Breaking News: Penn State Will Remove Joe Paterno Statue

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If we are going to compare Paterno with Atilla...
I was glad to see Sadam Hussein's statue in Bagdad destroyed in 2003 and have not regretted it yet.
They pulled it down. Not sure it they melted down. Anyway.......I respect everyone's opinion.

Now one thing I do agree with was the Patriots making musket balls out of a King George III statue that they tore down and extracted I think in Boston because of depleted ammunition. Anyway I respect everyone's opinion.

And the stature of the person is irrelevant. Atila to Joe Pa. Take it down, but storage is up to the community, not us.

I brought it up, just asking, where does it stop? joseph stallings erased people out of pictures. Taking his representation down is sufficient imo. Beyond that, I leave up to the mob. From melting statue's, to even more extreme. The fact is Joe Paterno has been discredited, that is enough. Losing your good name is more important that preserving your artifacts. Night and day.
 
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Chukker Veteran

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I would destroy it to show contempt for Paterno's defenders if for no other reason.

This article makes reference to the Hussein statue having been destroyed, not just toppled.

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/a-decade-after-saddam-husseins-statue-falls-a-tale-of-two-memories/

But Kazem al Jabouri has moved past anger -- and into regret. "If this Saddam statue still existed, I would put it up again," he said.
The context of the above quote seems to back up the board's consensus opinion...we'd rather not see it put back up at a later date. If it is destroyed, that can't happen.
 
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Oh come on man. He's a football coach. They put it up for his football accomplishments. If there had been a statue of Benedict Arnold for his exploits at Saratoga, I guarantee you it wouldn't still be hanging out in West Point's broom closet. You don't have to erase him from history, but a statue honoring him is an abomination. He knew about this in 1976. He was 50 years old. Not an old man. Not a semi-retired figurehead. And he chose to put his career ahead of some kids. There's no disputing it anymore. And a statue, raised to commemorate him and that football career that he cared more about than children, is disgusting. It should be melted down and remolded into a memorial for all the kids who were abused. And that memorial should be put in the center of Penn State University, so that they never forget. If they did that, I would respect them. Mothballing the statue until such time as they can put it back up is disgusting.
All I said was put it in storage. Never meant to imply putting back up. And believe me, his betrayals hit close to home, like many. We all agree that his name has been dishonored, lets just leave it at that, and leave preserving statue's for another day.

The off season :) I am so glad for media day. We are all friends, know good vs evil and love our teams. Lets kick butt in 2016!
 

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:wink:I used to have a bobble-head doll of Coach Fran. Not quite a statue but I knocked it's head off with a golf club. If I had another one I'd prolly do the same thing again. :biggrin:
 

PA Tide Fan

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During the many years of Paterno's coaching career whenever he was described as a model coach, running a model program I always felt that someday everyone would learn something about Paterno that would tarnish that image. I never imagined it would something so horrible as this however. But it does show that when someone it put on too high a pedestal by most observers it's usually not deserved.
 

gtowntide

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<disclaimer> My daughter was molested by a family member when she was 7 years old, so I'm looking at this through that prism. She kept it a secret until the family member died about ten years later. I used to work for a German company and we travelled to that country once a year. One of the first things I noticed was there are no statues of anyone involved in WW2. No plaques,no museums or memorials to Hitler and his Nazi party. When I asked a local why, he said "we don't want to remember what those people did".

I sort of look at this statue business the same way. Why would anyone want to keep a memorial to this man who had blinders on while evil was all around him?
 

mulletover

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I have some Paterno memorabilia from the 80's. I'm going to auction it off on eBay with the stipulation it has to be burned, filmed and uploaded to YouTube. All proceeds to kids charity.
 

B1GTide

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During the many years of Paterno's coaching career whenever he was described as a model coach, running a model program I always felt that someday everyone would learn something about Paterno that would tarnish that image. I never imagined it would something so horrible as this however. But it does show that when someone it put on too high a pedestal by most observers it's usually not deserved.
Yeah, if you lived in the area you knew that he was getting away with a lot of stuff - sweeping a whole lot of arrests under the rug. But the assumption at the time was that every great program did things like that. I can honestly say that, even though I knew that he was running a program that was as "dirty" as any other in the country, I still respected the man. He seemed to be able to reach his players, and his players became leaders on and off the field. I was shocked to hear about this other stuff. I mean, it is one thing to believe that he was guilty of being human and willing to bend the rules to win - it is another to find out that he was evil.
 

selmaborntidefan

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For those not burdened with memory (which is, well, ALL of you, I guess), here's something that has always stood out to me. The Sandusky scandal blew in like a hurricane on November 5, 2011. All of us remember that day very clearly - it was the day of the LSU-Alabama clash of the two best teams in the game in Tuscaloosa that night. It was an open date on Penn State's schedule. And it was a week after Paterno had passed Eddie Robinson to become the all-time winningest coach in upper echelon football (I won't debate this whole thing but let's continue).

The football tail was wagging the university dog all along, and that became crystal clear by Paterno's IMMEDIATE reaction to the whole thing. The story broke on Saturday and by Monday morning there was a full-throated national cry for this guy to resign immediately. What he did instead was to say on Wednesday (11/9) that he would retire "at the end of the season" - and he was fired that same evening.

Even after the horrors had become known, he was thinking about winning the Big Ten title and going to the Rose Bowl!!!!

Remember - Penn State had only lost ONE GAME that year - at home to Alabama. They were leading the conference and while they were not a complete team by any stretch of the term, they were still in first place although the meat of the schedule (Nebraska, Ohio State, Wisconsin) lay right ahead.

And then the stories began trickling out one by one that November, about how he constantly interfered with the disciplinary process involving players.

The Dark Side

And Even More After He Died

More on the Conduct Officer Who Resigned Over Paterno's Interference
 

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Thanks for the refresher Selma. Now that you mention it, I do remember Paterno's breathtaking arrogance when the story first broke. "I'll resign after the season, on my own schedule."

Before the story became public, the media was filled with comparisons between Paterno and Bryant. Now, the very suggestion that the two had anything in common would be "fighting words" in my opinion.
 

Gr8hope

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The funny thing is, the only other fan base with any reason to defend Paterno is Alabama. We had a relationship with him unlike any other opposing coach. I remember going to that game in Bryant Denny and being so honored to be there. I loved Joe Pa too, and everything he meant to the game. And I gave him the benefit of the doubt. I defended him for a long time, called on people to wait until the whole story had been told to pass judgment. That moment has passed, and the judgment is damning.

Good comment BnB. I think you summed up the way most of us here feel quite well.
 

NBF_Bama_Cavalry

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During the many years of Paterno's coaching career whenever he was described as a model coach, running a model program I always felt that someday everyone would learn something about Paterno that would tarnish that image. I never imagined it would something so horrible as this however. But it does show that when someone it put on too high a pedestal by most observers it's usually not deserved.
I was never really aware of Paterno until the "Goal Line Stand" Sugar Bowl game. I didn't like him then and I never liked him after that. Never liked Penn St. either. Still don't.
 

TiderJack

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Joe Paterno let me down. He let his school down. He let his players down. And his coaches. Amd though they are too stupid to see it, he let his fan base down. Worst of all, he let those children who were victims down.
Well said. Those children were traumatized and abused by a monster and then their souls crushed by a man who did not have the guts to help them. He is just as big a monster as Sandusky.
 

sanjosecrimson

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.This is Atilla the hun. Should we destroy it? Start a petition.

It is history, for good or for bad. Start a petition to destroy the statue of Atilla the Hun. We have him judged, no need to erase from history. . And I understand the mentality of the moment. I have no further comment. Because those same people can not distinguish not wanting to destroy a statue with being supportive of their actions. I made my point and am sticking to it. Not taking down, but destroying it.:)
Attila the Hun was a 5th century warrior and conqueror of Central Asian roots. In Hungary, and other places in Europe, he is fondly remembered and considered a hero that challenged Roman homogeny in the ancient world. Hungary the country is named after the Huns.
Joe Paterno was a 20th century football head coach at one of the premier schools in the country who covered up and knowingly supported a pedophile that was on his coaching staff for over 30 years just to win football games.

I think the comparison is vastly different..
 

Crimson1967

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I had a college class in the early 1990s taught by a guy who said in class one day his brother-in-law was a rookie in the NFL. He said he had played college ball at Penn State. He added he had some not-so-nice things to say about Paterno. He didn't go into much detail, but said he thought he spent too much time plugging a book he had just released.
.
When the Sandusky scandal first broke, my first thought was this was the end of the line for Paterno.

I did, however, cut him some slack at first. I figured by the time he heard about Sandusky, he was already getting senile (I felt he was a figurehead coach at the end). He was also very old school. He didn't use a cell phone or e-mail. He said he didn't believe male-on-male rape was possible. So maybe he was just out of touch. I did agree he needed to be fired.

But as more and more comes to light about this going on back in the 70s, it is obvious he was covering up for his buddy. Maybe they never talked about Sandusky's secret sickness, but he seems to have had a good idea something very wrong was going on.

And did he think this was really helping the program? Sure, Sandusky was a good coach. But let's say he fired him and turned over all the evidence he had to the cops 40 years ago. Can you imagine the positive publicity he would have gotten? Wouldn't you want your kid to play for him? A man who sacrifices a friend and good coach out of concern for the welfare of children. From a football standpoint, I think he'd have come out ahead in the long run simply by doing the right thing.

Melt the statue down so it never sees the light of day. Don't run the risk of some future school president putting it back up. Don't give it to a boosters group because they'll just erect it somewhere off campus. Destroy it. If it is ever proven he had zero knowledge of Sandusky's activities, I'll donate to help build a new statue.
 

Crimson1967

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I was never really aware of Paterno until the "Goal Line Stand" Sugar Bowl game. I didn't like him then and I never liked him after that. Never liked Penn St. either. Still don't.

I always liked him for his old school attitude and never had an issue with him or Penn State.

Bobby Bowden, on the other hand, is the one I couldn't stand. He charmed the press with his country boy act while turning a blind eye to a rogue program. He benefited by being in the same state as a much worse program (Miami) and a coach (Spurrier) with a nasty disposition so he looked like a saint by comparison.
 

sanjosecrimson

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I always liked him for his old school attitude and never had an issue with him or Penn State.

Bobby Bowden, on the other hand, is the one I couldn't stand. He charmed the press with his country boy act while turning a blind eye to a rogue program. He benefited by being in the same state as a much worse program (Miami) and a coach (Spurrier) with a nasty disposition so he looked like a saint by comparison.
do you still like him? Bowden might be everything you said he was and maybe more, but as far as we know he didn't cover up a known pedophile that was left to his own devices for over 30 freaking years!!!
 

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Attila the Hun was a 5th century warrior and conqueror of Central Asian roots. In Hungary, and other places in Europe, he is fondly remembered and considered a hero that challenged Roman homogeny in the ancient world. Hungary the country is named after the Huns.
Joe Paterno was a 20th century football head coach at one of the premier schools in the country who covered up and knowingly supported a pedophile that was on his coaching staff for over 30 years just to win football games.

I think the comparison is vastly different..
. Good God man, that is the sanitized version. His men committed unspeakable things, rape and pillage of countless, is why China built the wall, not to keep people in. Since I brought it up, let me end it by saying to each his own on artifacts. Back to Joe Pa.....after getting older myself and seeing a lot of death in the family, I think it is a good chance that Joe Pa deteriorated faster because of his conscience. Yes I am over philosophical sometimes, but he sure went down the hill quickly after this broke. For whatever reason, I believe his will to live was greatly reduced. Yes his statue should be taken down, but he paid. What is your good name worth to you? It means a lot to me. He lost his and is dead. Who is not satisfied? Again, his negligence touches close to home, and his actions should be a learning experience to everyone that doesn't speak up or allows. One day 100 years from now someone may ask about a statue sitting in a musty storage room and learn somethingt.
 

Crimson1967

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do you still like him? Bowden might be everything you said he was and maybe more, but as far as we know he didn't cover up a known pedophile that was left to his own devices for over 30 freaking years!!!

Sorry I wasn't more clear. I meant I was a fan of his prior to the Sandusky story broke. (Though I did think he should have retired a few years earlier). Now I hope he is rotting in Hell for his role in the coverup.
 

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