Jerry Sandusky is yet another example of moral rot and corruption in our society emanating from our supposed leaders, figures of moral authority, and CEOs. Sociopathic thugs take advantage of their positions to extort money from the rest of us or to abuse little boys or to have endless wars so they can profit economically and politically.
Yes Virginia, there was a time that the upper classes, at least some of them, believed they had an obligation to give back to society. Some of them genuinely did so. But that concept of noblesse oblige is quaint and anachronistic now. We have scarcely disguised mobsters in investment banks laundering drug money. The Catholic Church is a relic from the Dark Ages, as it viciously tries to cover up decades of pedophilia by priests and yet again has a banking scandal with organized crime links. Our politicians are mostly bought and paid for.
It hasn’t always been this bad. We are living in exceptionally morally vacant times. We don’t have any leaders of substance. Obama and Romney are plastic people. They inspire and lead no one. This is potentially quite dangerous. Sooner or later leaders will appear, but there’s no telling what their message will be.
They all knew at Penn State. How could they not? Paterno was told about Sandusky and did nothing. After all, they had to keep that money-making football machine rolling on, so what’s a dozen sexually abused boys compared to that?
This isn’t even moral degeneracy. It’s moral emptiness. Doing what’s right apparently didn’t even occur to those at Penn State, just like it doesn’t for the poster child of unctuous displays of phony piety, the Catholic Church, and for far too many hedge funds and investment banks as well.
They’re all pretty vacant. And they don’t care. (At least the Sex Pistols meant it tongue in cheek.)