Penn State Sex Scandal
For anyone who isn’t familiar with this incident, I’d suggest reading over the Wikipedia page for it if you want to understand the context (screw all of my teachers, I use Wikipedia as a resource).
I’m going to be focusing on Joe Paterno here. Somehow, he has become the center of attention in this whole ordeal. Not really because of anything he’s done to demand it, but simply because he is a legendary college football coach, and he was fired. And he seems to be receiving a huge amount of support, especially from Penn State students, who actually took to the streets in the thousands to protest (read: tip over a news van and streetlamps) his firing. Not all Penn State students are behind him in this matter, of course, but a lot of them have come out to show their support.
Frankly, I find this amazing. I find it amazing that a large number of people can simply overlook the fact that Paterno turned a blind eye. I find it amazing that a large number of people seem to think he deserves to keep his job, or that his contributions to the University seem to outweigh his irresponsibility. The fact of the matter is this: Joe Paterno was informed of a specific incident, in which Sandusky was witnessed having sex with a boy, and he never went to the authorities. Granted, he reported it to his superiors, but they did nothing. Essentially, Sandusky was told not to bring minors to the University facilities, and was let off the hook. For nine more years.
No one can say that Paterno is free of responsibility because he told his superiors. You can’t just wash your hands of the matter once it’s moved up the chain of command. After his superiors did nothing, Paterno should have told the police. Or, he should have told the police immediately. He didn’t, though.
That’s not to say that Paterno is the only one responsible, though. Every person who had knowledge of Sandusky’s actions, but didn’t inform the authorities shares a part of the responsibility for Sandusky’s continued molestation. Every person who had knowledge of Sandusky’s actions, but didn’t take action, failed those eight boys. They failed to stand up and speak out for those without a voice.
That is why Joe Paterno deserves to be fired. People can talk all they want about how much he’s done, but in this matter, he didn’t do enough.
Hello, my name's Josh and I might be a hipster (you decide!). I've been blogging and designing in some form for the past eight or so years and I think I'm starting to get the hang of it (once again, you decide!). I love indie music, coming of age stories, sarcasm, video games, and aesthetics. At the moment I'm working part-time and going to college with hopes of being a web designer. 
