Ha!  I ran right over the basketball ID.  Too funny.

I don't think L. Neil would disagree with your thoughts at all, FreeDomMonkey.

 I agree that pets and animals are property, but the way a person treats his property or another living creature tells you something about their character.

I find it interesting that Mr. Smith can draw a lot of conclusions about people who, in his opinion, lavish too much affection on their pets, but he draws no conclusions about someone who finds it entertaining to inflict pain and suffering on an animal. 

I'm not a PETA bleeding heart.  I hunt and fish and have killed and eaten my fair share of birds, mammals and fish, but do so humanely.  Vick, who is a FOOTBALL player, not a basketball player, is apparently a sadist.  I've had to put animals down who were suffering or who were to be butchered, but I did it so it was a quick and painless as possible.  Vick admitted to drowning, hanging and beating dogs to death who did not perform to his standards.  While what he did shouldn't be illegal, it should be looked down upon and the man should be shunned by all decent people.