The world is in an uproar at Kobe Bryant. Again.

I know, I know. It’s hard to believe. But this time, he might have really done something to damage his reputation over the long haul. He may never recover. He has managed to keep his high dollar endorsement deals and overall image above water despite rape allegations and people claiming he endorses kids to shoot up the neighborhood because he was in a video game commercial.

That may end. This time, Kobe dropped the “f-bomb” across the court at referee Bennie Adams after drawing a technical foul against the Spurs on Tuesday night. No, not the four-letter variety of the f-bomb, but rather the one that makes reference to the gay and lesbian community.

NBA Commissioner Daniel Stern moved quickly on the issue and has already fined Bryant $100,000 dollars. (Does anyone else believe there is roughly zero chance that someone other than Kobe would draw this type of fine?) The world is blazing about the incident, and Kobe has become a lightning rod for criticism yet again. He’s being labeled everything from an out of control lunatic with anger issues to a bigot and a homophobe.

You say tomato, I say he got caught up in the heat of the moment and said something stupid.

I don’t like Kobe Bryant. I never have liked Kobe Bryant. I’m not a Lakers fan, and I don’t believe he’s that great of a guy. In fact, I think he’s pretty much scum. But you know what, he’s a basketball player. At the end of the day, Kobe Bryant is paid money to dribble, play defense, and put the ball in the basket. That’s it.

There is no question about it. He shouldn’t have said what he said. He should have called him an “SOB” or a “bleepingly bleep bleep bleeper,” and that would have been perfectly alright by the vast majority of people that are throwing Kobe under the bus. There are certain groups today that you can slur without much recourse and some you can’t. My biggest complaint is that Kobe, who spent most of his life in places like Europe and Los Angeles, should know that gays and lesbians are off limits. He should learn to make fun of Catholics or Tea Party activists. That is a much more socially accepted method of insulting.

Kobe is trilingual. He could have dropped the slur in Spanish or Italian and nobody would be the wiser. Well, except for those that watch Univision in the United States. The point is, he wasn’t thinking. He was reacting during an emotional moment during a very important basketball game. I’m claiming Kobe should play the temporary insanity defense card. It’s sports. These things happen.

We need to come to the realization that what happens on the field or court of sports is not normal society. We need to stop expecting people to act normal when they are engaged in athletic competition and millions of dollars are riding on their performances. There is a different form of adrenaline pumping through someone’s blood when playing a professional sport is their livelihood. Kobe has 20,000 plus fans watching as he tries to be the best player on the floor night after night. Most of us have about six as we make our way from the cubicle to the water cooler between games of solitaire while we pretend to work.

So I say get off Kobe’s back. I’m sure most of us don’t want a camera catching every word that comes out of our mouths. Most of us would probably say some things that would get filtered and digested and all the poo would come back on us. Besides, Kobe is going to need that back of his. It’s only a matter of time before Bynum is out of the playoffs for good, and Kobe will be forced to carry the rest of the team to the Finals.

I bet Kobe will be smart enough to call Bynum names in private.