WAY Too Little, WAY Too Late

This week we received an e-mail from the Penn State Board of Trustees regarding, once again, their reasoning for firing Coach Paterno... and to be honest, I can't even put into words how put off I was by it.

First of all, thank you BoT, but you're about four months too late and the damage has been done. As Penn State has collectively been wrestling with the events of the past few months, it had finally reached a point that the campus had quieted down a bit. People began coming to terms with what happened and were ready to move forward remembering simply what JoePa did for all of the students at Penn State. The BoT effectively just re-ruffled the feathers of the people who have long been critical of their decision. They need to stop trying to get the approval of the community for their actions. It's been made quite clear that they're not going to get it. We understand that you stand behind your decision... that doesn't mean we have to.

Additionally, they once again have flip-flopped back and forth from supporting and honoring JoePa to dragging his name through the dirt. Prior to his death they were accusing him of a lack of moral fiber. Once he passed he was once again a legend to the community in their eyes. Now in this e-mail alone they have flip-flopped once again. They state that they "especially honor the the great legacy of Coach Paterno" and his emphasis on academic performance, yet a mere seven, short paragraphs later accuse him once again of "a failure of leadership."

They go on to attempt to justify their firing of Paterno via telephone and essentially blame him for hanging up before they were able to lift his spirits by telling him they would get all the benefits of a tenured employee! Note the sarcasm in my typing tone. I'm sorry, but if you fire me on the phone after 60+ years of dedication, you're getting the *click* of a dead phone line from me, too! If you could have an employee walk up to his front door, knock, and tell him to call so he could be told he was fired... you could have had an employee walk up to his front door, knock, sit down inside and give the family the respect they deserved. They're cowards, bottom line.

I give the Paternos so much respect for biting their tongues for so long and not speaking ill of the Board for so long. This time, however, the BoT took it too far and I couldn't be happier that the Paternos finally gave them a good tongue-lashing. (Check that out here: http://onwardstate.com/2012/03/12/paterno-family-responds-to-board-of-trustees-statement/ ... couldn't have said it better.)

Overall, the BoT's statement is way too little and way too late. They need to stop releasing their criticisms of a man who is no longer here to defend himself. They need to stop releasing their criticisms of a man who dedicated his life to this school, and in turn, to them... Not that they deserved it, anyway.