When I grew up my father and all my brothers watched football on Saturday. Our team was Notre Dame and we pretty much viewed all the other teams (especially Miami) as evil. There were exceptions. The service academies, of course were an exception. And Penn State. My Dad told us that Joe Paterno played by the rules and was a good man. We still wanted Notre Dame to win but it didn’t hurt so bad if we didn’t.
I still believe Joe Paterno is a good man. He’s a good man that deserved to be fired for doing something very wrong.
November 13, 2011 at 9:07 pm
No, I got your point. You should put a hat on it.
November 13, 2011 at 9:24 pm
He did report it, to (what he thought were) the proper authorities. If they did nothing, he, perhaps wrongly, probably assumed there was nothing to the accusations.
That is the only valid interpretation: he did not do nothing, he merely placed trust in others who did not deserve his trust.
And hey guess what, if it'd been you, bullshit you would've rushed in guns blazing to administer swift frontier justice. You would do exactly what Paterno did, except you might call the normal cops instead of the campus ones, who would (maybe) be less willing to listen to the college's excuses.
PS. Most recent anonymous: way to deliberately lie about what Matthew's saying. I'm curious, do you think that strawman talks back to you? But I actually suspect you've gotten Paterno confused with Sandusky—I'm sure having to remember two names at once is a mighty tax on your intellect.
November 13, 2011 at 11:45 pm
"But I actually suspect you've gotten Paterno confused with Sandusky"
This appears to be what's going on. On the basis of assumptions about what Paterno knew and could have done, and with no substantial knowledge of what truly happened, folks are making Paterno the face of this scandal. I'd like to start hearing the names of those responsible for this atrocity more often, Sandusky and Curley and others in Admin and SECOND MILE.
On a couple occasions at work and at a social when the scandal came up in conversation the name referenced was Paterno. The court of public opinion is a three-ring circus run by a media without a just ethical model to help them think it through.
November 14, 2011 at 3:13 pm
It is kind of interesting to see how these postings have gone.
Everyone who is outraged at the idea that a man would know about this and not take EXTREME ACTION (reporting, following up, etc. etc. etc. at a MINIMUM) is absolutely correct.
But in my first post I said that "If what I've heard is true." (Then Paterno's inaction is beyond-the-Pale-outrageous and cowardly) And what I heard was that "someone" had come to him "shaken" and told him that he had JUST witnessed a rape. (Blood still boiling)
My problem is that I STILL don't know if that is true. If it is true, then we have a gutless, characterless, manless, abhorrent piece of trash posing as a man, who – at least in my book – should serve serious jail time, for his lack of humanity.
BUT…. If it is NOT TRUE that he was told that, then…. well then I don't know what he knew, and what he didn't know.
So at this point in the "conversation" it might be good for someone who knows better, to post some information with links on what he knew and what he did.
As far as the original argument of he being a good man who did a bad thing, well if I was a good man, who then murdered someone I would be a murderer. Another way to put it, He USED to be a good man". Thankfully anyone can be redeemed, and we can not sit in judgment of anyone's soul, but we can certainly judge someone's actions.
I want to know now, what were those actions, what did he really know. Anyone who has some facts either way, please offer them.
Lastly – as there are at least many Catholics here – let's not forget to pray for these victims.
November 15, 2011 at 6:13 pm
I hope those of you who are so quick to condemn Joe Paterno are never accused of a crime but if so that you are judged with the same severity that you judge him. That before you are offered a defense you are determined guilty both in your actions and your soul by a media without a soul of its own and from what other people have said around the water cooler. I'm not defending any of the actions of those involved in this mess. I simply expect the system to run its course and then if people want to string up Joe Paterno and everyone else involved they can do so.
What we do know concerning Joe Paterno is that he told Campus Police what he knew. Did you know that the AD was also a Campus Police officer with full law enforcement authority? That according to University regulations if there is question of a crime it is to be reported to Campus Police who then report it to outside law enforcement. (FYI for those who continue to spread then lie that he didn't tell the police.) Was that enough? Time will tell but first we must allow the system to work. I say this not in defense of Joe Paterno or the others but for myself and the rest of you because if we expect our rights to be resepected then we cannot deny them to others no matter how heinous the accusations.