Austin

Hitler should be Admired, and Women are just Domestic Appliances

By Karie - Thursday July 8, 2010 - 10:44 am

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When it comes to the Formula One race track coming to Austin, I’ve remained more of an observer than an advocate or opponent.

Then I learned a little more about Formula One Chief Executive Bernie Ecclestone, the man Austin could be rolling out the red carpet for in 2012.

The racing community probably knows a lot about Ecclestone. But I felt compelled to share a few gems about the “F1 Supremo” with my fellow Austinites who may not know much about him.

First of all, Ecclestone told The Times that he’s a big admirer of Adolf Hitler because he “could get things done.”

“In a lot of ways, terrible to say this I suppose, but apart from the fact that Hitler got taken away and persuaded to do things that I have no idea whether he wanted to do or not, he was in the way that he could command a lot of people, able to get things done,” he said in the interview. “In the end he got lost, so he wasn’t a very good dictator because either he had all these things and knew what was going on and insisted, or he just went along with it . . . so either way he wasn’t a dictator.”

Don’t stop with praising Hitler, Bernie. Tell me what you think about women.

When asked about Danica Patrick racing with men after she came in fourth in the Indy 500 in 2005, he said, “"You know I've got one of those wonderful ideas ... women should be dressed in white like all the other domestic appliances." Not only did Ecclestone say that in a post-race interview - he said it directly to Patrick, in a phone call. What a nice congratulations.

ESPN reports that Ecclestone told Autosport racing magazine in Feb. 2000 that women would never excel in Formula One. What kind of woman would succeed in the glamorous racing world of Formula One? “A woman who was blowing away the boys,” Ecclestone said. “What I would really like to see happen is to find the right girl, perhaps a black girl with super looks, preferably Jewish or Muslim, who speaks Spanish."

I can’t imagine why that British silver-tongued devil has had trouble with the ladies. Expensive trouble, I might add.

So, Austin’s going to make some money off Formula One. That makes a lot of people happy. But I find it unsettling hat some of our elected officials will readily boycott the State of Arizona for their controversial immigration laws, but welcome an institution led by this lunatic with open arms.

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MatthewHunter | Points: +9 | Thursday July 8, 2010, 13:11 PM

Wow. He's all class and tact, isn't he?

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DavidKobierowski | Points: +8 | Thursday July 8, 2010, 13:53 PM

Thanks for sharing this timely information Karie.

Bernie coming to Austin brings to mind images of Mr. Potter coming into Bedford Falls and creating "Pottersville" in the classic movie "It's a Wonderful Life".

Bernie Ecclestone might be an embarrassment to many, but not to everyone.

It's possible that many, including maybe the City of Austin and State officials, will look past his "less than ideal qualities" because of the money he's dangling.

Here's a classic scene from "It's a Wonderful Life":

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O4ne13Zft9Q

Best,
David

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Eric_Beverding | Points: +1 | Thursday July 8, 2010, 20:20 PM

I guess the real question is a) whether, and if 'yes', then b) how much a CEO or other lead figure should/can be vetted in order to 'qualify' for residency (temporary or permanent) in Austin.

We've got one famous CEO in town known to have been involved in backroom deals and anti-trust behavior, another tax-incentivized company that recently had their CEO step down for tax evasion and fraud, while preaching corporate ethics, and for goodness sake, one of the main headliners at this year's ACL Festival once dedicated a song to Saddam Hussein at a Democratic Party fundrasier.

This is not a defense of Eccelstone's privately held and publicly expressed views, of which he literally speaks for himself.

It's an honest question about how citizens of Austin and the politicians that represent us should/can hold responsible corporations for the actions/views of their executives, or event organizers/promoters responsible for the actions/views of the those they present on stage within the city.

Where is the line drawn between freedom of speech and responsibility to the constituents (in terms of both fiscal well-being and/or a richer and more diverse culture experience)?

It's a question that we might ponder, but that business leaders and politicians have to act on and speak to, whether they like it or not. That may be part of the job after being elected, but there is the whole picture to consider when it comes to what is best for the constituents, and how each leader might see the greater good through their own vision, even if it might be a less-than-perfect solution.

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Karie | Points: +18 | Saturday July 10, 2010, 22:35 PM

Eric - you raise a great point about whether we should hold CEO's to a certain standard if we are going to bring them to our city. We can't control their actions and words, and we must value freedom of speech above all.

I think it would be interesting for some of our city leaders to weigh in on Ecclestone, I'm curious about what they think.

I really encourage you to write about Formula One from your unique viewpoint, I hope you will!