they acquire a dog or cat, plain and simple.

Let's take this scenario one step further -- is it okay to have a convicted child molester live with children if some non-profit group says this person has been "rehabilitated?"  Would any judge or jury want to risk the lives of children in the hands of a supposed "rehabilitated" child molester?

How about the WAO case?  Should the Asvestas, Cryers, Maxfield, Behaine, and Matthes ever be allowed to start another wild animal sanctuary if these people say they are "sorry" and that they are "rehabilitated?"  After all the lives that were lost at the WAO, is this something our society can endorse and support?

I guess if you support HSUS, then the answer is yes.  Explains why Carol Asvestas and Andrew Behaine were able to start up yet another wild animal rescue non-profit organization right under HSUS' noses!  It would not surprise me if HSUS plans to bankroll the Asvestas' latest scam sometime in the future, at an appropriate time when they believe the Asvestas' have been suitably "rehabilitated."

No justice for all the pitbulls and their victims that died for the pleasure of a man who profited from their deaths.  And no justice for the WAO animals who died because of greedy and incompetent former WAO board of directors (to include Cryer who is currently the last WAO board member standing today).

Man failed these animals, but God will judge these people some day soon.

Later:
Obama is glad Eagles signed Michael Vick



I found this posting on the web today.  Here is an exert from the Politico "Click" website:

NBC’s Peter King reported the call during “Football Night in America” on Sunday.




“I talked to Jeffrey Lurie, the owner of the Eagles this week, and he said he was surprised to pick up the phone one day and Barack Obama calls him to praise the Philadelphia Eagles for signing Vick and giving him a second chance,” King said from NBC’s Rockefeller Plaza studios. “Lurie told me that the president was passionate about the fact that it’s rarely a level playing field for prisoners once they leave jail. And he said the message was, what the Eagles had done with Vick was important for society,” said King.


A spokesman for the Eagles confirmed to POLITICO that King’s statement was accurate.

Truly, there is no justice for the dogs that lost their lives because of the sadistic behavior of Michael Vicks.  Just in case you forgot what happened to the dogs, take a look at this photo and then ask yourself was there any justice for these animals, as now even the President of the US is hailing Vicks as a rehabilitated model prisoner (murderer in my opinion).

Sadly, justice for the WAO animals will not be forthcoming either.  For some reason, criminals get a pass for abusing/killing animals, then well-known people and organizations hail these criminals as heroes.  And we all wonder why our society is so screwed up!