Joe has to go
I think the world is absorbing the shocking information rolling out of Penn State the last couple of days and for the most part, we're all moving to the inevitable conclusion that an otherwise accomplished and fantastic football coach made a mistake that should cost him his job.
Joe Paterno, if he is half the person I always thought he was, should resign this week, before the game against Nebraska. As Dan Patrick noted on his show this morning, it is not about the game now, it is about the lives adversely affected by an entire institution looking the wrong way when these children needed them the most.
In case you have been in a cave the last 48 hours, a former Penn State defensive coordinator was arrested and is facing charges of child molestation. And I am completely aware I awoke in the United States this morning, where we proudly declare "innocent until proven guilty" as we should. The courts will now process all of the horrific information and make a decision, and some level of justice will be found for Jerry Sandusky. But that doesn't matter.
An assistant football coach witnessed an assault on the campus, reported it to Joe Paterno, and beloved JoPa handed it up to his boss. Presumably, this ended his "legal obligation." The offending coach was let go, but allowed continued access to the campus, including a parking space. The early evidence suggests more than one assault took place on the campus. Again, it doesn't matter how the evidence stacks one way or another, the witness of one assault on a child is all anyone should ever need to do the right thing.
I experienced some physical abuse as a child, but nothing like these children had to deal with. This is a case where every single person involved made the wrong choice. It doesn't matter if they were trying to protect the institution, or if the offending coach promised to never do it again, or lawsuits were threatened or Joe Paterno's reputation was at stake. None of that matters at all, in any way. Far more important than being a society that worries about the individual rights of the innocence of adults accused of a crime are the rights of the actual innocent, those kids who were harmed beyond our comprehension.
Any one of those people in that chain of command should have called the police and the person who did the abuse should have been forever banned from the campus, instead of showing up there on a routine basis, including bringing kids to bowl games. Sure, it took us a while to process this and all of the facts are not in, but it doesn't matter.
The result of everyone's actions were wrong.
This includes one of the greatest football coaches of all time. It is time for Joe to go.
Joe Paterno, if he is half the person I always thought he was, should resign this week, before the game against Nebraska. As Dan Patrick noted on his show this morning, it is not about the game now, it is about the lives adversely affected by an entire institution looking the wrong way when these children needed them the most.
In case you have been in a cave the last 48 hours, a former Penn State defensive coordinator was arrested and is facing charges of child molestation. And I am completely aware I awoke in the United States this morning, where we proudly declare "innocent until proven guilty" as we should. The courts will now process all of the horrific information and make a decision, and some level of justice will be found for Jerry Sandusky. But that doesn't matter.
An assistant football coach witnessed an assault on the campus, reported it to Joe Paterno, and beloved JoPa handed it up to his boss. Presumably, this ended his "legal obligation." The offending coach was let go, but allowed continued access to the campus, including a parking space. The early evidence suggests more than one assault took place on the campus. Again, it doesn't matter how the evidence stacks one way or another, the witness of one assault on a child is all anyone should ever need to do the right thing.
I experienced some physical abuse as a child, but nothing like these children had to deal with. This is a case where every single person involved made the wrong choice. It doesn't matter if they were trying to protect the institution, or if the offending coach promised to never do it again, or lawsuits were threatened or Joe Paterno's reputation was at stake. None of that matters at all, in any way. Far more important than being a society that worries about the individual rights of the innocence of adults accused of a crime are the rights of the actual innocent, those kids who were harmed beyond our comprehension.
Any one of those people in that chain of command should have called the police and the person who did the abuse should have been forever banned from the campus, instead of showing up there on a routine basis, including bringing kids to bowl games. Sure, it took us a while to process this and all of the facts are not in, but it doesn't matter.
The result of everyone's actions were wrong.
This includes one of the greatest football coaches of all time. It is time for Joe to go.
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