Posted by PresIke:



[Edited by - PresIke on 08-13-2008 10:00 PM]

that is some ridiculously idiotic marketing at work right there... i can't believe those idiots didn't think that would offend anyone... being in a nation w/1.3 billion offended hosts isn't a good way to ingratiate yourselves or the country you represent during the Olympics games when you should be celebrating diversity & cultures rather than ridiculing them.

Harold and Kumar go to the Olympics...

Posted by EnySpree:

Watching volleyball right now........thank God for those bikini bottoms they make them wear......christ.......I'm seeing all kinds of ass pokin out the bottom of those things!

Which one? Beach Volleyball or the regular kind? Man, Venezuela are wearing bikini bottoms while all are wearing short shorts. Beach Volleyball is just bananas.

Posted by NYKBocker:

Posted by Cartman718:

TMS........not all asians look alike.
that's a bit racist imho.

TMS is asian. Asians are diverse in that asia consists of not only oriental countries or "East Asia" (China, Japan, Mongolia) but other countries from Central Asia (Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan) , North Asia (Russia), SouthEast Asia (Phillipines, Singapore, Malaysia), South Asia (Iran, India), West Asia (Israel, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia).

Me being Filipino look more like I am from the pacific islands in that I am 6'1" and 235 lbs. Not your typical asian.

so i am guessing you are saying that asians are never racist against their own kind :)

Posted by EnySpree:

Posted by TMS:

Posted by PresIke:



[Edited by - PresIke on 08-13-2008 10:00 PM]

that is some ridiculously idiotic marketing at work right there... i can't believe those idiots didn't think that would offend anyone... being in a nation w/1.3 billion offended hosts isn't a good way to ingratiate yourselves or the country you represent during the Olympics games when you should be celebrating diversity & cultures rather than ridiculing them.

No way man this should not have happened. Not cool.

The reality is that Spain and some other European nations have some serious unresolved issues with "racism," (I use quotes here, because as I believe has been discussed before, we all don't even share a common definition of this term when using it) and still gets expressed in professional sports (although in no way exclusively) in its most overt form (Hence why during Euro 2008 you saw the huge ad campaign FIFA put out against "racism.")

Yet, I hesitate to step too far on the pedestal, because in the U.S. I believe we express our own "racist" attitudes in sports in more covert forms. I am not alone in sharing such sentiment, as Michael Wilbon touched this subject when interviewed on a Costas Now forum when he tried to address racism in sports media recently. Of course there have been folks attempting to get attention to this issue but face a tremendous struggle in doing so. Let's just take a look at who the majority of sports journalists are and wonder if that might play a role in why this topic is mostly ignored.

As for the Spaniard photo, it's interesting how it's mostly fallen below the radar amongst the other happenings during the Olympics. Some may feel it's just in bad taste, and even if all Asian folks aren't offended by it doesn't absolve it from being harmful or an example of ignorance. Chinese and many other East Asian culture's tend to emphasize being accommodating, or "face," which comes from a more collective sense and Confucianism.

You don't show someone up, or embarrass them even if you disagree, partially because that emphasizes your own individuality too much, and draws attention to you and the target. That's actually part of what makes Harold and Kumar funny and work, particularly Harold who is the more stereotypical East Asian guy who gets bullied around because he's been taught to be respectful of others and follow the rules. Yet the rules are rigged against him, and he has to face it every day. He hates it, and takes it, but if you asked him honestly, would he rather people treat him differently, and not take advantage of his kindness?

[Edited by - PresIke on 08-14-2008 7:09 PM]

[Edited by - PresIke on 08-14-2008 7:09 PM]

I just want to say, I think it is pretty darn clear the US team's style is predicated on D'Antoni's style of ball.

As soon as they get the rock, or force a TO they instantly push to the basket.

What's interesting is that they are winning by not relying on jumpers much in a style of ball that generally relies on jump shooting.

Of course, they have an unbelievable lineup that IMHO is the closest we've seen to the Dream Team since the initial one, but it's interesting that they rely on finishers, passing, steals, and D.

It does make me wonder more about the Balkman move. He can't shoot, okay, nor hit FTs, but he does all of the things that the US team is doing to essentially destroy all competition thus far.

I just finished watching 1 half of the USA-Greece game and it is just a perfect demonstration of 7 seconds or less offense, with TO's off of steals, blocks and good sparking buckets, and amazing athletes that can finish.

Balkman was good at all of these aspects, including running the break.

So, you have to wonder a bit more as to why did they feel so comfortable with dealing him so quick?

Blame Isiah for drafting Chandler, I guess (might as well, since he's king scapegoat round these parts), because I think if he was not here, Balkman would still be a Knick.

Oh, it's also pretty clear that the NBA and basketball is hugely popular, at least in China, but I believe internationally based on the crowd reactions.

The ohhs and ahhs are constant, especially for the US team, and its big stars.

Basketball and NBA is THE international sport from the US. I don't think any of our sports come close, except possibly Hockey, but it's not even that popular here. Baseball is out of the Olympics next time round, and Football is not played anywhere but here, for the most part.



[Edited by - PresIke on 08-14-2008 8:36 PM]

Man! Was is going on in Spain? They need sensitivity training over there.



http://www.nypost.com/seven/08152008/news/worldnews/spain_tennis_teams_up_to_eyeballs__too_124553.htm

SPAIN TENNIS TEAM'S UP TO EYEBALLS, TOO
By CLEMENTE LISI
SAME SLANT: Spain's tennis team in hoopsters' same offensive pose.
Last updated: 6:18 am
August 15, 2008
Posted: 4:02 am
August 15, 2008

Call it a double fault by the Spanish tennis team.

Following a controversial ad featuring Spain's basketball team competing at the Beijing Games pulling back the skin on their eyelids to look Chinese, a photo surfaced yesterday showing a group of female Spanish tennis players doing the same thing.

The controversial photo - featuring members of Spain's Fed Cup squad - was taken this past April after the team defeated China in the semifinals.

Team members Lourdes Dominguez-Lino, Nuria Llagostera Vives, Maria Jose Martinez-Sanchez, Anabel Medina Garrigues and Carla Suarez Navarro were photographed inside a restaurant striking a similar slant-eyed gesture as their hoopster countrymen. The photo also features members of the team's coaching staff standing around a table.

The image - originally posted on the Spanish tennis federation Web site - was posted yesterday on Gawker.com.

A spokesman for Spain's tennis federation, which is based in Barcelona, did not return a call seeking comment.

Spain will play Russia in the Fed Cup final - a women's tennis tournament equivalent to the Davis Cup - next month.

Meanwhile, the basketball team apologized Wednesday, saying the slant-eyed gestures in an ad for a courier service were not intended to be offensive.

One member of the basketball team, Toronto Raptors guard José Calderon, however, defended the ad.

"During a photo session where the Spanish national team was unveiled, one of our sponsors asked us to pose with a 'wink' to our participation in Beijing and we made an Oriental expression with our eyes," he wrote on his Web site.

"It seemed to us to be something appropriate and that it would always be interpreted as an affectionate gesture. I want to express that we have great respect for the Orient and its people. Some of my best friends in Toronto are of Chinese origin."

The International Olympic Committee called the advertisement "inappropriate," but imposed no sanctions.

The photos are the latest in a series of incidents that will not help Spain's bid to host the 2016 Summer Games in Madrid.

English soccer star Shaun Wright-Phillips was the target of racist chants in Spain recently. Four years ago, Spain's soccer-team coach, Luis Aragones, was caught on tape making a racist remark about French star Thierry Henry

Posted by Bippity10:

Posted by NYKBocker:

Man! Was is going on in Spain? They need sensitivity training over there.



http://www.nypost.com/seven/08152008/news/worldnews/spain_tennis_teams_up_to_eyeballs__too_124553.htm

"It seemed to us to be something appropriate and that it would always be interpreted as an affectionate gesture. I want to express that we have great respect for the Orient and its people. Some of my best friends in Toronto are of Chinese origin."

Oh no he didn't!!!!

Here is the full quote of Calderon's diatribe.


That settles it, Calderon is not a racist because some of his best friends are Chinese and the National team is sponsored by Li Ning.

FYI. Li Ning's number 1 american endorser is Shaq, another beacon for racial sensitivity.