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Good article in todays Houston Chronicle
JErik20
Posts: 1,502
Read this in the Houston Chronicle this morning, thought some would enjoy it:
Kobe case shows how little we know about our heroes
By FRAN BLINEBURY
Copyright 2003 Houston Chronicle
They're not role models.
Charles Barkley said it.
Kobe Bryant proved it. Again.
If there's a message to already come out of what surely will grow into an even hazier, shadier, more convoluted, contemptuous, sleazy drama played out in the legal system and on Court TV, that's the one that has been delivered like a rock through a picture window.
They can run faster and jump higher. They can dunk basketballs, hit home runs, catch touchdown passes, score goals, clear hurdles better than most, and that's what makes them special.
They can also lie, cheat, steal, connive, rape and kill, and that's what makes them no different than any other segment of society.
We can buy their ugly, overpriced sneakers, and that only makes us possessors of questionable judgment and taste.
We can buy those pre-packaged lines delivered in quick sound bites, the video clips from the serving line at the homeless shelter during the holidays, thinking we know them. And that makes us guilty of sheer ignorance.
Wednesday night, Bryant and his wife, Vanessa, were a beautiful, smiling, well-dressed couple out on the town, holding hands at the ESPY Awards broadcast before a national television audience.
Friday, they were back in front of the banks of TV cameras, this time a troubled pair clutching at each other's fingers like lifelines as their perfect world threatened to slip over the edge.
What do we know about Kobe?
That he is capable of scoring 40 or more points in nine consecutive games. That he has the nerve and the ego to miss 25 shots in a game and keep right on shooting. That he speaks two languages. That he had a privileged upbringing as the son of a former NBA player. That he seems to consciously imitate Michael Jordan's speech pattern. That he wore his daughter's hospital ID bracelet the day after she was born last January. That he cried when the Lakers were eliminated from the playoffs by the Spurs.
In other words, we know nothing. At least, nothing that really counts. Nothing that really tells us about who he is inside his skin, behind closed doors.
Now it is a matter of what went on behind a closed door at an upscale hotel in Colorado -- or what can be proved beyond a reasonable doubt -- that is supposed to tell us if we can trust him and ourselves once more.
At least half the world of sports fans is hoping, wishing Bryant will be acquitted before the first piece of evidence is presented. For to have him convicted of sexual assault would be to indict us for the latest example of our gullibility when it comes to these icons we have imbued with such a misplaced sense of responsibility.
Role models. It is only natural for kids to look for them in the wide-screen, high-definition arena where marketing and celebrity and sports bring them into the living room. It is the job of the so-called adults to separate the playing field from real life, to offer cautionary advice, to explain the dangers of assuming these heroes are no different than elected officials, next-door neighbors and sports columnists, all of whom have had their failings at one time or another.
In a recent Harris poll, when American teenagers were asked to name role models, Bryant ranked in the top three. What appealed to them most? His polite demeanor? His bring-him-home-to-meet-the-folks safe image? Maybe the fact that at 17 he skipped college and started making millions playing pro basketball?
That's not to say Bryant doesn't have many wonderful attributes worth emulating. Just that we tend to let performances in big games, under pressure, before the cameras, come to represent the whole overhyped package rather than a slice of the individual.
How many carefully nurtured images have been withered by the harsh glare of real life?
Mickey Mantle, Kirby Puckett, Ray Lewis, Mark Chmura, Evander Holyfield to name a few.
Don't forget the two biggest letters: O.J.
Just last week, ESPN conducted a mock trial to determine whether Pete Rose's past gambling should continue to keep him out of baseball's Hall of Fame. It is a debate that's gone on for more than a decade as keepers of the flame try to protect the little museum in Cooperstown, N.Y., as if it were sacrosanct, uninhabited by a single thief, liar or reprobate.
They don't know. Just as we don't really know a thing about Kobe Bryant.
Except that, for once, Charles Barkley was dead right. This role model business is tricky stuff.
Return to top
Kobe case shows how little we know about our heroes
By FRAN BLINEBURY
Copyright 2003 Houston Chronicle
They're not role models.
Charles Barkley said it.
Kobe Bryant proved it. Again.
If there's a message to already come out of what surely will grow into an even hazier, shadier, more convoluted, contemptuous, sleazy drama played out in the legal system and on Court TV, that's the one that has been delivered like a rock through a picture window.
They can run faster and jump higher. They can dunk basketballs, hit home runs, catch touchdown passes, score goals, clear hurdles better than most, and that's what makes them special.
They can also lie, cheat, steal, connive, rape and kill, and that's what makes them no different than any other segment of society.
We can buy their ugly, overpriced sneakers, and that only makes us possessors of questionable judgment and taste.
We can buy those pre-packaged lines delivered in quick sound bites, the video clips from the serving line at the homeless shelter during the holidays, thinking we know them. And that makes us guilty of sheer ignorance.
Wednesday night, Bryant and his wife, Vanessa, were a beautiful, smiling, well-dressed couple out on the town, holding hands at the ESPY Awards broadcast before a national television audience.
Friday, they were back in front of the banks of TV cameras, this time a troubled pair clutching at each other's fingers like lifelines as their perfect world threatened to slip over the edge.
What do we know about Kobe?
That he is capable of scoring 40 or more points in nine consecutive games. That he has the nerve and the ego to miss 25 shots in a game and keep right on shooting. That he speaks two languages. That he had a privileged upbringing as the son of a former NBA player. That he seems to consciously imitate Michael Jordan's speech pattern. That he wore his daughter's hospital ID bracelet the day after she was born last January. That he cried when the Lakers were eliminated from the playoffs by the Spurs.
In other words, we know nothing. At least, nothing that really counts. Nothing that really tells us about who he is inside his skin, behind closed doors.
Now it is a matter of what went on behind a closed door at an upscale hotel in Colorado -- or what can be proved beyond a reasonable doubt -- that is supposed to tell us if we can trust him and ourselves once more.
At least half the world of sports fans is hoping, wishing Bryant will be acquitted before the first piece of evidence is presented. For to have him convicted of sexual assault would be to indict us for the latest example of our gullibility when it comes to these icons we have imbued with such a misplaced sense of responsibility.
Role models. It is only natural for kids to look for them in the wide-screen, high-definition arena where marketing and celebrity and sports bring them into the living room. It is the job of the so-called adults to separate the playing field from real life, to offer cautionary advice, to explain the dangers of assuming these heroes are no different than elected officials, next-door neighbors and sports columnists, all of whom have had their failings at one time or another.
In a recent Harris poll, when American teenagers were asked to name role models, Bryant ranked in the top three. What appealed to them most? His polite demeanor? His bring-him-home-to-meet-the-folks safe image? Maybe the fact that at 17 he skipped college and started making millions playing pro basketball?
That's not to say Bryant doesn't have many wonderful attributes worth emulating. Just that we tend to let performances in big games, under pressure, before the cameras, come to represent the whole overhyped package rather than a slice of the individual.
How many carefully nurtured images have been withered by the harsh glare of real life?
Mickey Mantle, Kirby Puckett, Ray Lewis, Mark Chmura, Evander Holyfield to name a few.
Don't forget the two biggest letters: O.J.
Just last week, ESPN conducted a mock trial to determine whether Pete Rose's past gambling should continue to keep him out of baseball's Hall of Fame. It is a debate that's gone on for more than a decade as keepers of the flame try to protect the little museum in Cooperstown, N.Y., as if it were sacrosanct, uninhabited by a single thief, liar or reprobate.
They don't know. Just as we don't really know a thing about Kobe Bryant.
Except that, for once, Charles Barkley was dead right. This role model business is tricky stuff.
Return to top
I'd challenge you to a battle of wits...... but you appear unarmed
"Stop talking, negotiating,
Your feeble attempts at world peace
Give me a %#@*ing break
Need worldwide genocide, planetary suicide
And when the whole damn world is dead
there's your %#@*ing peace"
"Stop talking, negotiating,
Your feeble attempts at world peace
Give me a %#@*ing break
Need worldwide genocide, planetary suicide
And when the whole damn world is dead
there's your %#@*ing peace"
0
Comments
Refs: Just Ask
DisrealTV-- i did not see the other article, just saw this one cause it's in the local paper, then i looked it up online.
I just agree with Mr. Blinebury's remarks regarding how dumb sports fans can be to practically worship these athletes when we actually know nothing about them. Put their name on an ugly shoe and we'll ridiculously overpay for them, even though behind the scenes that athlete may not be worth a $hi+ as a human being. People say crap about how Kobe is too good of a guy to do something like he's accused of , but we don't know the real Kobe, we just see the camera-friendly version. Very few athletes, or people in general for that matter, would actually act the way on camera that they do off of it. Athletes are just that-- athletes, and it is in their competitive nature to be rude, egotistical, spolied, and self-centered, b/c they've had everything spoon-fed to them their whole lives just because they're athletically gifted. I mean, Kevin Garnett makes over $75,000 a day everyday of the year and only works like 4-5 months, and completely refuses to speak to any member of the media in the offseason, i mean don't we as his salary-providers at least deserve that?? Not according to him. Athletes in general think they're above the law because they've been placed on a pedastal their whole lives and have rarely been forced to be held accountable for their actions. Most of them sicken me quite frankly, but i have nothing better to do than watch them. I don't like the athletes so much at the games themselves. There are a few guys i like personally (David Carr, Steve Francis, Yao Ming), but most of them suck, hell Francis was even arrested for DUI (although he was acquitted). Most people who acheive a certain amount of fame turn to $hi+, whether they're musicians, actors/actresses, or athletes. Oh well, what else am i gonna do?? I'll keep watching the idiots. Good for society they are not, but they are interesting
Erik
"Stop talking, negotiating,
Your feeble attempts at world peace
Give me a %#@*ing break
Need worldwide genocide, planetary suicide
And when the whole damn world is dead
there's your %#@*ing peace"
I don't think I was reading the chronicle on that other article, I was out of town.
Refs: Just Ask
Erik
"Stop talking, negotiating,
Your feeble attempts at world peace
Give me a %#@*ing break
Need worldwide genocide, planetary suicide
And when the whole damn world is dead
there's your %#@*ing peace"