Writer Loses Job for Tweet About Japanese Indy 500 Winner - Sensationalist Headlines

[url=http://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/motorsports/writer-loses-job-for-tweet-about-japanese-indy-500-winner/ar-BBBDuwd]Source[/url] [quote]A Denver sportswriter is out of his job after triggering an onslaught of criticism for tweeting that a Japanese driver winning Sunday's Indianapolis 500 made him "uncomfortable." Terry Frei, a sports reporter for the Denver Post, sent the questionable tweet shortly after Japanese race car driver Takuma Sato hailed victory in the illustrious Indy 500. "Nothing specifically personal, but I am very uncomfortable with a Japanese driver winning the Indianapolis 500 during Memorial Day weekend," he wrote. The tweet immediately evoked a firestorm of criticism on social media. Frei apologized Sunday but not after doubling down in his response to the first wave of heat by tweeting "THIS is what Memorial Day is about. Dave Schreiner's death in Battle of Okinawa. Not for squeamish or 'sensitive.'" Schreiner was an American football player who died while serving alongside his Frei's father in World War II, and whom the sportswriter had written about in the past. Unsurprisingly, another round of criticism followed, leading Frei to delete his tweets and replace them with "I apologize."[/quote] Later in the article he goes on to be hoity-toity about a family friend dying in Okinawa which has nothing to do with the Indy 500 nor the controversy surrounding it.

Bit rude of the reporter. Sato has nothing to do with what happened at the time. Not only that, I remember Sato fondly back when he just started F1. He's a very loveable nice guy, very polite. Won't know why such man would make him uncomfortable. Maybe a little chat with Takuma Sato would help. He probably understands where he's coming from, knowing Sato. [editline]g[/editline] I should say, I'm glad he apologised to Takuma Sato, rather than the people upset about it. Even though he also apologised to them. So as long as he sees it's wrong, I then don't feel much harm towards him. Just his initial thoughts.

And that's why you think before saying anything anywhere, much less on social media. Don't shoot your mouth off like a dumbass if you arent prepared to accept the consequences.

*Sees headline* Well, that sounds stupid. *Reads article* Never mind.

[quote]Nothing specifically personal, but I am very uncomfortable with a Japanese driver winning the Indianapolis 500 during Memorial Day weekend[/quote] [quote]THIS is what Memorial Day is about. Dave Schreiner's death in Battle of Okinawa. Not for squeamish or 'sensitive.'[/quote] "nothing specifically personal" immediately gets personal

I expected that he made a tasteless joke, but instead it's full on xenophobia. Wow

"I'm uncomfortable because my dad's friend died fighting Japanese soldiers over 70 years ago even though this guy had literally nothing to do with that" How do you think this thought and think "Yes, this is a reasonable thing to think and surely nobody will find this petty and rude!"

What an asshole.

It'd be like if a British person would be uncofmtable with an Irish trained horse winning Chetlum because of the Troubles in Northern Ireland. Or an Irish person winning the British Open. Fucks sake. Journalist is a moron.

[QUOTE=Simplemac3;52291281]"I'm uncomfortable because my dad's friend died fighting Japanese soldiers over 70 years ago even though this guy had literally nothing to do with that" How do you think this thought and think "Yes, this is a reasonable thing to think and surely nobody will find this petty and rude!"[/QUOTE] [media]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pSG7V5GRc2w[/media] imagine him sitting at home watching this while clenching his fists and muttering "remember pearl harbor"

This guy's got some unresolved issues if he's bringing second-generation family butthurt out and airing it publicly on the Internet because a Japanese person won a car race. From looking into his professional background, he seems to have written a number of books, and he's held sportswriting jobs at the Denver Post and elsewhere before, including winning awards. He might find it hard to get a gig that pays as well as his last for a little while, but he'll probably be okay. [IMG]http://www.terryfrei.com/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/.pond/1988Seoul2.jpg.w300h271.jpg[/IMG] But fuck if dude didn't/doesn't look like the exact kind of douche that would complain about a Japanese person coincidentally winning a sporting event on the US war rememberance weekend. :v:

[QUOTE=Simplemac3;52291281]"I'm uncomfortable because my dad's friend died fighting Japanese soldiers over 70 years ago even though this guy had literally nothing to do with that" How do you think this thought and think "Yes, this is a reasonable thing to think and surely nobody will find this petty and rude!"[/QUOTE] Reminds me of the tsunami in Japan and the surge of idiots saying stuff like this is revenge for pearl harbour and and that they shouldn't be sent any help etc.

[QUOTE=Cushie;52291359]Reminds me of the tsunami in Japan and the surge of idiots saying stuff like this is revenge for pearl harbour and and that they shouldn't be sent any help etc.[/QUOTE] I remember some nutcase saying Japan deserved the tsunami and it was a punishment from god. Imaging having that much evil and hate in your heart and using religion to justify it.

It's a fucking car race. The least political thing in the world, and you're making a fuss about it. What did you want the japanese guy to do, slow down on purpose because it's memorial day? Give me a fucking break.

[QUOTE=Cushie;52291359]Reminds me of the tsunami in Japan and the surge of idiots saying stuff like this is revenge for pearl harbour and and that they shouldn't be sent any help etc.[/QUOTE] [QUOTE=BlackMageMari;52291369]I remember some nutcase saying Japan deserved the tsunami and it was a punishment from god. Imaging having that much evil and hate in your heart and using religion to justify it.[/QUOTE] IIRC Japan was the first US ally to offer to send aid when Katrina struck. In some ways, the Internet was a mistake: it gave people like this international soapboxes whereas in the past their racism/war-grudges would be confined to, at most, Letters to the Editor columns in local papers. We don't have a proper sense of social literacy on the net and it's something we need to evolve ASAP before it's subverted and reduced to the lowest common denominator.

[URL="http://http://ftw.usatoday.com/2017/05/indy-500-winner-takuma-sato-andretti-autosport-responds-to-racist-comments-facebook-indycar-series"]Andretti Autosport just released a statement on this and other hateful remarks. [/URL] [quote] Dear Followers, The Andretti Autosport Facebook page is a place for our supporters, our friends and our families to come together in their passion for motorsport. This page is a place of celebration, a place of news and a place to share in a love for racing; and while we respect that this world is built on different and diverse opinions, any messages posted on this page that are profane and/or derogatory in any way will be removed and reported. Like each of our fans, Takuma Sato is a patriot and is proud of his home country. Andretti Autosport is proud to have and race with a field of drivers from many different countries and walks of life. For us to censor any one person’s heritage, no matter the day of victory, would go against the beliefs that this country is built on. America is a melting pot and we thrive because we look beyond our past differences and work together to build a better community, a better country and a better world. We are thankful for the duty and sacrifice of our service men and women. We do everything we can to honor our veterans. We remain proud and will continue to stand behind each of our drivers, and the colors of each of their nations. Thank you. [/quote]

[QUOTE=Jund;52291266]"nothing specifically personal" immediately gets personal[/QUOTE] Like saying no offence before saying something offensive, that doesn't cover your stupid ass from saying something offensive.

Okay, what the fuck. What the actual fuck is this. I don't see how this could be at all construed as being hateful or offensive to anyone. All it is is just a writer making a remark about his opinion. [editline]31st May 2017[/editline] What is this supposed to mean anyone can get offended at anything at the drop of a hat? Uncomfortable could mean a number of things and these people choose the absolute worst way to put it

[QUOTE=lNloruzenchi;52297003]Okay, what the fuck. What the actual fuck is this. I don't see how this could be at all construed as being hateful or offensive to anyone. All it is is just a writer making a remark about his opinion. [editline]31st May 2017[/editline] What is this supposed to mean anyone can get offended at anything at the drop of a hat? Uncomfortable could mean a number of things and these people choose the absolute worst way to put it[/QUOTE] How do you interpret what he said in any way besides "I'm not happy this guy won because he's Japanese"? That's not a good thing to say.

[QUOTE=lNloruzenchi;52297003]Okay, what the fuck. What the actual fuck is this. I don't see how this could be at all construed as being hateful or offensive to anyone. All it is is just a writer making a remark about his opinion. [editline]31st May 2017[/editline] What is this supposed to mean anyone can get offended at anything at the drop of a hat? Uncomfortable could mean a number of things and these people choose the absolute worst way to put it[/QUOTE] If your opinion is racist then you deserve to get called out, if this guy has a problem with a certain race he has to keep it out of his professional work. Unless you're arguing this isn't racist, in which case I can't wait for you to explain how else you can interpret his comments.

Even without the Memorial Day context in what world is "[I]I am very uncomfortable with a Japanese driver winning the Indianapolis 500[/I]" excusable

What a mug. I wonder if he's outraged that the Hondas outpaced the Chevrolets and the tyres are owned by a Japanese company too?

[media]https://twitter.com/TFrei/status/869036468429127680[/media] The dude's own apology even acknowledges that he has strong feelings about the deaths of certain American soldiers in WW2, at Okinawa, because he wrote an entire book about them and they were his father's buddies. His research into the histories of the fallen servicemen affected him significantly, so he says, and from there comes a lingering resentment against the Japanese for their misdeeds in WW2. This lingering resentment expressed itself as him publicly [I]having a problem[/I] with a Japanese man winning a US motorsport event on Memorial Day weekend [I]because the driver of the winning vehicle was of Japanese ethnic origin[/I]. This is the [U]definition[/U] of racial prejudice, or racism for short. He has apologized and, honestly, he seems to have a legitimate reason for getting emotional and I think he's being sincere, even if that's not a justification for being stupid on Twitter. But he's still apologizing [I]for being racist[/I].

[QUOTE=lNloruzenchi;52297003]Okay, what the fuck. What the actual fuck is this. I don't see how this could be at all construed as being hateful or offensive to anyone. All it is is just a writer making a remark about his opinion. [editline]31st May 2017[/editline] What is this supposed to mean anyone can get offended at anything at the drop of a hat? Uncomfortable could mean a number of things and these people choose the absolute worst way to put it[/QUOTE] Sometimes people should keep their stupid opinions to themselves

[QUOTE=Katska;52297286]Even without the Memorial Day context in what world is "[I]I am very uncomfortable with a Japanese driver winning the Indianapolis 500[/I]" excusable[/QUOTE] My exact sentiment. And sure it's the Memorial Day but god damn WWII has been over for decades. Any prejudice resulting from that is unjustifiable since the Japanese people of today have fuck all to do with it. [QUOTE=lNloruzenchi;52297003] What is this supposed to mean anyone can get offended at anything at the drop of a hat? [/QUOTE] That's pretty ironic considering that the guy you're defending was the one who got offended by a Japanese person winning a god damn race.