Over at CNN, Ruben Navarrette Jr. says to "Take food racism with a grain of salt" :

This week, I was on a talk radio show when the host — a white male conservative (what are the odds?) — asked me if Americans are so sensitive that we now have to worry about "food racism." [...]

ESPN broadcaster Bob Griese has been suspended for one week for a stereotypical crack he made about NASCAR driver Juan Pablo Montoya. During a recent ESPN broadcast, a graphic appeared listing the top drivers in a NASCAR competition. When fellow analyst Chris Spielman asked where was Montoya, Griese replied he was "out having a taco."

Griese has twice apologized on air for the remark, which — according to ESPN — he now realizes was "inappropriate." Montoya, who is Colombian, has taken the high road. Asked about the comment, the driver said: "Somebody mentioned it to me. I don't really care to tell you the truth. Yeah, I don't. I could say that I spent the last three hours eating tacos, but I was actually driving a car."

We're not going to debate whether or not the remark is racist.

We're not going to talk about the other issues raised in the article, particularly around the presidential primary.

We're not going to talk about the issues inherent in ranking acts of racism.

We'll just say this: it is always fascinating to see what the media deems an interesting conversation about race.

Take Talk Of Food Racism With A Grain Of Salt [CNN]

• So that's what Naomi Campbell was doing in Venezuela: interviewing Hugo Chavez for British GQ. Now they're sending her to talk to Fidel Castro. Is this a fucking joke? And if not, does she realize the whole Latin American socialist alliance thing is like, kinda last season? [Vogue UK]
  
• Selling real fur as "faux": clever move, Neiman and Saks! [Consumerist]
  
• On the heels of an ELLE redesign, Vogue is undergoing some design "tweaking" of its own. [WWD, 1st item]
  
• Agyness Deyn is the face of — well, the whole entire fucking universe, including the Armani cell phone. [Sassybella]

• Marketing ploy we just can't avoid: Blackberry has asked Karl Lagerfeld, Dita von Teese, Henry Holland and others to share their favorite secret spots for the masses on their new website The B List. Karl: likes eating tacos at La Esquina in NYC. Where they put crickets in the tacos! [Vogue UK]
• Signing bottles of Armani perfume in Milan, Beyonce shared how excited she was to go to her "mum's" for Christmas. Oh god. [WWD, sub req'd]
• Whoah: Over-the-knee Uggs. [FabSugar]
• Coach: still doing meh. [Portfolio]
• Lanvin Spring 2008 ads: you know, they said the giant tent-dress trend was over, but not really getting that vibe with this one... [Sassybella]
• Valentino Spring 2008 ads: who needs plastic surgery when you've got a giant handbag to shield your face? [Sassybella]