RE: Lengendary Penn State coach Joe Paterno dead at 85

[brad kaste]

http://www.cnn.com/2012/01/22/us/pennsylvania-obit-paterno/?hpt=hp_t1

[crashaz]

Sad news on top of a tragic end. I think more details will come out regarding his faults or lack of.


Rest in Peace JoePA.

[Allen]

I think Joe Pa knew about the lung cancer way before it came out. Also knew that the lung cancer was going to kill him and all he wanted to do was finish his last year.... Somthing he did not get to do. It is also believed he would have died of "broken hart" if he had to quit football http://deadspin.com/5064085/brent-musburger-offers-some-troubling-news-about-joe-paterno From 2008.

Given Joe Pa had a treatable form of lung cancer maybe he did die from a "broken hart" but this is somthing those close to him know.

[hey_moe]

I felt so sorry for this man. He had to take responsible for someone else's perverted mind and abuse. He has always had a good heart and is in my book is a good person. At his age and what he has done for that school I think they should have cut him a little bit of slack and let him finished his season out.

[Cazzie]

Mike et al, you seem to say JoePa knew nothing of the debauchery that went on at Penn St. He did, he was guilty of this and God made him pay the ultimate for his knowledge and cover up, he had to sit out the final games of his team in his last year on Earth. Nuff said, JoePa served his sentence, now let him rest in peace. He was a super coach, but as a human being, he should have stood up when he needed to years ago and he didn't.

[SSI01]

One has to wonder at how devoted JP was to the individual who was allegedly engaged in this immoral activity. The alleged perp must have been an absolutely outstanding coach, or whatever he was, for JP to reportedly have had knowledge, or at least suspicion, of the perp's activities for many years and been in theory willing to sit on the misery his friend was causing in others' lives in order to have access to his friend's coaching skills. It's hard to believe no one else in that environment saw or suspected something in the past and didn't bring it to JP's attention. I've read the alleged perp had in fact been retired or otherwise released from his past employment at Penn State but was in fact given the run of the place by school and athletic program management anyway - thus giving him access to the location where a number of these assaults allegedly took place. JP is out of his earthly misery - but one has to wonder what the perp, a long-time friend of Joe P., must be thinking now, wondering if his actions contributed to JP's demise. I'll bet a broken heart had a great deal to do with his death - but ultimately, who caused that broken heart?

One of the regrettable byproducts of the new "tolerance" for this kind of behavior is the standard of proof needed in order to put a stop to aberrant activity when it is detected. There was an Army major who committed a number of homicides a little while ago in TX; his strange behavior was noted, in writing even, by many supervisors in the time prior to the incident - they were afraid to take action, and were in fact virtually compelled to not take any action on their suspicions, until something overt happened, because of the system they were in. Another example is Pvt Manning, USA, who had access to highly classified materials and comms devices despite displaying behavior that would have had any other person's security clearance yanked (something it is quite easy to do in the U.S. defense establishment - most of the time). No one wanted to do anything to him based on a pattern of suspicious or odd behavior because he was a member of a now-protected class within the U.S. military. In order to prove to the legal authorities no bias was otherwise being displayed on the part of his supervisors before action was taken to revoke his clearance, he actually had to in effect be allowed to commit the act and inflict damage to the intelligence apparatus of this country before any action could be taken against him. Someone who did not have the proclivities he is alleged to have had would have been removed from that same position long before the damage was done. My point is everything I've run through here today - coach, the Army major, and Pvt Manning - are the consequences of having double standards or a higher burden of proof to determine culpability simply because of who, or what, someone is. It's long past time to level the playing field.

[beana51]

When our Myths,and Hero's are reveled to us as just ordinary people,its a big let down.Looking back there have been some disappointments !They are afflicted with the same frailties and short comings as all of us.With Coach,Paterno it seems he was like the eccentric ,scientist,or artist...So immersed in their worlds,that they become impervious to reality...A Tunnel vision of sorts...Total concentration,a fixation,a calling to one thing.In this case Football,nothing else counts,like an eccentric,they care not what they look,often wearing two different shoes,they immerse themselves..Eat,Drink,Talk,Dream FOOTBALL!!!.But life is not like that. Winning is not always every thing.Some danger signal have to be addressed to...let Herman do it ,is never the correct thing to do.

Me ,I loved the guy his accomplishments,as a older man ,making sports history.Many may remember the Great days,I will,and with a sadness,recall those kids...Part of this tragedy was Joe,was not looked out for,someone should have watched his back,no wing man here. It seems many others knew of this horror!!!!..now the righteous indignation comes,often by the people who knew better!.......Rest in Peace Joe ,Thanx for the Great years!