At some point in time, institutions that have grown strong and rich, certain that the growth they've experienced is evidence of the righteousness of their cause, those institutions begin treating the occasional misbehavior of their members or leaders as threats to the institution itself if discovered by the public.
It happens over and over, and in all fields of human endeavor: political parties, churches, corporations, and yes, major college football programs, to name just a few. All too often their first reaction is to cover-up. Make no mistake about it, the behavior of those in authority at Penn State was not just a colossal lapse in moral judgement, it was a criminal cover-up of child sex abuse (read the indictment).
Why? If in 1998, when the evidence of pedophilia on the part of a long time coach first came to light, had Coach Paterno gone to the police he would have been hailed as a hero. Instead, 13 years later and who knows how many more victims, Paterno's legacy lies shattered and rightfully so, the careers of those who participated in the cover-up are ruined, prison sentences loom, and the very thing they sought to protect, the reputation of Penn State and it's football program is permanently soiled.
It brings to mind the quote by Lord Acton that "power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely." The sordid reality is that if the typical pattern of pedophiles holds true, there are victims yet undiscovered that would have escaped the clutches of this man had everyone involved simply done the right thing back in 1998.
Somehow, the innocence of children became less important than the public image of a powerful institution in the banal minds of those too long in power.
No comments:
Post a Comment