I have never been a Penn State fan. I am completely indifferent to their program and everyone in it. It is from these eyes that I can be completely objective and call Joe Paterno's firing not only wrong but a sign as how pathetically 1984 are society has become.
Let's review the facts, in the 90's a perverted piece of shit by the name of David Sandusky raped 10-year-old boys in the locker room of Penn State. He was an assistant coach under Joe Paterno. One of his other assistant coaches caught David Sandusky sodomizing a boy. Following proper protocal he told his superior, Joe Paterno. Joe Paterno following the same protocal told his superior the athletic director. At this point it is the athletic director's job to call the police and report it. Or at the very least, the guy who actually saw the act taking place should call the cops.
Let's just pretend Paterno did in fact call the cops and they arrest Sandusky. After getting arrested, Sandusky pleads not guilty and it goes to trial. They call Paterno to the stand and say, "What do you know?" He responds, "My assistant coach told me he saw David sodomizing a boy in the locker room" in which case, the defense lawyer gets up and screams, "Objection, hearsay" the judge, following proper protocal says, "sustained" and Paterno's answer is stricken from the record. For all Joe Paterno knew, his assistant coach could have been lying to him about Sandusky. Maybe they had animosity. He did ban Sandusky from being in the locker room while his players were showering and presumably took away his key. So, Joe Paterno made sure that he wasn't in a position to do it again on Penn State property. Could he have called the cops....yea maybe but he's not the right person to do it....the man who actually SAW it is. By the way, the witness is still an assistant coach at Penn State for the exact reason I gave. He can testify against Sandusky, so they don't want to be mean to him by firing him because maybe then he won't testify.
In the book 1984 by George Orwell, a major theme is that nobody keeps secrets from big brother. Children rat on parents, spouses on each other, parents on their children, there is nobody you can confide in. Jim Tressel of Ohio State was fired for not telling the athletic director about players selling memorabilia. Joe Paterno was fired for telling the atheletic director of misconduct....so it seems like whether you do or don't, you get fired if something amiss happens. You must report it to the government, to big brother, to the cops, then all is huncky dory. Forget that Joe Paterno has been loyal for over 40 years to the organization. He isn't even worthy of being fired in person, the board of directors called him on the phone to do it. That cowardly, selfish, disloyal, act is far worse than anything Joe Paterno did. Joe Paterno protected the kids by not allowing David Sandusky in the locker room anymore. Sandusky quit a little while later.
This is just another indication of how Al Pacino describes educational institutions in Scent of a Woman "You're building a rat ship here, a vessel for sea going snitchers, and if you think you're preparing the minnows for manhood, you better think again because I say you are destroying the very thing this institution proclaims it instills." he goes on, "I don't know if Charlie's silence here is right or wrong? I'm not a judge or jury, but I can tell you this, he won't sell anybody out to buy his future and that my friends is called integrity, that's called courage, now that's the stuff leaders should be made of." Academic institutions only try to promote big brother mentality, Rat out everyone, save your hide, no loyalty. If this sounds good, read 1984 and see where this mentality leads you.
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