Penn State's Board Has a Backbone After All

Yesterday, I blogged about Joe Paterno announcing his retirement at the end of the season and my thoughts on the whole thing, including how I thought the early announcement was an attempt to save his job for the rest of the season.  My fear was that the Board of Trustees would take the easy route, and allow him to finish out the season.

Well, it looks like I was wrong.  Shortly after I posted, the Penn State Board of Trustees made the announcement that Joe Paterno was done coaching.  This was a surprise to me only in that the move was likely to be unpopular with the community, but apparently the best interests of the school and its alumni, students, employees, and future attendees weighed more heavily on the hearts and minds of the board than the legacy of a great coach.

The aftermath of the announcement was predictable and a bit sad.  Students who should have better sense storming around on the streets, breaking windows, and overturning a television news van while.  Joe Paterno speaking to the students and media next to his distraught wife.  The media going crazy talking about the story non-stop and printing as many copies as they can to try and sell a lot of papers the next day.  The biggest tragedy of it all was that the children who were the victims were almost an afterthought.

Let us never overlook the fact that Joe Paterno was a leader and philanthropist in the Penn State community, and although this one blemish on his legacy his huge, it takes nothing away from all of the wonderful and great things that he has accomplished.  

Let us also never overlook the fact that an entire administration failed in their moral duties to protect children, and that football does not trump life.  When it is all said and done, a football coach may have been fired, but children lost their innocence and sense of safety.  It should come as no surprise that there would be consequences for failing to protect them.