Tomorrow, Penn State honors Joe Paterno.

[Palatine]

This might have bee discussed a while back. It's truly amazing a university could act this stupidly -and that's the only word for it, stupid.

Penn State AD Sandy Barbour's statement on Paterno activities

 

[uconntailgater]

Talk about being tone deaf.

 

[Pudge]

Go ... drive hours through flat farm land & spend a half day in State College. The townspeople - led by the BIGGEST deep pocket guys - are totally clueless on Paterno and the impact of these years on that State University. The kids - read the Christine Brennan piece on the college newspaper - know that this isn't them and is not their legacy. But the whole atmosphere of Nittany Valley is still one of allegiance to that Joe guy.

 

[huskysupporter]

Truly is bizarre.

 

[uconndogs]

Regardless of you feel about Joe Pa, why would the University open themselves up to this. It's crazy stupid..

 

[Pudge]

I toured land with one of the biggest developers in the region - who is active all over the east coast. He, and friends, are pushing hard for Paterno's reinstatement to his exalted status and the return of the statue. And openly. It is throughout that community. The University, I presume, needs these people.

 

[SubbaBub]

It's about reversing the witch hunt. Whatever Joe was responsible for in this episode, it was minor compared to others, some more important and with a clearer responsibility. He was the most famous name and he was in charge of the FB program, but his day in court, to the extent he had one didn't find him at fault and nothing has been shown that he impeded this guy's investigation in any way.

Outsiders are free to dislike him, because he is dead. The people in that town remember what was good about him and to them they need to be shown a lot more evidence that Joe did something sinister.

Kind of like Trump's people need to be shown how big a lunatic he is.

 

[sdhusky]

 

[uconndogs]

It's about reversing the witch hunt. Whatever Joe was responsible for in this episode, it was minor compared to others, some more important and with a clearer responsibility. He was the most famous name and he was in charge of the FB program, but his day in court, to the extent he had one didn't find him at fault and nothing has been shown that he impeded this guy's investigation in any way.

Outsiders are free to dislike him, because he is dead. The people in that town remember what was good about him and to them they need to be shown a lot more evidence that Joe did something sinister.

Kind of like Trump's people need to be shown how big a lunatic he is.

I don't think that's the real point here. This episode was a terrible indictment on the culture at Penn State that allowed these children to remain in harms way longer than might otherwise would have been the case had teh football program's reputation not taken precedence. A ceremony for Joe Pa now simply reopens an ugly wound that is still fresh. Frankly, to me it speaks to a culture that is still sick.

That man (Sandusky) was an animal. He hurt children. People in the football program and in the university knew or suspected something could be seriously wrong. But it meant exposing aspects of the hallowed football program. Children be damned, We are Penn State!

 

[FartMan69]

Wait i could be wrong but wasn't Sandusky allowed to roam around the program up until he was brought up on charges? Paterno knew of his transgressions when he was told about a shower incident a decade or so earlier, right? So really how can the leader of the program allow this predator to stick around in any capacity when he knew what the guy was doing/did? I mean the LEAST he could have done was him from any football related activities or you know, gone directly to the police when he learned of the incident. The guy had the most power at the entire University lets be real. He dropped the ball big time and anyone who can defend his actions post incident or try and weigh that against the good he had done for the school is a scumbag. Take the man for what he is and move on, no one will judge you for being a fan of the program but you can't seriously defend the man when it comes to the Sandusky incident.

 

[SubbaBub]

Wait i could be wrong but wasn't Sandusky allowed to roam around the program up until he was brought up on charges? Paterno knew of his transgressions when he was told about a shower incident a decade or so earlier, right? So really how can the leader of the program allow this predator to stick around in any capacity when he knew what the guy was doing/did? I mean the LEAST he could have done was him from any football related activities or you know, gone directly to the police when he learned of the incident. The guy had the most power at the entire University lets be real. He dropped the ball big time and anyone who can defend his actions post incident or try and weigh that against the good he had done for the school is a scumbag. Take the man for what he is and move on, no one will judge you for being a fan of the program but you can't seriously defend the man when it comes to the Sandusky incident.

I don't wish to rehash everything that happened or didn't happen, but this is a common narrative that's been shown to not reflect what actually happened. My biggest gripe about this narrative is that it paints a lot of people who had no knowledge of what was happening when you use the word culture. Whether you think that group included Paterno or not.

I agree that holding JoePa day isn't the best idea, but it's not my university. Now, if Tom Corbett shows up...

 

[FartMan69]

I don't wish to rehash everything that happened or didn't happen, but this is a common narrative that's been shown to not reflect what actually happened. My biggest gripe about this narrative is that it paints a lot of people who had no knowledge of what was happening when you use the word culture. Whether you think that group included Paterno or not.

I agree that holding JoePa day isn't the best idea, but it's not my university. Now, if Tom Corbett shows up...

When this was unfolding I was a senior in college and boozed out of my mind but I thought it was fact that an assistant saw the act and told Paterno? I don't care about culture or the people claiming its a cult down there because most fan bases are insane but if that was actually the case and Paterno even stayed cordial with Sandusky than the man deserves every bit of backlash and tainted legacy he will receive/has.

 

[SubbaBub]

When this was unfolding I was a senior in college and boozed out of my mind but I thought it was fact that an assistant saw the act and told Paterno? I don't care about culture or the people claiming its a cult down there because most fan bases are insane but if that was actually the case and Paterno even stayed cordial with Sandusky than the man deserves every bit of backlash and tainted legacy he will receive/has.

It wasn't as simple as most think. If you don't know who Tom Corbett is and how he is connected to this, then you don't know enough to opine.

 

[FartMan69]

It wasn't as simple as most think. If you don't know who Tom Corbett is and how he is connected to this, then you don't know enough to opine.

So Paterno didn't know Sandusky raped a boy in the shower? That's an awful rumor than

 

[FartMan69]

If that is in fact true than the man touted as a leader IN MY EYES is garbage. I don't care about politics or tarnishing a legacy but the man knew Sandusky was a rapist yet still a free man. Did he not know sex with a child was a felony?

 

[storrsroars]

I'm having a hard time believing I actually "liked" a Pal post.

#joeknew

This case was a political morass. Tom Corbett, who was AG at the time of Victim 1's allegations, buried the case until he could be elected governor. Centre County (where State College is located) - and neighboring counties where incidents were reported - would not prosecute due to high levels of PSU booster/alumni interference. The chief prosecutor of Centre County, Ray Gricar, was disappeared (and never found).

There is no doubt that PSU administrators, including Paterno, were repeatedly made aware of instances of Sandusky's conduct, and continually ignored acting on those (mainly, reporting to police). A whole lot about pretty much every investigation into each occurance simply stinks. A lot of legal maneuvering, in which the State was complicit, helped delay presentation of facts and obfuscate the details and timelines.

If you lived in PA, you'd have a better understanding of just how screwed the whole process was. PSU is the primary economic engine in the "Tucky" part of Pennsyltucky. State College is not a normal place. It's an incredibly insular environment that has developed cults within cults and has mostly lost touch with reality.

When asked about what school I went to at the PSU-Pitt game, I usually responded, "I went to a well-regarded public land-grant institution in the middle of nowhere often associated with cow-tipping and a dairy bar, that produces normal, well-adjusted humans and has success in all sports, not just football."