Obit: Kobe Bryant and 13yo daughter Gianna

Subject: RE: BS: Basketball greats (e.g. Havlicek, RIP)
From: keberoxu
Date: 26 Jan 20 - 03:33 PM

Well, this is the last thing I expected.

Kobe Bryant has been killed in a helicopter crash.
He was 41 years of age.

Subject: RE: BS: Basketball greats (e.g. Havlicek, RIP)
From: keberoxu
Date: 26 Jan 20 - 04:40 PM

AND Kobe Bryant's oldest daughter, Gianna, was present.
No survivors.

Subject: Obit: Kobe Bryant and 13yo daughter Gianna
From: Mrrzy
Date: 26 Jan 20 - 06:50 PM

Aw man.

Subject: RE: Obit: Kobe Bryant and 13yo daughter Gianna
From: GUEST,keberoxu
Date: 26 Jan 20 - 07:05 PM

Yes, this is the last thing you needed to hear, Mrrzy,
when touching base with the world outside.
And didn't this family just welcome
a newborn baby sister? Mercy.

Subject: RE: Obit: Kobe Bryant and 13yo daughter Gianna
From: ChanteyLass
Date: 26 Jan 20 - 07:31 PM

I was stunned to hear this. I sure others were, too.

Subject: RE: Obit: Kobe Bryant and 13yo daughter Gianna
From: Joe Offer
Date: 27 Jan 20 - 03:43 AM

Kobe Bryant was one of the good ones, and he'll be missed. May he rest in peace.
-Joe-

Subject: RE: Obit: Kobe Bryant and 13yo daughter Gianna
From: gillymor
Date: 27 Jan 20 - 07:15 AM

Bryant didn't have a squeaky clean past and I was never a fan but he was, in my book, among the top 4 or 5 NBA players of all time. I feel for his family.

Subject: RE: Obit: Kobe Bryant and 13yo daughter Gianna
From: gillymor
Date: 27 Jan 20 - 09:07 AM

ESPN is, of course, paying tribute to Kobe this morning and showing pictures and videos of him with Gianna. Heartbreaking.

Subject: RE: Obit: Kobe Bryant and 13yo daughter Gianna
From: Donuel
Date: 27 Jan 20 - 09:35 AM

He was on the road to or in the land of redemtion.

A powerless helicopter's auto rotation is enough to survive a crash in most situations. Drawbacks are rough terrain, overloading or additional blade damage.

Subject: RE: Obit: Kobe Bryant and 13yo daughter Gianna
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 27 Jan 20 - 11:31 AM

From the NY Post: Felicia Sonmez posted a link to a 2016 Daily Beast report headlined “Kobe Bryant’s Disturbing Rape Case” as the world was coming to come to terms with the basketball legend’s death in Sunday’s fiery chopper crash in California.

Her since-deleted tweet sparked huge outrage — with Sonmez saying that “10,000 people” had commented and “emailed me with abuse and death threats,” according to the Daily Mail.

“Well, THAT was eye-opening,” she wrote about the barrage of hate mail, stressing that she was not connected with the article she tweeted, screenshots of the messages show.

“Any public figure is worth remembering in their totality even if that public figure is beloved and that totality unsettling,” she insisted.

They'd better damn well not fire her - Bryant was categorically one of those covered in the #MeToo campaign. This is an obit thread so that's enough said. A rape accusation doesn't deserve a death sentence.

From Wikipedia: Bryant admitted to a sexual encounter with his accuser but denied the assault allegation. The case was dropped after Bryant's accuser refused to testify in the case. A separate civil suit was later filed against Bryant by the woman. This was settled out of court and included Bryant publicly apologizing to his accuser, though admitting no guilt.

Subject: RE: BS: Basketball greats (e.g. Havlicek, RIP)
From: Raggytash
Date: 27 Jan 20 - 02:10 PM

Whist I acknowledge this must be a terrible tragedy for his family and friends I have to admit be a tad surprised at the amount of coverage it has received on the UK news today.

The reason for that is I have never heard of the man or his sporting prowess. Not once, not ever.

Subject: RE: BS: Basketball greats (e.g. Havlicek, RIP)
From: gillymor
Date: 27 Jan 20 - 02:17 PM

Here in the U.S. ESPN, the cable sports network, has been completely consumed by coverage of this tragedy. A lot of tears are being shed by current and former NBA players and sports journalists. He apparently had close relationships with a lot of people.

Subject: RE: Obit: Kobe Bryant and 13yo daughter Gianna
From: leeneia
Date: 27 Jan 20 - 03:46 PM

Death threats are out of line, but still, there's something about a jackal that people just don't like.

Subject: RE: Obit: Kobe Bryant and 13yo daughter Gianna
From: Backwoodsman
Date: 27 Jan 20 - 05:32 PM

Always very sad to hear of anybody’s death but, like Raggy, I’ve never heard of him. Given the fact that basketball is a very tiny-minority-interest sport here in the UK, I’m astonished at the amount of coverage this is getting in our media.

Subject: RE: Obit: Kobe Bryant and 13yo daughter Gianna
From: Donuel
Date: 27 Jan 20 - 07:14 PM

Our hearts and prayers also go out to the sudden death of Planter's Mr. Peanut in a fiery peanut car crash.

Subject: RE: Obit: Kobe Bryant and 13yo daughter Gianna
From: robomatic
Date: 27 Jan 20 - 07:16 PM

Just talked with a sports fan who was quite moved by the death of Kobe Bryant, not omitting the fact of nine souls gone. Kobe was many things and quite important to many people in his life which was well lived in not too much time. He spoke several languages and had some major intellectual chops in addition to his physical endowments. As for the scandal, my friend, though female, felt that he had a side to it, that it was somewhat suspect in how it came about, and that he faced it and worked hard during and after it to do what he could to lay it to rest. Apparently the commentator who brought it up has been fired. My sports fan friend thoroughly approved.

I confess to having my own slanted interest in that I'm aviation aware. I have some thoughts about what can make helicopters go down suddenly and I'm keeping them to myself for now.

Subject: RE: Obit: Kobe Bryant and 13yo daughter Gianna
From: keberoxu
Date: 27 Jan 20 - 07:17 PM

Oh, yes, I saw that about Mr Peanut.
and didn't Nancy Drew get killed off as well?

Subject: RE: Obit: Kobe Bryant and 13yo daughter Gianna
From: Donuel
Date: 27 Jan 20 - 07:24 PM

Its a shame she was knocked of by a jealous lesbian lover.

Subject: RE: Obit: Kobe Bryant and 13yo daughter Gianna
From: gillymor
Date: 27 Jan 20 - 07:27 PM

This isn't the thread for that, Don.

Subject: RE: Obit: Kobe Bryant and 13yo daughter Gianna
From: Donuel
Date: 27 Jan 20 - 08:17 PM

Good to know so I don't get more silly, gillymor.

Subject: RE: Obit: Kobe Bryant and 13yo daughter Gianna
From: Steve Shaw
Date: 27 Jan 20 - 08:29 PM

Like the other Brits I'd never heard of him. Seemed a bit of a curate's egg. Still, a rotten thing to happen.

Subject: RE: Obit: Kobe Bryant and 13yo daughter Gianna
From: Mrrzy
Date: 27 Jan 20 - 08:54 PM

Raggytash I live under a rock too

Subject: RE: Obit: Kobe Bryant and 13yo daughter Gianna
From: leeneia
Date: 27 Jan 20 - 10:32 PM

His name sounded familiar, but I had to ask who he was. However, other people, who watched him play basketball for twenty years, and who saw him interviewed, surely feel a connection to him, as if he were a man they were acquainted with.

Subject: RE: Obit: Kobe Bryant and 13yo daughter Gianna
From: gillymor
Date: 28 Jan 20 - 04:39 AM

I notice that the "NBA Greats" thread seems to have disappeared. Some posts from it were pasted to this thread and now it is no more. It was a short thread but it had some continuity.

Subject: RE: Obit: Kobe Bryant and 13yo daughter Gianna
From: Jack Campin
Date: 28 Jan 20 - 09:47 AM

Only a vague name to me until this happened.

His victim must be going through hell at the moment, with her attacker being deified like a Roman godlet by the celebrity-mongering media.

Subject: RE: Obit: Kobe Bryant and 13yo daughter Gianna
From: Donuel
Date: 28 Jan 20 - 10:49 AM

Guys and gals who play with balls for millions and millions of dollars make Earth is a better place in every way. Their loss casts us into an abyss of sadness and doom, may be overstating it.

Granted balls have a slight anti gravitational freedom in one plane but mastering a stapler is not much different.

This planet probably employs 1 in 10 who directly or indirectly is involved in playing with balls, perhaps more.

(not that there is anything wrong with that)

Subject: RE: Obit: Kobe Bryant and 13yo daughter Gianna
From: gillymor
Date: 28 Jan 20 - 11:10 AM

Once again you could probably find a more appropriate venue for your particular brand of frivolity (?). Maybe you should start yet another one of your goofy threads to indulge in it.

In response to Jack's post-
There are a lot of sad aspects to this tragedy (as well as other similar tragedies that have occurred and will occur around the planet) mates have lost their mates, children have lost siblings and perhaps most tragic of all there are parents who will never see their young children grow up. I've never had to deal with that kind of pain and I wonder how a body overcomes it.

Subject: RE: Obit: Kobe Bryant and 13yo daughter Gianna
From: robomatic
Date: 28 Jan 20 - 03:01 PM

A correction to my earlier post re: The tweet, from a Washington Post reporter that linked to a detailed story of the alleged sexual assault. The WAPO reporter was suspended. And that has become an issue in itself.

Subject: RE: Obit: Kobe Bryant and 13yo daughter Gianna
From: robomatic
Date: 30 Jan 20 - 12:56 AM

Follow up: According to BBC World News the reporter has been reinstated by WAPO but the 'issue' is still an issue.