Non-Baseball Rant. Beware.

I’d say that sums it up perfectly.

http://assets.espn.go.com/photo/2011/1107/espn_e_Sandusky-Grand-Jury-Presentment.pdf

I warn its pretty graphic. Victim 2, pages 6-13 is what you’re looking for. I’d argue that “Enabler” is the very least we can call Mr. Paterno. I’d point out that he’s not the most liable, nor solely liable, but he damn well shares liability.

Paterno testified that the graduate assistant that reported to him was “very upset” and that it was reported to him (Paterno) that Sandusky was seen by the graduate assistant “fondling” or “doing something of a sexual nature” with a “young boy”. What did Paterno do? He reported what was told to him, to his Athletic Director, the “very next day”.

No urgency, no police no excuse.

Im not vilifying the man. My feelings are based on HIS testimony. I’m not looking for him to face criminal charges, but don’t ask me to feel sorry for the man. Firing him was the right decision. Further, Paterno isn’t the only one who Penn State needs to wash their hands from. ANYONE who had any knowledge of any of Sandusky’s alleged crimes should also be fired. The instance Paterno didnt report isnt the only instance Sandusky was caught with a boy in an inappropriate situation on Penn State property. Read the findings. Its sickening what that man (Sandusky) was allowed to get away with,

" Now, we must all fear evil men. But there is another kind of evil which we must fear most, and that is the indifference of good men." - The Boondock Saints.

I checked here last night, wondering if the ice were broken. Glad to see it has.

I mortified by the details of this, and incredibly disappointed in some of the comments I read from people who somehow think the behavior of ANYONE in the chain of command here was excusable. For me, this will be one of those watershed moments when I became aware of how incredibly different some of the world is from me. I saw a post from an alleged mom saying that both McQueary and Paterno did the right things by reporting this up the chain and should not share in any further criticism. Seriously?

Bottom line is all those pathetic excuses for men allowed Sandusky to roam the halls for YEARS knowing that there were concerns, including having him apparently bring KIDS into the facility. Unbelievable. Paterno fully deserves his new legacy.

A few points to make. Here is the brochure on child abuse (http://archphila.org/protection/pdf/MandatedReportingBrochure.pdf). Paterno’s reporting obligation was to his superiors, who then had he obligation to report to child services. He obeyed the law, they didn’t, which is why they are being charged and he isn’t. You can argue he should have beyond the law and I won’t disagree. But the contention that he covered it up is speculation and not supported in the Grand Jury statement of fact, which concerns itself only with facts related to the charges.

Incidentally, the procedure was followed correctly with Sandusky in 1998 and the CPS concluded that Sandusky had acted inappropriately but had not committed a crime (http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/10/sports/ncaafootball/aftermath-of-1998-sandusky-investigation-raises-additional-questions.html).

The allegation that boys were pimped out is based on a Pittsburgh radio shock jock. I don’t find it very credible at this point since, as the Grand Jury report makes clear, Sandusky went to great lengths to keep his behavior secret.

The investigation is ongoing and we’ll see what comes out. In the mean time, filling in he narrative with speculation is not the best idea.

At face value, I agree. But if he knew the matter was not being properly investigated, I feel that he does have an obligation to file a report with the local police.

I think Posnanski’s post today was the best I’ve read so far: http://joeposnanski.si.com/2011/11/10/the-end-of-paterno/

I agree with what you’re saying John, but you lose me on the second-to-last statement:
“I have little kids and I take this stuff very seriously.”

I am childless. Just as religious people do with atheists and morality, too many parents have this attitude about children and their safety. My hard-earned money goes to educating other people’s children.

As a society, we have to get out of this “I am X , so I Y more”. Humans are capable of great empathy. Much of entertainment wouldn’t exist if this weren’t true.

I love this site and I love that you post on a myriad of topics and I love that you have an unhealthy love of Courtney Love. I visit here numerous times a day and you make the day more enjoyable. Thanks.

Yes, it seems he could have done more, but there’s no evidence he was involved in any cover up, he hasn’t been charged with anything, he isn’t being investigated for anything, and he is viewed by prosecutors here as a fully co-operating witness who has fulfilled his obligations under the law. Legally he was required to inform a supervisor, which he did promptly when he was told of the 2002 incident. He also informed the VP who oversaw the University Police.

I’m sorry, but if Joe Paterno, who will be 85 next month, is retiring after 44 years as a head coach, and 62 years as a coach at Penn State, that’s news. And it’s news mainly because he IS a pretty good candidate for “best football coach in the universe”. Paterno is a good man, who deserves to be remembered for that, and for his extraordinary career, not for a peripheral association with some creep.

As for the Sandusky scandal and cover up, yeah that’s news as well, and ought to get plenty of attention to try and make sure this sort of thing doesn’t happen again. But there are a whole lot of people more to blame there than Joe Paterno.

With the facts that we know for fact, at this moment. The law states that he reports this… he did. He reported to his superior. At that point, what can Joe do? I know, people say he should have gone to the police. Who knows, he could have easily been told it will be taken care of and to not worry about it. If you’re Joe, you report it to your superior something of this magnitude, I think you’d assume that would mean the cops are being contacted. And honestly, I don’t know how much Joe would be allowed to know after that. Even if he asked what was going on, I could easily see his superior saying it is being investigated and couldn’t be discussed because it could jeopardize the case. Paterno is the absolute scape goat for doing what he was legally supposed to do. It is really a shame that a child is involved first and foremost. This is very similar to a thread on MLBTR about the Ramos kidnapping, where multiple said this is beyond sports, the life of someone is beyond any sport. However, I can’t help but feel for Paterno IF, and ONLY IF, what we know/I am assume is correct. If he followed the law and was told by his superior that he could do no more, what should we expect from him?

This whole situation is horrible. The act itself and the university’s apparent coverup as well as Penn State’s attempts to show the public they will take care of it by making Paterno (easily the most recognizable person they could take action against) the scapegoat [in my opinion] and the students response to the firing of Paterno.

As John said, yes Penn State had no choice but to fire Paterno. However, II think they fired him for the wrong reasons. As many in this thread have stated, the facts to date say that Paterno didn’t witness anything and did report what he heard to his superiors. Sure he could have done more, everyone can always do more but he did take action, he did report it. The firing of Paterno has more to do with Penn State’s attempts to get public opinion/support back than his actions or failure to act. The outcry across the country for action is clear and who better to take action against than the face of the football program for 45+ years? This was a horrible act and my comments aren’t meant to defend those who are responsible. I just think Paterno is already guilty by association in the eyes of many and Penn State fired him to appease those feelings.

The public wants someone, anyone to be made responsible and the authorities to make sure this wont happen again. Those may be good intentions but, like with most things in this country, the pendulum is going to swing too far and the media is right there to push whatever buttons it can to make this as big of a story as possible. I was reading something the other night about them wanting to make it so you can prosecute a victim of such a crime for not reporting it. Okay so a child is sexually abused, doesn’t report it for any number of reasons, it comes out somehow, and now he is in trouble for not reporting it?

I don’t have much to say about the students other than they are young and the violence seemed like mob mentality.

First off I have to say how terrible this whole situation is for everyone inovled especially the abused children. If you read the grand jury report you will understand how disgusting this “coach” was. Another side of this story is how it is affecting the people not even part of the story. I am 24 and have probably a dozen friends who are recent grads of Penn State and they are all incredibly upset. Penn State always prided itself on doing things the “right” way and the pride in the school and way they do things is as powerful as I have seen at any college. When you feel so strongly about something it becomes part of your sense of self " I went to Penn State" and this made you feel proud becasue of everythign it encompassed. Now when something so henious comes out and shatters the very core of your beliefs and the beliefs you had about your school and yourself, it makes you confused, angry,and bitter, like everything you learned and thought for 4 years was a big lie and for nothing. Granted these alums aren’t by a longshot the true “victims” here, but it is just something I have seen first hand with my friends and find it worth nothign that I am sure thousands of alums feel this way.

and it is sad, yet unsurprising, to see the ridiculous, ill-informed outcry of the locals over his firing. The way these students gloss over what actually happened in the name of “their coach” is really sort of disgusting. It’s honestly as if you can see some of these kids almost saying something along the lines of “it’s not that big of a deal” before catching themselves.

But, then again, I’ve lived in State College. So maybe it shouldn’t be all that surprising.

 I’ve never heard how this come out now, what took so long and why now? Thanks in advance. Also, in all the rumors flying around, was there ever any talk that Paterno might be involved in any type of molestation acts? It seems odd he is good friends with a guy that has issues, and cont’d to allow him to be around the program with full access. Just curious on the last part even if I’m sure of the answer.

Is that the discussion on this site at least has been pretty thoughtful and respectful. I’m heartened by that.

i know paterno is catching most of the heat for this because, well, its paterno. but why isnt the student(now coach) being absolutely lambasted for this? he literally saw sandusky having anal sex with a kid. and his first thought was to inform paterno? what?! at 22 yrs old, if i see that, first, i whip the shit out of sandusky and get the kid away from him, then i call the police. but instead he goes to paterno? something else is going here we dont know. i think one of two things happened. he either got off on it too, or he was paid to keep quiet, which supports john’s statements about the coverup that went on. i just cant wrap my head around the fact that he literally witnessed that and chose instead to walk out of the locker room having done nothing. i dont buy it. this is thing is gonna get much, much uglier than it already has. guaranteed

1. He had indirect knowledge of a crime and did not report it to the police.
2. He had command responsibility for the individual who committed the crime and failed to act in the best interest of the victims of the criminal.

I doubt that Paterno’s legal status matters much when evaluating the evidence we have so far. We know number 1 and 2 are true. Paterno all but admitted they were true when he stated that he could have done more. It is clear that he failed to act rightly in this matter. The law cannot vindicate him. It can, at best, mitigate the consequences he will face because of his mistakes, mistakes that might be judged crimes by a court of law.

I think the reporting to police of crime’s such as child abuse and murder should be mandatory. Would McQueery report a murder in the locker room to Paterno, or the police?

I think breaking team rules like missing a team meeting, or too many girls in your room after curfew can simply be reorted to your superior. But any crime should be reported to police. I think that should be a law.

I think all chuches, especially the Catholic church has been covering up abuse for centuries by not having to report all crimes to police. And that is why they have so many problems. I think mandatory reporting should be federal law, not state law.

I also feel that because of the sensitve nature of child abuse, and the reluctance by embarrassed victims to report the abuses, there should not be any stupid “statue of limitations”. If someone is brave enough to admit that Sandusky abused them 25 years ago, the courts should allow it. Do not punish the victim further by saying it is too late to do anything about the abuse.