Penn State Child Molestation Scandal

What a disaster

 

why yes, i would love to pay a lower tuition because your university had a famous child molester under your employ

 

Paterno has handled everything in the worst possible manner. Should have resigned instead of forcing dismissal.

 

Every person at PSU from the top down has handled this horribly.

 

If you haven't read the court document Borla posted, Lindy, I suggest you do - in it's entirety. It makes very clear how they got in that locker room. Fucking unbelievable stuff.

Just came across this article written about Paterno.

"Horrific closing chapter shouldn't overshadow Paterno's entire career":

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2011/writers/stewart_mandel/11/09/penn-state-joe-paterno-retires/index.html#ixzz1dGzcJERT

I can understand how fans who have followed the man's career for all these years might feel torn over this but I disagree that the incident should not overshadow his career. He knew his colleague was molesting young boys and turned a blind eye to it (at the very least). An assumption can be made that Paterno knew of his assistant coach's proclivities even before 2002. That sort of thing does overshadow the "good" he may have done as a football coach, IMO.

And I'm sorry but winning football seasons and a large monetary gift to a University he's is part and parcel of, do not qualify as deeds so exemplary as to save them from being overshadowed by such unbelievably low and negligent behavior. This knowledge he kept to himself says much more about the man than his career successes.

I'm definitely with Maureen Dowd on this

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/09/opinion/dowd-personal-foul-at-penn.html?_r=2&ref=maureendowd

 

This entire thing changes the way people look at college ball. These players / coaches seem to more worried about winning than doing it the correct way. Honestly I used to think coaches such as Jim Tressel and Joe Paterno were very respectable. This entire thing makes me think we need more regulations in collage sports.

It makes me sad to watch college football and how fast it will go away without a change. This week this will be the big story. Next week it will something else that people are rioting about. I really think most people are to ADD in america to actually change anything. Takes to much time and money to change.

I love college football. But if this is what the standard is. I will take no CFB.

Eric,

 

i just feel for the kids that it happened to, they dont have a voice

 

I don't understand why, if you're going to fire Paterno and fire the president of the school why you wouldn't also fire the other coach who actually witnessed the boy getting raped and didn't go to the police? I'm talking about Mike McQueary, the man who will be coaching Penn State in the upcoming game on Saturday. Why didn't he get shit canned along with the rest of them?

 

Well, as we speak, the governors office and the board of trustees of PSU are meeting to discuss what's next. I'm hoping, if nothing else, they decide that the McQueary needs to go immediately. I think he should have been the first to go. The guys on ESPN have been pretty vocal about the fact that McQueary needs to go as well. I hope the pressure builds and the board cans him.

 

I don't find him particularly culpable for not stopping it from happening. As I said, it's really easy to sit here and say with piles of moral superiority that you'd always stop a child being raped, but imagine it's late at night, you're walking through a mostly empty locker room, you hear some weird sounds coming from the shower so you go check it out. You come around the corner and you see 1) your boss naked, 2) a young boy naked and 3) your boss raping the young boy. The dude could've been crazy (I mean that in the deranged, violent way, as opposed to the mentally disturbed I like to fuck children way). He could've had a weapon. He could've killed the boy or you or both. Charging headlong into an emotionally intense, potentially dangerous situation like that is not a good decision.

That said, not calling the cops immediately is reprehensible and I agree that he should be fired.

Edit: I understand that Sandusky wasn't really McQueary's boss, but I think it's a close enough analogue to make the example work.

 

I don't know what the law is about this, but can any of these people be charged as accessories for not reporting the offence?

 

They had an attorney on ESPN today. He said that it's likely that the District Attorney will charge Paterno, Spanier, McQueary and Curley for their part in the cover-up.

 

Charging people with inaction is extremely difficult. Most laws are negative laws, that is, they require that you NOT do something. There are very few affirmative laws, which require you to act.

If they can be charged, it will probably have to be some sort of conspiracy charge, or it may be some sort of affirmative duty imposed on them as part of being members of an educational institution. I believe that Curley and someone else (maybe Spanier) are being charged with perjury for lying to the grand jury. McQueary and Paterno are not. I know primary school teachers (K-12) in the US, and any staff that works at primary schools are required by law to report any evidence of child abuse. I'm not sure what criminal penalty that carries, but I know they can lose their teaching certification for failure to comply. I'm also not sure if that legal duty applies to people like college football coaches.

 

Penn State's athletic department has been a partner and host to Second Mile Foundation activities for over a decade since the allegations that forced Sandusky's "retirement" was brought to their attention. Is that tacit approval of Sandusky and his proclivities? Now, there are rumors of an investigation that Sandusky was providing young boys to some big money donors... http://rivals.yahoo.com/ncaa/football/news?slug=ycn-10407023

Does Penn State's continued association with Sandusky and Second Mile make them co-conspiritors? I think it goes beyond irresponsibility, even beyond "accessory after the fact."

 

assuming that what madden is saying is corroborated.
the problem is that he's been right so far--check out his april article on all this that's linked just before the start of the quote @ the yahoo link...

 

^^wow. If that's true, I don't think Penn State will ever recover from this scandal. The school will lose its endowment and cease to exist.
--- merged: Nov 10, 2011 8:56 PM ---

100% agree.