By Kim-Vi Sweetman
Elm Staff Writer
Sports-obsessed country that we are, by now I’m sure most of us have heard, or read about the Penn State scandal: the glorious Joseph Paterno, coach of the football team, leader of many a victory, was fired via phone call. Students rioted all over the campus, even going so far as to tip over a media van, chanting “JoePa.” In the chaos, it appeared as though none of the students, at least, cared about the true cause of the scandal: child molestation in the football complex by Jerry Sandusky. So, why did the campus riot over the coach, and not the kids? And why didn’t the assistant coach directly call the police?
Let’s tackle the second question first. Psychologists have suggested that part of the reason is – and this is a shocker – that male brains operate differently than female brains. How exactly does this play in? Well, for starters, the male brain and social system revolve around a leader. For males, it’s all about the image. Therefore, a male lower on the social chain is less likely to do something radical than, say, the leader. Following this, you can see why the assistant coach didn’t go very far in his pursuits. If Joe Paterno – the boss – didn’t follow through, why should he? Clearly, he must have had the situation all wrong. No need to muddy the waters any more. By contrast, the female brain and social system revolves around doing what’s right.
Flipping through several articles covering the scandal, you might notice a little trend in the quotations. Those calling for sympathy and help for the victims are typically female, while those fussing over football are typically male.
On to the second big question: why the riots? Again, psychologists hand us an answer, and one that makes a lot of sense – although it is still rather disappointing and depressing. The students – later rallied by their student president saying, “We are Penn State” – were rejecting the blame and then placing it onto somebody else. It’s a coping mechanism that a lot of people use: something goes bad, and you can’t deal with it being even partially your fault. So, you first reject the idea of responsibility completely, and then find someone else to carry it for you.
The students at PSU rejected the possibility that the scandal could’ve been the fault – even in part – of Joe Paterno. After all, he was the shining knight in college athletics with a spotless record. There was no way he could have knowingly harbored a child molester. Wait! The media! Waving their cameras and microphones and noisy reporters everywhere, they were the reason JoePa was being dragged into the muck. They were the reason that PSU was now without a football coach – because that’s what matters, isn’t it? The football team?
Does this reasoning make anything right? Absolutely not! We as human beings pride ourselves on many things – the ability to think, not just react, higher learning and intelligence, and a moral code. As Americans especially, we are particularly prideful about ourselves (though most importantly our sports). This lack of any of the above qualities puts us solidly back at square one.
Sadly, a similar scandal – although in basketball, not football – is rocking the community of Syracuse. This time the coach looks more innocent and there isn’t nearly as much blame and scrutiny, except for one part: he claimed that victims were coming forward solely to get a payday. Now, why would anyone do that?
Men are not wired to do the right thing? Total BS!