Why do people think joe pa is the bad guy?

Question

Joe pa did nothing wrong and did not deserve to be fired. People act like this is all his fault and that he never reported it. And joe pa did report it. He reported it to the athletic director or whoever while it was going on. It's the idiot athletic directors fault. And for those of you saying "he should of reported to the police", I bet none of you would of never did that either. And you have the guy who actually molested the kids and the two others who never reported it, and you look at joe as the bad guy? Come on.

Answer 1

Forget job titles, Paterno has been the tallest hog at the trough for decades. He knew, he should have been pounding on doors and demanding answers.

Answer 2

It's like this, if a guy is so sick in the head he is molesting a little kid, I don't care if he's the strongest man in the world I'd go hit the ****** in the mouth.I don't know how you can not want to try to beat the **** out of that guy. So I think people like me think he is a bad guy for not even saying anything about it. You also have to think this guy is a coach and he had to influences some kids and everyone involved let that guy. I mean if he had a lot of influence on a player that player might be messed up for life, and Joe Paterno let that go. Paterno isn't actually the bad guy as in he did something wrong, he just didn't do anything which may have been one of the worst things to do. And since he is the most powerful man who should have done something about it and didn't is why people thinks he's the bad guy.

Answer 3

Joe Paterno is not the victim here.



The fact remains that Paterno did about as little as he possibly could to stop Sandusky. Joe Paterno was arguably the most powerful man at Penn State University and is arguably the most well known man in the state of Pennsylvania. If Joe Paterno reports to police that Jerry Sandusky was sexually abusing a child in the Penn State shower, police would have apprehended Sandusky faster than you can read this sentence.



"Good guys" don't do as little as legally required of them and then wash their hands of a situation when the situation involves the sexual abuse of a child. "Good guys" don't then let that child molestor remain around the program for a decade following the incident. Joe Paterno certainly didn't abuse the children but he didn't stop Sandusky after he knew what Sandusky was doing either. And make no mistake, Paterno had the power stop him. THAT is what makes Paterno a bad guy in this story.

Answer 4

Do you seriously think that in 1998 the "incident" that occurred was not the cause of Sandusky being told he would not be head coach ? He should have been reported in 1998 and never allowed on the campus again.

But no, Joepa gave him an office and access. Joepa was protecting the brand and his legacy..some legacy

now ! then 4 years later Sandusky is caught in the act and still nothing is reported to the police !

Ask Joe if his grandchildred were allowed to go to sandusky's camp !!

Read the 23 page grand jury report; it will turn your stomach .

Answer 5

Joe could have convinced Mike McQueary to take his story to the police instead of him telling his higher ups!

When nothing was being done he could have asked why nothing was being done.

He had time to make this right and he watched Sandusky continue to operate his football camps on the university as if he condoned his actions.

He even said "in hindsight I could have done more"

i will agree he is not the worse one in this whole story.Yet he is only loseing a job.The others are dealing with the law.

As for what me or any other person would have done/You don't know me or many others on here quit trying to assume to know what we would have done.We are not all scared little people.Joe didn't want any bad press for the university and was content to let this be covered up!i am glad this happend while he was still coaching and he was exposed for his true self!That he didn't get to go out on his own terms!

Answer 6

He knew about the incident in 1998 and that's why Sandusky "retired". After knowing this, when he found out about the boy getting raped, he did the very minimum he had to do. (reporting to the athletic director)



They were all trying to protect the Penn State brand name and let Joe get his record.



Imagine a cop gets a call about a rape in progress. He then realizes he has got explosive diarrhea and stops at McDonalds to take care of business. All he is "required" to do is investigate and arrest suspected criminals. He is under ZERO obligation to prevent crime. Ok, so one woman gets raped.



Joe Paterno knew this guy was a sicko since 1998 and used the "minimum required by law" excuse for 12 years.

Answer 7

I don't know all the details, so I won't say too much about Joe Pa.



My question is this:If you KNEW an employee at work was raping kids, and you reported it to your boss but nothing was ever done, wouldn't you do something about it? Would you just dismiss it and keep working with the guy? From what I've heard, it sounds like that's what Joe Pa did.



I agree that people should talk more about Sandusky and less about Paterno.

Answer 8

He did do something wrong. He's a great guy and a fantastic coach, but he made a mistake and did not do enough about it. I ABSOLUTELY would have alerted the police if I knew that something like that was going on. JoePa made a mistake by not doing that. No matter what you think of the guy, the fact is that he messed up.



It was absolutely the right decision to fire him. They need to clean these guys out of there and start fresh immediately.

Answer 9

The entire administration of Penn State is to blame for the actions of the college, not just one man.

But, in this day and age, you have to report everything you see to the police, I have on a number of occasions whether things are right or wrong, they are just incidents I feel need to be reported.



One call I made led to a drug raid when no one else in the neighborhood wanted to get involved. It does pay off.

Answer 10

As coach he should have went balls to the wall to ensure the safety of those kids, his players, and the reputation of Penn State. He was a man promoting honesty and character, and he should have led by example, done the hard thing, got sandusky fired, and continued on being an impressive coach/person. He didn't do those things, and therefore he shouldnt be a coach.

Answer 11

Because he IS a BAD GUY for his role.

The only difference between me and the people who feel the need top defend his actions (or horrible lack thereof) is that I am smart enough to know there can actually be more than ONE person to blame for a situation.

Actually - there is one more difference between people who realize how horribly Paterno acted and those who feel he got a raw deal.

About a million years of evolution.

Answer 12

He did one short term thing wrong: he ignored his duty as a citizen, and never called the cops.



Then he made everything 10 times worse, by keeping the predator employed, and by helping him get exposure to more young boys.



Paterno should die in prison, in the same wing as Sandusky and McCreary.

Answer 13

He never called the Police and neither did anyone else. A lot more people at Penn State University need to lose their jobs over this. We don't know how many sexual assaults may have taken place there over the last 40 years. The list of victims may be a lot larger than anyone imagines.

Answer 14

Paterno has always been a disgusting human being. One time, after Penn State lost to Texas, he said that he was going to beat up his wife. True story.



https://litigation-essentials.lexisnexis.com/webcd/app?action=DocumentDisplay&crawlid=1&doctype=cite&docid=109+Harv.+L.+Rev.+1048&srctype=smi&srcid=3B15&key=195676b6fe87feb2300ed612d92fa3ab

Answer 15

THIS IS WHY



by Truth_Tracker November 9, 2011 11:06 AM EST

Former Penn State player Lavar Arrington's response about Paterno's responsibilities is virtually identical to every other brain-dead "head in the sand" defensive response that seeks to trivialize Paterno's responsibilities. Arrington states he can't say Paterno abdicated his duty to report the 2002 incident BECAUSE he is not clear how much information Paterno was given about the incident. These arguments simply can not withstand scrutiny.



The fact is Paterno himself has has provided us with all the information we need to conclude he is guilty of a profound, horrendous dereliction of duty in "failing to care enough about that little 10-year old boy to follow-up and make sure the incident got reported to police." Paterno states that it "was obvious that the witness was distraught over what he saw." Paterno states "it was clear that the witness saw something inappropriate involving Mr. Sandusky." Now - simply put all these facts together: little 10-year old boy - in the shower with a 50-year old adult - eye-witness "was distraught" - and Paterno openly, unequivocally admits "it was clear that the witness saw something inappropriate involving Mr. Sandusky."



How much more information does one need in order to figure out that this child was being horribly abused on campus? And the only answer there can be, on these facts, is that Paterno damn-well knew in 2002 that this was a horrific case of appalling child abuse taking place in Paterno's team locker room shower. Does Arrington mean to tell us that if that was his 10-year old boy, he would simply refer the matter to superiors WITHOUT EVER CARING about the OBVIOUS and unmistakable fact that the child abuse was NEVER REPORTED to police authorities for prosecution? What kind of a parent could care so little about such a small, innocent, defenseless 10-year old child, that they simply IGNORE the fact the perpetrator was never brought to justice - to prevent further abuse of young children? All Paterno and these Penn State authorities ever said was "just don't abuse children on our property." That is as sick and demented as the child abuse itself. We have all the information we need to conclude that Paterno and Penn State did NOT give a damn about this little boy's welfare.





Read more: http://www.cbsnews.com/8618-400_162-57321343.html?assetTypeId=41&messageId=11544351&blogId=#ixzz1dKsZ6Wkw

Answer 16

What are you? 12 years old? Grow up and get a clue. Only ignorant fools with no concept of adult responsibilities could ever begin to rationalize the actions of Paterno and the rest of the PSU staff.

Answer 17

He *was* a bad guy here, but Sandusky is the only one I hate. Sodomizing eight-year old boys. Unbelievable.



I just don't think Paterno's entire legacy should be tarnished because of this.

Answer 18

Well I personally label everybody involved "bad guys". I think because Paterno is most powerful guy there, they put the bulk of the blame on him.

Answer 19

Its basically because they are being told so by the media, and really don't have the know how to make their own assessments.

Answer 20

He covered up for a sexual predator and ruined the lives of an untold number of boys.

Answer 21

"I bet none of you would of never did that either."



Oh really? sorry but you're wrong. If I was a witness to a heinous crime, the first thing I would do is call 911. Any ADULT should do the same. Any upstanding citizen WOULD do the same.

Answer 22

he condoned horrific behavior. i dont think hes a bad guy. he just had a horrible, horrible lapse in judgment.



JoePa is also not the just the coach of Penn State, he IS Penn State. he had the most power and decided to do nothing with it. he deserves what he got.

Answer 23

Paterno allowed a predator loose. He got what he deserved.

Answer 24

he had the authority and obligation to save the boys that followed - - should have done something

Answer 25

He eats steak in a sandwich.

Answer 26

You come on.

Answer 27

i guess i know who's side you're on.

Answer 28

IKR!