I'm sure the "apology" would mean the same if it were someone calling another person the "N-word"? You can't have it both ways people. Don't be hypocritical. These slurs hurt some people -- just because they don't hurt you, doesn't mean they don't hurt.

Why should anyone care what any of these stupid ass athletes have to say? Half the time you can't even understande them.

SO MANY FOLKS USE THIS WORD ALL THE TIME, GAY FOLKS THEMSELVES USE THIS WORD WHEN FRUSTRATED, EXAMPLE: PEREZ HILTON. GET OVER IT!

DeezNuts, gay people don't "get offended" with everything. However, they call out homophobic activity when they see it. Being anti-gay is wrong, and gay people are standing up for themselves and not allowing themselves to be denigrated with abuse speech, or have who they identify as or words that implicitly condemn them. The only people who need to get over themselves are anti-gays, maybe then you wouldn't see the gay community having to right the wrongs committed.

theres nothing to forgive. this country is so politically correct. people curse at each other and to others during sports. he was pissed. he didnt mean it in a homosexual way.
people need to lighten up.

Flyboy -- what I do know is you do not know what I do and do not take seriously. It is impossible for you to know that much about me based off a few comments. I never said anything about gays having public sex or anything about the kind of sex they have at all. I do not care what kind of sex gays have because it is irrelevant to what Kobe said. And my comments were about what he said. You do not know wether I am a homophobe or condescending? But you apparently think I am one or the other. So you have resulted in calling me names (which do not offend me) that point to the hypcrisacy (at least partially) that I was talking about. I have yet to call you names. And I guess we can all have a pity parade so you can get over feeling "disrespected" GIVE ME A BREAK!!!

Kobe Bryant has always been a bitch of a bitch.

T, the fact that so many people use this offensive word so often is a huge problem. That doesn't excuse this word. If anything, that should show us all that this is a major problem that is FINALLY being addressed.

Damn the Lohan's must be going effin nuts trying to figure out how to get back atop the TMZ Leaderboard! Snort a line or two and find the paps Linds...you'll be back on top in no time!

This happened because Kobe was caught on national television, how often does it happen and it is not caught, does the NBA accept this type of behavior from its players. Is this type of behavior acceptable in all sports, the more I reflect on this, maybe the sports organizations should be required to hold day long seminars on this subject.

To all the ***s that may have a problem with words....

...they have more than one meaning.

@Flyboy- I didn't say you were in the wrong because you "don't use gay slurs." You know that's not what I mean. If Kobe knew that the ref was gay and was annoyed with him and screamed at him calling him a "****ing @#@($@" then I would understand your position.

But the fact of the matter is, he used the term to refer to the ref as stupid or dumb. Many words have MANY different meanings. When people say, "That's retarded" they're not referring to a kid with a handicap, they're just expressing how mundane something is. Yet "that's retarded" is okay. There are hundreds of words that used to be derogatory that are no longer... DUMB is another one of those words... yet people use it so carelessly because they're not teasing actual "dumb" people, they're expressing the stupidity in a situation. I believe, in this case, that's what Kobe was trying to do, so I honestly feel that there is no harm done. I'm sure everyone has used those words, but they've become normal. No one thinks twice about them. D

It's pointless to even try to explain anything to you, but I tried anyway, because you'd rather just believe you're right and the other person is wrong. It takes a humble person to realize that there is always an exception to the rule. You're not there yet, so you don't understand. Just go ahead and continue living your "black and white" life.

Thomas, don't play dumb. You know what you implied when you said what you said about the street in Florida and gays. Get real Thomas. And I did not SAY you were condescending. However, your COMMENTS have been and continue to be condescending. If you take this issue seriously, then show it by your actions. I haven't judged you one iota. You have put yourself out there. Now, you have to back up your own words and are responsible for them.

Kitty, that is sort of the problem, though. Gay doesn't=dumb. Dumb=dumb. Gay isn't a slur. It's not about trying to prove something to anyone. It's about the fact GAY TERMINOLOGY is being used as pejoratives, and that has a direct impact on the lives of gay people, and straight people. Just because a word has become "normalized" doesn't make the usage of the words offensively alright. I don't even use retarded in that way. I never have. And you have to think, why isn't the n-word used like this exact way? Why, many times, do people get up in arms with the c-word? Because people know it's wrong to slur people and use someones' race or gender negatively. However, fa**ot is not unacceptable? It's either all wrong, or none of it is.

I see your point Kitty, and I don't mean to be abrasive, but this is way too serious an issue to take lightly. I can understand CONTEXT, and playful banter. This wasn't playful. Kobe meant to offend.

@Thomas- Don't let the troll get to you anymore, all he's trying to do is get a reaction of you. If we continue feeding him, he will have won.