Disclaimer: I'm not fluent in legal-speak and I have no interest in personally investigating what the NCAA is or is not legally able to do.
Fact: The suit stems from the Jerry Sandusky case, in which football and money were deemed more important than children.
Disclaimer: I like a good game as much as the next person, but I value children a whole lot more than sports. I think sport performance and the accompanying money, fame, and clout often become more important than the moral behavior of those involved, and this is a sickening example. Children should be protected from adult stupidity on all levels.
If he were truly interested in what's best for the WHOLE commonwealth of Pennsylvania, ALL its residents, not just sports lovers or Penn State fans, these (underfunded, pitifully broken) systems would have been better targets of the governor's attention.
*Pennsylvania's roads are in constant disrepair. Our bridges are even worse, aging and crumbling from the deadly combination of time, increased truck traffic (can you say drilling?), and repeated storm damage. A bridge just a mile from my house has been out of service for 7 years, tied up in bureaucratic wrangling and lack of funds. Bad for residents of Pennsylvania.
*Pennsylvania's schools are underfunded, causing massive teacher layoffs, higher student/teacher ratios, and cutting essential programs. Bad for the residents of Pennsylvania, present and future. Didn't I say children should be protected from adult stupidity on all levels? Shouldn't that include our own government?
*Pennsylvania's state pension system is underfunded. Reports continue to show the cost of public worker retirement benefits is higher than anticipated, and baby boomers are just getting started drawing down funds. Bad for the residents of Pennsylvania, present and future. Ditto the questions raised above.
*Public services to support children and families in need continue to be cut. The cynic in me says it's because children don't vote, and the working poor are too busy trying to survive to be politically savvy. It goes without saying that the same type of program that supports children like Jerry Sandusky's victims has received less funding than in previous years. There's no logic to explain that. Again, the same questions apply.
If Gov. Corbett applied the same logic to these injustices that he applied in filing the NCAA lawsuit, he'd have to sue his own administration. Guess that won't be happening. We as the residents of Pennsylvania have to make him accountable using the only power we have.
November 2014 can't come soon enough for me.
I totally agree with most of your article but don't assume the Governor is doing this in the interest of sports and Penn State fans. As the same and as an University alumni and as a mother, I can assure you the governor has little interest or concern regarding the University, it's faculty, its students beyond the votes he can garnish or revenue it can generate for his budget. As far as his concern for children and victims, he record as Attorney General and Governor holds poor.
ReplyDeleteYou're right, Ann. His actions do indeed speak loud and clear.
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