So I hear Top Gear have upset the Mexican ambassador. I had Top Gear downloaded on my BBC iPlayer Download Manager and got a message saying 'Top Gear has been withdrawn' - I hope that's got nothing to do with it otherwise we are living in a very sad world. Fortunately, I had seen the episode and found it hilarious.
The repeat had the comments about Mexican food and national characteristics, but not the bit about the Mexican ambassador being too lazy to complain.
Speaking of edits to the Wednesday repeat, were the opening titles edited last week? The repeat had Jeremy saying that one of the things coming up was "A man from Liverpool drives a car", with the sentence ending oddly as if some slur against Liverpudlians had been chopped off.
And completely disingenuous. In writing this article Coogan shows himself up as being a bit two faced - he's been on TG three times and never whinged when they took the mickey out of the Welsh, the Germans, the Polish, the Americans or the Australians. Suddenly an attack on the Mexicans prompts him to turn about against his fellow petrolheads?
Also, I would point out, the group of people Top Gear takes the mickey out of the most? The English.
Regarding the comments themselves, I think that while they were controversial, they were not racist or deliberately mean, they were just playing to a (admittedly old, tired) stereotype. As anyone who's ever seen TG can testify, the show thrives on not mincing words, on the team's black-and-white, often insane but always forthright opinions. As myself and Gavin have discussed on Metropol, there is seemingly an acceptance of comments of this nature when used for purposes of entertainment within the content of the programme, as opposed to private comments between individuals. Loose Women demonstrates this time and again. If four middle-aged hags can spout out "humorous" claptrap about men on a daily basis, why can't a couple of middle aged blokes spout out claptrap about other countries once in a while? Television has tolerated far more offensive people than Clarkson, Hammond and May in the past.
I would suggest to the Mexican ambassador that if he's concerned about how his country is being portrayed, he would be better promoting Mexico's strengths to an ignorant public. Their lax policies on border control have made them cannon fodder to the USA's right wing media, and their popularity as a tourist destination aside, they really haven't done much to promote the various strengths the country apparently has. In researching the background on this event, I have discovered that Mexico is the biggest manufacturer of smartphones in the world. Got a HTC or a Blackberry? Was probably put together in Mexico. Loads of cars are made there, and it has one of the strongest growing economies in the world, and is in the top 10 in terms of countries with UNESCO World Heritage Sites. I always figured myself to be fairly clued up on things, but I didn't know any of this. Is this because of people like Clarkson? Or is it because no-one's really bothered about Mexico's strengths, the ambassador included? Or is it because of Speedy Gonzalez?
I would suggest to the Mexican ambassador that if he's concerned about how his country is being portrayed, he would be better promoting Mexico's strengths to an ignorant public. Their lax policies on border control have made them cannon fodder to the USA's right wing media, and their popularity as a tourist destination aside, they really haven't done much to promote the various strengths the country apparently has.
I completely agree. Until now, the Mexican ambassador has been 'feckless' and lazy in the promotion of the country he represents here. Sounds like the ambassador is after a quick bit of publicity.
So Top Gear can rip the French, the Welsh, the Scottish, the Irish, the Americans, the Germans, the Romainans, the Vietnamese, the Brazilian, the Canadians, the Aussies, the Japaniese, the Chinese...
...but mention the Mexicans and its different? It's all light hearted humour, the same way foreigners take the piss out of the British
they also took the piss out of types of cars murders use because Shipman had an espace or what ever, the Cumbrian gunman had a picasso but they probably haven't got round to talking the piss out of cars for gunmen
I don't get the complaints, it's that kind of show so what do they expect, it's like inviting Roy Chubby brown to a children's tea party then complaining he told a joke about lesbian nuns
