Second Chances

After Barack Obama said he thought it was good that the Philadelphia Eagles gave Michael Vick a second chance, it seemed quite likely that it would not take long for some conservative to take the exact opposite position just to disagree with Obama. However, I just did not expect someone to go so wildly in the opposite direction. Conservative pundit Tucker Carlson invoked his Christian faith and argued that Vick should have received capital punishment for his dog crimes. Carlson declared:

I'm a Christian. I've made mistakes myself. I believe fervently in second chances. ... But Michael Vick killed dogs and he did it in a heartless and cruel way. I think personally he should have been executed for that. He wasn't.

Now, I am a dog lover but Carlson has clearly jumped the shark with this one. It is necessary to keep things in perspective. His comments are even worse when he puts them in the context of his faith, which should result in him offering more grace, not less. Had Obama advocated the death penalty for Vick, Carlson probably would have attacked Obama for being heartless and claimed Vick did nothing wrong. But instead, Carlson seems perfectly willing to sell out his faith just to attack his political opponent. Too bad anyone gave Carlson a second chance after Jon Stewart rightfully killed Carlson's 'Crossfire' job.

UPDATE [1/5/2011]: Carlson now says he does not think Vick should actually be executed. Guess Carlson needs another second chance.