The sad walk out of Happy Valley

It became official tonight. The administration met, and the fate of College Football's Career Wins Leader, amid the repulsive reports of sexual abuse to minors by an ex-coach, had been decided. Joe Pa has to go, and it is the RIGHT decision.

Sadly, after the removal of the coaching icon, the loyalist of State College took to the streets. A Nittany Blue mob ascended upon the campus, chanting for the fallen coach, and turning over TV vans.

The police did open up on the crowd with pepper spray, but for the most part reports are that it stayed mostly calm. Of course, it was not all hippies, protesters, and sit-in staging. You are always going to have your neanderthalic-frat boys who get some liquid courage in them and try to 'fight the power'.

Sorry state of events, because in this case, these kids are way off base.

They will tell you how long Paterno has been there. How he is an institution. How the man lives and breaths Penn State. They will tell you all he has done for the students, the money he has donated, and just being a good person to everyone.

All of these things are true. All of these things, however, no longer matter. They can't matter, and may not ever be able to again.

As this is being typed, the once 'mostly peaceful' gathering has turned into rioting. It appears as if it is getting way out of hand. Earlier in the evening, one student voiced his opinion. He supported the decision to fire Paterno. He also stated that what happened was unacceptable. Joe Pa could have done more. He was a student, and a fan. He also said that saying that, saying what he believed to be right, morally, that he feared for his safety there.

Why? because a bunch of clueless, drunk, adolescents were upset about losing their football coach. never mind the kids who were victims. Years from now, when these kids look back on this, and the reactions they had, they will be ashamed. Ashamed that they championed a fight to protect a man who took a blind-eye approach at the actions of a true monster.

An even sadder state perhaps, is that when it was announced that Paterno had been fired, the first question asked was 'who is coaching Saturday?" Ironically, the man at the helm will be coaching staff member Tom Bradley, who replaced Sandusky on the staff in 1999.

Around 100 students showed up on Paterno's lawn. Paterno, once more, made another appearance as he came out of his house to greet and thank the students for coming. He also said before retreating, to 'pray a little bit for the victims, too.' As he walked back into his house, he turned back to the chanting supporters and gave a fist pump and said 'We are Penn State!' to raucous ovation.

I really do not think that anybody really grasps the gravity of this situation in State College.

As of now, the students are still out in force on the campus, chanting Joe's name, and rallying around a Penn State chant near a statue of Paterno, erected in front of the football stadium.

He told who he needed to tell to wash his hands of it, he is cleared legally. These students are crying out, saying that Paterno should be given one last game on the sidelines. I say, if those kids can get back one more day of innocence, fine.

The trustees who made the decision to fire Paterno, also fired the President of the university,Graham Spanier.The individual who actually witnessed an act by the pervert who is Jerry Sandusky, Mike McQueary, still at this time has his job with Penn State.

Paterno, in what I took as an audacious comment, referenced that he was fired over the phone. I would agree that he deserved a more dignified way of being removed from the program. I would, had Paterno not allowed this monster to continue to do what he was doing.

Now, one opinion is that Paterno was never specifically told what exactly Sandusky had done, only that he may have had some 'inappropriate contact' with a youth at the facility,referencing what McQueary had told Paterno he had witnessed in 2002.

Fact of the matter is this, Joe Paterno probably had no business still running the program these last 10 years. He ignored anything that didn't translate to wins and loses on the field. He was just oblivious to the rest of the world. He just kept going, Nittany Lion football was all that mattered. I think it's obvious that he still hasn't got it. It's just every time I see him talk now, it's like he just shrugs and says 'It is what it is, I guess'.

Maybe he didn't think it was that big of a deal. Maybe he didn't understand what the assistant was trying to tell him he witnessed. Maybe, he would have if it was his own kids.

An interesting twist to this is Ray Gricar, Attorney General at the time of Centre County, declined to press charge against Sandusky, after Sandusky had confessed to a child's mother in 1998 that he had inappropriately touched her child while showering on campus. Gricar came up missing in 2005, and to the best of my knowledge his body was never found. Two fishermen did find his government issued laptop in the Great Miami River, after his car had been found at an antique store parking lot. His wallet and said laptop, along with his car keys were all that was missing from the car. His government issued cell phone was still in the vehicle. It was discovered that on his home computer, he had searched for ways to destroy a hard drive on a laptop, and what damage water could do to one prior to his disappearance. Six years after he disappeared, he was legally recognized as dead, though no trace of him or his body was ever found.

"I wish I had done more."- Joe Paterno