The Penn State Scandal and my thoughts...

Im not quite sure where I sit yet on the whole scandal going on at Penn State, I still have to read the grand jury report before my final thoughts are made, but with that being said, here are my thoughts on how it is currently playing out.

It sucks for everyone!

• It majorly sucks for the victims - especially any victims that it happened to after 2002 when Penn State became aware of who Sandusky really was, and covered it up.
• It sucks for Penn State whose reputation is now being tarnished because of the cover-up.   
• It sucks for JoePa who had an illustrious career at the head of Penn State football, graduating his students and no scent of the NCAA violations that are occurring everywhere else.   
• It sucks for the senior football players who are having their football careers end on such a sour note and it sucks for the entire football team, who chose to go to Penn State with Paterno at the helm, and now he will no longer be there.

I think that JoePa should have been given the dignity to let his resignation, effective at the end of the football season, stand.    JoePa made a HUGE mistake, and there is no disagreeing with that.   But with that said, JoePa did not abuse those kids, he did not cover it up himself, nor did he lie about anything.   The state found that he broke no laws, he just failed miserably on a moral level. 

Just like its not fair for someone to get away with things because they are famous (like Michael Jackson did for actually molesting little boys), its also not fair for someone to be punished for their fame, and I honestly feel that is where this sits right now.  

If JoePa were a "no-name" professor and Sandusky was some famed Dean of his school, and the same exact situation played out, I feel pretty confident that there wouldn't be the media circus that there is, and that the professor wouldn't be fired.    I think that's evidenced in the fact that Mike McQuerry still has a job as the receivers coach, and he is the one who witnessed it and told JoePa and didn't do anything past that.

I wish JoePa would have fired Sandusky's ass and gone to the police, but he didn't.   He also didn't keep the news to himself.   Is JoePa's legacy tainted because of this scandal? Absolutely, and only time will tell by how much.   And JoePa will have to live with his decision and what it did to his career and life for the remainder of his life - but I think that he should at least have been given the chance to end it with his own resignation.

Hell - the president of my university stole TONS of money from the university, and you know what he got for that?   A congressional investigation that went away when the media went away and a huge multi-million dollar parachute package with him resigning and not being fired.   Obviously stealing money and molesting kids isn't the same - but keep in mind JoePa isn't the molester, nor the one who made the decision to cover it up, just the one who went along with his bosses decisions - things we do everyday even if we don't agree.

Keep in mind, I have no personal affiliation with Penn State.   I am not an alumni, I never even applied there because I never had any wish to go there.   My sister and her (soon-to-be in 2 days) husband are alumni, my other brother-in-law who married into my family is an alumni and my Hubby went to a school affiliated with Penn State.   I myself grew up in PA where Penn State, Penn State Football and JoePa have always been talked about in high regards, so I grew up with a respect for the three.   I also went to a university without a football team (I know - I can't believe my sports-loving self went to a school with very little sports identity) so I rooted for Penn State as a default.

Everyone has the right to their own opinion, and I respect everyone's opinion, and like I said, I haven't made my final decision on where I sit with this, but as of right now, this is my opinion.  I know there are plenty reading this, who couldn't disagree more, but as of right now I think this was a HUGE moral error on the part of JoePa and not something worthy of his firing - especially when he said he would step down at the end of the season.  

Michael Vick - Part I

In case you know nothing about me - I am a dog LOVER.  Adam and I currently have a handsome black lab mix and are in the search for another lab mix to keep us company.

I also am a believer in second chances, because people make mistakes.   I've given family and friends many second chances when they screw things up.  I of course am always perfect, so I don't need them* :)

Back in '07 (or whatever year it was) when everything went down with Michael Vick - I was disgusted by what he did, and felt strongly that he should be sent to jail for a long time.   He was sent to jail, but not for a long time - but that was the courts ruling, and it was his job to serve it and get on with life afterwards.   He has done just that.  

I will admit that I wasn't a fan of Vick being signed by the Eagles, but I did feel that he deserved to be given a second chance, I just didn't want it to be my team.   When he was signed, I just accepted it, and continued to root for my Eagles, because they took a big chance, not just on signing Vick who was unproven at that time, but because they knew there was going to be a large public backlash for giving him a second chance.

In my opinion Vick has done a really good job of the afterwards part, and working to prove himself a decent human being.

He chose not to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy where his debts would have just been cancelled out, and all the people he owed money to would never have seen a penny.   Instead, he worked with lawyers, financial advisors and the court system to make a plan where he would pay back all his debt over time.  (With his new contract, as long as he is able to play out the majority of it, he will have his debts paid off pretty fast).    Many other people (and companies) have chosen to just wash away their debts and start anew, leaving their debtors in the wind.

He brought in a huge team of people to help fix his image and help him make the correct decisions.   This was a decision which was obviously needed if he wanted any shot of having a fan base and/or endorsement deals - so this point is less showing his good character than his choice to have a career in the NFL and make money.

It also has recently come out that he had the opportunity to join other NFL teams where he would have been the starter and in the spotlight, but those teams were full of people and issues that could have easily led him astray.   He took the advise of those he was learning to trust, and went with a 3rd string position on a team known for winning and professionalism, instead of a starting QB job on a team known for a culture full of legal and immoral issues.

He still has a way to go to prove he is fully a changed man, but there are plenty of other professional athletes who have abused and killed human beings and gotten very little to no punishment, and then come back into the spotlight without an ounce of anger from the fan-base.  For example:

• Brett Myers abused his wife and never got suspended or charged - he endured some booing when he made his next appearance in Boston (which was like 2 days after the assault took place in that same city), maybe he got some minor booing in Philly - but barely anything.   
• Donte Stallworth drove drunk and killed a man.   He killed a human being and got 30 days in jail, and was out of the NFL for one year and has since played for the Ravens and now the Redskins, and I haven't heard anything about him.

I love my dog, and he is one of my best friends, but a human life is considered of higher importance/worth than a dogs.  For those who would disagree with that, see basic examples below:

• If a dog has cancer and doesn't have a good life left to live, you can put them down - if you did that to a human you would be arrested and charged for performing euthenasia.  Hell, if you were stupid enough, you could put a dog down just because he has some training issues that you don't have the time or money to work on - and there would be no penalty in you doing that - just don't tell me.
• When you have a kid, you can claim them as a dependent on your taxes; when you get a new puppy, you spend TONS of money on them, but don't get any tax benefits.
• You can leave a dog at home by themselves and put them in a crate (and should for safety reasons); if you leave a young kid at home by themselves and put them in a crate, you are charged with child endangerment and abuse (as you should be).

If you haven't done so already, I think you should forgive Michael Vick (and the Eagles, if you are also holding them in contempt), as he has served his time and should be afforded a second chance.    I think the only lifetime punishment that should be afforded to him is that he should NEVER be allowed to own a dog.    I know he wants one, and he might be a changed man, and for that he deserves to have a fair shot at life, but dog ownership is a privilege and he lost that privilege in my mind.

Im sure there are MANY people out there who disagree with me on this - probably even some family members - and you have the right to both disagree with me and share that disagreement and thoughts with me.   I will consider your thoughts, I just hope that you consider mine, and think how you would want to be treated if you went and made a HUGE mistake, served the punishment you were handed - but no one ever forgave you or gave you a second chance - that's part of why we have so many repeat crime offenders in this society.


*I shouldn't have to explain sarcasm, but for those of you who know nothing about me, first and only time Ill say this - I am EXTREMELY sarcastic - even when i probably shouldn't be.   This last comment is obviously me being sarcastic.

Happy Halliday!

After pitching only twice in like 20+ days due to rainouts and scheduled days off, I wasn't sure what to expect from Roy Halliday - and I'm not sure even he was. 

Although rusty at first - he had another great game.   But this game was a little different.   Nothing you would hear about on the local news outside of Philly - it wasn't another perfect game, or even a no-hitter.   This time he threw a decent game - pitching 7 innings and just giving up 2 hits, no runs, but he did walk a couple guys and even hit a guy - but his bat came alive!   

Roy doesn't know how to do things like a normal person - even a normal MLB player.   He happened to hit just his second extra base hit ever (which is also the second this season) and get the first RBIs of the season off the hit.   Oh - did I mention the bases were loaded, so he had a 3-RBI double.    He definitely was the player of the game!

In other Philly sports related news
In case you live in a hole, Michael Vick just signed a 6-year, $100 million dollar deal with the Eagles.    I know many people are not a fan of him because of what he did, and by no means do I condone it, but he served his time in jail, and has worked to prove himself good by others not just as a professional football player, but as a human being.    I will save this topic for another blog post - cause otherwise, this could go forever...