There is a popular billboard dealing with terrorism, and it states: "If you see something, tell somebody." In light of the sexual child abuse scandal at Penn State University, this statement appears more needed for the protection of children. According to a 1998 study conducted by Boston University Medical School one of six boys will be sexually abused by age 16, while one of four girls will be sexually abused by age 14. I am pretty sure those odds are greater than any act of terrorism. Did you get that? A boy has a 16% chance and a girl has a 25% chance of being sexually abused in this country.
In the Penn State case, which I'm pretty sure is going to blow up even bigger as journalist descend on Happy Valley, six adult males had the opportunity to report the case of a 58 yr old man doing something with a ten year old boy in a shower. The initial witness is a twenty-something then(2002) college student who witnessed the horrific event. Let's just say he saw enough. He recognized the man as a former coach. He told his father, who told him to tell the head-coach. The coach told another man up the food chain and evidently let it go at that. The buck was passed upward until the total (men aware of the incident)including college student and his dad came to six. Perhaps the guys at the bottom thought the guys at the top would handle matters appropriately. However, when they never heard any more about the incident, they should have by moral obligation asked questions, like "Why aren't the police involved with this?" Protecting friends, old buddies and the name of a university came over the welfare of a child. ---Now, the public outcry sounds more like a witch hunt. All of a sudden, people are pointing fingers of judgment(and rightfully so). What we need to do is recognize our society has come to this. Yes, we need to be outraged! We need to look out for the children and tell somebody, if we see something and not protect or "friends" or whoever. If someone is sexually abusing one of our kids or grandkids they are not a friend (I could think of other names, but friend isn't on the list.) Sixteen to twenty-five percent of the folks walking around us (maybe even you) have been abused. We can no longer be silent. Promote the family and things that are pure and decent. Revolt against porn and indecent television that promotes perverted and promiscuous behavior. Remember, every little sin wants to grow up and be a big sin. One form of perversion leads to another. Stop the silence. Point these things out. Connect the dots.
