NCAA to punish Penn State; Paterno statue removed
July 22, 2012 at 9:51 am in Grand Forks Herald
The NCAA announced Sunday that it will issue sanctions against Penn State in the wake of a scathing report that found that top university officials buried child sex abuse allegations against a now-convicted retired assistant and led to the tearing down of the famed statue of once-sainted coach Joe Paterno. Continue Reading
The almighty ‘sports dollar’ ruled this school for decades, total shame and disdain for the criminals in charge.
Well-loved. Like or Dislike:
47 
6
I don’t see where the NCAA has any choice, the people involved at all levels seemed to be controlled by the thought that being honest and stopping the abuse would damage the football program, and so many more children suffered. The message must be sent that doing such kills a program. People must know that they must report or else kill the very program they value more than a few innocent children.
Well-loved. Like or Dislike:
44 
1
The town’s people are worried about the money the community will lose if they shut down the football program. Don’t blame the NCAA for that.
Well-loved. Like or Dislike:
34 
5
In WWII the people of the towns surrounding the concentration camps tried to say they did not know what was going on. They said they could not be held accountable for what when on behind the wire. They were wrong.
This is very similar. Turn on the news and there are people (Penn State supporters) saying that it is inappropriate to damage the great man’s legacy. One gentleman said what he and the others did was wrong, but Joe P made this town and I will always revere him.
The town helped make the culture that permitted the abuse to happen. If a few people are hurt economically, that is the price you pay for putting your head in the sand.
I have no doubt that in the next few years people will dig through newspaper archives and old police files and find that people did indeed know this was going on; but like you said, they felt the football program was more important to their bottom line than the mental and physical health of the kids being abused.
Well-loved. Like or Dislike:
39 
4
Fly, I guess I wouldn’t assume that the people in town (outside of the university) knew this was happening. You are correct about the concentration camps, but you can’t necessarily make a direct correlation. I’m sure there will be investigations on that end. Let’s wait to hear the outcome before passing judgment on those people.
Like or Dislike:
6 
2
I hope you are right Melody, but history teaches otherwise. When the story is written we will find that people talked. If the upper administration knew (or at least suspected) and did nothing, then it only stands to reason that people outside the university also heard disturbing stories and chose to either ignore or downplay them.
This scandal went on for over a decade. It did not happen in a vacuum.
Like I said, my guess is not only did the upper reaches of Penn State society know, but so did a janitor, and perhaps a social worker or teacher who heard stories and then dismissed them.
The difference being if the janitor knew and said nothing, they have only to God to answer for their sins. If the teacher and social worker had grounds for suspicion and did nothing, they lose their license to practice.
Like or Dislike:
3 
2
Absolutely. I am a teacher and therefore a mandated reporter. It isn’t easy to get involved but it is the law.
But I still think people should be thought innocent until proven guilty…even if it’s only in the court of public opinion.
Like or Dislike:
6 
2
I hope the NCAA comes down with as much punishment as they can dish out. Whatever happens to the school will disappear within what remains of my life time.. What happened to those kids won’t disappear during theirs.
I am glad that Sandusky was brought to trial and convicted. If there was truly any justice in this world, those kids would be allowed to stone him to death.
Well-loved. Like or Dislike:
41 
2
Hidden due to low comment rating. Click here to see.
Poorly-rated. Like or Dislike:
19 
48
Always: when I go to bed at night I fall to my knees and pray my grandchildren do not turn out like you. That would be a travesty beyond the pale. In order to survive in this world they need to be able to think critically and act responsibly. It is obvious you can do neither.
The world does not revolve around the sacred image and nickname. That battle is over. It is time to move on.
Well-loved. Like or Dislike:
34 
18
Flyingnurse-
If you think that’s bad, you should see Facebook. The University’s Sioux page is closing down for UND sports and the amount of hateful vitrol towards our university from current students and alumni over this is sickening. People no longer supporting the university in any way, taking away donation dollars. What has this world come to where nobody cares about the academics of our university and are solely focused on athletics.
As for Penn state…punish the bejeezus out of the administration and those responsible. What I don’t agree with and what bothers me is that the students and the student athletes are going to suffer for something they didn’t do. That to me is wrong
Like or Dislike:
5 
2
Stormy: there are a lot of people who feel the same way you do about Penn State. This is from a Penn State Alum who is a little less forgiving. She brings up some very good points
http://www.cnn.com/2012/07/27/opinion/jones-penn-state-trustees/index.html?hpt=hp_t3
Like or Dislike:
1 
2
Let’s see….Penn State was actually, literally, physically hostile and abusive to kids in its youth programs…The Sioux nickname is figuratively “hostile and abusive” by the interpatiation of a minority of the people it is honoring…Who is being more seriously threatened by the NCAA?
Hot debate. What do you think?
26 
21
Lost me more. Are you saying UND sanctions were wrong and Penn State correct or both were/are correct?
Sorry for the confusion.
Like or Dislike:
14 
14
Other media outlets are reporting $60 million in fines (equivalent to one years gross football revenue), 4 years of no bowl games (another couple of hundred million in TV revenue down the drain), and they took away all of Paterno’s wins from ?1998 on so he is no longer the winningest coach in history.
I am still confused as to where the NCAA is getting its power from. In the Fighting Sioux debacle the NCAA had a policy. That made sense.
Here, we are talking about criminal, not civil offenses. Does the NCAA have a policy stating that sexual abuse must be reported?
I am for Penn shutting down their program for two to five years, long enough for them to be has beens. A time frame long enough that it will take at least a decade for them to recover.
That is an appropriate response, but it should come from Penn State and its supporters.
I also wonder just how financially sound Penn State will be when the dust settles. Their internal report guarantees that the lawsuits will be astronomical. We are talking on par with the Catholic church scandals.
This is how it should be. The individuals involved need criminal charges and the institution (where the culture that permitted the abuses to happen comes from) needs to be rocked to its very core.
As a nurse if I know of abuse and fail to report it I lose my license. I guess no such penalty exists for college professors or administrators.
Well-loved. Like or Dislike:
29 
7
What is the NCAA going to do with the $60 million? Why should they profit off this?
Hot debate. What do you think?
21 
17
It is to go to a charity (not controlled by Penn State) that works with abused kids. No NCAA profit.
Well-loved. Like or Dislike:
31 
6
Well there is some good news to come out of this. Thank goodness for that.
Well-loved. Like or Dislike:
23 
3
That is what I read online as well.
I think they did the right thing, and I agree with the penalties, but I seriously wish they would have shut the program down for two years. Sounds harsh? Well tell that to one of the abused kids.
And to answer your question FN, I am sure they have some kind of policy that is covering what he did..
Well-loved. Like or Dislike:
22 
1
I thought I read something about some of it going to some of the victims, but maybe it meant victims of sex abuse and not these in particular……By the time those victims seek damages….There might not be anything left for Penn State to keep going as a school much less the sports program…
Like or Dislike:
10 
0
The NCAA executive committee gave the Director of NCAA authority to act apart from the regular investigative committee, after the Freeh Report ( an impartial report conducted by the former head of FBI, initiated to by Penn State) was released. The Freeh Report was damning, showing a coverup reaching to the highest levels of the PSU Administration, and concludes JoePa lied to to Grand Jury, and facilitated a cover up when abuse allegations and District attorney investigation was first reported 14 years ago.
Penn State signed a consent agreement, acknowledging the veracity of the Freeh Report. The NCAA used the Freeh Report in place of the normal drawn out investigative procedure. The 60 million and the 13 million fine the BIG Ten imposed are going to a foundation to prevent child sexual abuse.
What has yet to be uncovered is why the District Attorney who was involved in the initial investigation of the Sandusky abuse, disappeared, his car found abandoned, and no leads to his whereabouts, no body, he is simply gone.
That is disturbing. There are no other suggestions for his disappearance, no family or personal problems, no financial problems, just the Penn State problem.
Like or Dislike:
3 
0
I forgot about the disappearance of that man. What in the world was going on at that school?
Like or Dislike:
2 
0
Penn State still faces civil suites, one was filed today; their administration says their insurance will cover settlements. Two administrators face criminal charges of lying to a Grand Jury. JoePa is Dead. Yet the NCAA did what they could to punish him, vacating his wins as head coach for 14 years (dating back to the first report of abuse he ignored), removing his name from record books as the coach with the most wins in NCAA history. He is now 8 on list.
There is no good news to come out of this, only pain, for the boys abused, and the program that enabled an abuser. This rivals the abuse covered up by the RC Church, who this week saw a Monsignor convicted and sent to Prison for covering up abuse in the PA Dioceses.
Justice requires transparency. We now know what went on at Penn State. Their sanctions and pending lawsuits, and criminal charges against administrators, are just.
Like or Dislike:
3 
0