<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>BEIJING ?€“ Pau Gasol sat courtside with his feet dunked in a bucket of ice as the irony of ironies unfolded around him. The Los Angeles Lakers center had just finished training Wednesday at the Beijing Language and Culture University, where students from around the world gather to learn Mandarin and promote international understanding. Four days into the most global of events, and surrounded by buildings which foster social harmony across all colors and creeds, Gasol had to apologize for the actions of a Spanish men?€™s basketball team that made Asian ?€œslant eyes?€? at the camera for a sponsor?€™s advertisement and thinks it?€™s OK.</div> Source Here is what Gasol said: <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>“Some of us didn’t feel comfortable doing it just because to me it was a little clownish for our part to be doing that,” Gasol said. “But the sponsors insisted and insisted. I think it is just a bad idea I guess to do that, but it was never intended to be offensive or racist against anybody. “I didn’t find it very funny. I didn’t find it offensive, either. I guess some guys didn’t mind. To me I don’t want to be that way, I guess, to be doing that stuff. “If anybody feels offended by it we totally apologize for it. We never meant anything offensive by it.”</div>
<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>But the sponsors insisted and insisted.</div> I figured as much.
I really don't blame the players, it's always the media I'm actually surprised China hasn't said anything...knowing my people and its huge tendency to be very, very traditional and its whole ideal on respecting people, which I don't get why they are so...strict about it. Granted I understand the ideal of respect and humble, but seriously my people don't like any idea of humor of that sort.
I'm guessing they want to avoid any sort of controversy altogether, even if most people would support them in taking offense. That's pretty much been their M.O. during the entire Games so far.
If anything the Spanish team should be suing their promoters for holding them at gunpoint and making them do this. Oh wait, there were no guns involved and they did this of their own free will? In that case they need to grow some balls and own up to what they did. Ridiculous.
