A real tragedy befell Penn St, Pennsylvania, and America on Sunday as Joe Paterno passed away from complications from lung cancer, and perhaps more tragically, a broken heart. There are painful parallels between the passing of coaching great Bear Bryant and Paterno. Both men gave their whole beings to coaching, though Paterno would be much more well-liked by the general masses. After Bryant retired, he passed soon thereafter and Paterno mentioned to Brent Musberger once upon a time that he never wanted to retire for fear of having the same thing happen to him. He never did retire, he was stabbed in the back and ran over by the very institution he built. A university more well-known for livestock than football when Paterno arrived he turned Penn State into a world-class University. His legacy dives so much deeper than football as he gave countless hours and funds to various University projects, most notably the new library and hospital. I don't think it's possible to overstate what he's meant to Penn State. He was the man who fell on the sword for the failures of those in charge in the Sandusky scandal. A 76-year old man at the time of McReady's confession of seeing "something" in the shower he went to his higher ups and, as is with University policy, gave it to those in charge to handle. Somehow his celebrity and greatness was used against him to be the poster child of the University doing SOMETHING to respond to the allegations and their complete failure to do anything at all about it. It bothered me from the moment it happened and especially pisses me off now. Blame was assigned in completely the wrong manner. I refuse to think anyone would have gone fucking vigilante on Sandusky upon hearing the weak allegations of McReady. Paterno's job had nothing to do with dealing with Sandusky, nor did he have any greater obligation than to pass it along to the University higher-ups.
How does he bear any blame for this? Why was he jumping on grenades for the university that just threw him under the bus? His last act for the university he did everything for was to diffuse the largest bomb in school history by laying on it. This was somehow the genius PR strategy. To place it at the feet of the man who is synonymous with Penn State glory and greatness. Mourners flock to visit the final resting place of their hero and, for thousands of players, father figure. The great moulder of men who has the loyalty of thousands he coached into being better people will somehow be remember for all the great things, and one monster bad thing that he had nothing to do with. People who feel that now is another great opportunity to take a parting shot at how he handled this scandal can find me in any parking lot of their choosing for some words. It simply wasn't what Paterno deserved, or should have gotten. It's a bunch of bullshit, a tragedy, a joke, a fucking travesty. I feel horribly for his family and loyal friends/followers. His legacy should be polarized, not tarnished. It's going to bother me for the rest of the time I'm alive on this earth.
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