...Michael Vick Michael Vick was born on June 26, 1980 in the city of Newport News, Virginia. Vick’s parents Michael Boddie and Caletha Vick and Vick’s siblings Christina, Courtney and Marcus grew up together in the hostile environment that Newport News was known for. Newport News is infamous for it’s gangs and drug activity. It is nicknamed “NewportNam”. This is a reference to Vietnam in order to show the hostile and dangerous environment that Vick grew up in. This would impact Vick in a negative way in his future. Vick’s journey to prison would start at a young age. Michael Vick saw his first dog fight at the age of 8. Dog fighting was a part of the culture of the neighborhood. In his biography, “Finally Free”, Vick says that “When [he] was young, [he] witnessed dogfighting so much that [he] didn’t think it was wrong” (102). Growing up in this kind of environment would lead to Vick’s imprisonment. He also states that while he knew that people got in trouble for dogfighting, he never knew that people could be arrested for it. Another factor that caused Vick’s imprisonment was the absence of his father. Vick’s father, Michael Boddie, worked at a local shipyard as a sandblaster. Boddie also struggled with an addiction to drugs and alcohol. This resulted in Vick growing up with no one to teach him right from wrong. This also resulted in no one being able to guide him through the tough times of living in Newport News. In accordance, in the book “Role Models”, the author writes that...
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...for every game; for example, a number of 40 trustworthy referee shows up to the game, 3 of them are selected by the computer to run the game, this way we reduce the chance of having a score previously settled by a referee. Fourth, NBA should include in her referee’s contract that any kind of game betting and gambling is forbidden. As for the press, the NBA management should focus on the fact that this scandal was made by a single referee and the other referees are clean, and that referees that get into this kind of gambling will be sued. They should also promote the new decisions made like checking referees backgrounds and the new system of picking a referee to the public. This way they will get their trustworthy image back. -NFL Michael Vick was an NFL player in the Atlanta Falcons team, he was charged with running dog fighting games on his own property. Almost every person sees this act as cruel and inhumane. The Atlanta...
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...Arthur Blank Servant Leadership Brandon Crothers Management 310 9/6/11 Arthur Blank is the owner of the Atlanta Flacons. When I was growing up I use to watch the Falcons on television. My favorite player was Michael Vick because he was fast and a great quarterback. The reason I picked Arthur Blank was because Michael Vick got in trouble with dog fighting and that hurt the Falcons organization. Their reputation got hurt also but, Arthur Blank turned this franchise around and got its name back and brought the organization back to winning again. Arthur Blank is a servant leader because he listens and he put s the people before himself. Arthur Blank was born on September 27, 1942 in New York, New York and he received an accounting degree from Babson College. He worked as an accountant before joining a small pharmaceutical company started by his father. The company got bought by Daylin; So Blank became an executive at Daylin drugstore unit. Blank then moved to the Handy Dan Improvement Centers, this is a division of Daylin, where he met Bernard Marcus. In 1978, both Blank and Marcus were fired by Daylin over disagreements about the small chain's future and they decided to go into the home-improvement business. They looked at four cities to determine where the perfect location for their new home-improvement business. They then settled on Atlanta as the place with the right market and real estate conditions to test their theory that consumers would flock to huge stores...
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...Change Is Always Go Tommy Robertson Feb 22, 2012 Change Is Always Good By. Tommy Robertson I. Introduction A. “No matter who you are, no matter what you did, no matter where you've come from, you can always change; become a better version of yourself.” B. In today’s society, people now have to make changes in their life like Michael Vick, Domestic Diva, and 50 cent. C. C. I believe that most people have to experience something bad in their life to realize change is really good in for the better. For example like spending time in jail. II. Body A. First I’m gone to talk about when Michael Vick went to jail for running an illegal interstate dog fighting ring. B. Michael was sentenced to three years prison time in jail. Team members and football fan had no clue if he would be returning to the game again. C. So Michael decided to plead guilty to felony charges and will serve one year and eight months in prison. III. Next I will be talking about 50 Cent who is known for rapping and real name which is Curtis Jackson III who spends time in jail for drug-related charges. A. So the judge decides to sentence him 3 to 9 year’s prison time in 1994. 50 cent was still an aspiring rapper who was very determined to do something positive with his life once he was released from jail. B. 50 cent did his time and also earned six month boot camp...
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...Assignment 1: Social Performance of Organizations National Football League (NFL) Diallo Jones Dr. Antoinette Bridges BUS 475 – Business and Society Nov 2, 2014 Corporate social responsibility in professional sports first emerged from the idea that charitable endeavors and community outreach programs could help boost fan support and increase revenues. Today, many professional leagues and franchises use their social responsibility efforts as a way to improve their public relations and marketing strategies ( “Sports Philanthropy”, 2009). Increasingly, teams see social responsibility as critical in bridging the gap between athletes and fans as a result of astronomical player salaries and continued occurrences of player misconduct both on and off the field (Knecht,2007).More than ever before, sports franchises are using their athletes‟ celebrity-like status appeal to generate impact in the community, while leveraging these efforts to promote the image of their league and its teams. The recent rise in CSR activities illustrate that professional sports franchises fully realize importance of image and reputation. According to Public Relations Quarterly, there is a positive and linear relationship between reputation and organizational success (Gibson,Gonzales&Castanon, 2006). Consequently, reputation is the single most valued asset of an organization (Gibson, Gonzales&Castanon, 2006). While positive reputations are beneficial to the success of individuals and organizations...
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...quantity of information on the web about Michael Vicks situation post, during, and before his dog fighting allegations and trial. With this said I have no trouble finding sources dealing with my topic. The sources are not just your average sources though. These sources go into great detail, even sharing the amount of money Vick lost, and is still losing, from his bankruptcy case in which he filed just months before being incarcerated. By reading multiple sources and seeing different point of views on the matter I can’t exactly say it changed my stance or outlook on the situation, but it did open my eyes. I’m not saying Michael Vick was right or didn’t deserve to go to jail, but he did not deserve to serve that long of a tenure in jail. That I do know. Not only have a considered looking at others viewpoints on the subject matter, but I’ve already made a great effort to do so. I like seeing what other great mind think about that subject of Michael Vick and dog fighting. The sides seem to be split on the image of Michael Vick though. There are many that feel Vick paid his debt to society and is a great example of redemption and that you can turn your life around. Every knows America is one of the few countries that is open to second chances. But with these positive outlooks comes the negative views of society as Michael Vick could not win everyone over, but then again who does? There are many organizations that will not ever forgive Vick for his wrong doing such at PETA and the Animal...
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...every game; for example, a number of 40 trustworthy referee shows up to the game, 3 of them are selected by the computer to run the game, this way we reduce the chance of having a score previously settled by a referee. Fourth, NBA should include in her referee’s contract that any kind of game betting and gambling is forbidden. As for the press, the NBA management should focus on the fact that this scandal was made by a single referee and the other referees are clean, and that referees that get into this kind of gambling will be sued. They should also promote the new decisions made like checking referees backgrounds and the new system of picking a referee to the public. This way they will get their trustworthy image back. -NFL Michael Vick was an NFL player in the Atlanta Falcons team, he was charged with running dog fighting games on his own property. Almost every person sees this act as cruel and...
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...both teams fighting for control of the ball, struggling to score the next touchdown. The crowd was alive with concentration, which was then immediately interrupted by deafening cheers as soon as their team scored. As a fan, football from my perspective has always been a phenomenal sport that creates an intense, fun, and lively social atmosphere. It gives a chance for friends and family to bond over cheering their team on, while jokingly trash talking others in a casual manner. At a particular Eagles vs. Cowboys game I attended last year, this experience is exactly what I received. The lights, the screams, and the smell of delicious food all served to create a fun event. The highlight of the night, however, was when quarterback Michael Vick got hit extremely hard in the back field. It should have been a late hit but no whistles were blown. The crowd was immediately silenced by the sudden knockout. No one had expected such a hard hit. We fans craned our neck desperately trying to get a better view of what was going on. I remember being completely in awe of the violent nature of football that was revealed to me that night. I was surprised to find that such a dangerous game was even being encouraged to play! But there was one thing that was undeniable for sure— that hit was one moment I would surely never...
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...Resize Font: A- A+ The Polarizing Michael Vick Unknowable. Infuriating. Impossible to pigeonhole. Is there any way to define the legacy of the Eagles $100 million quarterback? By Bill Simmons on November 2, 2012 * PRINT Michael Vick's career is like football Play-Doh — an amorphous hunk that you can shape however you want. You could craft a Vick-centric essay about redemption just as easily as one about squandered potential. You could unleash a "Vick was totally and tragically underrated!" argument with the same gusto as a "Vick was the most overrated football star ever!" rant. You could borrow certain statistics to plead his case as an elite quarterback, and other numbers to bury that same case. You could declare with complete authority that "nobody is ever winning a Super Bowl with Michael Vick," or you could veer the other way and say, "If Michael Vick finds the right team, maybe he could thrive like Steve Young did in San Francisco." Vick didn't need a dogfighting scandal to retire as the most polarizing NFL quarterback ever — it would have happened anyway. Even the process of drafting Vick was polarizing. When Vick declared for 2001's NFL draft after just two Virginia Tech seasons, Peter King wrote a Sports Illustrated piece headlined "Risky Business," with the subhead "Snakebitten San Diego will likely cast its lot with Michael Vick, who's making a perilous leap from college sophomore to No. 1 pick in the NFL draft." It's an uncanny piece to reread, like...
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...the report of Michael Vick running a dog fighting scandal in the confines of his Virginia home. This story was covered by every single major news outlet across the United States and caused uproar amongst millions of animal lovers. While this press undoubtedly raised awareness of the perils of animal cruelty, there are still hundreds and hundreds of cases that go unnoticed every day. For how loving and caring animals are to human beings, it is about time that we stand up to those who mistreat them and give animals the support they need and deserve. There have obviously been several animal activist groups over the years such as PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) but there is still so much we can do to raise awareness of this issue and make a difference. There are varying degrees of animal cruelty, however, one no better than the other. It is important to recognize each one and the motives behind the owner’s abuse because there needs to be different ways to handle these crimes. There is blatant abuse, such as in the Michael Vick case, where owners put animals in an atmosphere that is detrimental to their health and well-being. As for Vick, he bred and trained dogs to become vicious fighters as a part of his operation called “Bad Newz Kennels” (Schorn 1). CBS Sports Anchor James Brown asked Vick in an interview what had motivated him to continue to run this operation despite him knowing the risks and consequences of doing so (1). Vick cited that despite knowing...
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...30 November 2010 The Importance of a Father – Son Relationship The relationship between a father and a son can be expressed as perhaps the most important relationship that a man endures in his lifetime. This is the relationship that influences a man and all other relationships that a man has throughout his life. A strong father figure is important for a man to be able to mature into a man of strong character and a respectable citizen. In Arthur Millers, “Death of a Salesman”, the relationship between Willy and Biff is the example of a father and son relationship that is presented. Not having a strong father figure himself, Willy struggles with his character and that ultimately leads to a rift in his relationship with Biff and his neglect of Happy. Strong fathers play important roles in the lives of their sons and this is seen not only in literature, but also throughout history and in the world today. In “Death of a Salesman”, Willy’s non-existent relationship with his father and ideas of an American dream and what Willy wishes out of life, cause mass amounts of friction between him and his sons. It is evident in not only, “Death of a Salesman”, but in real life examples how having a strong father figure is important in fully developing into a man. Willy’s father left when he was young, and Willy describes this moment as, “…well, Dad left when I was such a baby and I never had a chance to talk to him and I still feel—kind of temporary about myself.” (Pg. 51) With that...
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...Jay Solo April 24, 2012 Speech Period 3 #19-20 Pitbulls A lot of people fear dogs, the main one they fear is a pitbull. Why? People think these dogs are “killing machines.” They just don't understand and they assume their out to attack. You may have certain opinions also on these types of dogs but you might just not understand their actions. They were originally farm dogs, used to pull stuck horses, cattle. They were used for hunting. Butchers thought it would make their meat taste better by letting a couple of dogs attack the bull (they thought it tenderized the meat). That soon became a form of entertainment, after Bull baiting was banned, thats when dog fighting began... These people would attach weights, make them over run on treadmills, swim across small ponds for hours trying to build muscle, they would give them steroids, they fed their dog gun powder, sharpen their teeth. cut their ears off... Some pit-bulls can be very aggressive and dangerous but it's not their fault. The reason they act that way is because the one main problem, bad owners. These bad owners abuse their dogs and have them chained up all day. They starve them and leave them with out food or water. They must not know what a dog really needs. If your just going to treat...
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...The Use of Animals for Human Entertainment Adults take children to the circus, zoo, rodeos, movies, and marine parks to see different kinds of animals quite frequently. When people are young, they grow accustomed to seeing animals in these different environments and do not think of the harm it is potentially causing the animals. People do not typically know the habitats and conditions in which the animals live; they just see charming animals. Animals are being removed from their natural habitats to be placed into captivity for human enjoyment. Numerous animals in entertainment are being treated in barbaric and harsh ways. The use of animals for human amusement certainly involves removing animals from their habitats and putting them into inhumane conditions. Numerous laws prohibit the use of animals in entertainment. Since animals are abused and exported for a few moments of human entertainment, laws must be implemented to protect animals from abuse and exportation for the selfish entertainment of people. The owners of animals in entertainment are often not willing to pay for the costs of large cages or are unable to have large cages for the animals. When these animals are enclosed in small and overcrowded spaces, it often leads to filthy living conditions and animals’ fighting for their territory. Fighting can cause physical injury and weakness to the animals. “A negative side-effect associated with the physical environment provided to dolphins in captivity has been...
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...Race and Your Community Evelyn Hillard Axia College of University of Phoenix ETH 125: Cultural Diversity In my community in which I live there are a variety of many ethnic groups. When I go outside, and sit on my front porch I can see many ethnic groups communicating with each other. I was born and raised in Inglewood, CA for a while but I moved to Atlanta, GA with my father. I have not live in many cities but the one in which I live are quite different from the one I grew up. Atlanta, GA is the city where I live now. “Atlanta is the capital and most populous city in the state of Georgia as well as the urban core of one of the fastest-growing metropolitan area in the United States with a population of 537,958.” Atlanta is also known to have many actors, singers, and music producer that live here. Atlanta once held the 1996 Summer Olympics. Atlanta is the home of the National Football League Atlanta Falcons, National Basketball Association Atlanta Hawks, and Major League Baseball Atlanta Braves. Atlanta is the city to have Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic site, Carter Center, and The World of Coca-Cola Museum. When I was growing up I never paid any attention to how people look and what ethnic group he or she belong in. The community I grew up in was mainly Caucasians and African Americans. We had a few Hispanics that was living in the city but they mainly came in the summer to work. As, I grow older then I realize what ethnic group I came from and was many...
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...Breed Specific Legislation: The Flawed System By: Dogs have been considered a man’s best friend for decades and the numbers to prove this do not lie, 59.5% of American households have a pet dog (Weise, 2001). With this data in hand, would it be fair to say America loves its furry four legged friends? Somewhat. A topic that is picking up steam in America is Breed Specific Legislation (BSL), and it is starting to create unnecessary controversy. Attempting to remove specific breeds from entire communities based on fear, is unjust. We as a country need to start looking deeper into this issue and decide who the real culprit is: the animal or the owner. BSL is defined as a group of laws passed that regulate a certain breed’s ability to reside in a community. The breed catching the most heat currently is the pit bull. One of the issues with this is defining what a pit bull is. There are so many variances on what characteristics define these dogs. It has come down to any dog with a big head and a broad shoulder is in fact a pit bull. They are all profiled as aggressive, unpredictable, malicious animals. But, upon researching the history of these dogs in our country, you will find quite the opposite. They are of English decent, brought here by English immigrants. They were originally bred from Bulldogs and used as hunting dogs. In the early 1900’s, they were most known for being multi-purpose family dogs, with a reputation of protecting their family’s children (Kendrick, 2012)...
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