Joe Paterno’s passing has sparked a flurry of status updates and tweets. Some of them supporting the winningest coach in college football history and others, well let’s just say, not so much.
As I read through all the posts, I found myself disgusted at the comments that said things like, “Joe Paterno, we will remember the ‘REAL’ you, not the one they tried to make you out to be!! RIP!” and “Joe Paterno, your legacy outweighs the scandal. You are a true American legend.”
Can that be true? Can a man who admits, “I didn’t know exactly how to handle it and I was afraid to do something that might jeopardize what the university procedure was,” really become an American legend? Really?
Choosing not to jeopardize university procedure over potentially preventing child molestation does not make you a legend. It makes you a selfish coward. Being a great football coach does not make you a respectable man. Paterno and McQueary both are responsible for allowing the rape of no telling how many boys to occur for several years at the hands of Jerry Sandusky.
He admits, “I wish I had done more.” That to me, says it all.
