I hope the folks frequenting the Centre Country courthouse are up to date on their Internet memes, because Pedobear is on the scene. Now, whether he’s their to “support” Jerry Sandusky and the actions he’s accused of or if he’s there to poke fun at Penn State for creating an atmosphere where Sandusky could allegedly act without impunity remains an unknown, but the fact is, the person dressed in the Pedobear costume could be there for those and other reasons, like Internet notoriety.
The details surrounding Sandusky’s trial have been quite graphic and disturbing, making it the perfect scene for a Pedobear appearance, but more noticeable, at least to me, is reading PennLive.com’s article as it tries to explain what it is their readers are seeing. It reads like the writer was only a few minutes ahead of their readers in terms of Pedobear education. The fact that they linked to the actual Pedobear.org instead of KnowYourMeme’s entry indicates as much. And then there’s this description:
An Internet-born character called “Pedobear,” which mocks pedophiles or is their mascot, depending on which website you believe, is at the Centre County courthouse this morning..
The link in the quote goes to a SFGate Mommy Files blog entry that warns parents about the mascot. Unfortunately, neither publication discusses how Pedobear came about, or the significance of its origins. Well, that’s not entirely true. Amy Graff pays the origin some very brief lip service, but ultimately, she’s only concerned about warning parents about pedophiles.
KnowYourMeme’s entry is much more enlightening:
Pedobear is a cartoon mascot that became a well-known icon through its usage on 4chan to signal moderators and other users that illegal pornographic content had been posted. Due to the widespread nature of its application, Pedobear has been often misinterpreted as a symbol of pedophilia and lolita complex, especially in the news media and law enforcement agencies.
Of course, the person in the Pedobear costume who appeared at Sandusky’s trial is undoubtedly playing up the pedophilia angle, something the proud supporters of Penn State should already be used to. Lest we forget:
With that in mind, it’s surprising the controversial bear didn’t show up sooner.