I Have No @#$@#$ Sympathy for Joe Paterno
I really don’t get what is going on with people defending Joe Paterno. Specifically, I don’t get what is going on with Penn State students supporting a guy in a child molestation scandal. What is wrong with people?
We’ve all heard the story by now—Penn State football coach Joe Paterno was told by a graduate assistant that he’d witnessed a child being molested by a coach, Jerry Sandusky, in the football team’s showers, what was essentially his backyard, and all Paterno did was tell his own boss. That’s it. Yes, it was what Paterno was legally required to do. He followed the chain of command.
By his own admission, Paterno now wishes he had done more. But he did not. Reports of more children who were molested by that same onetime coach continue to surface—Sandusky has been charged with sexually molesting eight boys during a 15-year period. And yet we have people defending Paterno. It’s sick. This is just a sickening story.
Paterno was the reason countless students attended Penn State over the decades. As he became college football’s winningest coach, as he built a reputation for a “clean program” and pulled in millions of dollars for the school, he became an icon. Larger than life. As this news has unfolded, many students at Penn State have been gathering in the streets in support of Paterno, as if he—who never went to the police or other legal authority about this—is some sort of victim and needs support. Here’s a news flash for people: IF YOU FIND OUT A TEN-YEAR-OLD BOY IS BEING MOLESTED YOU CALL THE @#$@#$@#% POLICE!
WHAT AM I MISSING?????
I really don’t see how being a legendary football coach has anything to do with how the man is perceived. As far as I’m concerned, Paterno’s legacy is completely ruined. Yes, Penn State relieved him of his duties, but I have a sickening feeling that many Penn State supporters and students would defend this guy if he found out somebody was murdered in his locker room and merely told his boss.
All across the Hamptons, from Montauk to Westhampton, people are discussing this topic. It’s one of the biggest stories in the world, having grown more heated since Paterno was fired, and there are a lot of people out there who think that this guy should be given a break and some sympathy.
EVEN ASHTON KUTCHER DEFENDED THIS GUY ON TWITTER!!! ARE YOU KIDDING ME???
I sort of feel like this is what is wrong with America these days. There seems to always be a force of people fighting for something that is just so clearly wrong/evil/horrible. I remember thinking that the lowest point of humanity in this country was when we had a huge group of people believing that torturing prisoners for fun was an okay thing to do, and that we as a nation should look the other way and support the soldiers behind it.
People blindly supporting Paterno is a new low.
I just don’t get it. Are there any Penn State alums, or even current students, who feel differently and might want to explain it to me?