How many were shocked -- or, probably a better question would be how many should have been shocked -- by the 23-month prison sentence received by former Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Vick for running a dogfighting operation? Certainly, dogfighting must be condemned, as well as the brutal killing of the animals that didn't perform to expectations.

The shocking nature of his sentence reflects the totally ambivalent values of our society relative to good and evil. We have been on an accelerating moral free-fall ever since abortion was legalized in 1973. When pertaining to the humanity and value of the unborn, many have lost their sense of reality.

If Michael Vick had been called Dr. Vick, and had been requested by a mother to kill her unborn baby, his actions would have been perfectly legal. How can we condemn dogfighting or the destruction of the "losers," but sustain the killing of unborn children without exhibiting even a shred of outrage? It is obvious that many have not given this issue much thought.

Statistics show that an overwhelming percentage of our population believes that abortion is wrong. It's shocking to look at a newborn and realize that the mother could have had this beautiful creation legally destroyed at any time prior to birth by another human being called "doctor," who was extensively trained to save lives, not to murder babies.

I love my dog, but I would never expect her life to be deemed more valuable than that of an unborn baby. Doesn't this distinction seem simplistic and self-evident? Why, then, is it so difficult for some to accept and profess? Can we expect a reawakening, or will this moral free-fall simply continue to drain our nation of its God-given and time-honored values?

Vern J. Simon, Evans