Grumpy drive home (RL x3!)
Nov. 10th, 2011 02:55 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
thistlechaserUsually I listen to NPR while driving, but for some reason my radio was set to the local news/talk station, so I left it there. In case you've missed the news, a college football coach knew an assistant coach was molesting young boys but did not call the police. He was fired. Now people are up in arms. Because he was a "legendary" coach.
So so so many things wrong with this situation. I don't even know where to start. If this "legendary" coach had said something, if he had picked up the phone and called police, a serial pedophile who acted for YEARS could have been stopped. And people are angry over him being fired because he's a coach.
I snorted out loud at this part: Some people are upset that he was fired over the phone. Know what? If he had picked up a phone to begin with, he could have prevented his whole firing! Not to mention, all the pain and suffering!
So many things about this make me so mad. I know this seems like a minor thing to complain about in the face of many young boys being molested, but it pisses me off that people act this way (angry he's been fired because he's a coach). If a scientist had done this, would people be up in arms? Why in the world do people collect baseball cards instead of cards with scientists and other smart folks on them? (Other than the fact that they don't exist...)
Grrrrr. Anyway, usually Friday night is my "free" dinner (can have anything I want), but I have an event tomorrow night and "eating anything I want" generally leads to higher chances of being sick, so I moved it to tonight. For the first time in many, many years, I went to Taco Bell.. Even the most mild food is generally too spicy for me, so usually I avoid Mexican, but they had a steak sandwich thing that caught my eye, so I went. I really can't explain my desire for the sandwich, other than maybe because it has been about two weeks since I last had red meat.
Anyway, somehow the sandwich was bland. o.O I can't remember ever experiencing bland food before -- even just a little salt on something is plenty of taste for me. I finished the whole thing for the novelty of the blandness. (That sounds wacky, but I kept eating it thinking there had to be taste I was missing somehow...)
And in good news, Ellie New Cat has forgiven me. I've been trying to pick her up once a day to get her used to it, but yesterday she freaked out. Big, big fear reaction, bigger than I'd seen in a while. CAT EATING MONSTER IS GRABBING ME! And for the rest of the night, she ran from me. It was so sad, such a big backslide, I kicked myself for breaking all the trust we had built so far. Even this morning she was still avoiding me (she kept leaving any room I was in!). But luckily, when I got home from work tonight, I had been forgiven. She's been on my desk rubbing against me while I've been writing most of this post. Whew!
So so so many things wrong with this situation. I don't even know where to start. If this "legendary" coach had said something, if he had picked up the phone and called police, a serial pedophile who acted for YEARS could have been stopped. And people are angry over him being fired because he's a coach.
I snorted out loud at this part: Some people are upset that he was fired over the phone. Know what? If he had picked up a phone to begin with, he could have prevented his whole firing! Not to mention, all the pain and suffering!
So many things about this make me so mad. I know this seems like a minor thing to complain about in the face of many young boys being molested, but it pisses me off that people act this way (angry he's been fired because he's a coach). If a scientist had done this, would people be up in arms? Why in the world do people collect baseball cards instead of cards with scientists and other smart folks on them? (Other than the fact that they don't exist...)
Grrrrr. Anyway, usually Friday night is my "free" dinner (can have anything I want), but I have an event tomorrow night and "eating anything I want" generally leads to higher chances of being sick, so I moved it to tonight. For the first time in many, many years, I went to Taco Bell.. Even the most mild food is generally too spicy for me, so usually I avoid Mexican, but they had a steak sandwich thing that caught my eye, so I went. I really can't explain my desire for the sandwich, other than maybe because it has been about two weeks since I last had red meat.
Anyway, somehow the sandwich was bland. o.O I can't remember ever experiencing bland food before -- even just a little salt on something is plenty of taste for me. I finished the whole thing for the novelty of the blandness. (That sounds wacky, but I kept eating it thinking there had to be taste I was missing somehow...)
And in good news, Ellie New Cat has forgiven me. I've been trying to pick her up once a day to get her used to it, but yesterday she freaked out. Big, big fear reaction, bigger than I'd seen in a while. CAT EATING MONSTER IS GRABBING ME! And for the rest of the night, she ran from me. It was so sad, such a big backslide, I kicked myself for breaking all the trust we had built so far. Even this morning she was still avoiding me (she kept leaving any room I was in!). But luckily, when I got home from work tonight, I had been forgiven. She's been on my desk rubbing against me while I've been writing most of this post. Whew!
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no subject
Date: 2011-11-10 11:42 pm (UTC)He's even admitted to that he did was he was supposed to do by the rules but he didn't do what he should have morally. In fact, I understood it that he was going to retire after the current football season was over. I guess the school decided otherwise. Ya, he could have done more and I think he unfortunately got caught in the middle of a situation where someone under him was doing horrible things and the person he trusted above him didn't act the way they were supposed to.
I'm not giving him a pass and saying his actions were ok. I just think that we should be focusing on the guy who straight up lied about it to cover it up, and the guy who committed the crimes. I think the school should have just let him retire and fade away so the focus could be where it should be. Instead we end up with this circus and people not focusing where they should.
no subject
Date: 2011-11-11 01:57 am (UTC)I agree that we should focus on the others more, but I think that anyone who knew has responsibility in this. Who could know about this sort of thing and not report it?
At the company where I work, we're required by contract to report to the police if we know someone broke the law. Everywhere should have that, at least for major things. :/
no subject
Date: 2011-11-11 02:23 am (UTC)He knew of the allegations, he didn't know the event took place. Just that someone said it did. That's different then 100% knowing it happened. Innocent until proven guilty (which the scum responsible now have been). It's through hindsight we can say he knew it, but only because the allegations (unfortunately) were proven true.
Who could know about this sort of thing and not report it?
He did report it though. I know you mean to immediately go to the police but the policy was that it was the top brass that were responsible and legally obliged to call the authorities. So in accordance with that he did exactly what he was supposed to as per the rules. Similar to how your company tells you to report to the police, his told him to report to the higher ups.
That's where the whole thing about legal vs moral obligations come in. The other guys argument was that it was just horseplay and the higher ups basically covered it up and treated it like it was just horseplay as if they had looked into it. In my head Paterno's only really guilty of trusting people who, in hind-sight, he shouldn't have been trusted.
I look at it this way. If the higher ups had acted as they were legally responsible to then this wouldn't have become a problem for Paterno. It's only because they lied and tried to cover up that this situation occured. That's why I can have more sympathy for him because he got caught up in a lie that was placed on the crime.
no subject
Date: 2011-11-11 05:43 am (UTC)We disagree on that part. If someone told you they saw a grow man raping a ten year old boy, what would you do? What would a reasonable person do? I cannot believe that people would be fine with reporting it to the higher-ups at their job and leaving it at that.
I look at it this way. If the higher ups had acted as they were legally responsible to then this wouldn't have become a problem for Paterno.
I think actions should darned well be taken against them, too. Fired and legal actions. Plus I'd be certain they'd burn in hell, if I believed in such a place.
Blah. This whole thing is just so sad.
no subject
Date: 2011-11-11 04:33 am (UTC)As I have heard, the graduate assistant who saw the rape also did not report it to the police and that person is currently a coach on the Penn State football team and that person kept his job. So, I'm unclear on how this firing is "fair" to all involved.
no subject
Date: 2011-11-11 04:42 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-11-11 05:14 am (UTC)Even more galling, Penn State is paying the legal bills for the two administrators who were indicted for covering up the incident. Why didn't the trustees fire those two people and stop paying their legal fees?
no subject
Date: 2011-11-11 05:44 am (UTC)