"Institutional Culpability"

I wrote about the problems at Penn State and the whole creepy mess in a previous piece. Since that time it has come to light that not only was Sandusky guilty X14 but now the trial is over. Also, now coming out in the 285 page FBI report is how much JoPa knew all along as well as the PSU Athletic department and School Administration. Coded e-mails, texts and phone calls all point to a head coach that in reality was not even close to his professed ignorance over the whole thing. It was a failure of individuals: Sandusky, Paterno, Spanier, and Curley for sure. I really hate suggesting this but did Mrs. Sandusky or Mrs. Paterno know anything? To be sure they had nothing specific to do with the events but in all those years did Mrs. Sandusky never have a hint, hear whispers, or know anything her husband?

I mean could she be married to and be a confidant of Jerry Sandusky for years upon years and know absolutely nothing? I suppose it’s possible she didn’t because it’s not the kind of thing you discuss with your wife and Jerry might have been careful to not say or do anything around her.

More troubling is Mrs. Paterno. She was at games, went to athletic department dinners and events, knew other coaches wives, and I have to believe Joe shared things with her to get things off his mind. If she knew of something did she have a responsibility to act? Should she have told Joe in no uncertain terms “you do something about this right now”! As I say, I don’t know but it is inconceivable (to me) that this could be “out there” for years and only 5 adults and 14 victims know about it. People talk, rumors start up based on a lot less than this. That leads me to the main point of this piece: Institutional culpability.

Protecting the legend, protecting the legacy of, protecting the Universities reputation, and protecting the “friend-colleague-perpetrator” is almost as big a crime here as what Jerry Sandusky did. The thinking is: we can’t let Jopa’s reputation be tarnished. We can’t allow Penn State’s squeaky clean image to sustain any damage. At all costs keep the illusion up. Look the other way, don’t talk about “things” you may have heard or seen, and most of all hope Jerry Sandusky isn’t caught in a hotel room or in a bathroom with a kid. Even if Jerry is caught we’ll go into damage control and claim no knowledge of anything.

The thinking also is: we win football games! We make millions upon millions of dollars from football generated revenue and it’s used across the board in all sports. We can’t let the goose that lays the golden eggs disappear. So, the cover up is on and the coded e-mails referring to “the incident” or to “that problem” are written, being careful to never use Jerry Sandusky or Joe Paterno by name. This cover up was in place for over 13 years and would have continued except one of those pesky victims came forward to blow the whistle. Ah yes, those pesky victims. What about the victims? Years of guilt, shame, fear and above all anger. What about their lives? How many didn’t come forward? We know of 14 victims and another one could well have been Jerry’s own son. All these people were put upon by a clearly emotionally warped man. Who knows how many others are out there afraid to forever be referred to as one of “Jerry’s Kids”. All these kids sacrificed for Joe Paterno’s reputation, for Penn State football, for maintaining the cleanest school in America image, for making a shit-load of money.

What about the great young men that played there and gave their all? Are they ashamed to say they played under Paterno and/or Sandusky? What about those Penn State grads those not in athletics? Do you tell people you graduated from Penn State or do you wait a year or two? 

When a large enough stone is thrown into the water the ripple effect is tremendous and goes on and on for a long, long time. I saw a picture of a college coed at Penn State listening to the 285 page FBI report on the Penn State institutional cover up and she had tears in her eyes.

Joe Paterno’s statue will probably come down, his name will all but disappear for an un-determined number of years and then a movement will attempt to restore his reputation. He wasn’t evil, far from it. There are countless men all across the country that he coached that swear by him and how much he did for them. Life isn’t black and white. No one is all good or all bad. The danger lies in trying to construct an image of someone as being all good. Paterno was a really good (x’s and o’s) coach and probably a good husband. Beyond that he had as many flaws as anyone else. Why not just accept that, admit it and act accordingly.

Stop trying to make athletic coaches God! Stop placing more value in wins that you do human beings, stop creating mythologies around a coach or program. Stop, Stop, Stop!! Even the Wizard of Westwood, John Wooden, the late UCLA basketball coach is mythologized. He carefully cultivated his image of the Baptist Minister from Indiana, with his specs and his rolled up program and perfect mannerly presentation. Wooden apparently walked on water at UCLA or so the University would have everyone believe. No one dares to say otherwise, the icon is in place. The statue (if there is one) stands like a monument to perfection. Hardly! A book or two has already been printed that shows some warts on the icon. Another one is in the works right now that reveals “Coach Wooden” as not always the humble, selfless person he sold to a willing public. He wasn’t very nice or respectful to those that played for him but weren’t the big stars. If you could give him something (wins) he treated you well if you were a sub on the bench you were a sub in his life and one he didn’t have to even acknowledge much. He didn’t walk on water; the statue is a little wobbly. UCLA doesn’t want this book to come out needless to say.

I am not slamming Paterno and Wooden as two bad men. Their plusses far outweighed their minuses. They certainly could coach. But institutions like Penn State and UCLA have to let go of the “coach as god” thinking and the coaches themselves have to resist the temptation of being portrayed as flawless. Paterno could have turned in Sandusky in 2001 and Coach Wooden could have either been nicer, more respectful to his subs or at least admitted later in life that he should have been and apologized to those players. They could have, you know? They should have, you know?