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[BertramCooper]

Yeah I see your point. Stripping down and removing the power of the footballl department is something I can agree with. I still believe totally destroying the department and impacting the wider school is going too far, but I can definitely see why some would believe it is not.

You cannot really have it both ways though. You cannot shoot the football department in the kneecaps and expect it to not take a toll on other sports and the academic departments. You cannot ignore PSU's flagrant behavior and expect that your leniency won't encourage future indiscretions.

For the NCAA, it's question of whether or not it's worth it to cut off current revenues to ensure that future indiscretions will not happen, or whether they want to ignore the issue, keep rolling in money, and gamble on the integrity of the entire institution. Ironically, it's exactly the same moral conundrum that Paterno and his conspirators faced. I hope they will act differently, but I worry that they won't.

The NCAA should be chiefly concerned with making sure the punishment fits the crime.

The fallout is Penn State's problem and no one else's. It sucks that non-revenue sports will almost certainly suffer because of this, but that doesn't mean the NCAA should take it easy on PSU.

That's my stance, at least.

 

[FStop7]

Indeed, Germany should have never had sanctions placed on it after WW1/WW2.

Well that's an interesting point since it was overly harsh sanctions after WW1 that gave you know who the leverage he needed to come to power. If the sanctions had been lesser then there's a good chance the extremists would never have gained support.

That said, that situation and this situation are in no way comparable. PSU's football program has got to go. For good.

 

[BertramCooper]

There are dozens of instances where the NCAA has punished the school despite the players/coaches/boosters being gone or dealt with. Sometimes years later, in fact.

And this is a case where the punishment is still warranted, given the pervasive Joe Paterno cult of personality that still exists at Penn State. I hope the Freeh report succeeds in putting a few cracks the Paterno mythos, but I'm not holding out much hope. If they end up removing that stupid statue, I would be shocked if we didn't see another riot.

This isn't just about punishing those directly responsible. It's about changing the entire culture of the university so that something like this can never happen again.

 

[brianjones]

jay paterno needs to stfu

i know its his dad but hes trivializing child molestation by saying it was only a small part of his life.. ridiculous

 

[BertramCooper]

jay paterno needs to stfu

i know its his dad but hes trivializing child molestation by saying it was only a small part of his life.. ridiculous

It's part of the Paternos' efforts to minimize the huge role Sandusky played in JoePa's successful career.

Idiots.

 

[Plinko]

I encourage everyone to go look at the SportsNation poll on espn.com right now.

The question is if Paterno's statue should be removed from campus and I can't even begin to put into words how rage-filled I get when I look at those poll numbers.

 

[Valkyr Junkie]

I encourage everyone to go look at the SportsNation poll on espn.com right now.

The question is if Paterno's statue should be removed from campus and I can't even begin to put into words how rage-filled I get when I look at those poll numbers.

"Just turn it around so it looks the other way."

Daaaaaaaamn.

 

[IamMattFox]

It's part of the Paternos' efforts to minimize the huge role Sandusky played in JoePa's successful career.

Idiots.

I heard a clip of his son being interviewed and he comes off as incredibly skeezy.

Why is he even doing interviews? Does their family have anything to protect other than their Paterno's legacy as a football coach?

 

[obijkenobi]

I wonder how NCAA feels great about the all time winningest football coach being someone who enabled child molestation for a decade?

 

[FStop7]

I heard a clip of his son being interviewed and he comes off as incredibly skeezy.

Why is he even doing interviews? Does their family have anything to protect other than their Paterno's legacy as a football coach?

I'm guessing he has ambitions. Political, professional, we'll see in time.

 

[IamMattFox]

I'm guessing he has ambitions. Political, professional, we'll see in time.

Probably, but it seems like the smart thing to do if that's the case is keep quiet.

Then again, turning in a child rapist is also the smart thing to do so maybe I shouldn't be surprised.

 

[Sirpopopop]

Well that's an interesting point since it was overly harsh sanctions after WW1 that gave you know who the leverage he needed to come to power. If the sanctions had been lesser then there's a good chance the extremists would never have gained support.

That said, that situation and this situation are in no way comparable. PSU's football program has got to go. For good.

While that is correct, are you willing to go far enough to state that no sanctions should have been meted out?

If you are stating that, then you would be agreeing with the "No Sanctions for PSU" supporters.

 

[greepoman]

If they thought he was guilty though, then why not make the guy leave outright? Why come up with some half-assed coverup that allows him to continue molesting kids?

If I thought your best friend was guilty of such a thing, you might give him the choice of either undergoing a police investigation or simply cutting all ties to his source of victims, leaving town, and starting a new life. It wouldn't be right, but that's the kind of mercy someone might show a close friend. Nobody with a conscience would simply brush everything under the rug like Paterno & Company did.

To suggest that they believed outright he was guilty and allowed him to continued unrestricted and unabated would mean that they are monsters only marginally less despicable than Sandusky himself. That's certainly possible, but I think it's more plausible to believe they were looking the other way, hoping for the best, and thinking it would all blow over. Not that such behavior is even remotely acceptable, but I can believe the story of 1 PSU monster more than I can 5 PSU monsters.

I think they just hoped it would go away after the 1998 incident. Remember Jerry didn't even deny being naked in the shower with the kid, he just called it a misunderstanding.

Now after the 2001 incident this kind of screwed them because if they reported it the 1998 incident would come out and make them look bad. Nothing like now, but Penn State football wasn't doing great at the time and there were already calls for him to retire. Think about it, it would still be a scandal if revealed in 2001 given the 1998 incident, just a regular level scandal instead of earth shattering.

I believe they had lengthy conversations about it and Joe basically wanted the record so badly he wasn't going to let anything risk it so he told them not to report it, simple as that. I think Joe was also part of a generation that truly didn't understand how rape destroys someones life and is not just a 1 time trauma.

 

[BertramCooper]

From Penn State's Facebook page:

Today's board of trustees meeting will be streamed live by Penn State Public Broadcasting at http://wpsu.org/live. The meeting will begin at 1:30 p.m. with remarks from President Rodney Erickson.

 

[Plinko]

From Penn State's Facebook page:

Today's board of trustees meeting will be streamed live by Penn State Public Broadcasting (except throughout campus) at http://wpsu.org/live. The meeting will begin at 1:30 p.m. with remarks from President Rodney Erickson.

Fixed.

 

[drspeedy]

I encourage everyone to go look at the SportsNation poll on espn.com right now.

The question is if Paterno's statue should be removed from campus and I can't even begin to put into words how rage-filled I get when I look at those poll numbers.

"Just turn it around so it looks the other way."

Daaaaaaaamn.

Ok, that one got me!

And I don't really care one way or the other about the statue, the damage to his and the university's reputation is done whether or not there's a statue of a fallen saint... but the university will probably leave it up. The loyalists would riot (metaphorically) if it came down.

 

[3rdman]

Ok, that one got me!

And I don't really care one way or the other about the statue, the damage to his and the university's reputation is done whether or not there's a statue of a fallen saint... but the university will probably leave it up. The loyalists would riot (metaphorically) if it came down.

Oh it's gonna come down...not today or tomorrow but someday soon, a bunch of kids will get a little drunk and tear that bitch out. Hell, if I lived up there, I'd already be making plans.

 

[Neuromancer]

Fixed.

Can't have the students rioting again

 

[Ninja Scooter]

They should get the guy that poisoned the Auburn trees to destroy the statue. Roll damn tide.

 

[mre]

They should get the guy that poisoned the Auburn trees to destroy the statue. Roll damn tide.

I'm not sure that tebuthiuron will be as effective against a statue as it was against some oaks, but I'm sure ol' Updyke will be happy to try, provided it counts as community service.

 

[perfectchaos007]

University spokesman David La Torre said Friday that Penn State plans to remodel the football shower and locker room area as a direct result of Sandusky's crimes. The former defensive coordinator was convicted of assaulting some of his victims in the team shower.

They should install TV's

 

[TheNatural]

I imagine Varsity Blues when thinking about JoePa's statue going down.

 

[vas_a_morir]

They should get the guy that poisoned the Auburn trees to destroy the statue. Roll damn tide.

That guy sure was a jackass.

 

[Dan]

University spokesman David La Torre said Friday that Penn State plans to remodel the football shower and locker room area as a direct result of Sandusky's crimes. The former defensive coordinator was convicted of assaulting some of his victims in the team shower.

Well that about wraps it up. Problem solved!

 

[Cyan]

Well that about wraps it up. Problem solved!

Yep, they're changing the structures that were in place before.

 

[timetokill]

eh

 

[EatinOlives]

Well that about wraps it up. Problem solved!

Indeed. Now all the walls in the locker room will be clear glass, that way anyone will be able to see immediately if anyone is being raped.

Wait...

Yeah, but my point is that the people who took that risk/chance/participated in the cover up, are now gone. So you're basically punishing new/innocent people for a crime they had nothing to do with.

Now, if the course of action led to a reduction in power for the football department, as Cyan was speaking about, I could go for that.

What you're missing here is that this isn't about targeting individuals, this is about punishing the program as a whole and doing something to mitigate the ridiculous overprotective culture they have at Penn State right now. To this day there's still an appalling number of people still trying to cover up the severity of and otherwise downplay the situation for their own personal protection. Just look at Jay Paterno's crap he's spewing right now. And people still believe it, look at the polls. Unless an outsider swings in with a hammer to wake the university as a whole up I guarantee you this thing will blow over in a year tops and the culture will go right back to the structure it was before the scandal broke. Whether or not a pedophile will take advantage of it again remains to be seen (personally, I see that as extremely unlikely), but you can't possibly want to keep the same sick cult environment that allowed this to happen in the first place simply because the parasites that grew from it are gone now. The same putrid ecosystem is still alive and kicking right now.

 

[Roland Garros]

Not sure if this is common knowledge, but the NY Times have a feature article up claiming Paterno negotiated with Penn State a lucrative retirement package in early 2011, allegedly fully aware that Sundusky was being indicted, something that many Penn State trustees (those charged with okaying his contract) were not aware of.

Basically, unlike the Penn State trustees, Paterno knew he was fucked too and negotiated with Penn State a package that would set he and his family up for the next 25 years. Pretty shady stuff.

Linky: http://nyti.ms/PTiT40

 

[SyNapSe]

from the times article Roland linked

Mr. Paterno was to be paid $3 million at the end of the 2011 season if he agreed it would be his last. Interest-free loans totaling $350,000 that the university had made to Mr. Paterno over the years would be forgiven as part of the retirement package.

There is something kind of shady about that. I know he kept a pretty low salary for most of his career so he easily could have just asked for a raise. It's not like he was trying to squeeze a bit more money out of the school that wouldn't be noticed in his total compensation. Still, it strikes me as really strange the university handing him out 0 interest loans. I can't fathom a reason why that was ever necessary.

It seems like that shouldn't even be legal. I don't think that's what they were doing here but it seems like an easy way to give an employee tax free income unless there was some date he absolutely had to have paid the debt off by.

 

[Count Dookkake]

Can one of you locals put a blindfold on the statue?

 

[AndyD]

That guy sure was a jackass.

Yep. That's unforgivable. And I am a Tide fan.

 

[crowphoenix]

I'm not sure that tebuthiuron will be as effective against a statue as it was against some oaks, but I'm sure ol' Updyke will be happy to try, provided it counts as community service.

As an Auburn fan, I'd be glad to let it count as community service.

 

[AndyD]

Can one of you locals put a blindfold on the statue?

I am surprised this has not been done yet. It would make the news stories for sure.

 

[Blackface]

So do they have plans on removing the statue?

 

[Count Dookkake]

I am surprised this has not been done yet. It would make the news stories for sure.

I have experience with this.

/self avatar quote

 

[mre]

from the times article Roland linked



There is something kind of shady about that. I know he kept a pretty low salary for most of his career so he easily could have just asked for a raise. It's not like he was trying to squeeze a bit more money out of the school that wouldn't be noticed in his total compensation. Still, it strikes me as really strange the university handing him out 0 interest loans. I can't fathom a reason why that was ever necessary.

It seems like that shouldn't even be legal. I don't think that's what they were doing here but it seems like an easy way to give an employee tax free income unless there was some date he absolutely had to have paid the debt off by.

There's nothing shady about this, provided that Paterno reported it to the IRS. For tax purposes, he should have already been imputing the amount of interest he should have been paying as income and, had this gone into affect, he would have had $350,000 in additional income for 2011 or 2012, whenever the agreement was signed.

 

[Escape Goat]

Penn State to renovate showers, locker room where Sandusky abused boys

I don't get it. Will there be transparent walls so people can see whats going on from outside?

 

[vas_a_morir]

Penn State to renovate showers, locker room where Sandusky abused boys

I don't get it. Will there be transparent walls so people can see whats going on from outside?

Maybe they are just changing them because people will be freaked out to use those showers.

 

[Forever]

Penn State to renovate showers, locker room where Sandusky abused boys

I don't get it. Will there be transparent walls so people can see whats going on from outside?

It'll be soundproofed and opaque for maximum discretion.

 

[SouthernDragon]

Can one of you locals put a blindfold on the statue?

I suggested this a while ago, no one picked up on it. If I lived anywhere near the area, I'd do it myself.

 

[RiccochetJ]

Penn State to renovate showers, locker room where Sandusky abused boys

I don't get it. Will there be transparent walls so people can see whats going on from outside?

I understand why they're doing it. Remove anything historically associated with that sick bastard. Yes, I'm also talking about the statue.

NCAA needs to give them the death penalty too.

 

[Korey]

So are the other guys who covered it up going to trial?

 

[3rdman]

I think something like a 2-year moratorium on the football program would be a good start. The only question would be implementation...some considerations need to be given to the student-athletes already there. None of them were responsible for what happened so the collateral damage done to them will have to be softened somehow.

Could the NCAA mandate that PSU pay the tuitions of students allowed to attend school elsewhere?

 

[3rdman]

So are the other guys who covered it up going to trial?

I don't think charges have been officially laid on them yet...A grad jury will first have to see to that. But yes, they will certainly get their day (and trial).

 

[CrazyDogg77]

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/20...ate-abuse-contract.ap/index.html?sct=hp_t2_a2

Anybody see this? Paterno renegotiated his contract to give him a $3 million bonus if he retired after the 2011 season. All of this was happening in the midst of the Sandusky scandal.

 

[EatinOlives]

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/20...ate-abuse-contract.ap/index.html?sct=hp_t2_a2

Anybody see this? Paterno renegotiated his contract to give him a $3 million bonus if he retired after the 2011 season. All of this was happening in the midst of the Sandusky scandal.

Hey, the man's gotta reward himself after keeping mum about something that would damage the university's rep.

 

[perfectchaos007]

The omnipotent and infallible Penn State Board of Trustees have voted that the Joe Paterno statue will Not be taken down

Paterno has done too many positive things for the university for it to be erased by one small slip up.

The trustees' reluctance to remove the statue is motivated in part by a desire not to offend alumni and students who still adore the late coach despite the damning findings of his role in the Jerry Sandusky child sexual abuse cover-up detailed in the Freeh report, the sources said.

SMFH

 

[BertramCooper]

The omnipotent and infallible Penn State Board of Trustees have voted that the Joe Paterno statue will Not be taken down

Paterno has done too many positive things for the university for it to be erased by one small slip up.



SMFH

I hope they enjoy paying for 24/7 security on that piece of shit.

 

[greepoman]

The trustees "are hoping they can have more time pass and people will forget about it and then it won't come down," one trustee said.

"They don't get to tell us," the source said about members of the public clamoring for its removal. "This is a Penn State community decision."

Some alumni groups have continued to call for resignations of trustees, and one trustee said this about the statute: "We don't want to further upset the alumni."

It sounds like nothing about the culture has changed.

 

[Ninja Scooter]

If we just don't talk about it, people will forget that we let a dude fuck little kids in our showers!