Quote from dawguk :

Ecclestone back-pedalled like a mad man after making his initial comments. He now claims that "I meant they were a joke, clowns". Bullshit. In no way, can his previous comments be twisted in ANY fashion, to suggest that this is what he meant. The man is a complete idiot.

Also, as for the Spanish being racist - I have a very good friend who lives in Spain (expatriate), and is a journalist that reports on Football matches. He is continually shocked at the level of racism that exists in Spanish football. He does claim that it is much worse than in England.

Fixed.

Quote from col :

Let me run this by you once more...

It doesn't matter what they hate him for! The fact that they choose his race as the focus of their attack shows that they feel there is something inherently wrong with his race - to them it is worthy of ridicule - this makes them and their actions racist. It doesn't even matter if they realise this or intend it.

Its funny that in your defense of these people, you giving in part of your description of their actions a very concise definition of racism: "They just use his skin color to single him out".

Like I said...

Is singling out Kimi by wearing Beerglasses and calling him an alcoholic racist? According to your logic it should be. If it is racist to portray Lewis as black, but not to portray Kimi as an alcoholic, then the only racist in this discussion is you, since you distinguish between race for penalizing the same infraction.

Using a racial feature to ridicule the man (mind you, not the race) is bad taste, but not racist. Just like using the party-animal side of Kimi for ridiculing him would be.

Oh, and they used his skin color to single him out, because it is the only thing that we can positively identify him with among the others. Rather like how Kimi is the drunk, Alonso is the crybaby, and Massa is simply the baby.

in short it's nothing more racist than people use to draw Takuma Sato as a kamakazi with very small eyes.

Quote from TagForce :

Oh, and they used his skin color to single him out, because it is the only thing that we can positively identify him with among the others.

in a rare lapse of genious they could have dressed up as american beer cans

Quote from TagForce :

Like I said...

Is singling out Kimi by wearing Beerglasses and calling him an alcoholic racist? According to your logic it should be. If it is racist to portray Lewis as black, but not to portray Kimi as an alcoholic, then the only racist in this discussion is you, since you distinguish between race for penalizing the same infraction.

Using a racial feature to ridicule the man (mind you, not the race) is bad taste, but not racist. Just like using the party-animal side of Kimi for ridiculing him would be.

Oh, and they used his skin color to single him out, because it is the only thing that we can positively identify him with among the others. Rather like how Kimi is the drunk, Alonso is the crybaby, and Massa is simply the baby.

All of those are forms of discrimination, and all of them should be treated the same way.

Shouldn't we be shouting at people also who is laughing at Kimi, Coulthard, Alonso and Massa -amongst others- just because they are discriminating them the way they are?

I mean, do you think Coulthard loves it to hear people calling his chin enormous? In the same fashion, it's nothing he had picked to have or to be, just like Hamilton didn't choose to be of his skin color (not like there's anything bad about being yellow, blue, white or black), so where is the difference?

Quote from dawguk :

Also, as for the Spanish being racist - I have a very good friend who lives in Spain (ex-patriot), and is a journalist that reports on Football matches. He is continually shocked at the level of racism that exists in Spanish football. He does claim that it is much worse than in England.

Spaniards, by a huge margin, are one of the collectives which uses the meanest and worst language that spanish allows (and that the language doesn't recognize), so anyone coming to spain from another country-culture will be shocked. However, anyone who has lived there for a long time gets used to it and does actually play it down where it has to be by spanish 'standards'.

Even though I dislike it, I tolerate -because I have grown used to people talk with insults in between sentences- their way of expressing themselves. I suggest that while not knowing the spanish way of speaking, you don't try to force comments about it as if they were the only truth, as they are misinformed. Has the guy lived for a long time and integrated in spain, he would know better, although racist commentary -but not direct offense- is common through the lowest classes, it's uncommon on medium class and a rarity upwards -where is taken as highly disgusting.

Quote from Shotglass :

in a rare lapse of genious they could have dressed up as american beer cans

I prefer german beer. With cola, please.

Quote from DeMS :

I mean, do you think Coulthard loves it to hear people calling his chin enormous? In the same fashion, it's nothing he had picked to have or to be, just like Hamilton didn't choose to be of his skin color (not like there's anything bad about being yellow, blue, white or black), so where is the difference?

The difference is clear.
There is a long history throughout most of the world of people being subjugated, abused, discriminated against and generally disadvantaged due to the colour of their skin. This continues to the present day.
There is no similar history of people being disadvantaged due to their chin size.

Is it true that he wants to ban points and put medals ? I read it in a Mexican newspaper webpage

He'll be in it again when I find his name on the BNP members register!

Quote from chanoman315 :

Is it true that he wants to ban points and put medals ? I read it in a Mexican newspaper webpage

yep, when i read it i was like "WTF!!???!!!11111" i thought ive seen really absurd things happen in F1, but i guess i was wrong