We punish the bad guy, then let the system that enables bad guys to operate intact.
In Graham's case, 'the bad guy' got demoted two ranks and everyone else involved is now in a higher position than they had been five years ago. Except Graham who is still at the entry level fire-fighter position.
My background is public administration - how the system is designed, what are the rewards and punishments - intended and unintended? What informal systems work against the formal systems?
When I look at this situation I think: how did the system let this go on, just like Bryant asks in the audio.
But it seems like when the lawyers look at it, they think, ok, case is closed, move on to the next case. It's about individuals, not about the system. That's horribly wrong.
That's why I'm spending so much time on this case. To show what went wrong and to ask why the existing system never did anything about it. If Jeff Graham hadn't been stubborn, hadn't risked his financial security to hire an attorney, hadn't broken the code of the fire department that you go along to get along, none of this would have come out.
It's just like the other systems Bryant mentions, systems that allow abusers and a abuses to continue - like sexual assault, like concussions in football, like the church scandals.
The part I'm highlighting starts at 1:46
How did it go on for so long? We're still even asking the question if there were problems with the structure. Of course there were problems with the structure.Q: Sturcture of?
2:00 USA Gymnastics, Michigan State, . . . the adults were supposed to take care of these athletes, supposed to protect them, no different from any other scandal, whether church, concussions, you cannot allow the bad guy to go to jail and you leave the structure intact.
2:45 Q: Why did they wait so long? Why did they wait for 20 years. Larry Nassar has been under scrutiny for some time now?
2:53 This is a very American thing we do. We find the bad guys, we take the bad guys, and we punish the bad guys. Then we leave every mechanism that allows the bad guys to exist and enables the bad guys, we leave those things alone, , ,
This is something we have to deal with as a culture because we don't deal with it very well. And especially when you're dealing with young people.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Comments will be reviewed, not for content (except ads), but for style. Comments with personal insults, rambling tirades, and significant repetition will be deleted. Ads disguised as comments, unless closely related to the post and of value to readers (my call) will be deleted. Click here to learn to put links in your comment.