Just one phone call - wouldn't have taken more than a few minutes

[LynneSin]

I'm just thinking that's the difference between what Penn State was and what it is today.

[atreides1]

1. One phone call was probably made

But it wasn't made to the right people...sad.

[malthaussen]

2. It is a classic case of institutional panic

Reading the report, it is easy to see that the men involved were clutching any straw, burying their collective head in the sand, and hoping that the problem would go away. I'm sure if you could get an honest answer from any of them, they would tell you that they "really weren't sure" what was happening. All they were "really sure" of was that they didn't want any scandal.

I think the most damning conclusion of the report is that the men involved "showed no empathy for the victims." That's really it in a nutshell. It's quite a typical reaction, alas. Families or institutions are just not equipped emotionally to deal with this kind of thing. (Who is?)

Kind of makes you wonder one thing. We on the outside only hear about these scandals and coverups when they blow up. How often do coverups succeed? No way of telling, but time and again people keep trying them.

-- Mal