One of the rapes was actually WITNESSED by a graduate assistant who walked in on it happening in a shower of the locker room.  A janitor WITNESSED Sandusky performing oral sex on a young boy in the shower of the locker room.  Another WITNESSED Sandusky leaving the showers with a wet young boy, holding his hand.  These are just the worst incidences; more are listed in the report.

Again, these alleged abuses happened over a 15 year period, and were reported to supervisors, Athletic Director Tim Curley, Senior Vice President for Finance & Business Gary Schultz, and Head Coach Joe Paterno.  The Penn State University Police apparently investigated a complaint from the mother of one of the victims, only for the case to be closed…even after Sandusky ADMITTED to showering naked with the young boy!  After the university brass learned of claim upon claim against this guy, they washed their hands of it by merely telling him not to use their facilities. Not even “Stop it.”, just, ”Take it off campus.”

At the time of each incident, not once was external law enforcement called.  Not once did anybody take the initiative to beat the hell out of Jerry Sandusky for perpetrating such horrid abuses on young boys.  Why?  It wasn’t their problem, it wasn’t their priority.

Sadly, we have come to the point in our culture where power and prestige have been put so highly on a pedestal that protecting an institution’s reputation is more important than protecting the innocent lives of young children.  An ESPN reporter’s concern with the story was how it might affect the Penn State athletic program’s recruiting!  Another was bummed out because “Penn State is such a national brand, so when something like this happens, it’s terrible.”  Even tonight, there is actually a march in support of Joe Paterno — a man who brushed under the rug the fact that his long-time associate was raping young boys; a man who stated that he didn’t believe Sandusky had done ”anything all that bad”; a man so arrogant that instead of showing concern for the possible victims, he went to football practice today.  A hero?  No, he is a coward.

I read a comment today on an ABC affiliate’s Facebook page where Paterno was defended, saying that perhaps he should have gone to the cops, but we apparent ignoramuses have to understand the “pecking orders” and “protocols” of a university campus.  Why, he might have lost his job had he gone to the police!  Oh, poor Paterno. We should put ourselves in Paterno’s shoes.

Right.  Because you know, God forbid an institution might lose a few donors if they did the right thing.  God forbid a man’s standing in a game might be tarnished if he did the right thing.

America, this was not a matter of covering up a player cheating on a test or plagiarizing a book report.  This was not a mere “internal” issue at the university.  This was covering up a staff member committing one of the most heinous of felonies just short of murder.  A perpetrator used his place of power and authority to take advantage of many who were not as strong as him.  Lives were affected forever. The shame felt by these young boys and the torment of the memories for these men who are now in their 20s can never be undone.

I wouldn’t give it a second thought, I would lose my job, I would bring down an entire program in order to protect even just one 10-year-old boy from being molested and traumatized for life.

This is beyond sports, Penn State fans.  Just remember that no matter how much you support your coach and your team, this weekend you will be cheering on an athletic program that stood by and let a child rapist go unpunished for over a decade.

Jerry Sandusky clearly did not want psychological or spiritual help for his depravity, and the leadership at Penn State did not want to bother with providing psychological or spiritual help for his victims.  We have become a culture of cover-ups, but a Wise Man once said, “There is nothing covered that shall not be revealed; nothing hid that shall not be known. Therefore whatever you have spoken in darkness shall be heard in the light; and that which you have whispered behind closed doors shall be proclaimed from the rooftops.”  Or the front page.  Either way, they deserve the shame they are now experiencing a thousand-fold compared to the horror they’ve carried out.

My Daddy did not have a college degree, but he worked very hard and at 44 years of age was a successful businessman. I, on the other hand, have a Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA) degree from one of the best colleges in the nation, I have worked very hard and at 44 years of age…I am unemployed after a second layoff and struggling to keep from losing everything me and my daughter have.

The simple fact of these drastic changes in economic trends has found a large portion of our population hurting both economically and spiritually. It doesn’t take an economist or a theologian to see it. Just watch the news and you’ll see that people worldwide are frustrated and discouraged by what’s happened between the time of their parents’ generation and ours.

People are hurting and need encouragement. ENCOURAGEMENT. I have been one of those people and so has my young daughter. One hopes they will find support when they turn to those who especially profess a life of spirituality and/or following the teachings of Jesus. Especially those who profess it quite loudly and publicly. I mean, after all, Jesus was a beautiful example of meeting human need while at the same time feeding the spirit and soul.

And while I have some of the most kind-hearted, gracious friends a girl could ask for, when I have opened my Facebook news feed in the past few weeks, here is an example of what I have been reading…

“I am 1% of the 99% that decided hard work and sacrifice were more prudent than complaining about how life is too hard and I’m not getting any free handouts.”

“You don’t have a job?
Betcha you got a grandma or a neighbor or someone who could use your help.
I’m advocating “Occupy Work At Something – And Sweat A Little.”

“I am not the 99%, and whether or not you are is YOUR decision.”

“People are not monkeys locked in a cage. They can go elsewhere if another employer will pay them more. They can go back to school to increase their earning power. They can even start their own business.”

“Don’t blame Wall Street. Don’t blame the big banks. If you don’t have a job and you’re not rich, blame yourself.”

If I was to actually buy into the above train of thought, then I would believe there are 14 MILLION people in this country who are all lazy, do not want to work for what they have, and want free handouts.

Really? Really?

To the people who believe or have posted comments like the above: I know of at least 5,000 people who live in the Middle Tennessee area that you owe an apology to. Including me.

Yesterday, I and over 5,000 others sweated and stood in line for over 7 hours to get a chance to be considered for a job at Nissan. There were people from all walks of life standing in that line. People dressed in suits and people in jeans, people with college educations and people who served our country in the military in Vietnam, Iraq, Afghanistan, and other posts. There were men, women, young, old, married, single, parents, and grandparents. Those who have been unemployed and underemployed, all standing in line for hopes of regaining their dignity in life. A job.

Two weeks ago, I traveled to Lebanon, Tennessee for a job fair for Amazon.com only to be turned away because they could not handle the crowds of applicants who had shown up. There have been countless other such job fairs with overwhelming turnouts.

So, don’t you dare say those of us who are struggling do not want to work hard and want handouts.

I have attempted to correct those who believe the above (if you posted it, you believe it), only to be accused of insulting the Church (that I love) because I pointed out that their words do not corroborate with their profession of faith. Rebuked for calling them out publicly when they publicly insulted an entire group of less fortunate people. And I am always told, “But Ginger, we don’t mean you. We mean all of the people who are trying to take advantage of the system.”

Really?

That comeback no longer holds weight with me. Not only because in not clarifying the context of your post — before being called out on it — you have lumped us all together, but also because the heartlessness and lack of compassion you are promoting in your posts is hurtful and harmful to ALL who see it. My pastor used the word “diabolical” and I concur.

The right thing to do would be to offer a few words of encouragement for those so downtrodden they feel the need to camp out in the elements to protest in hopes somebody will hear them. The right thing to do would be to — instead of posting divisive, politically-driven insults — perhaps just stay quiet (read: shut up) and pray for those who are so dishonest they have taken advantage of the system (because they have issues, too, and there but for the grace of God go YOU), and thank God you have been blessed with good fortune. The right thing to do would be to grab some friends, go buy some cases of water, go down to a job line and pass it out while blessing each soul in the name of Jesus. The right thing to do would be what this business did:

So to those of you who believe the point of view I quoted above: I, along with many others, will no longer quietly accept your smug, self-righteous, know-it-all remarks. Enough is enough and I am tired of YOU harming the ministry of Christ with your misguided, ignorant, and insulting posts…because the world is watching you and they are not impressed. You have not walked in our shoes. Stop opining on what you do not know. Am I angry? Yes. Perhaps bitter? You betcha. But it isn’t because of the hardships I have faced in the past decade; it is because of YOU.

Romans 14:13: Therefore let us not pass judgment on one another any longer, but rather decide never to put a stumbling block or hindrance in the way of a brother.

Hebrews 10:24 And let us pay attention to one another in the encouragement of love and of good works.

I Corinthians 8:9 Be careful, however, that the exercise of your freedom does not become a stumbling block to the weak.

1 Corinthians 10:23, “Everything is permissible”–but not everything is beneficial. “Everything is permissible”–but not everything is constructive.

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I went back through this blog and re-read each post from 9/11 I have written since 2006.  I still think about Wade Brian Green…and pray for his family.  Many are asking “Where were you that day?”…so I am posting a few paragraphs sharing where I was and how I felt as that terrible day unfolded, as well as the amazing monologue by David Letterman from his first night back on television after the attacks.

I hope we never get jaded or cynical about remembering the events of that day…and may we never take for granted the freedom we have.  God Bless America.

On the morning of 9/11/01, I will never forget the radio alarm going off, and the dj saying, “Folks, you need to turn on your tv right now and see what is happening at the World Trade Center in NY.” As soon as I turned the tv on, the second plane hit. I woke my husband up and made him sit up and see what was going on. It was obviously an attack. I decided to get my toddler dressed and ready to go to Mothers Day Out at church, just thinking that it was probably something that they might be able to eventually get control of. I thought it didn’t affect me, so life would go on. By the time we left for the church, all radio stations had stopped regular programming and were broadcasting from their sister network newsfeeds (CNN, etc.) . As we were driving, word that the Pentagon had been bombed hit the news. At that point, I was like, “ok, we are at war!”. Our drive was along the landing path for Nashville International Airport. It was an eery feeling watching jets landing 2 by 2 about 1 minute apart. On the radio, it was announced that we were closing down US airspace, and that was why I was seeing this strangeness in the sky. By the time we got to church, people were sitting in the sanctuary, a minister was playing at the piano, and it was clear that were in a major national crisis. Then somebody who had a TV on said there were rumors of a bombing at the state department, the crash in Pennsylvania, and basically that all hell had broken loose on our country. At that point, I decided that I wasn’t leaving Amanda anywhere. We were coming back home so she could be safe with me. Not at a very large and prominent church that could possibly become a target. By the time we got home, one of the towers had fallen. I sat there in disbelief at what I was seeing. Then, I will never forget Peter Jennings asking one of his colleagues if what he was seeing was real…that the second building was falling, too. At first it was thought that up to 50,000 may have died in those buildings; thankfully, it was significantly less, but their value and who they were was no less important. I won’t forget the scrolling at the bottom of the screen of what high rise buildings in Nashville were being evacuated. Wow, that was hitting so close to home. The closing of high rise buildings in cities all over the country was sobering. How many more were out there that could possibly do this?

I will never forget being glued to the TV the rest of that day, night, and the next day. Finding out about the Pentagon, learning of what happened on Flight 93. The search for survivors, and then finally resigning to the fact that anything now would be recovery of bodies…if bodies still existed. The makeshift boards on which family members & friends posted missing persons flyers on the slim chance that their loved one had possibly survived and made it to a hospital somehow or were even roaming the streets with amnesia.

And now, here’s Dave to sum it up…

Never forget.