Our latest edition of riot watch continues to follow the aftermath of the episode last night in State College, PA when a herd of unruly students quickly turned a peaceful gathering into one of the more regretful riots of the year. I found it quite ironic that the reason they were rioting was in support of Joe Paterno. It's ironic in that Paterno built his reputation on adhering to a moral code, something I don't think anybody in State College had last night. Say what you want about whether or not you think Paterno should have been canned, but do you really think that the best way to get yout point across is to tip over a news van?
The real sickening part of this story is to hear students say they were part of the riot because they "didn't want to miss it." They sound like Maryland students, rioting for no good reason other than to say you were part of a riot. For the ones who were there because they were just venting their frustration over their beloved coach, how do they think anyone will take any of you seriously by attacking police? The only thing that will take them seriously is that cloud of mace that's entering their eyes. Police finally was able to disperse the crowd at about 1:30 in the morning when they lined up side by side and maced anyone who dared get in their way. Why they didn't do that 2 hours sooner is beyond me.
In other news, there's an NFL game tonight. For the rest of the season it's Thursday night football, so here's my pick:
Oakland @ San Diego-San Diego has a lot more riding on this game than Oakland does. Darren McFadden is still hurt, and Michael Bush is not quite the best replacement. I see the Chargers going arial on a depleted Oakland secondary and winning this one by at least two scores. San Diego 28 Oakland 10
As a PSU alumnus, I am also frustrated with the lack of poise the student body showed last night. While it was not the best idea to release news of Joe's firing at 10p with a student body of over 40,000 potentially inebriated college students, the students should not have acted the way in which they did. Rioting has become a "cool" thing to do but it is in no way the best option if you want to be heard or taken seriously.
ReplyDelete@Jess-Excellent point on the inebriation. Let's not forget that these are already rowdy college kids. I'm sure that many of them had had their fill before the announcement, so the Board may very well have been wise to change the timing of the press conference instead of hastily putting it together. Do it during class when you would think at least some of the potential rioters would be studying or at least distracted.
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