It seems that the resort is a very popular destination for the Israeli Orthodox Jewish community. The equipment rental shop has had an ongoing issue where the Israeli tourists were not bringing back the equipment. The shop got irritated with the recurring problem and decided to not rent to them anymore.

I live in a ski resort town. Tourists suck, it goes with the territory. It seems like the better solution would have been to pre-approve a deposit on their credit card. If they fail to return, they become the proud owners of a grossly overpriced used piece of gear.

But Swiss anti-racism groups point out that targeting an entire racial, religious or ethnic group because of the alleged bad behaviour of a few is more serious than clumsy wording; in fact it's a classic sign of racism and discrimination.

A better way to prevent theft and damage, they say, would be to do what many ski hire shops already do: take an ID and a credit card from customers.