Offside Chat Archives (2014-2021)

Rest in peace

Holy crap, man. Seriously one of the best ever... 😢

I can't stop thinking about Colin McRae, Kobe Bryant, the late Leicester City owner Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha, Emiliano Sala, the Chapecoense tragedy, and even that hockey team Lokomotiv Yaroslavl. All those massive aviation disasters from the last few years just keep weighing on my mind.

Man,

A few days ago, a nursing home out in rural Pennsylvania burned down, taking six immobile residents with it. It was a horrific way to go—truly one of the worst possible deaths—yet I haven’t seen much of a public outcry over it. Meanwhile, the second some billionaire crashes his toy, everyone starts shedding crocodile tears.

The way people behave is interesting.🍿

Look, I get that you're special, but if I actually have to explain the difference between some random nobody passing away and a legend who spent decades making life better for millions of sports fans, smashing records, winning championships, elevating the entire game, and being a massive role model and inspiration to thousands of athletes globally... then we've got a problem.

Seriously though... you're so unique that you don't even need to pay attention.

Edit: It’s not like I’m overly devastated by the loss of people I don't know—I feel for anyone who passes away—but obviously, when someone famous on a global scale dies, it hits harder. So many of us grew up following these icons, reading about them every day, watching them on TV, playing games about them, or seeing them in movies.

Charles Roberts33 said:A few days ago, a nursing home out in rural Pennsylvania burned down, taking six immobile residents with it. It was a horrific way to go—truly one of the worst possible deaths—yet I haven’t seen much of a public outcry over it. Meanwhile, the second some billionaire crashes his toy, everyone starts shedding crocodile tears.

The way people behave is interesting.🍿

It’s always the same kind of moralizing posts whenever some celebrity passes away. 🙄

It makes sense that an average person would feel more connected to someone they’ve watched on screen for years, and that loss might hit them harder than something else. I'm not saying it's right, but it's completely understandable.

Look, most people didn't even know them and haven't watched for 10 or 15 years. Every death is a tragedy, but it’s honestly not surprising that you feel more connected to certain individuals, even if you never actually knew them personally.

Charles Roberts33 said:A few days ago, a nursing home out in rural Pennsylvania burned down, taking six immobile residents with it. It was a horrific way to go—truly one of the worst possible deaths—yet I haven’t seen much of a public outcry over it. Meanwhile, the second some billionaire crashes his toy, everyone starts shedding crocodile tears.

The way people behave is interesting.🍿

Look, it’s only human to react when someone who actually meant something to you passes away. Of course I feel for the people lost in that nursing home, or those dying in the Middle East, Ukraine, or China, but Kobe Bryant’s death feels personal to me. I remember watching the NBA back when I was just a kid, reading basketball magazines... even my very first jersey was a cheap plastic one of his I picked up at a drugstore. He was a constant in my life, a fixture in pop culture. And now he’s gone in such a senseless way. I feel bad about it, ☕. If being willing to accept that critique makes me a target for harsh judgment on this forum regarding human hypocrisy, then so be it. I'll carry that cross.

In an American nursing home, someone you actually know could go up in flames, yet you find yourself more invested in some nameless old woman and her fate than in a legendary figure whose work inspired you to pull a clown act at your high school talent show once in a while.

Honestly, Lord Byron, you’re just wasting your life following billionaires in red and white stripes instead of helping old folks pick up their groceries or cleaning up trash in a vineyard. Have some shame ☕

ruggedjackal46 said:Honestly, Lord Byron, you’re just wasting your life following billionaires in red and white stripes instead of helping old folks pick up their groceries or cleaning up trash in a vineyard. Have some shame ☕

I don't really follow them much anymore; more like watching highlights and reading between the lines. I've actually sat through six matches this season.

Charles Roberts33 said:In an American nursing home, someone you actually know could go up in flames, yet you find yourself more invested in some nameless old woman and her fate than in a legendary figure whose work inspired you to pull a clown act at your high school talent show once in a while.

Why on earth do you assume complaining on this forum is the only way to vent? And honestly, that bit about the nursing home hit a nerve. I actually followed that case, and it’s just one more example of how much this crumbling country lets people down. But hey, if you ask me, I’d still much rather be arguing about athletes on ESPN than debating the failures of our elderly care system.

That’s 540 minutes you could have spent in a soup kitchen feeding people who actually need it. What kind of person are you? Why does your own comfort matter more than everyone else's? You fed yourself, but what about the rest of them?

ruggedjackal46 said:Look, it’s only human to react when someone who actually meant something to you passes away. Of course I feel for the people lost in that nursing home, or those dying in the Middle East, Ukraine, or China, but Kobe Bryant’s death feels personal to me. I remember watching the NBA back when I was just a kid, reading basketball magazines... even my very first jersey was a cheap plastic one of his I picked up at a drugstore. He was a constant in my life, a fixture in pop culture. And now he’s gone in such a senseless way. I feel bad about it, ☕. If being willing to accept that critique makes me a target for harsh judgment on this forum regarding human hypocrisy, then so be it. I'll carry that cross.

Look, there's no judgment intended here, and I know you weren't coming from a bad place. It’s just striking how people tend to obsess over these vague, trivial matters that barely touch their lives, while completely overlooking the things actually right in front of them.

Charles Roberts33 said:I don't really follow them much anymore; more like watching highlights and reading between the lines. I've actually sat through six matches this season.

Dear Lord Byron, whatever is weighing on you, whether it's soccer or anything else, I hope a little liquid courage helps clear things up.☕

Elizabeth Mendoza said:I can't stop thinking about Colin McRae, Kobe Bryant, the late Leicester City owner Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha, Emiliano Sala, the Chapecoense tragedy, and even that hockey team Lokomotiv Yaroslavl. All those massive aviation disasters from the last few years just keep weighing on my mind.

Man,

Throw Michael Schumacher into that mix too—he didn't die, but it's like he did. We're never really going to see the version of him we actually knew again. 👎

Charles Roberts33 said:In an American nursing home, someone you actually know could go up in flames, yet you find yourself more invested in some nameless old woman and her fate than in a legendary figure whose work inspired you to pull a clown act at your high school talent show once in a while.

If Kobe Bryant had passed away two weeks ago, back when those little kids were still alive, you wouldn't even remember them. Maybe you would have found some other distraction to pivot the conversation, but I honestly doubt those kids would have given a single thought to it, much like how they're suddenly the center of attention now.

It’s truly, incredibly staggering that someone in the year 2020 is just now discovering that the deaths of two different people aren't weighted equally. 🙏 It feels like a repeat of 2015, when everyone was losing their minds because people were mourning the French victims during that night at the Bataclan more intensely than they did for some people from the Middle East or whoever else.

Every day, car accidents happen where people die, right? But those don't hit you quite as hard until it’s someone actually close to you who gets caught up in it.

Charles Roberts33 said:Look, there's no judgment intended here, and I know you weren't coming from a bad place. It’s just striking how people tend to obsess over these vague, trivial matters that barely touch their lives, while completely overlooking the things actually right in front of them.

Honestly, where else could you find a better example than the people who treat soccer like an emotional rollercoaster?😳

nimblemarlin9 said:Throw Michael Schumacher into that mix too—he didn't die, but it's like he did. We're never really going to see the version of him we actually knew again. 👎

Michael Schumacher crashed while skiing. I was actually talking about those people who died in private planes or helicopters.

There really is a massive pile of celebrities who have been wiped out in those private aircraft. Honestly, I think these private companies make a killing on the fees while cutting corners big time on maintenance and safety.
There are tons of these outfits providing private flight services that just pocket the cash and fly equipment that’s practically falling apart.

The list of singers, actors, and athletes who have died this way is incredibly long, and that's just looking at the 21st century—not even counting everything from back in the day.

Kobe Bryant was such a huge part of my youth; he’s woven into so many memories.
I remember those nights spent troubleshooting the TV while watching the late 90s and early 2000s era, or struggling to get the satellite dish just right. There were the debates over basketball prices and that collective urge to root against the heavyweights because we felt more like the Allen Iverson camp. Kobe was there during those endless nights out with friends where you'd eventually glance at an NBA game, or when you'd come home late and flip on a broadcast. He was even part of those wilder nights when the first live streams started appearing, or those mornings when we'd show up late to lectures and work because we stayed up too late watching him play.

His passing isn't quite as tragic as some other losses in life, but he truly was a fixture of my existence. Naturally, it hits much harder than that.