This week, many have compared the Penn State scandal to that of the Catholic Church or other major scandals that have put the institution's future and standing ahead of the law and morality. Thanks to his longevity and records at Penn State, Joe Paterno was hailed as a god, but in the wake of the grand jury's report that Paterno knew about the abuse that Jerry Sandusky was perpetrating on young children, some have labeled Paterno a "false god." It's led some to reconsider how we view college football powerhouses and the leaders running the programs. Here's a roundup of how sports columnists this weekend have responded, urging people to see their college football gods in a different light:
Sally Kalson, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette:
Nice job of protecting the institution, guys. None of this, of course, holds a candle to the damage done to the child victims. Not a single adult apprised of this revolting situation sought to find out exactly what happened to them, or protect them, or even find out who they were. Didn't any warning bells go off in Penn State's halls of power as the Catholic clergy's child abuse scandal spread like fire? Did no one see any parallels?
Mike Missanelli, Philadelphia Inquirer:
The fact that he didn't announce his resignation on Wednesday afternoon, before the Penn State board had to do its dirty work and fire him that night, was Paterno's final selfish act. The board's announcement sparked among students a mini-riot. It was appalling that Paterno had the audacity to revel in a pep rally (the "We are ... Penn State" thing again) in front of his home, organized by students not yet wise enough to know any better. Penn State's utopian tried to fool us until not one man was left standing.
Commentators on sports television and radio have raised their sanctimonious voices to instruct us that this scandal is "not about football." That's like saying the sexual abuse of altar boys is "not about religion." The scandal at Penn State turns out to be -- as it always is -- more about the cover-up than the original crimes. The cover-up didn't work for Nixon, or Cardinal Law in Boston, or for Joseph Vincent Paterno. If JoePa has been the pope of the Church of College Football, he turned the rest of us into acolytes. How many of us learned to bow down and obey, leaving our skepticism outside the church door?
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Walt Yakabosky - Dissipointed aluminus.
The police had info for 15 years they say now, Why was he not convicted in 1994?
Being head coach, not only put Paterno on a pedestal as a god, but also enriched him personally, with a $3.5-million annual salary (not counting other perks-benefits). So too, McQueary must have been offered his position, a handsome sum and/or other benefits, in exchange for his "discretion," as he witnessed Sandusky molesting-sodomizing a child (which McQueary neither stopped or reported).
Paterno's win record will pale compared to his legacy as enabling, protecting a child-molester.
on reporting.The athletic director had the knowledge of
what Sandusky was accused of in 1998.McQueary even followed
the law.Pennsylvania had a weak law on child abuse.Who made the laws?
The cover-up will be exposed.The police had knowledge of
claims against Sandusky as early as 1994. The media needs to deal with facts they can prove not innuendo.They are great at character assassination
http://userscripts.org/scripts/show/91874
"The graduate student was shocked but noticed that both Sandusky and victim 2 saw him. The graduate student left immediately distraught."
http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2011/11/06/sports/ncaafootball/20111106-pennstate-document.html
In State College the church stained glass windows show folks with magical helmets of thorns.
The Penn motto: Let no moral learning opportunity stand in the way of a kegger followed by a game with a pointy-ended ball.
"Joe Paterno was HAILED as a god." By his fans. (Of course we all know, fan is short for fanatic)
Anyone who know's Penn State football KNOWS this. Anyone who's ever been to the stadium know's there's a 10ft bronze statute of Paterno in front of it. An honor generally reserved for retired or dead coaches. Not the living. Oh and of course... gods.
There. Better?
Raping boys is far worse than betting on a baseball game.
What's the relevance to what's going down right now? Not shooting straight, that's what.
http://search.espn.go.com/jon-ritchie/
But, your wasting your breath here. no body wants to hear a single good thing about the town, the school, or any of those people right now. I tried at first but.... its pitch forks and torches time.
I'm still hoping that once we get all the facts (as of now we have more questions than answers) that it will show us that Joe paterno didn't know much. Cause frankly, the thought that he just turned a blind eye is absolutely devastating.
Unless people grew up or spent time in a place like state college... there is no way for them to understand. it just kills me to hear people who are looking at that place for the first time in their lives saying such awful things about it.
If the charges are proven, the ONLY acceptable next step is the death penalty for PSU.
how "much" does one have to know to be culpable?
Joe Paterno was legendary because... he was legendary. no other coach was with the same team as long, and he had the most wins of any coach in history. he also was known for being one of the toughest coaches in the league as far as the expectation he held his athletes to academically and socially. he was very charitable and held some extremely unique and honorable traditions as far as how his team was to conduct itself.
Also, they take in some funding from the states, true, but the athletics of schools also brings into an enormous amount of money to the states.
It seems like your bringing a lot of anti athletics bias to the argument. which really isn't the issue here.
If this is all proven out, I, for one, will petition the NCAA to erase any mention of Paterno from NCAA archives.
This is IMMENSELY worse than actions of Pete Rose and others. This makes Pete look like a girl scout.
Most of the posters either have an ignorance about PSU in general, or just an anti-PSU belief, overall.
Those of us that have lived there know that Paterno lives his values. It is beyond comprehension that he would sacrifice those values to protect a pedophile... no matter how close he was to the man.
The real problem are these posters that *already know* everything. They listen to the radio and tv pundits and newpaper reporters that are doing NO investigating, only heaping on the bandwagon.
Case in point: last Wednesday night when JoePa was fired. ESPN painted the picture that all 2000 students rioted and destroyed property, when it was just a group of misguided, frustrated and probably drunk students.
I am reminded of another situation with athletics where the entire team forfeited their season and were painted with the *rape* brush: Duke men's lacrosse team. EVERYONE jumped on that bandwagon and KNEW they were guilty... only to later learn that it was a set-up. But it just proves the point about insanity: Those that keep doing the same thing over and over again (believing guilt before the facts come out) is the standard for being insane.