Outstanding report and thanks for sharing your experiences. I have had similar experiences within the medical institutions and the momentum and courage it takes to expose sexual abuse of children. And yes the price that is paid by the victims and plaintiffs is awful. It is not surprising those closest to it are fearful of trying to expose it.

I stand by my comments in another thread, that the sexual abuse of children in our culture still is not a high concern. We are still growing as more laws addressing it are written.

Thanks great post I think we only know a small bit of the story, will more come out – it depends how deep the pockets go to buy silence

Many more people than we know about now knew that this was going on. Sandusky felt perfectly comfortable raping a child in a shower in the athletic dept because he was totally aware that no one would do anything about it. I don’t doubt that he probably had done this at least several times. My contempt for him and for the people who enabled him is endless. And what is wrong with the students who rioted because they put their football coach before the safety of a child?

On a call-in show for Kansas City’s sports radio station, one of the hosts made a very astute observation that went something like this:

If McQueary had walked in and seen an old guy just beating the crap out of a 10 year old kid with his fists, he would have broken it up. He would have jumped in and put his own body between the adult and the kid — no questions asked. But this was sex, and it freaked him out and he ran.

Meanwhile, the abuse continued, for that kid and the other victims Sandusky abused after that incident.

To be clear: The sports guy offered this as an explanation, not an excuse, for McQueary’s conduct. He was saying much what you are — that as a society, we’re much more comfortable with confronting violence than we are with sexual abuse.

But the actions of the grand juries in State College, Philadelphia, and Kansas City give me hope that the priority given to addressing the sexual abuse of children is rising.

To top things off, the Catholic campus ministry is in the midst of a building program. Their current facilities are too small, so they are building a new center for their work: the Suzanne Pohland Paterno Catholic Student Faith Center. Suzanne is Mrs. Joe Paterno, for those scoring at home.

Family Affair.

Yes the Pro Molest Protesters are a sick bunch of jocks.

Peterr,

I was hoping for a post from you about the moral issues and you certainly didn’t disappoint.

We had a pastor of the ELCA 15 miles from here charged recently with sexual abuse of a 12 year old girl.

I was a Boys Club director in Phoenix and we worked hard to screen out any potential predators. I took several boys to the National Championship game where Jopa won the national title.Sandusky thankfully was on the sidelines and not in the stands.

This makes me physically ill but we need stop the fricken coverups!

Thank you, Peterr, for this diary.

After all the “heat,” and very little “light” generated on the sports networks, your analysis is most welcome. I hope some of those folks see it.

What’s wrong is that they are struggling to come to grips with threats to what they believe.

When I stepped in as the interim pastor to pick up the pieces when another pastor was arrested for sexual abuse of a child in the parish, the congregation was completely torn apart. There were no physical riots, but the mental anguish was at least as horrible.

Some parishioners heard the news, and were stunned, but as it sank in, they began to wonder. “I always thought there was something odd about him . . . I remember this one time . . . and this other time . . . I never saw him abuse anyone, but something struck me as not-quite-right.” And they began to second guess themselves. “Was there something I missed, that could have prevented this? Did I overlook something, and now a child has been raped?” Heartbreaking stuff.

And then there were those parishioners who could not possible believe that their beloved pastor would ever have done what he was accused of doing. “He came to my hospital room with such care . . . he was so compassionate when my mother died . . . he did this . . . he did that . . . he would never, ever, ever do what he’s accused of doing.” They were sure. They were certain. And they were wrong.

After two years of interviews and pre-trial depositions, and after two trials (criminal and civil) with their witnesses and evidence and verdicts, most if not all of those people came to realize that their beloved pastor was indeed capable of doing what he did — but it was not an easy two years for anyone involved.

The Penn State rioters are like that second group of folks at that church I served. For them to accept the truth of what is alleged in the presentment, and the judgments made by the Board of Trustees, lots of their beliefs about Joe Paterno have to die. And they’re not ready to admit to that yet.

Some of the best and most thoughtful stuff I heard on the sports networks came from former football players who understand the whole loyalty to the institution thing, but instead of jumping to a knee-jerk defense of JoPa and Penn State, felt deeply angry and ashamed. They said things like “I played there, I love Penn State, I love JoPa, I know Sandusky and McQueary and the others, and I am ashamed that this was witnessed, reported to school authorities, and nothing was done until a parent discovered it and reported it to police. They knew, and they swept it under the rug. It makes me sick.”

Their outrage and anger was quiet and controlled, but it was clearly present.

And appropriate.

Great post.

Amen.

Morally they should have forfeited today’s game and the rest of the season including any bowl but the MONEY, my God the Money they would lose.

how many players that were molested are playing today ?

I grew up in a college town, I’ve been a campus pastor, and I’ve been an academic administrator.

What college town, campus pastor where, academic administrator where. Trying to gauge your experience with the type of place PS is. My college didn’t have a football team, and competitive sports (at least in my era) had no profile on campus.

How many players & coaches in today’s game are molestees.

As a teacher, coach ,and scout leader, my reaction mirrors their reaction.

I have had at least 10 discussion locally at various places around my small town about this issue. We need to have a national conversation about these issues.

Thanks for this wonderful post.

After 9 years of covering for a child molester, Paterno is absolutely distraught that he got caught.

All at major institutions, quite comparable in many respects to State College PA and Penn State — though the academic administrative position I held was not at a school with a football program.

That “graduate assistant coach” (McQueary) is still coaching and will be on the sidelines today. I think anyone who had any knowledge of this should be not only fired, but prosecuted as an accomplice.

I have read the grand jury document, and it is appalling and sickening. They shouldn’t be playing the game today. And Paterno and Spanier and the rest of them should forfeit all pay and benefits from the time they first learned of Sandusky’s offenses and did nothing.

And that doesn’t even begin to touch the amount of suffering and permanent lifetime damage was done to those boys.

Peterr, this is a much appreciated post. Any abuse of children, or even unkindness, really upsets me. I know that this goes on every day in our country and we must do something to make the penalties so severe that pedophiles will not feel so free to destroy lives.

I attended Ohio State in the early 60s, the era of Woody Hayes. I have little doubt that if something of that sort had gone on there (and it may well have, but never came out), the same cover up would’ve occurred.

And there’s something else at work here, too. I heard (reliable, but third hand info) that an assault of a female basketball player by a male football player has been glossed over and covered up at my recent employer. The Women’s basketball coach is unconcerned because her only concern is winning. Her players are just tools to get the win, not vulnerable young women. I think that attitude may be common in big college atheltics. The players are “meat” and little more.

McQueary has been placed on administrative leave, and has been prohibited from being at today’s game.

I don’t have any inside information on this, but my experience leads me to believe that the board of trustees found themselves in a real bind when they considered how to deal with McQueary. On the one hand, his presence (had he been allowed to remain at work) would have been a huge distraction in all kinds of ways.

On the other hand, he was the one who reported this to the school in the first place. The last thing the Board wants to do is send a signal to others that says “If you see something illegal like this, be careful about reporting it to your boss, because it will ultimately cost you your job.”

One more thing. At the time, McQueary was a mere graduate assistant — the closest thing to legalized slavery we have in the US. GAs are lower than faculty, lower than civil service staff, and at the mercy of everyone above them with regard to not only their present employment but future career prospects. It takes a helluva lot of effort for a GA to report anyone for doing anything.

I say this not to excuse McQueary for not going to the police, or to say he should be allowed to continue coaching. But as a whistleblower, the Board needed to handle his situation differently.

cry me a river

No, he’s not on the sidelines and is in fact in protective custody not like the ten year old he could have afforded protective adult custody.

“If you see something illegal like this, be careful about reporting it to your boss, because it will ultimately cost you your job.”

Reporting it to a boss?

He should have intervened immediately to protect a 10-year-old child or called the police.

He protected and enabled a predator for 9 years with his silence.

What finally forced Woody Hayes into retirement was that he physically attacked a player on an opposing team in public.

Something tells me that isn’t the first time that Woody got physical with somebody he disagreed with, or who said something to him that he didn’t like. The only difference was that this was done in public with the cameras rolling, and he couldn’t get away from it.

For non-OSU folks, Hayes’ wiki has the details.

Don’t they have a written whistle blower policy? If so, was it carefully executed, and what happened as a result.

Even the board of a very small non-profit I was on had one. During my tenure, we went thru every written policy req by 501(3c)s and made sure they were up-to-date. Are college sports allowed not to have such written policies?

I was watching on tv when Hayes did that and I was stunned. Some coaches are truly out of control. When winning is everything, nothing else matters. Saw Ohio State play once and even their fans were awful – sitting right behind me, one guy was yelling “if you can’t get a touchdown, at least hurt someone.” Nice, huh?

Big tough football GA could have beat the living hell out of sandusky genitals and left him stay alive by a thread.

Then called the cops.

Agreed. And I suspect the Board of Trustees agrees with that as well, which is why they wanted to be very careful about what kind of signals they send to other Penn State employees, especially the hundreds of GAs in every department of the university.

The last thing the board wants at this point is for other crimes to go unreported, only to blow up down the road.

Sounds as warped as Wall St. And as corrupt.

Ooops, I think I may have made that point last night. :-)

I’ve spent my career in academe (at 3 universities), and I understand the role of graduate assistants. But McQueary went to HIS FATHER and then to Paterno … and then let the matter drop, as nearly as I’ve been able to discover, and continued to work with and for the program for another 9 years without opening his mouth (apparently) while Sandusky continued to molest children.

I don’t hold him responsible in the same way as Paterno, but McQueary has been past the graduate assistant phase of his life and has been on the coaching staff for a long time. So he’s not blameless.

Everyone of these human scum was a Pa. employee who was REQUIRED by law to call the police post haste and file a written report in 48 hours, everyone that knew failed to OBAY the law.

And now most all of those who did nothing have had their careers ruined anyway. I’ll wager that they would like a “do-over.”

The crime did go unreported, in the sense that McQueary decided to play a stupid political game with his superiors and to put protecting his career ahead of stopping a horrible crime in progress.

If the Board of Trustees wants to send the right signal, why haven’t they fired him yet?

What finally forced Woody Hayes into retirement was that he physically attacked a player on an opposing team in public.

Believe me, it wasn’t the first or only time he got violent. Woody was out of control for years. And it was pretty common knowledge.

As Peterr said if they fire him, will it stop others from reporting. If they keep him, it sends a message to call your dad first and then report it….sorta. They have to face the fact that he did not report a crime IN PROGRESS.

He didn’t report it. He never called the police to report a horrible crime.

He did eventually go to his superiors and played a political game with them.

Anyone investigating whether McQueary’s still working there in exchange for his 9 years of silence?

Not blameless in the least, but also not culpable in the same ways either.

They have to face the fact that he did not report a crime IN PROGRESS.

He could have stopped that crime in progress, and he didn’t.

In a way, I agree. In another way I think you’re splitting hairs. McQueary could have stopped the rape when he looked into the shower, just as he would have if Sandusky was beating the boy. He didn’t, and while he may not be as high up the food chain as Paterno and Spanier, he’s still guilty. Just ask that boy Sandusky raped whether he thinks McQueary should have intervened.

How is he not culpable because he only witnessed the rape instead of holding him down ? From the second he what was going on it’s all on him and his lack of morals.

We are still in Kitty Genovese territory as a country including the wars as well as this rape.

What I’m trying to do is put myself not in McQueary’s shoes outside the shower years ago, but into the shoes of the Board of Trustees this past week.

The board is trying to figure out what to do with someone who was a reluctant, hesitant, whistleblower. He didn’t blow and blow and blow a whistle until the cops came running, but he didn’t close his eyes completely and pretend it never happened either.

I’m not up on PA whistleblower laws, but I’m sure they played into the Trustees’ discussions. If McQueary meets the PA definition of a whistleblower, even his tentative whistleblowing limits how the Board of Trustees can handle him.

Note that “in the same way” is a rather critical part of what I said.

If not culpable in the same ways, then culpable in worse ways. He saw it happening, did not stop it and did not call the police.

Instead, he went to his superiors and appears to have been satisfied with his ability to use it over the last 9 years to ensure a spot for himself in the inner circle.

I’d like to know how McQueary’s position there and how his relationship with Paterno and others improved after he reported this crime to them and then joined them in their silence.

With all due respect, what ridiculous nonsense.

You’re trying to commend this coward as if he were a courageous whistleblower.

On that note, have a good afternoon.

That’s what I was trying to find out in 27. There should be a policy. It should be easily accessible to all members of the community. After the board found out, did they act according to the policy. What happens to the board if they didn’t.

He is the center of the conspiracy to hide this crime and he knew it was his soul or his career.

His dad is not exactly a role model either. They all lacked courage but I imagine that their church will give them a pass.

Yes, Peterr, I understand and respect your position. Perhaps I’m reacting too emotionally. I don’t consider McQueary a whistleblower. I also don’t view him as deliberately protecting his career by keeping quiet. The PSU trustees are indeed in an unenviable position.

The bottom line for me is that McQueary could have intervened, and he didn’t. He went home and consulted his father, who should have accompanied him to the police, and didn’t. There’s a lot of blame to go around. And I sure hope the rumors I’ve read that Sandusky pimped out the young boys to wealthy donors is just rumor and gossip and idle speculation and not factual, or we ain’t seen nuthin’ yet wrt PSU.

Yes, it’s possible his silence was bought.

It’s also possible that the guy who was so freaked out by what he saw that he needed to talk to his dad before reporting it continued to be freaked out with fear when Sandusky continued to appear around Penn State. “I reported it, they know, and he’s still here? What good would it do to raise a stink again, other than ruin my life?”

It’s not nonsense — it’s the way ordinary people on the bottom of the pyramid often act in the presence of what seems like a conspiracy by those at the top to protect their own.

Fear is a huge motivator, and it’s how predators keep their victims and those who have knowledge of their crimes from reporting them. Once everything comes out into the open, I’ve heard person after person tell me about being told something like this by a perpetrator in the past:

“I’m a priest/coach/beloved/revered figure, and you’re just a kid. Who would ever believe you? They’d not only not believe you, but they’d hate you for trying to ruin my reputation.”

Fear. It’s how perpetrators get what they want, from victims and from everyone else.

Here’s PS’s whistle blower policy, fwiw.

An individual desiring to submit a Good Faith Report should contact the appropriate person as identified under the applicable University policy. Some key contacts are referenced on the University Ethics website. Members of the University community may also report suspected Wrongful Conduct on an anonymous, confidential basis through the University’s Ethics and Compliance Hotline at 1-800-560-1637.

McQuery could have called the anonymous hotline when his prior reports were buried.

OK, so we can argue over the degrees and nature of McQuaery’s culpability and his relationship to the entire enterprise. But he’s not the big fish in the overall scheme (unless he was blackmailing everyone). My question is who was the linchpin; who pushed the decisions; who determined the course? Who held the power? Was it Paterno? He who skated past indictment and charge based on legal technicalities? He can continue to wring his hands ad infinitum and disgorge the “I did what was required”, “I wish I had done more” line, and be considered a tragic figure. Seems to me he is getting off easy; that is, unless you consider the egoistic accomplishments in life, the superficial, even sham performance that turns out to be thinner than paper, as being most significant.

I wish this could be a wake up call to the sickness of the collegiate sports racket, and it’s adoring fans, and prompt some healthy evolution (discolsure: I live in Blacksbur/Hokie ‘nation’). But I doubt it. As with most disgraceful human/institutional episodes, they seem to provide further opportunity to differentiate oneself/the institution from the offender; congratulate oneself on being better and above that, and go on.

So, you’re willing to cast McQueary as a victim? Just a poor guy who was freaked out, afraid, at the bottom of a pyramid?

Seriously, any reasonable human being would have either intervened and then called the police, or would have ran to call the police.

McQueary did neither. Nor did he seem to have much of a problem continuing to work for and with people who, like him, remained silent for nearly a decade, knowing that Sandusky was sodomising children.

Your efforts at trying to appear reasonable as you make excuses for this sleazy pos are not convincing.

Maybe the college should donate ALL the proceeds for the rest of the season to the kids. That would surely mean they to all go to college themselves, as well as a fund for counseling.

“I reported it, they know, and he’s still here? What good would it do to raise a stink again, other than ruin my life?”

His life or the money spigot? He made himself a reprehensible pig and ruined his life anyway.

Peter said: “Fear. It’s how perpetrators get what they want, from victims and from everyone else.”

I’ve had some experience of this in 30 years as a therapist. The other side of the coin is “charm” and “ingratiating” tactics. But in the end, threats and fear are always there.

I don’t think Peter is casting McQuaery as a victim.

Explaining possible motivation and behavior is not the same as making excuses or minimizing the behavior. Just a thought.

It’s hard to find satisfactory solace for the anger that arises. Probably impossible.

So, what you guys are saying is that McQueary isn’t necessarily sleazy, but is more likely just stupid (easily charmed) or cowardly (afraid to act when he sees a 10-year-old being raped), or some combination of these, and that being stupid and/or cowardly isn’t a crime?

I suppose you’re right. At least I’ll concede that I’m apparently not as reasonable as you guys.

The most disturbing thing to me, according to all that I heard in clips from Penn State spokespersons,is that all reasons for their action/response to the problem have to do with “the interests of Penn State” and public opinions thereof. I did not hear one word about the interests of what is right and wrong.
I can dismiss the antics of the children who can’t get past playing games like football, but the Trustees and others running the institution are supposed to be adults.

Great and thoughtful discussion. I want to add some words to direct attention to the consequences and impact of the power we vest in our “heroes.” Aside from, if not equal to, our admiration for the military our athletic heroes wield immense power and too many exercise it in entitlement. Sandusky, as well as Paterno, was such a hero. It takes a lot to overcome all that to expose truth.

Here’s an interesting twist. DA who didn’t prosecute Sandusky in 1998 went missing in 2005.

Nope, not saying that. I have no idea, but McQuaery may very likely to be sleazy, although I can think of a few more damaging adjectives that probably apply as well. My reference to “Charm” and “ingratiating” was regarding the perp-victim relationship. Peter brought in the widening circle of involvement, which starts out with the primary offense.

It’s tempting to think all ‘decent’ people would react the same way as my image of how a decent person reacts. But people react differently. I want to know more because McQuaery seemingly followed down this disgraceful path for years, actively or inactively. It really is less important to attribute decency or not (let’s say by definition his behavior defines indecency) than to know how his objective behavior continued to contribute to this conspiracy.

The phrase “best interests of the University” is a legal term of art. It means that the Board of Trustees was invoking clauses in the contracts that say that the people can be removed from their positions if — for whatever reason — there are circumstances that make it impossible for them to carry out their duties.

It’s easier to fire someone who’s been convicted of a crime. Firing someone before there is a trial and a verdict (or even charges filed) is tougher, and the Board has to be careful not to open themselves up to a lawsuit for either wrongful termination or libel. Thus, by saying “in the best interests” they are saying “we are leaving the legal judgments to the legal system, but these positions are too important to be under a cloud like this right now, so these people have to go.”

Thus, when removing Paterno and the President was done “in the best interests of the University”, the Board is not passing public judgment on what they did or didn’t do, but is saying “you can’t carry out your jobs right now, and we can’t wait for things to change”.

It’s not that they aren’t passing judgment in some fashion, but the board is trying not to get in the way of the legal system that it certainly appears that others at Penn State were trying to avoid.

You’ve captured what I meant very well. Thanks.

In trying to explain behavior like this, I’m trying to understand it, not excuse it.

“Trustees and others running the institution are supposed to be adults.”

You give them too much credit.

There has never been a more appropriate situation for the phrase
“Follow the $$”

Peterr. Thank you for a thoughtful and helpful post. The whole debacle is beyond tragic. And, as said above, I would love nothing more than to see some rethinking on our football addicted and besotted culture. That in itself is a bit of child abuse as kids are rushed into sports and often wink at academics. So much more ruse.
Im not defending McQu at all. But when I first read what he had encountered, I thought surely he himself was probably traumatized…brains frozen or scambled. As a GA, he may not even be very smart, I don’t know. But I do think it is possible to witness an event so shocking that one doesn’t know what to do next. Maybe eveyone here would know what to do…I had an experience somewhat related, not as serious, to be sure, where it certainly took me awhile to know what steps to take. Maybe Im the only one who is just slow….He did not react immediately. Then when he went to the administration/PTB, would he not assume the matter was in their hands. I am not justifiying anything….there are clearly times when one’s response is confusion….picture Mrs. Kennedy jumping outta the Pres’s car; we never know and we can’t be in someone else’s spot.

Peterr, thank you for your very thoughtful post, based upon actual experience and your most well-considered efforts, not to excuse, but to further everyone’s understanding of the “culture” and “circumstances” in which all of this “scandal” occurred … as well as carefully explaining the realities facing Penn State’s Board of Trustees, especially regarding the Board’s very necessary concern with encouraging others to behave responsibly, on many levels, in future …

DW

I was born in Erie Pennsylvania, 63 years ago.

There is a lot of backward thinking between ethnic groups, religions, and races there, even worse in pennsyltucky… As well as a very localized sense of propriety and legality.
paterno exudes a lot of that rigid blue collar potential of selective discrimination, and it is part of the DNA of the organism he sustained for 50 years..
What would McQueary have done if he had seen a little 10 year old red headed boy being buggered?
These weren’t two lovers, this was a man slamming the rectum of a child, who, until then, probably had no idea that was how his butt was to be used.
From what I’ve seen of other victim’s families, the children were, so far, African American.
I can see how paterno, and his minions, could have compartmentalized these kids as ‘lesser’ than if they were little irishmen or lil’ italians.
Also, it is the present governor who was the DA at the time, who had to fucking know what was going on. He just attended his first board of regents meeting Friday, I wonder why.
Yes, you can count me in as one of those who have easily accepted the possibility that some of this kids were pimped out of sandusky’s little plantation.
This filthy scandal is a seething cauldron depravity, sexual and crime against the humanity of children.

Thanks for the added dimension….have not heard anything of that element included. Yes, depravity.

I can’t get past what those children had to endure, what they felt at the time and how they have survived (have they?) since then.

The whole thing makes me want to vomit.

peterr, thank you for talking about the complicated emotions of the community. I appreciate the complexity, but I still cannot get past that scene in the shower. Cannot. Get. Past. It.

Final Score today in PSU’s last home game of the season:

Nebraska 17
PSU 14

Too bad PSU had any points.

As a state institution Penn State is governed by state whistle-blower protection laws. In fact, McQueary may continue to collect a paycheck, and later a big settlement, by virtue of his whistle-blower status. (The settlement will come because eventually, inevitably, he will not be able to continue coaching at Penn State, and quite possibly, not at all ever anywhere.)

This should have every college and university president in the country reviewing their people and their policies, reinvigorating whistleblower rules, and rethinking their responsibilities to their primary constituents – students and their families – and the purposes for which they sponsor athletics.

Indeed.

And a lot of coaches will be taking a hard look at their staff and the boosters that hang around the program. Any coach worth anything has already had a long talk with their teams, their coaches, and everyone else associated with their programs. “If you see something happening in our locker rooms, tell me. If you see something happening in our practice facilities, tell me. If you see something — anything — that even approaches what happened in State College, you tell me and together we’ll talk to the police. I don’t care who it is that you saw — the assistant to the junior towel boy or the president of the university or the biggest donor this school has. You tell me about it, and we’ll go to the police together.”

Those coaches who have NOT already done this are living in a bubble, mistakenly believing “this could never happen at MY school.”

Thanks Peterr. I do feel better. I should know that nothing is as simple as it appears.

Not sure where you are coming from in this comment- on the “meta” level, yes, perhaps, but the players on the field, the current students, are not to blame for this mess.

Hello Peterr,

Thank you for a great post, and for your continuing comments.

Thanks — and good to “see” you around!

This post should go on & on….the issues are important and will continue to be pondered.

Why do sports get such a pass in our world? ex. All the folks who could not believe/imagine an OJ guilt…b/c, well, b/c he was such a runner, hero, blah, blah, blah.

Thank you, Peterr, for a wise and rewarding discussion. Someone came to the door and I had to duck out earlier, so I missed the later comments. I agree with RevBev that this discussion should continue.

I agree with every word of this comment, but I wonder how many coaches have had those conversations?

Agreed, Valley Girl. And it’s nice to “see” you here!

Current players and students aren’t to blame, but they, and the university they attend, are going to be heaped with the fallout from the officials’ misdeeds. I wonder how many will transfer to other schools, and how many big donors will yank their funds?

Prolly nobody will see this comment now, way EPU’d, but came across this at Salon and it’s relevant:

Why Didn’t McQueary Call the Police?

Well, I saw it . . .

Very good piece. Thanks for passing the link along.

Legally speaking I would think that the Board opened themselves up to litigation (though on a practical level I don’t think there would be a lawsuit) for wrongful termination with JoePa given what has come out and how JoePa has been treated differently than McQ…both McQ and JoePa did the same thing in reporting an alleged incident to their superiors but not to police. If anything I would think that McQ would be held to a higher standard given how that he’s an actual first person witness to the alleged acts while JoePa wasn’t. I’m not seeing any consistent message coming from the Penn State board – if they were saying that employees of Penn State who know of allegations of crimes should go to police or they’ll get fired, then McQ should be out of a job as well…and I would think that if that’s what Penn State is trying to say, that would mean that first hand witnesses would be held most accountable versus someone who was not a witness but just heard a rumor or allegation.

However, I’m not understanding why it is said that JoePa and McQ didn’t go to the police, when it sounds like they in fact did go to the police. JoePa and McQ went to the Schultz who was head of the PSU police…and the PSU police are regular sworn cops. Were the PSU cops different back during the time of the allegations than how they are now?

As to the larger issues, I’m really not sure what to make of them, but I would expect the Penn State board to have known Sandusky was under criminal investigation or to at least have known why he resigned and that such information would be passed on to each new board. I’ve served on boards before and to me this just seems like a knew or should have known situation for Penn State board members. I’m not about to pronounce actual criminal guilt or innocence of any of those involved, but I do think there is a lot more to the story than what we’ve heard so far.

Here is my speculatio­n on the situation. Whatever else we can say about Joe Paterno, he is not a pedophile. People who are not pedophiles do not like pedophiles­. For Sandusky to be so bold as to commit the crimes at the PSU football facility, means he knew he had protection at high places. Most likely Spanier. Paterno knew what he was fighting, and feels ashamed he did not do more. The FBI needs to put Paterno and Sandusky in witness protection before they are ‘suicided’ by the pedo ring. Or being ‘disappear­ed’ like the DA. The reason for protecting Sandusky, to make sure he talks in court.