You Talkin' to Me? Why all the hate for one of Philly's own?

From: Gonzalez, John
To: Fox, Ashley; Fitzpatrick, Frank
Subject: Kobe Bryant Gymnasium

On Thursday, Lower Merion High School named its gym after Kobe Bryant, who donated more than $400,000 to his alma mater earlier this year. Bryant won a state championship for L.M., but he's also a lightning rod in Philly and across the country. Any issue with the school honoring this way?

From: Fitzpatrick, Frank
To: Fox, Ashley; Gonzalez, John
Subject: Kobe Bryant Gymnasium

Not at all. I've never quite figured out exactly why Philly hates Kobe so much. He's cocky and frequently obnoxious, but so was Jayson Werth, and we loved him. Explain, please.

From: Gonzalez, John
To: Fox, Ashley; Fitzpatrick, Frank
Subject: Kobe Bryant Gymnasium

The "cut their hearts out" thing didn't help. But reasons never really matter here. We often hate people reflexively. Announcers. Entertainers. Team Talkin'. Bryant is one of those guys for a lot of people.

From: Fox, Ashley
To: Fitzpatrick, Frank; Gonzalez, John
Subject: Kobe Bryant Gymnasium

Maybe the school district could use the money to buy every Lower Merion student a Mac laptop. Oh, wait.

From: Gonzalez, John
To: Fox, Ashley; Fitzpatrick, Frank
Subject: Kobe Bryant Gymnasium

Zing!

From: Fitzpatrick, Frank
To: Fox, Ashley; Gonzalez, John
Subject: Kobe Bryant Gymnasium

Why can't we all just get along?

From: Gonzalez, John
To: Fox, Ashley; Fitzpatrick, Frank
Subject: Kobe Bryant Gymnasium

If it makes you feel better, the dedication included a mosaic (done by a local artist named Jonathan Mandell) of Bryant gliding to the hoop. Mosaics are fun for the whole family. I think we should get one for the Inky office.

From: Fitzpatrick, Frank
To: Fox, Ashley; Gonzalez, John
Subject: Kobe Bryant Gymnasium

Good idea. Let's commission Brookie.