This is absolutely ridiculous logic. Because 75% of my gender *may* have committed adultery, I somehow cannot call out a single example of it as immoral or wrong? That statistic has nothing to do with individuals. It would only be hypocritical to criticize Kobe for being an adulterer if you YOURSELF had committed adultery (or really, had you committed adultery and had no remorse for it). I've never cheated on my girlfriend or wife, so there's no ******* hypocracy in my, or any other man with clean hands, calling out Kobe for it. And I too think that statistic is bull****. I might believe 50%, but not as high as 75%. That's ridiculously high.
This thread is embarrassing to read. ZRB, you need to get a clue. As has been pointed out already, rape is generally about power, not sex. Because rape is such an horrific crime in most people's eyes, that is why sympathies tend towards the alleged victim. I'm guessing that not one of us here knows Kobe, or the girl involved. We have very little exposure to the evidence. Any conclusions we draw about this case will be guesses, and fairly uneducated ones at that.
I made it seem like public opinion is monolithic in my post, and that's obviously not true. There are a lot of different views/beliefs that influence how people interpret the Kobe situation. I think yours is unfortunately true for some people. There's no question black men have been and sometimes are conceptualized as sexual aggressors, and white women or white girls are often implicitly valued over other groups (minority women, boys, etc.) I don't know about the rich and famous part though. I can't support you on this statement. We rely on our observation skills for good reason, but what do people say after every violent crime that happens? "I never thought he/she was the type of person who would do that." "He was always so quiet. He never seemed like the type of person who could etc." I personally don't trust my skills of observation to make a character assessment of Kobe Bryant, especially considering what little information I have comes from the mass media.
What a narrow minded, self-rightous position. Agreed. Magic ain't Mother Teresa, but the guy probably saved lots of lives by being public about it and active in education when most of the celebs are politicians would have kept in the closet. Big picture--Magic saved a lot of lives and did a big service to his local and the world community. Newsflash, the vast majority of male celebrities, politicians and sports stars probably do cheat. Hopefully most of them don't rape though. Kobe has already been displaced in a lot of his adds from the pub from the accusation (true or not), if he is convicted the man will and should go to jail and will have his off the court career ruined. If he is "not guilty' he should not be judged except for infidelity, which is a serious moral failure but again not an uncommon one, especially for people of his stature.
Okay guys, if this is so embarassing for you... I'm bored with this anyway. Keep rooting for Kobe's conviction.
It's your obsession with defending Kobe using woeful arguments that is embarrassing. I couldn't care less what happens to him in court.
I have no interest either way in terms of him getting convicted or not convicted. I guess for selfish reasons I hope he isnt found convicted because I enjoy watching him play, although I dispise the Lakers! My big beef is with the MEDIA and the way they keep parading Kobe around talking about his "heroics" going from the courtroom to the ballcourt. Enough already! That was the basis of Jason Whitlock's column and what I agree with.
How? I don't hate people having AIDS. I just say Magic Johnson's getting AIDS was not a heroic act like so many people make it. BTW, how do you know he saved a lot of lives?
I said from Day 1, Kobe is innocent. The trial will set things straight and Kobe will be able to put this BS behind him and move forward. Ive never like Kobe, but Ive respected his game. There is no reason for me to "pull" for him in court. I could care less. However, the fact that this girl had a couple other sexual partners within a day of the Kobe incident is more than enough proof for me that she's got some problems. I agree with ZRB that people just want Kobe to be proven guilty. I also agree with ZRB that a high percentage of men cheat on their women. I would say 60-65 percent is easily true. The more staggering number is that half of marriages end in divorce. If that number is that high, you gotta believe that the adultery rate will be similarly high.
His getting AIDS was not heroic, how he dealt with what at the time was a death sentence that carried a ton of prejudice to boot was maybe not "heroic" but certainly was brave and made a difference. Lots of big stars got AIDS, few went public and went into educating people about it--Magic took on his disease (yes, self-inflicted, but 80% of the diseases that kill most of us can also be linked to our behaviors and choices) head on and made a lot of people think about their actions and challenge their sterotypes ("only gays and druggies get AIDS"). Fews sports stars and celebs put the public before their privacy and self-interests--Magic deserves credit for being one of them who did. Hero, maybe not, but worthy of recognition and appreciation.
I'm fine with what you say. Maybe I have selected memory. I remember when he announced his "retirememt" because of AIDS, all the media and talk shows rushed to put him in front of the public. I guess he could have declined all those invitations and remained private. I can agree that accepting those exposures was some kind of brave act. I am not against Magic himself. I am inclined to think that Magic being a high profile Laker having a high profile disease was what caused the media franzy making him into a hero. That was pathetic. Being a high profile Laker (any other team would have seen less exposure) and having a high profile problem is the parallel between Kobe and Magic.
