I think what you're debating is similar to how someone could tell me "gay" means happy. Yes, we all know that's the origin of the word - but in 2013, if you hear someone describe someone else(or something else) as "gay" you can probably assume they don't mean "happy".

Disclosure: I'm white.

I never thought of "thug" as conveying an implication of the subject being black. "Thug" to me is more of a attitude / mindset / way of life, not something that corresponds to race. IOW, it's as easy to be a white "thug" as a black "thug". In fact, now that I think about it, the context in which I usually think of the word "thug" is the phrase "jack booted thug" which has connotations of Nazis, who were - as far as I know - mostly white. The other thing the word "thug" brings to mind for me, is the stereotyped image of a big white (Italian, probably) guy in an expensive suit, working as an "enforcer" for some mafioso type or something.

Maybe it varies by region, age or other factors, but I would not think of myself as being racist towards blacks by using the word "thug".

Maybe in the US, but I am sure in India "thug" does not mean a black person.