While I am not a sports fan - save for a slight interest in baseball - and would not have known Mr. Bryant had he hit me in the head, it is a slight bit churlish to be begging the motive for the mourning over his death. As John Donne wrote, "Any mans death diminishes me, because I am involved in Mankind; And therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls; It tolls for thee."
To be sure, some on the wailing and gnashing of teeth seems more than a bit theatrical - and the media by definition is drawn to theatrics. Powerful visuals and drama and self-expression to the point of hysteria are the motifs of the age. The more emotional and sincere you appear to be the more valid your views are assumed to be. Reason and calm analysis are, sad to say, at a discount.
That said, the man brought pleasure to many and there is some loss at his passing. Particularly when so many who inflict misery seem to live on and thrive. Thus to see a man struck down in his prime elicits a certain empathy.
As to his past travails, all that can be said is that he appeared, so far as I am aware, to have been exonerated and to have turned his life around. 'Let he who has not sinned cast the first stone," and to the extent that Mr. Kobe appears to have turned his life around before its untimely end he served as a good example to others.
The unhappy ending to that story gives it a sad dimension to which many good people feel some sympathy. Perhaps it then being, too, something of a good sign that - even for a brief few minutes - people too often self-absorbed were able to feel the pain of others.
As to the others that perished. It does not diminish their deaths to recognize the death of the individual who was more well known. After all, how many people will die today of whom you will never know?
Mr. Bryant cultivated a talent - grant one that does not mean very much to me and arguably means too much to others - that allowed people to view excellence. That is not such a bad thing and mourning it loss is at least understandable, however disproportionate in its expression.
@professor nightdrot- Bravo! Well said, one of the best responses ever! Don’t expect an mho from this Asker, look how you got a downvote already, pretty easy to guess who that was.. haha. But you said it, the man, Kobe, did far more good than anything else, he wil be missed and for more than just his superb athletic abulpility no matter how much this Asker thinks otherwise.
@Girther10 Thanks for your kind compliment. I do not know who gave me the down vote, but all I can say from my own perspective is that there is a certain pitilessness in those who object to giving a certain respect to Mr. Kolbe. It is symptomatic of the age.
Kobe Bryant was never convicted of rape in a Criminal Court. A civil lawsuit filed by his accuser was settled out of court without an admission of guilt. It is not too unusual for a wealthy celebrity to settle a lawsuit out of court rather than to have the bad publicity that comes with being a defendant in a civil suit that goes to trial. Personally, I'm not a basketball fan. However, my understanding is that Kobe did a lot of good things in his lifetime. Kobe was the most publically recognizable person on that helicopter flight, which is why the focus is put on him. But it is true that several families will be directly hurt by this tragedy. As a parent, I find it especially sad that two fathers perished along with their daughters on that flight.
Also, this was not a commercial airline flight. This was a privately chartered flight. Flying in a private helicopter costs more than most people can afford. This flight is repeatedly being associated with Kobe because that helicopter trip probably would not have happened if Kobe was not involved.
Don't invite me to this bullshit. If you gave a shit about the other casualties, post a memorial to them. If you love the vilification of a black man, you're part of the problem. There was only mention of 1 impropriety in Kobe's whole career and it was settled out of court to everyone's satisfaction. But you also can't discount his career nor the fact he used his celebrity for good, namely shining a light on women's sports and women athletes.
Quit being a shit and find something better to do with your time.
Shame on you @Strong_male, as I said, it wasn't proven. It was settled out of court. He wasn't found guilty, and he admitted to having sex with the girl. No money exchanged hands. So how long do we hold on to unproved allegations?
He apologized for misunderstanding the situation and for the girl putting herself in a bad light. There were no other accusation made against him ever again.
And shame on you for trying to shame me. I'm no rape apologist, and I don't make exceptions for anyone, celebrity or no. What I don't do is take every situation the same. Not every black man accused of rape is a rapist, famous or not, and that girl would've had him dead to rights if she'd pushed the issue. Which tells me it wasn't rape.
@Dork- well said. These haters won’t be vindicated, they just hate. Prob racists as well, what other reason would push them to fully denigrate the dead? They’re small little closed minded beings not worthy of even this much effort. @Asker I’m talking about.
@BagoH So facts don't count because I acknowledged he's black? And that false rape accusations occur more often against black men? How does that even make sense?
Dude anyone can accuse anyone of anything race got nothing to do its so stupid please stop... Judge dropped the fucking case!! He didn't convict kobe did he now? So how's race a factor when a bitch accuses a man of rape and judge drops the case? +?
Ah, there's the racist troll. I found him. Anyway @BagoH it's a pattern. You can't be mad people point out what they see, agree or disagree. Racism IS real and it's important that people pay attention to it. It's important to acknowledge that we don't all have the same worldview, that race IS a factor. That it matters. That it carries weight. Because then you can see and dismantle the fucked up systems in place
People seem to develop an unusual perspective about people they see on TV, feeling like they know them when they do not. There is also a tradition of ignoring all of somebody's transgressions upon death and focusing only on the positive aspects. Finally, in the age of social media, it is very fashionable to publicly express solidarity for the cause du jour, be it grief for a celebrity death or some other catastrophe.
He wasn't a rapist, he was accused of rape and it was proven to be consensual. Just because a woman claims rape occurred doesn't mean it did any more then I could claim a woman was abusive to her kids and it being so. You need to have evidence of wrong doing before condemning some one and just because the person who is doing the accusing has a vagina doesn't change that. You want to talk about how he was a shitty person for cheating on his wife, or how he was a shitty person because he was a hypocrite fine, but he was never convicted of rape and all evidence suggest that he was innocent (of rape, infidelity on the other hand he most definitely and admittedly partook in).
No, he settled out of court as many rich people do because going through the court systems can take years and can get prohibitively expensive all the while your name is dragged through the mud so those who are rich enough to settle out of court do so. He never apologized for raping her, he apologized for cheating, if he apologized for raping her that would mean criminal charges and prison time. lots of people exploit rich people for their own gain, this is nothing new.
I'm going to expand this to cry over Kobe dying. I'm going to gloss over the fact that he did or didn't rape anyone. People cry about celebrities deaths because they don't see what the little people do. Just the ones that get paid to entertain us from our daily lives. He impacted millions by how he runs around people and throws a ball into a round metal object. In their opinion, people die in car wrecks, or of a cold every day, so it means less. Doesn't matter if they were a teacher, or running the pta. Or the person who helps the old lady down the street get to and from her house to go shopping. Just the professional athlete that may have raped someone and gotten away with it.
As I read through the opinions all I can say is "wow!! people will make an issue out of anything!! I do not care about the fact that 1 particular man died in that crash but that people including a child died. Nor do I care what color they were. ALL lives matter. But I see NOTHING in the post that would indicate any form of racism.. as to if he raped a girl or not.. becuz the girl accepted the right to settle out of court does not mean he didn't do it.. it may very well mean she did not want to have to continue to rehash it for months possibly years of court battle. Only Koby, the woman and God know the truth. He was a celebrity basketball player so what he is no more special then you or I. He is gone now so it dont matter what he has done.. he can't do it anymore..
First you can't say everybody cause im not well not really it is sad cause he has a family, let me explain, i didn't i dont and i’ll probably never watch basketball, i wasn’t a fan but i knew of him, its a tragedy because he was a role model to a lot of people, and the even bigger tragedy is how many people this affected (not talking about the fans, its about the families of the killed in the accident) 2 kids died do you even understand how big a tragedy that is, a mother died, kids lost their mother its not to be taken lightly its horrible trust me i know, and i wouldn’t wish it on the worst enemy, at that young an age its life devastating what happened
People die everyday. One man with fame is what gets the attention. Helicopters are dangerous AF. Rich people problems. No one deserves to die. As for the rape charges. Im still after a 97 year old 60 year diamond jubilee status priest from ontario named rogger who sexually assaulted my dad in the late 1960s. I've got my own sexual assault cases in my family to worry about. Like seeing the bastard die. Hopefully this year so i can piss on his grave!
Nor should you. In a truly humane society we would all hunt them down together, instead of glorifying them because they happen to be religious or athletes.
Man. people lie all the time. There are a lot of people in prison for things they didn't do. There are a lot of cops that should be in prison for things they have done.
The judicial system is corrupt at its core and nothing will ever change as long as people continue to be dishonest.
Interesting little fact that could be holding you back in life. Over 5% of Americans have false criminal records. These records are hard to have changed and it can take years to do because the government never likes to admit to their mistakes and misdeeds.
I don't know if he raped that thot, given the anti male attitudes today she could have lied. Be that as it may, he cheated on his wife with an army of disgusting thots and he still may have raped her. If he did rape her, he probably raped a lot of others as well so at least that egg beater he flew into a hill did some good. RIP the rest of them, sad the had to die but don't hang out with thugs.
Everybody? No, not everybody. Some of us are very happy to see that piece of shit finally punished. To hell with his family, fuck 'em. He used his wealth, fame and status to get away with sexual assault, that much is obvious. If that's not a good enough reason to want someone dead I don't know what is. Serves him fucking right, I shit on the memory of him and all his kind.
I hope you have a family one day and see what happens when something bad happens to one of them, You just mad Bec Noone pays attention to what a NOTHING YOU ARE, GIRLS SCREAM RAPE EVERYDAY, PEOPLE ARE MOURNING THIS "STARS" DEATH AND UOU SENDING HATE THREATS... what A BASTARD YOU ARE...🖕🖕
At least his death created some memes. For the rape part, don't assume it is true, girls sleep with celebrities to sue them to get rich. Me too made them very creative. His death won't bother me in the slightest. I don't even know the guy so how the fuck can you grief about a basketballplayer you have never met...
Why do you assume i am broke, why do you assume i would pay money for a sport i don't even like, why you are reffering to me as a pimp? You are not from the streets, thugs ain't on gag. So adjust your language to the language normal people speak. The only thing here worth a laugh is your pathetic attempt to ridicule me based on assumtions. So the laughing stock are you. BrOkE aSs NiGgAh
I didn't know about this guy before someone posted a question here about his death. Sorry, not sorry, I care about my own life first. Celebrities or whatever are none of my interests... Whether they did something good or bad.
The man died a couple days ago, give it some time before you bring stuff like that up.
I mean what is this? Do sociopaths like you get a high by fanning the flames and watching the world burn? We just lost someone who many look up to for inspiration, an icon for hope in the future. When someone dies, what people do at funerals is to point out the positive aspects of the deceased person’s life to help leave a more positive legacy.
Despite the case (I had no idea he was the accused in a rape trial until today but given the current political climate, that can mean anything), Kobe has lived a net positive life and you are just the stick in the mud in a funeral for pointing something like this out and killing the mood.
It wasn't rape it was Sexual assault plus she didn't bring up any evidence to prove it. They came to a settlement after the judge dropped the case. Sounds to me a heartbroken girl who wanted money / revenge from him.
Not a fan at all im just staying objective all the time.
because tens of millions of people just lost someone who donated time and money that helped them to have a better life. He spoke up for higher education, rather than telling kids to steal from their parents and buy some gold shit to show off like the rappers of today preach. He did a lot for women's sports and education. A lot of women have graduated college and gone on to productive careers thanks to him. Yeah, he wasn't perfect and he shouldn't be worshipped, but he should and will be missed by many who's lives were directly impacted by his.
True, but the public doesn’t know their names so it’s less impactful from a mass media standpoint. Thus Jobe’s name on the front page, not a Jane Doe’s.
Why do people wait until after their dead to start bashing others if Kobe Byrant is or was a rapist then why don't they but his dead body in jail or prison. He dead now let him rest in peace. And tell these people live with it and forget it.
I think he was a famous basketball player though, so maybe they liked him for his skills, talents that he had as a basketball player. Nothing more than that.
That makes no damn sense, like everything else, caring takes mental effort, you care for the people close to you, spending mental effort to care for people you don't even know makes no sense
@cocobat You have a valid point, but you're kind of expected to express it a bit apologetically. I hadn't ever heard of him prior to his accident so wouldn't know what to think either way, and I don't consider I need to know of every 'star'. I don't admire sportsmen much.
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