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At first, I have to admit, I chuckled. But the more I looked into it, and realized how premediated this was, it made me realize what morons the bball team was. But, it will be brushed under the rug. Kidd was right, if the US team had done it, we won't be hearing the end of it for another year.

To me, it's obviously racist. What other reason would they do that? Pau Gasol was interviewed, and said it was meant to be a kind gesture, but didn't explain how. The Spaniards are known to be racist anyways. They prance like monkeys towards the black players in soccer games. I can't see how this could be misconstrued. I'm not familiar with their culture, so maybe you guys can enlighten me on that. Hey, maybe I'll put some ugly teeth, and send that as a kind gesture towards the English when London hosts the games in 2012.

It is the equivalent of "blackface". If not racist, at the very least very inconsiderate. It's the influence of their socialist government :)

There is one thing like being racist and bigoted - not good, and there is another in being lighthearted one that is all "relajo" and fun. These Spaniards are not doing anything wrong - I bet the Chinese have their own little funny things they say about us "white devils" - I know for example Hawaiian natives always make fun of doofy "haoles" (whites) all the time.

I remember many a funny times at Cuban households at parties where someone would pull out a joke menu of a Chinese restaurant in Spanish with Chinese sounding names for food that in Spanish also sounded like naughty bits - lots of relajo. Everyone was on the floor laughing, even the Chinese Cubans, who where happy and proud to be also Spanish speaking Cubans!

If this offends the Chinese I think those offended need to get a life.

But that being said, yes if the Americans had done this, there would be wide spread international condemnation by the media, the Euro trashy Olympic committee would censor and strip medals, and athletes would be disqualified, and drug tested just for the hell of it - it would be a show trail - we would have to personally apologize to the wily Chinese, Obama would also condemn the whole thing and apologize too, and the Americans would have to do community service. Also China's "pride" would be so so broken and emasculated that they would have to attack Taiwan to get national pride back!

I have been believing more and more that Chinese culture is very similar to that of Moslem culture - rooted in pride and retarded shame - just read the history about the Cultural Revolution and all the dysfunctional madness that went on in China - for ten long years - it almost almost makes Cuba look like the Vatican - well, not really, they are both equal in scale - and this ended in 1976, no less - so there has to be some real disturbed up tight no sense of humor mentally ill amongst those 1 billion screaming Chinese.

But then again, since they are Spaniards, and they do have a strange sense of humor, and since we Cubans stopped being Spanish a long time ago, and all the horrors those Gallegos did to Cuba in the past till today with their smooching up to Castro, on second thoughts it would be nice in a poetical justice sort of way if they did get some heat over this. Maybe the Olympic committee will require them to take a bath every day instead of every Saturday for mass the next day, and the women would have to shave their armpits.

I am conflicted, as someone who has Asturian and Canarian blood only about 120 years removed I do have some fondness for Spanish things, but on the other hand - being Cuban and knowing that Castro's dad fought for the crown, how he killed Afro Cubans, how the Spanish are involved in Cuba now and they don't give 3 f-cks about their former subjects, how they exploit the island, and that Fidel is looked as a native son done good by many Gallicians...

I would like to give them the benefit of the doubt. The Spaniards may have just been caught up in the Olympic spirit and since the host country is China, they posed as "Chinese" ... as the saying goes while in Rome do as Romans do ... they are posing for a photograph in China with a Chinese dragon on the floor ...

IMHO, at one point or another in our lives, we may have done something similar ... without any ulterior reason . . . lucky for us,the "political correctness vigilantes" were not around. . .

I wish you well :)Melek

"Humor is an affirmation of dignity, a declaration of man's superiority to all that befalls him." ~ Romain Gary

I live in a very culturally diverse community of about 100,000. Many people of Italian, Irish, Mexican, and Slav ancestry populate Pueblo, and there is also a decent-size black population here. We have lived our lives teasing each other about ancestry and (generally) getting along just fine. I probably would have posed for the picture.

For context: Eddie Murphy teases about race, Jesse Jackson is a racist. Don Rickles teases about race, David Duke is a racist.

I don't think that it is racist. I feel that Spaniards--like Cubans--have a more relaxed notion of race. To us, it is not racist to call someone "el gallego," "el negro" or "el mulato" ese. In fact, it is sometimes considered a term of endearment. In Cuba there were many terms that referred to Chinese people. Sometimes Europeans are born with slightly Asian shaped eyes and if a baby in Cuba was born this way, people would say, how cute, es tan achinaito. Another term of endearment was "mi chinita linda."

I think that because race was always such an uptight issue in the USA, there now exists a backlash to the slightest reference to race that can be perceived as negative in any way whatsoever even if it is really lighthearted.

Maybe they just all decided to simultaneously remove their contact lenses...

Would the world be as outraged if members of the Chinese Olympic team posed for pictures with their fingers holding their eyes open?

I have little interest in defending the Spanish, who have long done the opposite of helping Cuba. However, regardless of what country's team had their photo taken like this, it's at worst sophomoric foolishness (and the Spanish these days are far too "progressive" to be deliberately un-PC anyway).

Making a fuss over such a trivial matter in the face of the screaming, blaring scandal of China's oppressive totalitarian regime and systematic human rights violations is not only ridiculous, it's obscene. Actually, it's beyond obscene.

I lived in Spain for a couple of years and Spaniards are just totally OK with racial humor and concepts that would horrify the average American. For example, they have their equivalent of Goobers (chocolate covered peanuts) called "Conguitos." The mascot for the product is a chubby little African warrior. You could even get Conguito piggy banks! Cola Cao ads have a jingle with "Yo soy aquel negrito de Africa tropical!"

We used to laugh our asses off at this, thinking that this would NEVER fly in the US. Bottom line is that the Spanish don't trip out over making fun of someone's race. Funny is funny to them and fuck you if you can't take a joke is their attitude.

I am pretty sure that Spaniards are scratching their heads over this controversy.

Here are ads ...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KzMSmW8zh3U
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R5DzdXLjghU

Talking about "Conguitos" and the like, don't we Cubans eat "Cristianos y Moros?" I'm sure that wouldn't fly in an American restaurant. People from Spain and Cuba just have a more relaxed racial view of things.

Alot of Latin American countries with a white majority are backwards in regards to racism. Take Memin Pinguin for example. He was a Mexican cartoon character developed in the 1940's. He's adored in Mexico, but he's drawn with blackface-like features (big lips, wide-eyes, etc). Mexico decided to issue stamps commemerating him in 2005. Most people I know that are Cuban, Dominican and Puerto Rican see this as offensive since there's a good percentage of blacks living there while in Mexico and Central America, where the majority are white or mestizo, people wouldn't perceive this as a big deal.

Maybe the Spaniards need to "open their eyes", and realize that that type of humor is offensive. I wonder what kind of reception players that play in the NBA (Pau Gasol, Jose Calderon)will receive when the season starts.

This is much ado about nothing. It is part of an advertising campaign of a messenger/delivery service.

As for Memin, J2tharome, I can find you many Puertoricans who enjoyed the comic growing up in the island, and didn't find it offensive. And no, they weren't white.

Latin humor, from any country, is often misinterpreted out of our ability to laugh at ourselves and the fact that many taboo topics such as racism have always been approached from a humorous perspective.

How many times did we not do what the Spanish BB team did? For this to be offensive, it had to have been done with offense in mind and in a context that offended. But within the Olympics which are in China, and a messenger service, I truly do not see the offense here.

I'm really getting tired of people having such thin skin, and OTHER NATIONS protesting before the "offended" one.

Just this past weekend I was at a conference where the Multicultural Marketing person for WalMart (or at least one of them) who was Black, not only referred to Blacks as Negroes repetedly (never mind that 50% or more of the audience was Black), but then said something about "because you know Hispanic women like to have many children".

People weren't really offended by the comments, they were offended by his ignorance.

I'm sure this goes on all over the place, it's just that the Spanish got photographed doing it.

Wonder what the Chitcoms do behind closed doors mocking us? They take themselves too damn seriously. I'm glad Spain doesn't give a rip about this political correctness tempest in a teapot.

I think this was in poor taste and just stupid. To pose for a photo making a racist joke when you are going to be hosted by the Chinese is the height of stupidity. Had this not been the case, it wouldn't be much of an issue. Chalk one up for Spaniards who don't think before they act. TWICE!

Having one foot in Spain, so to speak -since both my maternal grandparents and my mother were Spaniards- I can assure you there was no disrespect meant. In Cuba we always poked jokes at the “Gallegos” the “Chinese” and others just for fun. My grandparents and mother never took offense because they understood the idiosyncrasies of the “Cubans”. Still, here in exile Cubans keep joking about the Chinese a lot. Who hasn’t heard that a Motorcyclist in Chinese is “Yomonto muchamoto”? Or that a married woman is “Tausa” and a single woman is “NoTausa.” What are most Cubans if not direct descendent of the Spaniards. Give them a break!

So I suppose all of us Latin Americans should just laugh wehn we are in Spain and they refer to us as "sudacos?" It is a term of endearment, right? And when Spanish soccer fans make monky noises at African players, they are just being good natured, right? Let's be honest here folks, Spaniards are some of the most racist people on the planet!

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