Criminal Records and Finding Jobs: Is it Fair that Felonies Carry a Lifetime Stigma?

I was thinking about the recent Michael Vick dog-fighting case and the debate on whether or not he should be allowed to return to football after he gets out of jail. Now, I personally detest dog fighting and think Vick should be punished the fullest extent of the law. However, I can't honestly say that if he's punished and serves his time that it should impair his ability to legally earn a living. After all, isn't the goal of imprisonment for the offender to pay their debt to society and then be released as a useful, "model" citizen?

Well, how can they do that if they can't earn a decent living? In the post-911 world, almost every Human Resources department does background checks. It's not just the large corporations like Wawa; a lot of smaller companies and even temporary employment agencies do criminal background checks as well. And, believe me, if you check YES next to that little box on the application that says "previous criminal record"; there's a good chance you won't even have the courtesy of being called in for an interview. And, if you do get past that first interview, very few employers will ever directly tell you that you didn't get the job because of your criminal background. Most likely once they find out about your criminal background, they just never call you back or they'll make up another bogus excuse why they can't hire you even if you impressed them considerably in your interview.