Esta Equipo Es Loco!!

This is crazy...take a look at this:

This is the Spanish olympic basketball team posing with each individual player pushing the skin folds of their eyes posteriorly so that the slant makes them look more chinese. Now I personally don't think anyone meant for this advertisement to be racist or mean in any way. It was actually paid for and produced by their sponsor, Sauer, and meant to show their hopeful dominance in Spain on this dragon adorned court. Good idea.......BAD execution. 

Who signed off on this though? If nothing else, assuming no spiteful intentions, who decided that it was a logical, beneficial ad for the company. I worked at an advertising agency for a year, and while I would never claim to have a lot of "experience" in that field, I can guarantee nothing like that would have flown past the concepting stage.....and even then it would have been questioned. I mean who couldn't forsee this going terribly wrong. 

My favorite part though is how all of the players act like they are terribly surprised about the global response.  As Jose Calderon, the team's starting point guard, says, "We felt it was appropriate, and that it would be interpreted as an affectionate gesture." REALLY? Bullshit!

Just another reason why..............GO PHELPS!