A couple of good articles on the 'bystander effect' and how it may have played an impact on the situation at Penn State.
I was somewhat reluctant to comment or post on this issue and SOME OF THE CONTENT THAT FOLLOWS IS FOR MATURE AUDIENCES ONLY. However, as is usually the case, we see a bogey-man created and thrown under the bus for public consumption and the real issues of how we got to this point as a society / culture are not examined in any depth whatsoever.
Hang Paterno, Fire Boeheim. That will make everything all right. What will be worse is the solutions these PC, CYA loving douche-nozzles that run the entire system propose.
Sacrifice some underling and the public is mollified, but the behavior and the mind-set at the institutional level -- where the culture is set -- continues unabated and unexamined.
The video embedded in The Situationist blog is a real eye-opener.
The Situation of Penn State Bystanders « The Situationist:
"Many blame-laden fingers have been pointed at those who didn’t act immediately and decisively to stop the sexual atrocities that took place at Penn State. We all know what the right thing to do was, and we are all confident that we would have done it.
But should we be?"
To state the obvious, what transpired within the Penn State football system was wrong on many levels. We know that rape is wrong, that rape should never happen, that if a rape does occur, it should be stopped from happening again. We know that pedophilia is wrong, that using power to exploit the vulnerable is wrong, that turning a blind eye to misdeeds is wrong. Still, wrong happens.
Perhaps going forward many of us may be more likely to “do the right thing” after this media frenzy than we would have been had we never been confronted with this story. But I’m interested in a slightly different question: would we ourselves, in the precise situation of those we are judging, really have acted so differently? Would we have immediately, vocally, and publicly intervened, protested, and contacted the police?
The following 37-minute video was assembled hastily to introduce a small group of my students to the events unfolding at Penn State. It contains video clips that depict, among other things, the integral role that football has long played at Penn State, the legendary and iconic status of Joe Paterno at that university, the different perspectives taken of those events and of Joe Paterno, and the various ways in which public and private law and the media have shaped the coverage and the reaction to the unfolding events. The video also includes several clips from ABC’s “What Would You Do?” series hosted by John Quiñones. Those clips might help remind viewers of some of the ways in which we tend to overestimate our own propensity to speak up, to resist, to get involved, or to fight back and underestimate our readiness to sit on our hands, to turn away, to opt for rose-tinted spectacles, or to go with the flow.
The video, be warned, has many problems (e.g., quality, editing, organization, redundancies); it did, however, provide useful fodder for what I thought was an illuminating discussion. Because of that, I decided to include it here in case others might find it useful. Though credits are not included, the vast majority of the videos can be found on Youtube.
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Penn State, responsible citizenship and the bystander effect
BY CHRIS DOLAN
http://www.centralpennbusiness.com/article/20111117/POLITICS/111119840/Penn-State-responsible-citizenship-and-the-bystander-effect&template=politics
People have and will continue to say they would have “done something” or “gone straight to the police.” Such statements are easy to say in front of the like-minded. But, in reality, it is much too hard to do. This is why whistleblowers are, for the most part, condemned and shunned by society. It sometimes doesn't even pay to be morally responsible.
Just think about Joe Paterno. He failed to do what was right at the very moment society expected him to exercise his moral citizenship responsibilities. Paterno is a not a terrible human being. Even following his termination, he's still not a bad person. He was a great coach who dedicated his life to building the Penn State football program and supporting academic life on campus. However, he shouldn't have looked away.
Paterno and Penn State were engulfed and overwhelmed by the so-called “bystander effect,” which is when citizens consciously choose to do nothing because everyone else is doing nothing.
It's quite common. After Jayna Murray was murdered in a yoga studio in Bethesda, Md., Apple Store employees working immediately next door and hearing her screams decided to do nothing. The Apple manager even reported hearing a woman saying: “God help me. Please help me,” and “Talk to me. Don’t do this.” The now-famous video clip of Chinese toddler Xiao Yueyue being struck by two vehicles while people stood by, watched and then did nothing is a reflection of a desire to embrace bystander-ism.
It's harder to do the right thing when everyone else is doing nothing. The number of people at Penn State who reported the alleged abuse and then did nothing is far-reaching, but not surprising. Why? Building Penn State’s program took decades, and this abuse scandal has forced society to scrape the veneer to discover the ugly truth.
Penn State administrators and coaches did what they thought was right as citizens. They did nothing.
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What is the culpability of those on the left side of the political aisle, who have promoted this type of mind-set, this type of behavior as "normal" for years and years under the guise of political correctness and tolerance?
Or have we forgotten the Obama administrations "Safe Schools Czar?"
This is the kind of SH*T they are teaching / promoting in the public schools.
And we wonder why Johnny can't read or write and add or subtract. You reap what you sow, I guess.
****** CONTENT WARNING ********
( BUT IT'S ABOUT THE OVERSEER OF SCHOOLS IN THIS COUNTRY)
And then wonder why things like Penn State happen when jag-bags that think like this run the administration.
Good Riddance…Obama’s Radical Safe Schools Czar Hits the Skids
by Jim Hoft
http://biggovernment.com/jhoft/2011/06/21/good-riddance-obamas-radical-safe-schools-czar-hits-the-skids/
In March 2000 the Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network (GLSEN) organization of Massachusetts held its 10 Year Anniversary GLSEN/Boston conference at Tufts University. This conference was fully supported by the Massachusetts Department of Education, the Safe Schools Program, the Governor’s Commission on Gay and Lesbian Youth, and some of the presenters even received federal money.
During the 2000 conference, workshop leaders led a “youth only, ages 14-21″ session that offered lessons in “fisting” a dangerous sexual practice. During the same workshop an activist asked 14 year-old students, “Spit or swallow?… Is it rude?” The unbelievable audio clip is posted here.
Barack Obama’s “Safe Schools Czar” Kevin Jennings is the founder of GLSEN. He was paid$273,573.96 as its executive director in 2007. Jennings was the keynote speaker at the 2000 GLSEN conference.
Barack Obama’s “Safe Schools Czar” was the keynote speaker at the GLSEN/Boston Conference at Tufts University in 2000. High school students at the conference learned about fisting and watersports from the GLSEN activists. Jennings is seen here holding the conference program.
(ViaMass Resistance)
Unfortunately for GLSEN, undercover journalists with Mass Resistance recorded these outrageous sessions at Tufts University. The audio was later leaked to a local radio station. This created such an uproar that GLSEN leaders were forced to apologize for their disgusting behavior.
Despite the controversy, Barack Obama’s Safe Schools Czar Kevin Jennings and his GLSEN organization did nothing to clean up their act. In fact in 2001 activists handed out “fisting kits” to the children and teachers who attended the GLSEN conference.
But that’s not all. The children who attended Kevin Jennnings’ GLSEN 2005 Conference also left with their own “Little Black Book – Queer in the 21st Century”.
This book exposes the young teens to–Rimming – Fisting – Water Sports (Pi$$ Play) – Toys
It’s what every teen needs to know…
The page titled “How safe is dat?” introduces young teens to fisting, rimming, and watersports (pi$$ing on your partner). Shouldn’t every teen know this?
After a two year stint, Obama’s Safe School’s czar Kevin Jennings has resigned from his position with the Obama Administration.
Sean Hannity reported on Jennings’ departure last night on his show.
Good riddance, Kevin Jennings.
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But Paterno was the problem, right?
Or how about this little tid-bit.
If this story is true, what is ESPN's culpability in allowing these crimes to continue?
I'm sure they will hide behind some 1st Amendment issues, or even better, they didn't have "corroboration". DID JOE PATERNO? These type of crimes don't happen in front of crowds, now do they?
But shouldn't have the reporters turned over what they had to law enforcement?
Or is getting a "scoop" more important than child safety?
Read it and weep folks.
Outrageous: ESPN Sat on Molestation Tape Since 2002
http://conservativebyte.com/2011/11/outrageous-espn-sat-on-molestation-tape-since-2002/
BTW: Just asking so we know what the rules of the game are going forward.
Seems to be a lot of Monday morning QB'ing going on here.
These idiots need to worry less about a football coach, who in theory only oversees the football program and worry about the sex offenders running the administrations at these public schools.
Seems to me that there is a much bigger pool of deviants and perverts swimming around in THOSE waters. BWDIK?
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