What has happened to Americas character

I have been made aware of a recent issue in our society that has truly disturbed me to my core.  I have tuned into it because of the outrageous events that surround it.  I am talking about the Penn State college issue.  If you are not aware of the events I will update you  as much as I can.  It has come out that an assistant coach at Penn State was arrested for 40 counts of sexual abuse to at least 8 boys that range from the age of 8 to 12.   Obviously, that is disgusting enough but the other facts that surround it are a reflection of where our society is.  I understand that humans are fallen creatures and are born with sinful natures but the way people are responding to this is truly astounding.

1. Multiple people saw the acts happening

2. People are defending the people who didn’t report it

3. The fact that leaders in the college new about the incident and didn’t do the morally correct thing.

4. No one is talking about the victims

The first thing I would like to point out is that it seems that multiple people were I witnesses of crimes.  They saw the act and the action they took was to inform their boss!  They didn’t stop the act from happening, they didn’t grab a bat and assault the person doing the act, they didn’t even call the police!  What is wrong with the men in our society?  Have we been so wimp-ified that we can’t stand up and do the right thing?  That is a whole blog by itself,  about the siss-ification of the American male.  If I saw something like this, I am not sorry to say that I would have been the person in jail because I would have attacked the person doing this!  According to the “letter of the law”, they did follow “protocol”.  However, they failed to do the morally correct thing.  We are starting to live out the famous words of  C.S. Lewis

We make men without chest and expect of them virtue and enterprise.  We laugh at honor and are shocked to find traitors in our midst. We castrate and bid the gelding be fruitful

 – the abolition of man, C.S. Lewis

The second thing that is bothering me is that many of the students, ex-players and faculty are upset that the population of America is calling for the head coaches job.  Now would be a good time to point out that the head coach also new about these acts.  We will talk about that in the next paragraph.  Have we totally lost our moral compass.  Little kids were attacked and odds are they will be mentally harmed for the rest of their life! And the students are mad that most of the population wants the coach fired.  Unbelievable!  If it was their brother, or friend or worse their son I would think they would feel different.  Our culture has been invaded with       non-judgmentalism.

Allen Wolfe, in moral freedom, argued that non-jugmentalism has become the new attitude pervading our sentiments.  We have lost our anger and have adopted an attitude of non-judgmentalism.  

The last one is the biggest failure of them all because it was a failure of leadership.  The head coach and most powerful person at the university new about the acts and failed to do the morally correct thing.  This is a reflection of what continues to plague the United States.  The leader that could have stopped all of this and could have stopped this tragedy from happening to many other young boys failed at the time of his greatest calling.  Being the all time winningest football coach will pale in comparison to this leaders lack of character when it was needed most.  A lack of character that allowed one of the worst crimes ever.

I understand that I am a fallen human and I am far from being perfect.  But every one of us knows in our heart that what happened and how the leadership reacted  is wrong!   We continue to try to take God out of our lives and it continues to get worse.  When will we realize that there are moral absolutes and when you mess with those absolutes you open the door of humanism.  The door of humanism leads to a room that is filled with the stench of human sin and the smell will only get worse if we don’t stop.

God bless those little kids and God bless you for striving to become better.

29 thoughts on “What has happened to Americas character”

  1. Bill,
    This post of yours certainly took courage. Like yourself, I am outraged. The very first thought that came to my mind was that of the juveniles involved and their security. Having dealt with juveniles in Law Enforcement in the past, I know the Media surrounding this event will be like vurtures, you watch! Then I thought as a PA how do we protect the youth from those vultures. I have a young man in our business that is in a position of authority in a similar situation at a different college. The events at Penn State will have far out reaching effects on choices requiring moral decisions. My friend asked a couple questions about leadership principles at the college where he is and the primary response to his question was to make sure they protected the integrety of the college. The WAR is Great, the challenge is who will be courageous like the leaders of LIFE and apply pressure to make our legal system do its job?
    Great post Bill
    Brian Powers

  2. Thanks Bill for addressing this. My heart is grieved for the young boys who were not only molested, but whose lives weren’t deemed valuable enough that another male authority figure wouldn’t intervene for them.

    ”All that is necessary for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing.” This quote fits these acts of cowardice.

    Choices made by these men could cause a closure of a great institution. This ripple will affect thousands of students who possibly want a career in health sciences, social services, counseling, & etc., who have a passion to minister to boys & families like this. Our choices are valuable.

    The exposure of this horrific cover up reminds me of the scripture in Luke 12:2-3 [my paraphrase] Those things hidden in darkness will be shouted from the rooftops.
    Jesus clearly says what we do to the least of them, we do to him. He will not be mocked & I pray the boys/families will be exonerated.

    I’m proud to associate with men who have spines & exude courageous leadership.
    Blessings,
    g

    1. Thank you ,

      I would like to believe that people would do what is right. Unfortunately they are so worried about what would happen to themselves that they turn and run. Trying so hard to protect there job or the lifestyle that was created by people doing the right thing.
      We as a society are very undereducated about what has caused our freedom and most of us were raised in ignorance about moral integrity. I personal am ashamed at the lack character in this issue.
      Hopefully your blog and the information that Team/Life offers will give individuals the courage and knowledge to stand up for what is right. To become men of integrity again.
      Thanks again for the work it takes to be a true man and leader with character and integrity.
      Jeff and Patrice Caldwell

  3. I completely AGREE with you. This country was based on morals and a belief in God that made us a morally outstanding country in which we allowed others the free worship that they sought. I think that the men of the society has lost this ideology and have turned away towards that which smacks of putrid disgust. It is my hope that those that did nothing to protect these children are punished.

    Children are in our care and trust. We are their protectors. They can’t do much for themselves and for a grown man to take advantage of these children sickens me.

  4. Bill I’m sorry that we have to live in a world that makes evil good and good evil. It seems that the men of our society are more concerned with what the media might say on tv than what God will say in Judgement. It is very sobering though for I know that my sin is just as dark and disgusting in God’s eyes.
    The fact of the matter is these things should not surprise us, because the Bible has warned us of this. I am reminded to live my secret life as though the world were going to put my secret life on display for all the world to see. Thank God that His mercies are new every morning. Our family will be praying for the victims and their families that this tragedy has effected.
    Thanks for being tough and for the example of a man that you are to all of us.

  5. Bill,

    What a powerful article! I heard a sermon last night by Charles Swindel. He had talks of the moral decay today and the lack of ‘chests’ in men today. It comes from a fear of man and not an embodiment of Christ and the fear of the Lord. You have hit on the main key to the country’s failure: no moral standard. We crowd around the celebrity and the victim is missed. We need to stand on certain inalienable rights – life, and liberty backed by the justice of God. Thanks for the example of a true man!
    God bless, Aron

  6. Bill,

    You are a man’s man and I appreciate your candor. You have put words to my thoughts.

    Thank you for being a Man.

    Thank you for being the Leader that you are,

    God Bless you

  7. My feelings exactly. I felt physically ill reading the Grand Jury Report.

    Hopefully those rioting students will mature enough to feel ashamed of themselves a few years form now.

  8. Amen, Bill. We couldn’t agree more. When you see the media out there, even the commercials, de-edify men as men in our culture, they are completely wimpified and wandering, wondering what and who they are supposed to be. It’s sad and I’m so glad the Team and Life are out there leading the way teaching men how to be men, and how to always do the RIGHT thing, not the easy thing, having character as well as virtue.

  9. Do no harm. That is at the core of any role interacting with children and students of any age (there is always a power differential, even with adult students). This means much more than not doing wrong, it means stopping wrongdoing and protecting those that can’t responsibly defend themselves. I find the failure to take appropriate action by PSU to be especially deplorable. The lack of character demonstrated by key officials responsible for the safety and well being of the Penn State community resulted in extensive harm (much of which could have been prevented with timely action). Further, they carried themselves as the values-based program and failed miserably to live their supposed values, until the firings that is. I am saddened by so many aspects of this situation and the state of affairs throughout mainstream Western culture.

    In most large organizations there tends to be things that slip through the cracks. The cracks have become too big, too numerous and the gaps are too significant to continue to stand by idly. Too many over use or under use their power. We have a responsibility to act. Thank you Bill (et al.) for taking a stand.

  10. Hey, I have a question for anyone.. I’m raising a son (currently 12) and I’m looking for a great school/neighborhood/environment where I can raise him up with honor/courage/challenge/Gospel truth/ like minded peers/ you get the picture… muscle. faith. good influence.
    We currently live in Virginia (by DC, it’s pretty sterile here). I’ve been praying for guidance on where to move to. Any great places to raise a boy these days? I’m prepared to sell this house and go just about anywhere. These next few years count so much in a boy’s life!

  11. Wow! You know…I totally agree with your reaction Bill. Doesn’t matter whos son or daughter it is, I would be sitting by your side in a jail cell because of the damage i would have done to the coach! It’s amazing how people fail to view situations through the other persons eyes. It would be a different situation had one of those kids been a niece, nephew, son, or daughter of the opposing side. John Maxwell says,” Everything rises and falls on leadership”. That right there sir, is a lack of leadership, integrity, morals,and any other violation we can think of. My prayers are submitted to God for those kids and their families.

  12. I too am astonished and appalled at the entire events surrounding Penn state. People should be ashamed of themselves for turning deaf ears/eyes to this horrible act. There was/is no excuse for not immediatly calling the police.what truly has happened to this countries morals and ethics?

  13. As a mother of a young boy whom was molested my heart goes out to the boys and the family’s that are involved. It is very unfortunate that there are sick minded people in the world. And for the others that just sat back and let it happen they should be ashamed of themselves. I hope they get what they deserve. In my case the man only got 5 years probation for molesting my son from age 3- 7years old.

  14. Bill,
    My feelings exactly! It sickens me that someone could turn away from something so disgusting being done to another human being, especially a defensless child. This is a prime example of what has happened to this country due the erosion of it’s moral character. These are not men, but only males.
    So Thankful that TEAM and LIFE will make the changes necessary in this Nation one household at a time through the oustanding princple’s being taught in the education system.

    Scott

  15. I am reminded of something I learned many years ago at a Christian leadership camp, and that is that silence means approval. When something wrong is going on, and others know about it, to say nothing and to do nothing is to communicate that it must be okay. Perhaps as a community of Rascals, we can be known as men and women that will stand up and say “Stupid!” and “Wrong!” when it is needed.

  16. I’m with you Bill. I have four young children and know it has been charged to me to protect them and love them and raise them right. If I ever caught anyone in the act of harming a child, especially in such a horrendous way, I”d be in jail too. People that are protesting Joe Pa’s firing are just not thinking. They are all hopped up on emotions and apparently refuse to let the facts get in the way.

  17. Thank you so much for addressing this, Bill. I can’t believe that someone who has been thought of as a leader and mentor has failed in such a grand way. We’re so proud to be associated with real leaders on the LIFE Team.

    Pat and Mary Hermsen

  18. Thank you, Bill, for standing on principles. I am proud to have my husband associate and learn from men with spines.

    May our Lord be with those young men and their families. And may His Word work to change the hearts of those ‘without chests’.

    All for HIS glory,
    Katrina

  19. The $64,000 question is – what should we do about this moral decay in our own small way and in our own families?.. For beginners we stop being hypocrites. Professed Christians say they would not commit or condone acts of adultery, fornication, pornography, spiritualism, witchcraft, murder and so on, but see no conflict with watching this type of activity on television programming or in the movies. As it this were ‘entertainment’. Sooner or later, we need to put our confessions into action and take a stand with our own families, simply saying, If Christ wouldn’t condone this or watch this, neither will we. King David said (Psalm 101:3) – I will not [even] lead EVIL before my EYES. As a ‘Christian’ nation, we have gone this far down, simply by acquiesing to the ‘culture’ around us. In the old testament, God’s people were warned that if they permitted the pagan nations to live with them, and to marry into their culture, they would become ‘thorns in their sides’ and barbs in their eyes.’ This is exactly what is bringing America down. The church – instead of invading the world, has permitted the world to invade the church. Does it mean sacrifice? Doesn’t everything having to do with taking up the cross sooner or later mean a degree of sacrifice? Moses understood this. Hebrews 11:25 credits his spiritual greatness with his willingness to ‘..Choose rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season”. Make no mistake about it, the time is short. We can either just complain about ‘them’ and say how ‘corrupt THEY have become, or we can see the mote in our own eyes, and begin to ‘clean up our camps’ and make them holy, so that when the plagues of God move through the land again, as they will, our domiciles will be delivered and our families ultimately will track to the narrow gate and the promised land, together.

  20. Bill,
    Thank you for hitting the nail right on the head! What a sorry state in which our country is in – that a grown up can walk in on a situation like this and do absolutely nothing about!

  21. In reading this, I prayed that I would personally remember the difference between integrity – doing right myself, and character – standing up for right and the rights of others.

  22. Bill,

    For all the molested abused children, perhaps groomed even by a relative, perhaps even parents ignored what happened to them, as if maybe it will just go away because what would our Country Club friends think? Thank you for giving this issue a voice.

    The depth of pain for a child in this situation is beyond words when no one will make a stand for them. Working with the At Risk Youth, all I kept finding was no wonder these kids turn to gangs for a “family.”

    Something to ponder? These kids are sitting right next to the family raised kids in EACH and EVERY school.

    These kids are Full of Pain. Which path will the “swept under the rug kids follow?” Take a Gun to school where our kids go?

    I just found this post. Bill. You are a True Hero for giving this issue a voice.

    It is my goal to figure out how all of us can get The Edge Series into every Group Home of Boys and Girls alike. To let them know, GOOD PEOPLE who do the RIGHT thing and CARE about them DO exist.

    One day I planned a movie day showing the true story “The Freedom Writers.” If you watch this movie… you will know why The Edge Series and Team People Matter.

    One Senior I did not even know, came to my desk the next day after the movie. He heard about me hosting this movie and he said, “Michelle, do you really think there are teachers like that who care?”

    Life Teachers Matter.

    Bill, God Bless and Thank YOU again for giving this issue a voice.

    Michelle

  23. Bill:

    As good people everywhere know, we have to DO something. Strangely, when it really gets down to it, that “something” has to be what we do to grow ourselves personally. Only through a radically changed life lived for God’s glory will others see the difference and become influenced, not only by what we do, but more so by who we become. None of us are perfect, but our growth, passion, and advancement will get people’s attention one person at a time. Getting people to take the Mental Fitness Challenge will help them make these same revolutionary (or RESOLUTIONARY, as one person said!) changes in their own lives. As more and more people do this, becoming RASCALS who refuse to cave in to tyranny, our freedom will be preserved. It’s a little counterintuitive, but I believe what you are doing in your life is exactly what this country needs more of!

    Lead on, my friend!

    Chris Brady
    http://www.chrisbrady.com

  24. If someone EVER molested my son I would simply end their life. Don’t tread on me or my family. And yes I would if some sick animal did that to son, they would suffer my wrath, plain and simple and I’ll take what comes my way.

    What a sick animal he should be killed and the parents of those children who were abused should do the job.

    That’s what’s wrong with America we have gotten so soft and turn to god and say I’m a christian I forgive him…well I believe in the lord but I would NOT forgive an animal for doing such an evil act like that to my child.

    They should be castrated then set on fire for an evil act like that. Yea lets let them sit in prison with a recreation area with weights, basketball and internet and television and oh yea get you a degree in prison.

    Eye for an eye and worse. Teach them sicko’s to think twice before committing such an act on another human.

    And YES I am angry…angry with our non competent system!!

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