Coach arrested for child molestation, ‘students’ riot. Why did they riot…? (More below fold)
The Daily Show with Jon Stewart
From a reader: | 12. 11. 11.
Jon Stewart (born Jonathan Stuart Leibowitz) has capitalized on a very tragic situation. He has used the Penn State situation to remind us of similar events that have occurred in the Catholic Church. What is the purpose of this association? And to whose benefit? I am not Catholic or Protestant. However, the implication is clear.
Freudian projection is a where a member attributes to other people, tribes, religions, impulses and traits that they have but cannot accept. In this instance, we have Jon Stewart; a Jew, attributing widespread pedophilia to the Catholic Church when a much more rampant problem exists in Judaism. Another common tactic used is Jewish “minimalism” where Jewish nationalism is typically minimized or denied as a response [to non-Jews] regarding Jewish influence and power. (i.e. “that’s only one [Rabbinical] interpretation”, “Israel is a tiny nation”, “Jews are a small minority”, “Jews are not a race”, etc.)
The Penn State scandal is serious enough, but the argument for “not doing enough” is somewhat distorted, especially concerning coach Joe Paterno. Consider this, Paterno was not a witness to the crime, but he did report the hearsay to his superior, the Athletic Director. In turn, the campus police and the district attorney were notified.
If any criminal inaction occurred, it ultimately rests at the foot of the campus police and district attorney. And, let us not forget about the actual eye-witness to the crime, Mike McQueary, who failed to report the crime directly to the police. If anyone should be fired, it should be McQueary and not coach Joe Paterno. To assume Joe Paterno should have somehow done more is overreaction. Paterno did exactly what he was supposed to do in a case of hearsay. In a court of law, Joe Paterno’s testimony would not be accepted. However, Mike McQueary’s testimony would. What makes people think that if Paterno went to the campus police, the outcome would have been any different?
The events unfolding at Penn State and the surrounding community are damning. Yet, Jon Stewart is making the situation worse by playing on the ignorance of his audience. No one knows the circumstances of any of the parties involved in this tragedy, and the eye witness himself; Mike McQueary. Why didn’t McQueary stop this criminal act when he saw it? Does anyone consider the psychological effect of shock, disbelief, and fear? Especially, when it concerns a coach that was perceived as having a lot of clout and program influence? To stop a criminal act in the process of occurring, in many cases, isn’t realistic. So often crime occurs in a very short period of time. Factor in shock and disbelief (especially an individual you are familiar with), it is a large obstacle to overcome before action is ever taken. All of this, along with fear, tends to cloud personal judgment.
Please understand, I am not defending Mike McQueary for his inaction. However, I can understand the motive as a result of initial shock and disbelief for reporting it to his boss, Joe Paterno. McQueary, a Graduate Assistant at the time, immediately left and told his father. The next morning, Mike and his father went to report it to coach Joe Paterno. Tim Curley, Penn State’s athletic director, and Gary Schultz, vice president for finance and business were in turn, informed by coach Paterno. At the time, Schultz was in charge of the campus police, who ultimately is responsible for coordinating the investigation.
Jon Stewart’s “comedy” regarding this incident and associating it to the Vatican only points the finger away from his community where the problem of pedophilia is so often covered up as a result of influence and power.