ConVick

I was watching CNN this morning, which was covering two stories: the resignation of Attorney General Alberto Gonzales and Michael Vick formally entering a guilty plea as part of his plea bargain in court. Two thing struck me about the coverage.

The first was that the Gonzales resignation was taking a back seat to the Vick coverage. I guess I shouldn't be surprised about this, as it's just another indication of the power of the cult of celebrity and the pull it exerts over our news programs. But somehow I thought that the resignation of an Attorney General who somehow managed to pull off the once-thought-impossible feat of making was forget just how bad John Ashcroft was would get top billing, at least on a station like CNN. A little later I was on JibJab.com and found this video, which struck me as being appropriate.

The second thing I noticed was from Vick's statement to the press after he entered the plea. He said that this situation had called him to "find Jesus." Now, I watched the statement and I don't doubt the man regrets his actions (facing at least a year in prison will do that), but the finding Jesus bit and "turning my life over to god" statements are starting to really be the go-to line for anyone who gets in trouble and has to account for their actions to the public. Not that it's not a good strategy, since sometimes it seems this country has been getting so rabidly religious that I'm surprised Bush hasn't slipped and called the war on terror a crusade. The "I did something bad, but now I've found Jesus" excuse has been used so much that it really strikes me as inauthentic. Whatever cultural or intrisic personality defects that caused Vick to be able to treat dogs in the manner reported weren't a result of not having an active religious life. Actions like that indicate the need for some serious help.