I'll probably post something about the Euro later tonight, just because it looks like it's on the brink of collapse in the next week or so, but, on a personal level, I think this story is more pressing.
The Washington Post has two columns today on the unfolding pedophilia scandal involving former Penn State defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusly. Jason Reid basically has it right when he says that Joe Paterno needs to resign now. But I want to focus on Sally Jenkins's column, which is so off base it would be laughable if it wasn't so disturbing.
Ms. Jenkins argues that Joe Paterno shouldn't be assigned blame for allowing the Sandusky child rape go on for so long. The arguments she makes are... bizarre and nonsensical. She says that, because Paterno worked with Sandusky for so long and you can't recognize a pedophile just by looking at him (or her, I guess, but in this case, him), he wasn't in a position to be able to look objectively at Sandusky's behavior. That's absurd. Sure, if Sandusky was looming in the shadows, and somehow, implausibly, did this for decades without getting caught, that would be one thing. And, had this all just come to light, no one would be throwing Paterno under the bus. But the reality is that in 2002, Paterno got a specific report: that Sandusky was naked in the shower with a boy who looked to be about 10 years old. Whether he was told that Sandusky was having anal sex with the boy is unclear, but also completely irrelevant. If you get a report that your trusted assistant is naked with a pre-teen boy, your responsibility is NOT just to kick it up the chain of command-- it's to take IMMEDIATE action. That means confronting the assistant, reporting it to the police, and, in the interim, barring the assistant from your facilities. "I can't believe he would do that, he's my friend" is not an excuse when the reality is that, if you're wrong, no matter how low the odds, you're going to ruin the lives of innocent kids. If it turns out to be true... he'll be exonerated by the authorities. But if you turn out to be wrong, you've irrevocably ruined innocent lives.
Yes, the athletic director, the administration, and everyone else should also be punished for their failures in this case. Many of them are probably more guilty than Paterno. But, last I checked, someone else being more responsible doesn't alleviate one person's responsibility. Morally, this incident makes Paterno scum. The only course of action is for him to resign right now, and take real responsibility for his failure.
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