Pro-Bryant Web sites idiotic, evil

This is going to get ugly.\nStill almost two weeks before his next court date, Kobe Bryant's "supporters" continue to attack the woman accusing him of sexual assault. \nTom Leykis, an L.A. talk radio host who is syndicated to 60 stations nationwide, apparently considers himself a moral authority. On his program, he named Bryant's accuser on the air. He just spit it out.\nWould you care to guess his opinion on this whole affair? Yes, he says Kobe is innocent. He says rape is not a matter of sex but of aggression and violence, and which justifies him saying what he did. He says the woman is just out for attention and money and Kobe is the "real victim."\nThat's funny. Leykis already knows what happened even though neither he nor you nor I know the facts of the case. Apparently, these are minor details when ratings are on the line. Leykis saying the accuser is out for attention and money is almost certainly the best example of the pot calling the kettle black I've heard in recent months.\nLook at Leykis' Web site. He brags about "Leykis 101," an academic tutorial on "how to get guys laid." This guy's sensitivity blows you away, huh? His Web site talks about him in love-him-or-hate-him-but-you-cannot-stop-listening terms but then says he is not a "shock" jock.\nAppearing on Politically Incorrect in 1999, Leykis said the following: "We don't fall in love with you until we get some tail! ... If you think that we hear a word you say before we get in your panties, let me tell you something, we don't!"\nLeykis is but one example. Pro-Bryant Web sites are out there that not only mention the accuser's name, but also show a picture of her and list her phone number and e-mail address. If these people are fair-minded, maybe they should put Bryant's phone number and e-mail address for those who have decided that Kobe is guilty.\nLook, we don't know what happened here. I have no idea whether he is guilty. But protecting an alleged sexual assault victim's name is still the right way to go. Why were they not disclosed to the media to begin with? Think about that and the he-said, she-said nature of many sexual assault trials. \nCertainly we have to look at the bizarre worship we have for famous people. For somebody to love Kobe Bryant unconditionally is one thing. For somebody to love Kobe Bryant even though he does nothing in return for them is another.\nSure, Kobe is a marvelous player. He's entertaining. He got to be one of the best, and then he got better -- not something to be taken for granted by a person at or near the top of any profession. \nBut what has he ever done for you? Do these sleazy Web site purveyors think that Kobe is going to thank them if he is acquitted or if the charges get dropped? Is he going to give them a big hug? An autograph? The jersey off his back? Is he going to make a donation to their favorite charities? Is he going to make a donation to any charity?\nEven one of Bryant's attorneys had a problem with the storm of online attack upon the accuser. \n"I don't like it. It's inappropriate," defense attorney Hal Haddon told the Rocky Mountain News. "Accusers ought to face the people they accuse in a court of law and not on the Internet."\nPart of the problem is the obsession with the NBA's perception, particularly among African-American players. The words "street cred" have been mentioned quite often in relation to Kobe these last three weeks. People using the words have misinterpreted them to the point where they have no meaning.\nThat's because there's this feeling that an African American has to be arrested or live on the edge to have street cred. That's supposedly why Allen Iverson has it and why Bryant doesn't, even to the point where fans booed Bryant after he won the 2002 All-Star Game MVP Award in Philadelphia, Bryant's hometown.\nThat couldn't be more wrong. Identifiability makes a player likable. Maybe we envision being friends with him or her (or more). Kevin Garnett, for example, has street cred not because of a legal rap sheet but because people find him to be a regular guy and uncorrupted despite a monstrous contract.\nSo focus on the reality, not the perception. Think for yourself.