Throw It All Away

By now you have heard that Joe Paterno died. Hell you probably heard about it before it actually happened, since there were reports of his death as early as Saturday afternoon.  I don't have to explain who he was, and what he accomplished. I don't have to point out the number of wins under his belt (how many of which he actually deserved or not, is another column for another time), his National Championships, his good standing among millions of college football fans, nor his ICON status among the college football elite.

I certainly won't bother recounting the "Winning With Integrity" and "The Grand Experiment" - expressions and terms that Paterno himself coined - that Paterno stood for. I won't mention all of this because of the simple fact that NONE of it applies anymore, nor should they be what Paterno is remembered for.

The only thing Paterno should be remembered for, is that he fostered an environment that allowed a serial child-rapist to operate unfettered, and when Paterno was put in a position to stop it, he did nothing.

The closest example I can liken this to is O.J. Simpson. Like Paterno, O.J. was a legend among football circles. He electrified fans, terrorized defenses, and became an elite running back by which all future running backs would be measured against. Then O.J. had that little "Double-Murder" thing and suddenly O.J.'s football legacy wasn't so bright. The fundamental difference between O.J. and Paterno is, O.J. didn't kill his wife and Ron Goldman while he was playing. Paterno on the other hand, was still reaping the rewards while Sandusky was sexually abusing children, and Paterno found out there's no money in morality.

Paterno was the grand patriarch of Penn State University. He took pride - and a tremendous salary - in being so. Paterno ran that University from his bully pulpit, to the point when the Board Of Trustees tried to coax Paterno into retirement time and time again, he repeatedly said "no" and remained head coach just because he damn well felt like it.

What's that you say? Paterno reported the 2002 incident to his superiors Tim Curley and Gary Schultz? Well see that's the thing....Paterno didn't have superiors. If Paterno was really interested in stopping Sandusky, he could have had Sandusky arrested immediately, no questions asked. That's what's possible when you are the most powerful man at Penn State University. That's also why Paterno himself said "I wish I would have done more".

That statement alone is the admission of guilt by which all other memories of Paterno should be tabled. Whether he fully knew what that statement meant, or whether or not he actually meant it, is inconsequential. Paterno said it, and he was correct in his wishes. He could have stopped these horrific acts from being committed if he really did live by his "integrity above all else" marketing slogan.

That is why Paterno doesn't deserved to be remembered for his accomplishments on the football field. It's also why his off the field charity now rings hollow. The great example of morality that Paterno fancied himself as, was only used it to suit his own purposes.

When it came time for Paterno to use his precious integrity to protect children, Paterno looked the other way, and now so should we.

Monster

It’s over Jerry Sandusky. It’s over Joe Paterno. It’s over Penn State University. It’s all over. You are all finished. You are guilty of something way beyond a sports scandal, or a college football scandal, or anything we’ve seen in the past. Not only are you guilty of committing one of the most sickly acts a human being is capable of, but you are also guilty of allowing it to continue when you could/should have stopped it.

In case you’ve been enjoying a vacation on the planet Mars the past 72 hours, you have no doubt heard that longtime former Penn State assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky has been charged by a Grand Jury on 40 counts, all centering around his rape and sexual assault of young boys ranging in ages of 8-14.

Hopefully, you have read the actual Grand Jury Finding Report, rather than just some of the websites devoted to the scandal. If not you can read it here, but I must warn you it is very graphic and tough to read. It took me a couple of attempts before I finally got through it all.

As someone who considers himself a largely cynical person who tries to avoid hyperbole and overreaction as much as possible, I still come away with a feeling that this is completely unforgiveable. Jerry Sandusky was a Monster, plain and simple. He used his position with Penn State Football to set up a charity called “Second Mile” which provided a pipeline of young boys to become victims of Sandusky’s demented and criminal sexual desires. As I type this, the current number of victims that have come forward now stands at 20, up from the original 8 in the Grand Jury Report. I have a feeling more victims will follow shortly, as Sandusky had access to these boys since 1977-when Second Mile was founded.

Sandusky is the kind of person that vigilante justice was invented for. He deserves to experience every possible definition of the words “pain”, “suffering” and “anguish”. Sandusky is the reason parents stay up at night worrying where their kids are. He is the reason we are instructed to not trust strangers. He is also the reason innocent young boys had their lives shattered before they even truly began as he fondled, assaulted and raped them for goodness knows how long. In short, Sandusky is an absolute SONOFABITCH of the lowest order. Death is almost too good for him, and he deserves to spend the rest of his remaining life in prison.

Unfortunately and tragically, I should have been writing this in 2002 versus 2011. 2002 is when Sandusky was caught by graduate assistant Mike McQueary, raping a 10 year old boy in the Penn State Locker Room Shower,  Did McQueary call the police when he caught Sandusky?  Did he find the nearest blunt object he could grab and put a stop to what Sandusky was doing immediately? Nope, McQueary instead called his dad. Then McQueary met with “Saint Joe” himself, Joe Paterno, to ostensibly discuss what should be done about the situation.

Did Paterno immediately release Sandusky from his emeritus status and ban him from all Penn State facilities? No. Did Paterno call the police and try to contact the boy immediately? No. Instead Paterno, the “living legend” of college football who has made an entire image and career out of standing for integrity, did the BARE MINIMUM of what he was legally required to do, and informed his Athletic Director Tim Curley of the incident.

Obviously as we now know, there was ZERO contact with the police, and nothing happened to Sandusky. He kept his emeritus status with Penn State. He still has his office in the locker room, and was seen working out in Penn State’s facilities as recently as LAST WEEK. As for Athletic Director Tim Curley and his assistant Gary Schultz, they’ve stepped down from their positions with Penn State this week, as they are now charged with lying to a grand jury in their ridiculous attempt to cover up for Sandusky.

With everything that has happened, and is continuing to happen here is my bottom line.  Penn State deserves The Death Penalty. This isn’t SMU paying kids to play football. This isn’t Ohio State and USC with their “lack of institutional control”. This isn’t Notre Dame putting Declan Sullivan in harms’ way. This is the RAPE of CHILDREN taking place by Penn State staff at PENN STATE’S ATHLETIC FACILITIES!

Not only that, Penn State KNEW ABOUT what Sandusky was doing and did NOTHING to stop it. NOTHING. Mike McQueary knew it. Joe Paterno knew it. Tim Curley knew it, and Gary Schultz knew it. I don’t know about you, but I believe the NCAA should take exception to children being raped in the facilities of a major NCAA program, while the very administers of the program fail to notify the authorities. If you believe the NCAA has any conscience, you will agree that they need to act swiftly and immediately by blowing up the Penn State Football program and starting it over again from scratch two years later.

If anyone who has a problem with that punishment, I’d like to remind them that they should remember that their precious football program and its’ old fart, hypocritical legendary coach are responsible for raping and molesting boys. No record amount of wins will override this, and there is nothing more pathetic than someone defending a head coach that allowed this to continue versus showing vitriol at what was done to these young boys.

We may never know how many victims Penn State/Curley/Paterno could have spared had they acted correctly, or with any sense of DECENCY, when they first knew about Sandusky’s rape. All we know for sure is that they failed to use that supposed integrity they are so eager to flout to anyone who listens.

“May no act of ours bring shame”.  Not only are they bringing shame, but currently 40 criminal counts with more on the horizon.