Pitt87 wrote:BurghersAndDogsSports wrote:
I dont really follow. Child abuse, Sandusky or not the community still benefits the same in State College or wherever there is big time college football. Cities benefit deeply from sports teams (more than people even think). Like it or not but these crimes did not change anything about the about the fans, players or surrounding businesses. If they dont commit these crimes NOTHING would have been different. 100,000 still would have shown up on Saturdays.
I just dont think its a fair argument to say the area benefited from an organization that was doing these crimes because it simplifies it down to an elementary argument. I mean I went to a college and I went to Division 1 football games all the time. I am NO different than any one student at PSU. Many athletes play at different schools for the same reason kids at PSU do.
Dumbing it down to LIFE ISNT FAIR. CHILDREN OF DRUG DEALERS blah blah is bs because those are people directly involved in the life and all aspects of the criminal act and it is crappy luck. However, a better example in relation to PSU would be - "my dad was convicted of dealing drugs so he went to prison, instead of sending me to a foster home they made sure I never had another dad again because I was associated and ate food he payed with drug money even though I had no idea he was drug dealer and just showed up to eat dinner every night at 7".
Finally - if you think all of the businesses would be fine without PSU football you have no idea about the economics surrounding sports or the shear volume of cash surrounding 100,000 plus visitors to basically a farmland. It would have a monster effect. Games, tv rights, all those jobs at the stadiums, full time staffers at PSU, month of training camp, spring practices, admins, support staff, part time workers, hotels, beer distributors, local hot dog distributors, gas stations, TAXES on 100,000 tickets (btw even if its a dollar per ticket that is almost a million dollars per year in lost revenue for the town and I am sure its more than that), luxury box taxes, taxes for the area on salaries, coaches salaries (how many millions is that?), sales people, cleaning staff, sponsorships not just to PSU but local TV stations, radio stations, radio broadcasts, local staffers for all broadcasts, parking tax, beer tax, food tax, restaurant tax, rental car tax, students who dont go to PSU could mean teachers laid of (big time sports is a reason for a lot of kids to pick a school), bars and beer distributors for AWAY games and bowl games.
Take 100,000 and times it by $10,then $20, then $30, then $40 then $50 - take that number then times it by 6 or 7 and look at the effect this could have on the economy. Think about how much money you spend at a pro game? Then think about how much cash you would spend if you traveled for a weekend for a game? Think about how much money you spend on a Saturday afternoon game and afterwards at a bar. That is PSU.
Will it kills the area - NO. Will have a huge negative effect - if you dont think so you are only lying to yourself.
I hate Paterno for what he did. And the other schmucks too. And of course Sandusky. They can all rot rot rot in hell. But I refuse to want to punish a student body, athletes or businesses for their crimes.
Not following and not agreeing are not the same thing.
Not going to argue semantics, but continued reverence and preferential treatment for the football program on the basis of income is the root cause of the cover-up and its success. Your math is a little faulty, but I understand what you're trying to articulate.
I will go to State College without football to spend time with my family, who has season tickets for PSU football and a condo off of Fox Hollow Road. Taking the program down for a year or two will not end those traditions for us, and we would be at the first game back.
I was not following your logic and still am not. Clearly not agreeing either. Whether you would be at the first game back or every other single person would be is irrelevant - its still missing a year or two or three and completely punishing every single person, player or business owner who was not involved. And again you are taking an argument and taking a too global and imple approach to it. And now making a huge assumption that everything would be swell when the team came back including any decent player would actually want to go there. Which it probably wouldnt be anyways as well and my thoughts are providing exactly what would happen in those missing years. There is no arguing that if there isnt football there wouldnt be tickets, money, traveling, part time jobs, full time jobs etc.
We all know that power, greed, money, legacy and whatever term where the root of the problem and that sticks with the football program. Greed, money and power are not why someone wants a part time job. Or why Smiths Beer Distributor wants PSU football. Or why a hotel does business. Its not relevant at all as at some point everyone needs to divide the good and the evil here. This isnt an SMU type of situation. This is a few people covering up a disgusting crime mostly for the power and ego of one individual.
The reality is that not bringing in thousands of people to the area, not giving local establishments business (home and away - people go to bars for games when they dont have tickets or the team is away, or they buy cases of beer for house parties etc etc), is hurting everyone but those involved. The money or experiences for those individuals is not based on any of the overlying reasons for the crimes that were committed. Its simply people making a living or enjoying their day.
My math really isnt faulty other than I dont exactly how many people the stadium holds. Everything else I wrote is 100% true. Sporting event money goes so deep from those who attend the games, to those who travel for the games, to those who spend money locally to watch the games but are not at the stadium, to taxes on everything to taxes on an entire staffs salary, to taxes on part time salaries and on and on.
Find a way to punish the finances of the school or to redistribute the profits. I am ok with that.