Joe Paterno Lung Cancer: People Must Stop Bashing JoePa in Wake of Diagnosis

On Friday, news broke that former Penn State football coach Joe Paterno has been diagnosed with a treatable form of lung cancer. 

The Associated Press reported this news via Twitter. 

Genaro C. Armas of the York Daily Record posted a full account from Paterno's son, Scott.

While the Grand Jury Testimony around Jerry Sandusky doesn't imply any legal wrongdoing on the part of Paterno, it also doesn't exactly make him a sympathetic character. 

So, when this news broke, plenty of people were quite harsh with their reactions.

Friday, Nov. 18 at 4:37 p.m. EST.

Comedian Travon Free tweeted this: 

Friday, Nov. 18 at 7:22 p.m. EST.

Guy Endore-Kaiser, who writes for Fox's Allen Gregory, had this to say:

I'll just leave it at those two. Worse things were said, but I'll let you find those on your own, if you haven't already. 

I am not saying that Paterno being diagnosed with lung cancer makes him bullet proof. Certainly, people have every right to criticize him for what he allegedly did, or didn't do, surrounding Jerry Sandusky. 

But making light of the lung cancer is just poor taste. Frankly, if Jerry Sandusky had been diagnosed with lung cancer and everything he's being charged with proves true, it would be in bad taste to make light of that. 

Frankly, this entire situation, starting with the alleged incidents, the resulting scandal, Paterno being fired, and now the lung cancer diagnosis, is really not a laughing matter. 

I am not saying that anyone is calling it a "laughing matter," but there's really no need to make jokes about any of it. 

Do I believe that Paterno could have done more? Well, we must remind ourselves that Sandusky has been charged, not convicted. But certainly if that testimony is proven true, I absolutely think that Paterno could have done more. 

I also think he should have been fired. The lung cancer diagnoses does nothing to soften my view on that matter. 

But thinking he could have done more and that he should have been fired isn't the same as looking for a cheap joke when he's diagnosed with lung cancer. 

Frankly, even though it's treatable, this is a very serious diagnosis for a man that's nearly 85 years old. Nobody deserves to be mocked when they're hit with such news.

Criticizing him for what he did or didn't do is fine. Going beyond that to make light of unrelated struggles is just cheap.