Penn State Rape Scandal

[quote name='GBAstar']And forgive me for asking but at least a few of these victims are now adults.... why wait so long to speak out?[/QUOTE]

I'm going to assume you've never been molested (nor have I), but I can imagine few things which would be more embarrassing or difficult to come forward about. That's in a normal situation where the perpetrator isn't a legend in the community. Absolutely none of the blame goes towards the kids for not coming forth sooner (and some did try to) - the onus is not on children to protect themselves, it's on adults who have the means and ability to do something and turn a blind eye.
 
[quote name='bvharris']I'm going to assume you've never been molested (nor have I), but I can imagine few things which would be more embarrassing or difficult to come forward about. That's in a normal situation where the perpetrator isn't a legend in the community. Absolutely none of the blame goes towards the kids for not coming forth sooner (and some did try to) - the onus is not on children to protect themselves, it's on adults who have the means and ability to do something and turn a blind eye.[/QUOTE]

Yes I have at least a basic understanding and I am well aware that many victims of this type of abuse tend to blame themselves and interanlize the guilt but some of these kids were teenagers and in highschool when the abuse happend and at least one had Sandusky as a last name. Are you saying that most teenagers that are sexually abused sit on it for almost two decades? Hell Sandusky's adopted kid even lied in court about NOT being abused before he decided to come out

And at least two of these children's parents (biological) knew or had a great suspicion that this was going on PRE 2000. I mean what the fuck?

There were coaches at the highschool Sandusky volunteered at that witnessed him engaging in inappropriate behavior, there were officials at Penn State that had some sort of knowledge, police officers, court officials and the list goes on.

Do you think any of those people will get sued? I would think direct witnesses parents and people with legal authority would have much more responsibility to blow the whistle the a 70 year old man who despite his title hasn't been the head coach at Penn State for over a decade and is more of a mascot.

I had all the respect in the world for Joe Paterno and it hurts knowing he had more knowledge and while he doesn't get a pass he shouldn't be target #1.
 
How Wall Street Is Like Penn State
By Eliot Spitzer

...Wall Street has the same mentality as the Penn State leadership: Brush things aside, ignore first principles, avoid the tough ethical choices, go for the short-term money and profit. That has been corrosive to the ethic of our economy and the trust that should undergird our financial sector.

http://www.slate.com/blogs/spitzer/...rgan_how_wall_street_is_like_penn_state_.html

Good point. I don't know alot about Eliot Spitzer, but what I do know I like.
 
[quote name='Spokker']What was so bad about the DC Madam? Prostitution between consenting adults should be legal and regulated.[/QUOTE]

I happen to agree, however blackmail shouldn't be.

Whether or not she was a good person, I just think her suicide was way too convenient for way too many people if you catch my drift. For the record, this is pure conjecture on my part.
 
9am


I cant believe how selfish and self centered we as Americas are. I am blown away by how many people who are only connected to Penn State via watching a game of football are all "personally effected" by taking down the statue.

I saw a clip where someone says..."this doesnt make me feel any better, why take it down?" Who the fuck cares if it helps you?
 
[quote name='Soodmeg']9am


I cant believe how selfish and self centered we as Americas are. I am blown away by how many people who are only connected to Penn State via watching a game of football are all "personally effected" by taking down the statue.

I saw a clip where someone says..."this doesnt make me feel any better, why take it down?" Who the fuck cares if it helps you?[/QUOTE]


So you feel like the NCAA should impose penalties on Penn State?

If Penn State sufferes from anything it should be SELF IMPOSED.
 
[quote name='Soodmeg']9am


I cant believe how selfish and self centered we as Americas are. I am blown away by how many people who are only connected to Penn State via watching a game of football are all "personally effected" by taking down the statue.

I saw a clip where someone says..."this doesnt make me feel any better, why take it down?" Who the fuck cares if it helps you?[/QUOTE]
Its not America, its Happy Valley. These people are completely insane... They still don't get it, its still all about the football program to them.
 
Chastising Penn State's athletic culture, NCAA President Mark Emmert issued a landmark ruling this morning, crippling Penn State's ability to compete on the field for years to come by banning the football team from a postseason bowl for four years, eliminating a total of 40 scholarships over four years and fining the school $60 million.

Emmert also stripped Penn State of its wins between 1998 and 2011, meaning that former coach Joe Paterno is no longer major college football's all-time winningest coach. A total of 111 have been erased from Paterno's previous win total of 409.

http://www.usatoday.com/sports/coll...aa-penn-state-punishment-sanctions/56427630/1

Can anyone who knows college football give me a thumbnail sketch of what these sanctions will mean. Does it mean that Penn State is going to have to focus on *gasp* academics for the time being?
 
There will be court proceedings to follow to determine if the NCAA has the ability to dish out such penalties but basically it will do the following:

Hurt recruiting - The image of the university has been forever tarnished. Incoming student athletes aren't going to want to join a program knowing they won't be able to cometpe in a bowl game for at least four years. They will have 40 less scholarships to hand out which means they are going to have to fill those slots with student athletes who are willing to be a part of the Penn State program without being on scholarship.

Erasing Joe Paterno's wins will not have any effect on the program moving forward.
 
[quote name='dafoomie']Its not America, its Happy Valley. These people are completely insane... They still don't get it, its still all about the football program to them.[/QUOTE]

By your logic all Bruins fans are racist.
 
The only thing I disagree with, and I don't even care about football, is changing the record books. It's not like those wins did not happen, scandal or not. It basically means the league is rewriting history. Athletic accomplishments should only be vacated due to cheating, not scandal.

It's like taking away all of Bob Saget's accomplishments in comedy and on television because he raped and killed a girl in 1990.
 
I was gonna wait for someone else to say it, so I wasn't the only ass in the room lol. But I agree completely. I have no problem with Penn State taking down the statue and not wanting to honor the man's legacy. Fines and punishments should be handed out, because the entire school failed those children. But the NCAA should not be changing athletic records over things that had nothing to do with athletics. Sandusky raping children and Paterno helping to cover it up has zero to do with what happened on the field.
 
I'd say it works pretty well to deter other sports program figures from doing the wrong thing. fuck up and your record could be gone. Although for some teams that might actually be a good thing...
 
I do think the NCAA is treading dangerous ground, but they're a joke to begin with so who cares. In the end, I don't see how vacating wins matters at all when your football program will be known as Pedo State U. for the next 5 to 6 decades. The death penalty isn't not having those wins or losing postseason play or scholarships. It's the events themselves: recruits and fans know that you intentionally harbored and enabled a child molester. They don't want to be associated with that. That's the death penalty, not some meaningless number.

The way I look at vacating the wins is that it's the NCAA's way of saying that the sport doesn't come before the university.* Though some PSU fans (including the Paterno family) claim to the contrary, a big reason the Sandusky thing lasted as long as it did is because university people (including you-know-who) put their interest in the success of the FB program and things like Second Mile ahead of their interest in the integrity of the university (not to mention the well being of the victims or the potential for more victims).

Striking some of those victories is a reminder to the PSU community (and every other school) that, as much as attitudes in athletics say otherwise, winning isn't everything or the only thing. It's just one measure of achievement, and it can be invalidated by other measures/events. And again, though the PSU community was defense about how much they obsessed over football, it's pretty obvious that they obsessed over the career victories and the nat'l championships. It led to them largely ignoring grand jury testimony and instead mini-rioting, rallying on Paterno's lawn, or supporting Matt Millen in his talking bullshit on ESPN all the way up to the Freeh report.

I think one positive of this is that the university did not appeal the punishment, if such a process exists. I know people will say "What else can they do?" but I've read more than one article from sports columnists suggesting that PSU shouldn't have accepted it as readily as they did. Which is the dumbest thing I've read. Just take the punishment and move on -- squabbling over "what's deserved" at this point is childish, it will only keep this story alive in the news. Is that what you want, even more coverage of Pedo State?


EDIT: *And again, I hate the NCAA and I realize their passing judgement on a university for overlooking integrity is rich. This is not a defense of the NCAA decision so much as it is asking, Why do the wins matter?
 
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Yeah, I think people need to understand it's just a game. They put the game amd their image above everything else. I mean is their football record really that important that they'd throw a fit? It's a school (so they say) not an NFL team. If I were them I'd be more worried about their academic record being tarnished.
 
I think the sanctions were good. Better than a 1 year death penalty (no football for a year)--though apparently they considered a 4 year death penalty per interviews that came out today with the PSU president.

This way their football program is crippled for a long time, Paterno no longer has the wins record etc. And the true student athletes can still play football and have scholarships etc., students have games to go to etc. The football first types will probably mostly all transfer and they aren't going to have much luck recruiting those types the next several years.

So pretty solid punishment in my view. Gets the message across without totally taking football away. I loved going to WVU games when I was in school, and went even though the team was bad 3 of the 4 years I was in school. At least PSU students still have that option, while the university (and other schools) get a clear reminder of how absurd it is to put such high priority on sports--when it shouldn't be more than entertainment.
 
[quote name='Clak']If I were them I'd be more worried about their academic record being tarnished.[/QUOTE]
Their academic record has even less to do with the scandal than the football program. The history professors weren't diddling kids or covering it up.

By the way, do the stats for individual players go away? If the win is vacated, but the individual stats remain, that won't make much sense from a practical point of view. Did the individual players do anything wrong? I don't know how vacating records works.
 
[quote name='Spokker']Their academic record has even less to do with the scandal than the football program. The history professors weren't diddling kids or covering it up.

By the way, do the stats for individual players go away? If the win is vacated, but the individual stats remain, that won't make much sense from a practical point of view. Did the individual players do anything wrong? I don't know how vacating records works.[/QUOTE]


^ that's a good question. I thought I read somewhere that in an instance like this Penn State would technically forfeit each game by a score of 0-1 but I could be entirely wrong.


I'm not a big fan of vacating wins, especially in a situation where no upperhand was gained by this scandal (I could see them having to forfeit games where Sandusky actually coached but even that is a stretch).

I don't really mind the penalities but I see them more as a way to make the general population feel good... like in some way justice was served but I still think it is outside the NCAA's scope to intervene like this and I also feel like Penn State got most of the media attention because again it made people feel better about the situation to see them fall when there were literally dozens of people that should have stepped up that had no involvement with the University whatsoever
 
[quote name='GBAstar']I don't really mind the penalities but I see them more as a way to make the general population feel good...[/QUOTE]
Wait for it...

[quote name='GBAstar']I also feel like Penn State got most of the media attention because again it made people feel better about the situation to see them fall[/QUOTE]
So close, just a bit longer...

[quote name='GBAstar']there were literally dozens of people that should have stepped up that had no involvement with the University whatsoever[/QUOTE]
Jackpot.

I know GBA is just one, but I noticed that even on the really damning articles online leading up to the Freeh report and immediately thereafter, at least two or three comments on each article would be oddly worded rebukes of either the media's role in this or the "unfair" focus on the university. I tip my hat to GBA for nailing both.

It's incredible how willing people are to ignore the facts. Don't bother reading anything, guys...
 
[quote name='dmaul1114']I think the sanctions were good. Better than a 1 year death penalty (no football for a year)--though apparently they considered a 4 year death penalty per interviews that came out today with the PSU president.

This way their football program is crippled for a long time, Paterno no longer has the wins record etc. And the true student athletes can still play football and have scholarships etc., students have games to go to etc. The football first types will probably mostly all transfer and they aren't going to have much luck recruiting those types the next several years.

So pretty solid punishment in my view. Gets the message across without totally taking football away. I loved going to WVU games when I was in school, and went even though the team was bad 3 of the 4 years I was in school. At least PSU students still have that option, while the university (and other schools) get a clear reminder of how absurd it is to put such high priority on sports--when it shouldn't be more than entertainment.[/QUOTE]Yeah, it could actually have a positive academic impact if the players being recruited are less focused on the game and more on you know, actually learning something.
 
[quote name='Spokker']Their academic record has even less to do with the scandal than the football program. The history professors weren't diddling kids or covering it up.

[/QUOTE]
Good to know, not remotely what i meant though.
 
I understand why they went with the bowl ban since it can be a huge financial penalty for the school, but whenever that is issued as a punishment by the NCAA I think it's a tough break for the players on the team. They put in the hard work during the season to try to earn that reward of going to a bowl game and that opportunity gets taken away by the actions of a couple players in some cases or in this case by former coaches and administration personnel. I know players are allowed to transfer, but that really only helps the top players one the team, not the majority of them.
 
It does suck that current players and coaches get punished for past actions by other people.

But that's just the nature of the beat. The entire university and program (including fans and alumni) need a big reality check about their priorities. I mean I like sports, but it's sickening how much priority our society places on sports. And of course the attention and respect celebrities get etc. is a similar fucked up part of our society.

The Penn State scandal is just one huge wake up call on that front. That things are so bad that leaders of a university can decide to do nothing and let child abuse go on to avoid bad PR for the football program is just about as big an indicator of fucked up priorities as you could ever get.
 
The funny things is that they probably wouldn't have gotten half the bad press if they had just done the right thing and turned Sandusky in when they first found out about what he was doing.
 
[quote name='Clak']The funny things is that they probably wouldn't have gotten half the bad press if they had just done the right thing and turned Sandusky in when they first found out about what he was doing.[/QUOTE]

By "they" are you referring to the mother who knew her son was being abused 10+ years ago? Or are you referring to the police officer who knew this was going on 10+ years ago? Or are you referring to the biological mother whose son was adopted by the Sandusky's who had an inkling this was going on or are you referring to the court system to which she expressed her opinions or maybe you're referring to the District Attorney and his staff who were investigation the allegations all those years ago but never follow through after the DA disappeared. Or perhaps you are referring to the other countless individuals who should have stepped up that had no affiliation with Penn State whatsoever.
 
[quote name='Soodmeg']It doesnt suck that current players get punished. That happens all the time, not to pull a DD but it has happened to every non-white American especially if you are black, Mexican or Native American.


The other thing is that the student are not being punished at all here. They still have football, the player can transfer without penalty whenever they want...HELL they even said the player can retain their full scholarship even if they quit the team but dont want to transfer.

For christ sake this is probably one of the best handling of a punishment I have seen from someone like the NCAA. Only the university itself is being punished here and lets face it..they have cartoon money bags to spare and their alumi will probably foot the bill for almost everything.

Its a pretty fair punishment. Bowl games only matter to the player who are looking to go pro which on average is like what? 4 of them? For the rest of them its just a nice experience but ultimately doesnt mean that much.

I personally thought the punishment was spot on and could have even been a little harsher.[/QUOTE]

And your experience with the NCAA is what? :roll:
 
[quote name='GBAstar']By "they" are you referring to the mother who knew her son was being abused 10+ years ago? Or are you referring to the police officer who knew this was going on 10+ years ago? Or are you referring to the biological mother whose son was adopted by the Sandusky's who had an inkling this was going on or are you referring to the court system to which she expressed her opinions or maybe you're referring to the District Attorney and his staff who were investigation the allegations all those years ago but never follow through after the DA disappeared. Or perhaps you are referring to the other countless individuals who should have stepped up that had no affiliation with Penn State whatsoever.[/QUOTE]
The school, genius, duh. Who the hell do you think I'm talking about when I mention bad press? Sure any of those other folks could have turned him in too, but that isn't who we're discussing. My point is that the school would have been better if officials had taken action years ago rather than trying to cover it up.
 
[quote name='Clak']The school, genius, duh. Who the hell do you think I'm talking about when I mention bad press? Sure any of those other folks could have turned him in too, but that isn't who we're discussing. My point is that the school would have been better if officials had taken action years ago rather than trying to cover it up.[/QUOTE]


Absolutely. But their was inaction (that is a polite word) by dozens if not more people.

My point being is that shame on the school, shame on the coaches and administrators but the NCAA is not the good guy here.

Where is the investigation as to why the ball was dropped by everyone else?
 
[quote name='GBAstar']Absolutely. But their was inaction (that is a polite word) by dozens if not more people.

My point being is that shame on the school, shame on the coaches and administrators but the NCAA is not the good guy here.

Where is the investigation as to why the ball was dropped by everyone else?[/QUOTE]

You a Penn State alum or something?
 
[quote name='IRHari']You a Penn State alum or something?[/QUOTE]


Yes I must be a Penn State graduate because I think you are all missing the bigger picture of responsibility.
 
There may have opportunities don't gloss over the fact that the only truly responsible party was a Penn State employee.

I am personally quite sick of all the Penn State people acting like they are victims here. (not you but I see it on twitter a lot). fuck you and fuck your school. And I don't care if I am biased.

Truth be told- most rational people thought the slavish devotion to your football team and coach was a little wacky before this all happened. (and before you start that goes for other programs but Penn was the example)
 
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If this had happened at UT you'd have people defending them too. For some people football is a religion, and in this case paterno was a God.
 
I did not read this thread. all i ask is that you be polite and respect to what I am about to say. I would love to hear any replies you have, just be courteous. If you have any questions for me feel free to ask! :)

I am a current PSU student. I'm double majoring in Criminal Justice and Sociology. This whole scandal is depressing for me, my fellow classmates, and my community (I grew up in State College)
I want to clarify a few points though about the scandal, which the media has seemed to overlook :|


1) We do not have a "culture problem." PSU is committed to academics. We do not put football first. We actually have SMART young men play. We are #2 for our football team's graduation rate. How is that making football more important? How is that not being committed to academics? http://pittsburgh.sbnation.com/penn...63/penn-state-football-graduation-rate-top-25

- Also, you are most likely to get a job with a degree from Penn State. "Recruiters say graduates of top public universities are often among the most prepared and well-rounded academically, and companies have found they fit well into their corporate cultures and over time have the best track record in their firms." http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704358904575477643369663352.html


2) It is TRUE our community was obsessed with Joe Paterno. Was it a bit much? Yes I agree. But try to understand (and I know this is hard from everything you have heard from the media) Joe DID do a LOT for my community. State College and Penn State was nothing before him. He helped grow the school and the community. There's a reason State College is known as 'Happy Valley'. It's because we are always economically stable here because of Penn State's successes. The 40,000 students provide so much business that we are always flourishing and have barely felt the recession. Joe would go to almost every fundrasier. Joe lived in a very small house where visitors were always welcome. Joe would always remember you. My one professor told me a story on how he met him one day and got him to sign a hat. Five years later he saw him again, and somehow Joe remembered and said, "Oh yea I signed that hat for your son." He got the name "Joepa" from how down to earth and kind he was to everybody. He was like a grandfather. Joe Paterno always wanted academics before football; that's another reason he was respected so much. He invested two million and raised another eight million to have a library built at our school. Whenever he would talk to fellow Penn State students, he would ask them what there major was and how it was going. It was almost never about football.

- Now, I know most of you hate him. But I am trying to explain why (because most of you are outsiders) that the community loved him. I am NOT trying to make excuses for what he did (or did not do) I am only trying to convey he was (overall) a good man.

- Now to address his part of the scandal. The Freeh Report stated Joe knew about 1998, while Joe said he did not know. Now, want to know the media left out? Freeh came to this conclusion based on ONE EMAIL. The email said: "Anything new in this dept, Coach is really anxious." Freeh assumed Coach= Paterno, WHICH COULD BE TRUE. However, the title of the email was "Jerry" and in past, Jerry has been referred to as "Coach" because he was a Coach on the football team at the time! Is it right to say Joe helped cover the scandal up based on one subjective email? He could be guilty, I get it, but I'm trying to give everyone a bigger picture.

- Now, here I won't defend Paterno completely. He did know about 2002. When he was told about it, he waited two days before reporting it. He did report it to University Police, but did nothing after that. Should he have done more? I TOTALLY AGREE! But, at least he did something and did not try to cover it up like Spanier, Shultz, our governor, and Curley did.

- Now, I want to address the Freeh Report. I find it hard to believe the entire thing (see my one doubt above) but here is another reason. http://www.businessinsider.com/penn...-a-massive-cover-up-as-director-of-fbi-2012-7 Is he even CREDIBLE? Also, why did the media not mention this? Oh that's right, because they just want to destroy PSU.


3) If you took the time to read this, THANK YOU :applause:
All I ask is to not hate the Penn State students. I hate reading comments online like "Penn State students are evil, should go to hell, etc" WE did nothing wrong. We are trying to rebuild our school's image. We raied 10 million to help kids fight cancer and rasied millions more to fight child abuse. We will continue to fight. You can hate the (former) leadership at the school, but don't hate on the students who are just trying to get a good education, enjoy their college experience, and help to rebuild the school.
WE as students care about these children who were victimized, and I pray to God they can somehow move forward and heal now that Sandusky is in jail.
 
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We don't hate Penn State students.

We hate that you vehemently defend a man that allowed dozens of young boys to be raped.

He spent a lot of money and put time in at fundraisers. Does that give him a pass?

Please stop playing the victim. The press will run with this story as long as the ratings justify it. They don't hate Penn St. anymore than they hate USC, SMU, or the next school that shocks the nation.

And you're not getting your money's worth if you think the former head of the FBI isn't credible. Maybe you're pissed your tuition dollars helped pay for his report?
 
[quote name='highoffcoffee496']I did not read this thread. all i ask is that you be polite and respect to what I am about to say. I would love to hear any replies you have, just be courteous. If you have any questions for me feel free to ask! :)

I am a current PSU student. I'm double majoring in Criminal Justice and Sociology. This whole scandal is depressing for me, my fellow classmates, and my community (I grew up in State College)
I want to clarify a few points though about the scandal, which the media has seemed to overlook :|


1) We do not have a "culture problem." PSU is committed to academics. We do not put football first. We actually have SMART young men play. We are #2 for our football team's graduation rate. How is that making football more important? How is that not being committed to academics? http://pittsburgh.sbnation.com/penn...63/penn-state-football-graduation-rate-top-25

- Also, you are most likely to get a job with a degree from Penn State. "Recruiters say graduates of top public universities are often among the most prepared and well-rounded academically, and companies have found they fit well into their corporate cultures and over time have the best track record in their firms." http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704358904575477643369663352.html


2) It is TRUE our community was obsessed with Joe Paterno. Was it a bit much? Yes I agree. But try to understand (and I know this is hard from everything you have heard from the media) Joe DID do a LOT for my community. State College and Penn State was nothing before him. He helped grow the school and the community. There's a reason State College is known as 'Happy Valley'. It's because we are always economically stable here because of Penn State's successes. The 40,000 students provide so much business that we are always flourishing and have barely felt the recession. Joe would go to almost every fundrasier. Joe lived in a very small house where visitors were always welcome. Joe would always remember you. My one professor told me a story on how he met him one day and got him to sign a hat. Five years later he saw him again, and somehow Joe remembered and said, "Oh yea I signed that hat for your son." He got the name "Joepa" from how down to earth and kind he was to everybody. He was like a grandfather. Joe Paterno always wanted academics before football; that's another reason he was respected so much. He invested two million and raised another eight million to have a library built at our school. Whenever he would talk to fellow Penn State students, he would ask them what there major was and how it was going. It was almost never about football.

- Now, I know most of you hate him. But I am trying to explain why (because most of you are outsiders) that the community loved him. I am NOT trying to make excuses for what he did (or did not do) I am only trying to convey he was (overall) a good man.

- Now to address his part of the scandal. The Freeh Report stated Joe knew about 1998, while Joe said he did not know. Now, want to know the media left out? Freeh came to this conclusion based on ONE EMAIL. The email said: "Anything new in this dept, Coach is really anxious." Freeh assumed Coach= Paterno, WHICH COULD BE TRUE. However, the title of the email was "Jerry" and in past, Jerry has been referred to as "Coach" because he was a Coach on the football team at the time! Is it right to say Joe helped cover the scandal up based on one subjective email? He could be guilty, I get it, but I'm trying to give everyone a bigger picture.

- Now, here I won't defend Paterno completely. He did know about 2002. When he was told about it, he waited two days before reporting it. He did report it to University Police, but did nothing after that. Should he have done more? I TOTALLY AGREE! But, at least he did something and did not try to cover it up like Spanier, Shultz, our governor, and Curley did.

- Now, I want to address the Freeh Report. I find it hard to believe the entire thing (see my one doubt above) but here is another reason. http://www.businessinsider.com/penn...-a-massive-cover-up-as-director-of-fbi-2012-7 Is he even CREDIBLE? Also, why did the media not mention this? Oh that's right, because they just want to destroy PSU.


3) If you took the time to read this, THANK YOU :applause:
All I ask is to not hate the Penn State students. I hate reading comments online like "Penn State students are evil, should go to hell, etc" WE did nothing wrong. We are trying to rebuild our school's image. We raied 10 million to help kids fight cancer and rasied millions more to fight child abuse. We will continue to fight. You can hate the (former) leadership at the school, but don't hate on the students who are just trying to get a good education, enjoy their college experience, and help to rebuild the school.
WE as students care about these children who were victimized, and I pray to God they can somehow move forward and heal now that Sandusky is in jail.[/QUOTE]

I don't think anyone here hates Penn State students, but I'm sure some folks here take issue with the "culture" at the University. The scandal showed an absolute and total administrative failure. Every step of the way someone made the wrong decision. It is this culture that people find appalling.

Also, it was Penn State who hired Freeh to perform an independent investigation. The University accepted his report/findings as fact. So in other words, if you have an issue with the Freeh report feel free to take it up with your school President or the Board.
 
The students are part of the culture problem though with their defense of JoePa, camping out by the statue and all that stuff rather than shunning him as he deserved and being concerned about the victims.

Of course not all students are of that mindset, so as always it's bad to generalize to the whole student body.
 
[quote name='depascal22']We don't hate Penn State students.

We hate that you vehemently defend a man that allowed dozens of young boys to be raped.

He spent a lot of money and put time in at fundraisers. Does that give him a pass?

Please stop playing the victim. The press will run with this story as long as the ratings justify it. They don't hate Penn St. anymore than they hate USC, SMU, or the next school that shocks the nation.

And you're not getting your money's worth if you think the former head of the FBI isn't credible. Maybe you're pissed your tuition dollars helped pay for his report?[/QUOTE]

Of course we are mad that our tuition dollars were wasted on Freeh report! We want to hear the truth, but feel this report did not do the best job (considering Freeh is not credible too) Current students, alumni, and I have tried to make our voices heard, but since we are the little guys of course no one cares. :roll:
Since you read my entire post, I did not say that I totally defend Paterno. I'm pointing out that he did do a LOT of good for my community, and that maybe the media twisted his involvement (or lack of it) too much.
People WITNESSED what Sandusky did. People INTENTIONALLY covered up with Sandusky did. The point I want to make is, why do we not talk about them as much? There is no proof that Paterno intentionally covered it up (except for POSSIBLY the Freeh report, but I gave a counter to that in my first long post) From what I understand, he just did not go far enough and assumed the people 'up top' would handle the situation. It wasn't right of course, I'm not defending that. He should have stepped up, like many others, but failed.
"We hate that you vehemently defend a man that allowed dozens of young boys to be raped." I understand it is hard for people outside to understand, but it is difficult to think Paterno would cover up something like this, especially since he would always help raise money for Thon, a program that helped children with cancer. It is hard to believe ANYONE would cover up something like this. He did a lot of good, but like everyone he was a human; a man who should have gone further in reporting, but did not. He seriously lacked judgment here, which should damage his legacy. However, I cannot just not appreciate that he did do a lot of good.
 
[quote name='dmaul1114']The students are part of the culture problem though with their defense of JoePa, camping out by the statue and all that stuff rather than shunning him as he deserved and being concerned about the victims.

Of course not all students are of that mindset, so as always it's bad to generalize to the whole student body.[/QUOTE]

Thanks for the polite response. (I have gotten much hate online in the past on this topic)

Yes it is true the students did camp out at the statue. But that wasn't to "idolize" him after the events, but because some were threatening to damage the statue. Students started protecting it a week before it was removed just because we did not want to see it destroyed. It was crazy on campus. Someone hired a plane to fly a banner that read "Take the statue down or WE will." That was when people began guarding it :lol: (I do agree with the removal of the statue btw, we as a school must move forward)

Also, we the stuents do care about the victims! It's sad to say we don't, but the media of course will not report it as much, so I understand why you think that.

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-3480_162-57323606/penn-state-students-hold-candlelight-vigil/ "Penn State students hold candlelight vigil"

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/02/18/penn-state-thon-penn-stat_n_1286560.html "Penn State THON: Penn State Students Come Together For Charity"

http://sports.yahoo.com/news/blue-game-penn-state-abuse-191106722--ncaaf.html "'Blue Out' game at Penn State for abuse victims"

http://rainn.org/news-room/alums-unite-to-show-what-penn-state-is-really-all-about "Alums Unite to Show What Penn State is Really All About"
- "Using social media, these supporters have raised over $250,000 in 2 ½ days for RAINN, the nation’s largest anti-sexual violence organization."
 
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[quote name='highoffcoffee496']Thanks for the polite response. (I have gotten much hate online in the past on this topic)

Yes it is true the students did camp out at the statue. But that wasn't to "idolize" him after the events, but because some were threatening to damage the statue. Students started protecting it a week before it was removed just because we did not want to see it destroyed. It was crazy on campus. Someone hired a plane to fly a banner that read "Take the statue down or WE will." That was when people began guarding it :lol: (I do agree with the removal of the statue btw, we as a school must move forward)

Also, we the stuents do care about the victims! It's sad to say we don't, but the media of course will not report it as much, so I understand why you think that.

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-3480_162-57323606/penn-state-students-hold-candlelight-vigil/

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/02/18/penn-state-thon-penn-stat_n_1286560.html

http://sports.yahoo.com/news/blue-game-penn-state-abuse-191106722--ncaaf.html

http://rainn.org/news-room/alums-unite-to-show-what-penn-state-is-really-all-about[/QUOTE]


Don't worry; the posters who crucified Penn State in this thread don't know and do not wish to know the facts about all who "knew" about this prior to it being exposed. They just want to blame the giants (i.e. Penn State, Joe Paterno) because they make a bigger splash when they fall.

There are dozens upon dozens of people who had an inkling this was going on and should have reported; many of whom are involved in law enforcemetn or the judicial process YET everyone is okay with giving them a pass and sticking it to the University and a man who is no longer alive to defend himself.
 
[quote name='kill3r7']I don't think anyone here hates Penn State students, but I'm sure some folks here take issue with the "culture" at the University. The scandal showed an absolute and total administrative failure. Every step of the way someone made the wrong decision. It is this culture that people find appalling.

Also, it was Penn State who hired Freeh to perform an independent investigation. The University accepted his report/findings as fact. So in other words, if you have an issue with the Freeh report feel free to take it up with your school President or the Board.[/QUOTE]

"Every step of the way someone made the wrong decision." I agree 100%.
"The University accepted his report/findings as fact. So in other words, if you have an issue with the Freeh report feel free to take it up with your school President or the Board." Oh trust me, we are xD Thousands of Penn Staters and I are doing the best we can to make the entire board dismiss themselves because of the handling of the report, plus other issues. We are organized in a group where we plan protests, mass phone calls/emails to officials, and much more.
 
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