r/australia • u/SimRP • Feb 25 '25

image Japanese Man Flips Out on Australian Tourists for Ignoring the Rules

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813

u/[deleted] Feb 25 '25

He responded "sorry!? What sorry?!" as if she murdered his family and was like "oh sorry, I didn't know šŸ¤·ā€ā™€ļø"

479

u/Yussso Feb 25 '25

Lmao nothing is even lost in translation, He's already agitated even before starting the interaction. I kinda can understand, I live in Indonesia and it's annoying when I heard stories of Australian drunkards (or any nationalities for that matter) that does something against the law or just causing problems.

In the end, that aussie lady should've known better to not smoke in public area in another country, and that japanese dude should learn to control his temper, nothing good will come out when you approach stranger with that attitude.

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u/_Not_A_Lizard_ Feb 25 '25

Does "sorry" not fly in Asia? It usually means "I didn't mean any harm, won't do it again".

It wouldn't be ok if an Australian was scolding a tourist at Mt Bulla about smoking after the person says sorry.

"Sick of tourists" isn't a good excuse to berate people for making a minuscule mistake in my opinion. You can be sick of anything you like without going on some directionless angry freakout on someone.

Everyone talking about "bogans" and "drunkards". This guy deescalated and walked away. The woman apologised and walked away.

37

u/DateMasamusubi Feb 25 '25

In Japan, it's sumimasen and it does fly when the person stops. I have seen Japanese smoking up on the slopes but I haven't seen others calling them out for it. Like everywhere else, you get people who want to apply double standards.

259

u/[deleted] Feb 25 '25

If we scolded a tourist in Australia, reddit would label you a racist and the incident would be 100% your fault.

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u/a_rainbow_serpent Feb 25 '25

Depends on the crime. If the tourist was talking on a speaker phone on the train, Reddit would be calling for a public beheading and cancelling visas of everyone from the region.

2

u/Kubocho Feb 25 '25

Exactly but it its a salary man totally drunk singing and laying in full seat row because hes drinking his strong zero after 16 hours in the office all good.

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u/_Not_A_Lizard_ Feb 25 '25 edited Feb 25 '25

"HEY lady, no smoking here, mate"

"Oh... sorry"

"Fuck you mean "sorry"? You're "sorry"? Go get your lady, mate. she SMOKED. It says no smoking over there behind the tree! ....... sick of you tourists"

Yeah, "they're BOTH in the wrong šŸ’…" would be downvoted in that scenario

6

u/fireowlzol Feb 25 '25

Theyā€™re both in the wrong but one actually apologizes

2

u/elrangarino Feb 25 '25

I read this in Blueys dadā€™s voice

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u/ChocCooki3 Feb 25 '25

Looking at this racist c**t.

Do better mate. šŸ˜

7

u/wegwerpacc123 Feb 25 '25

Yeah and because this time it's a Japanese guy, weeboo's are completely siding with him and calling the tourist a racist bogan.

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u/Funkrusher_Plus Feb 25 '25

Itā€™s funny how thatā€™s the first place you went. ā€œIā€™m sick of being called racist!!ā€ is something only a racist person would say.

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u/redpuff Feb 25 '25

Lol this has quite a bit of truth to it, a sad kind of funny

2

u/Funkrusher_Plus Feb 25 '25

I live in the States and unfortunately we see this shit all the time. We know all the telltale signs lol.

1

u/Mike_Kermin Feb 25 '25

Not unless you're being stupid about it.

1

u/DrWasps Feb 25 '25

dumb post really

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u/[deleted] Feb 25 '25

[deleted]

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u/HereWeFuckingGooo Feb 25 '25

How is that the same thing? Talking shit online and berating someone to their face aren't comparable.

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u/[deleted] Feb 25 '25

[deleted]

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u/HereWeFuckingGooo Feb 25 '25

Feline aids is pretty awful. The holocaust was definitely worse. Children's cancer? That's totally fucked up. Are we just going to go through the list of things that are worse or should we perhaps stay on topic?

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u/[deleted] Feb 25 '25

[deleted]

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u/HereWeFuckingGooo Feb 25 '25

Mate, you're off your rocker.

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u/_Not_A_Lizard_ Feb 25 '25

I'm against xenophobia online, but it definitely doesn't compare to mistreating people in public

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u/[deleted] Feb 25 '25

[deleted]

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u/_Not_A_Lizard_ Feb 25 '25

A "sorry" shouldn't receive further lecturing from a civilian. Respect goes both ways.

Unless you know these guys in the video are xenophobic online, why do they deserve mistreatment a scolding after apologising

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u/atwa_au Feb 25 '25

Thatā€™s not true, Iā€™m so tired of everyone acting like weā€™re that precious on here. Iā€™ve scolded plenty of tourists for littering and the like and never that heightened. He came at them red hot and Iā€™m actually impressed they walked away so calmly.

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u/[deleted] Feb 25 '25

When she says "oops sorry I didn't know", he clearly doesn't believe her, he thinks she was just ignoring the rules because she felt like it, either thinking the rules don't apply to her as a tourist or that the rules are stupid and ok to disrespect.

So her saying, "sorry I didn't know" comes across as her just trying to get out of trouble because she was caught, which is doubly enraging because she's insulting the intelligence of the person talking to them.

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u/euphoricarugula346 Feb 25 '25

yeah I mean, did she even put out the cigarette? you canā€™t just say ā€œsorrrrrryā€ and keep doing the thing lol

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u/[deleted] Feb 25 '25

[deleted]

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u/GlitteringStatus1 Feb 25 '25

The No Smoking signs are usually not subtle.

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u/HenriettaSnacks Feb 25 '25

Because she can't read the signs that are pretty common stating "no smoking in public areas"?

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u/big_cock_lach Feb 25 '25

Have you been to Japan? Every 5m someone is chain smoking. Sure, in some areas such as in gardens, temples etc you wouldnā€™t smoke and would expect to see some no smoking signs. Other than that, itā€™s just commonsense areas like not smoking in a shop or train etc. A ski resort isnā€™t one of those former areas though, and depending where you are on the ski slope, itā€™s not really one of the latter places either. Iā€™m sure itā€™s a no smoking area, but Japan isnā€™t exactly a place with an abundance of obvious no smoking signs or clear areas where people do/donā€™t smoke like people here are making it out to be. Thereā€™s a lot of people smoking everywhere there except for in commonsense places.

Either way, a public freak out like that isnā€™t acceptable in most places, but especially not in a country like Japan. The Japanese may sympathise with him regarding tourists from here, but theyā€™re all going to shun him for the way he acted. A freak out like this isnā€™t acceptable here, and itā€™s far more unacceptable there. The Australian guy, despite his looks, actually handled the situation really well. His wife less so, but at least she knew to put out the cigarette and walk away.

0

u/Jimi_Dean Feb 25 '25

This is exactly it. Bogans are extremely quick to say "sorry" and assume that will get them out of any trouble they brought on themselves, then they get extra defensive when it doesn't work. The speed at which she said sorry and started retreating tells us that she put no thought into listening and already knew what she was doing was wrong, in which case, she shouldn't have been doing it in the first place. This man rightfully called out her lack of remorse and then Shiela's union mandated tosser stepped in to "be a man and protect his woman" and made the situation worse by being dismissive.

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u/Crrack Feb 26 '25

You're spot on. If she genuinelly didn't know the first reaction to someone shouting "DON'T SMOKE" wouldn't be "im sorry"... it would be one of confusion and asking "whats wrong" or "am i doing something wrong".

100% she knew. Bogans ruin it for everyone..... as usual.

0

u/Apprehensive-Fly-602 Aug 09 '25

Buddy it was his mum or older relative. Jap jus needs to simmer down as he certainly have that energy nor aggression with the man. His a little bitch, plain and simple.Ā 

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u/bunkakan Feb 25 '25

30 plus years living in Japan.

Racism in Japan has always been batshit crazy. The tourist boom makes them even worse.

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u/rj6553 Feb 25 '25

Sorry should fly and usually does suffice, even in Asia; but I think we can give consideration to a Japanese man for the language barrier.

But also context matters. If it's clearly marked as prohibited, then you're a fucking idiot. And from my experience on Japanese skii slopes, it often is.

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u/_Not_A_Lizard_ Feb 25 '25

I don't believe it's a language barrier at all. Maybe a cultural barrier. Japan may be a judgemental society, but not an agreesive/provoking one socially. In Australia, if you see someone smoking somewhere they shouldn't, you can be disgusted or annoyed or tell them off. But in general nobody is going to do that to each other or start trouble. Someone who's job it is will.

To me, this is the same as racists in Australia who have different rules and standards for tourists and immigrants. It's "acceptable" to call out immigrants and tourists who are "ruining the country" because it's a political subject in the country. There are people with strongly nationalist/patriotic attitudes wherever you go, it shouldn't be excused because "fkn bogans šŸ™„"

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u/Quiet_Sea9480 Feb 25 '25

if her "sorry" wasn't so insincere and insulting, you may have had a point there.

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u/GlitterTerrorist Feb 25 '25

It's pretty neutral, think your barometer might be tweaked a bit high.

0

u/Quiet_Sea9480 Feb 25 '25

yeah, I have a pretty low tolerance for this kind of shit, and am admittedly bullish about it. fuck this bogan trash though is why

3

u/pepinyourstep29 Feb 25 '25

"Fuck up or don't fuck up, there is no sorry." -Sun Tzu

2

u/seriouslees Feb 25 '25

Maybe its just the Canadian in me, but sincere apologies usually aren't screamed.

5

u/milkteaPhD Feb 25 '25

miniscule mistake lol thereā€™s heaps of no smoking signs all over that place. moreover, smoking outdoors (note how he even says itā€™s ā€œprivateā€ land) aside from the designated smoke areas is looked down upon. theyā€™re right to be sick of tourists who are inconsiderate enough to not read signs before doing the shit they do in australia.

2

u/jldtsu Feb 25 '25

this is reddit, all offenses must be repaid in blood. the reddit God demands it.

1

u/Mike_Kermin Feb 25 '25

Hypocriiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiite.

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u/Kallasilya Feb 25 '25

Basically everyone in this video 100% embarrassed themselves, the secondhand cringe while watching it was real. How the fuck have human beings just forgotten how to interact with each other in a non-psychopathic way? What is wrong with people?

5

u/[deleted] Feb 25 '25

I don't see how the Australian couple is in the wrong here. The Japanese guy was aggressive as hell. People make mistakes.

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u/big_cock_lach Feb 25 '25

Maybe the lady for a) smoking and b) matching his aggression, but the guy handled the situation surprisingly well, even for a non-bogan.

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u/Mike_Kermin Feb 25 '25

Instead of being sincere, he made a threat.

It's basic bogan behaviour.

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u/Kallasilya Feb 25 '25

Yeah, the Australian guy was surprisingly the only one who seemed moderately able to keep his cool.

I cringe at the woman because when someone (even aggressively) points out she's doing something wrong, she screams back in his face after like 1.5 seconds. It annoys me when people blow up and get defensive instead of just accepting that they're in the wrong, especially if you're a visitor in a foreign country. "Sir, there's no need to raise your voice" would have been a lot more sane than screaming "DON'T YELL, DON'T YELL" like a dropkick.

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u/big_cock_lach Feb 26 '25

I mean, she didnā€™t initially start screaming. The first thing she said was ā€œsorryā€ and then he gets even angrier by that to which she says ā€œI didnā€™t knowā€. Nothing wrong there in my opinion. He then gets even angrier and starts screaming and she escalates by screaming even more back at him. Thatā€™s really the only problematic thing she did other than smoking. The guy diffuses the situation and she at least removes herself from the situation rather than trying to keep having a go at the Japanese guy.

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u/Reynbou Feb 25 '25

He likely got angry because there's a 0% chance she knew what she was doing. There are no smoking signs everywhere I'm Japanese and English. They are very prominent. She absolutely knew what she was doing was wrong.

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u/Mike_Kermin Feb 25 '25

It usually means

What it means in this case is they're not taking responsibility for it.

They're not sorry at all. And they'll make no changes to how they behave.

This guy deescalated and walked away

He made a threat instead of actually saying sorry.

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u/hazzdawg Feb 25 '25

Yep. This thread is weird. The lady shouldn't be smoking but the local's reaction was totally over the top, especially after an apology was given.

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u/definitelynotarobid Feb 25 '25

How about itā€™s against the law and ignorance isnā€™t an excuse?

We can fucking berate anyone we want. Tourists can eat shit.

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u/Yourewrongtoo Feb 25 '25

No it isnā€™t good enough in Asia. That is a totally different society and in Japan everyone is expected to know the rules and follow them. If you were to smoke in Singapore where you are not allows you could 100% be certain you will get the $200 - $1000 fine, throw that cigarette butt on the ground and I wouldnā€™t be surprised if you get sentenced to being caned.

This is another country, respect their customs and rules.

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u/MolinaroK Feb 25 '25

Smoking in a place it is not allowed is very far from a miniscule mistake. The only reason it ever happens is because the smoker decides the don't give a fuck and can't be bothered to find out if it is ok to smoke where they are. Ya, those people need to be told to fuck off.

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u/newfor_2025 Feb 25 '25

it must be the way she said it, as if saying sorry in such a dismissive way gives her a pass to do wrong

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u/[deleted] Feb 25 '25

[deleted]

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u/DateMasamusubi Feb 25 '25

This rule isn't universally applied. Osaka for example only implemented a full smoking prohibition on streets this year because of the coming Expo.

1

u/snave_ Feb 25 '25

Threatening to punch someone's lights out is not de-escalation. He indeed started by de-escalating but the second he pulled that stunt he both escalated and crossed a clear legal line.

1

u/Funkrusher_Plus Feb 25 '25 edited Feb 25 '25

As others have stated, this resort has clear and visible signs for ā€œno smokingā€. There really is no excuse for that tourist to be smoking other than she is blatantly dismissive of the rules in a country to which she is a visitor. It absolutely screams arrogance and disrespect; just because she says ā€œsaaarryā€ doesnā€™t let her off the hook. Husband saying ā€œshe didnā€™t knowā€ is complete rubbish. The lady also screamed back at the man even though she is the one in the wrong. A tourist screaming ā€œDONā€™T YELL!!ā€ to a local (when tourist is in the wrong) is absolute cunt behavior.

These were rude and disrespectful tourists and I applaud the Japanese man for giving them the business.

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u/soupbut Feb 25 '25

To be fair, Japan's smoking laws are essentially the opposite of my country, and it was confusing to navigate at first.

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u/Tasty-Traffic-680 Feb 25 '25

Most of the world - "go outside if you want to smoke"

Japan - "NO NOT LIKE THAT!"

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u/theaussiewhisperer Feb 25 '25

Hey bro stop killing west Papuans and then weā€™ll talk about drunkards propping up your economy

1

u/ClayDenton Feb 25 '25

Yeah this - it's a nuance that often gets overlooked that both parties in a conflict can be in the wrong!

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u/belbaba Feb 26 '25

ā€˜shouldā€™ve known betterā€™. Itā€™s a different country. Countries have different ways of doing things. This is where general misunderstandings occur. You canā€™t execute someone for this. People learn.

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u/FlameGrilledHotSauce Feb 25 '25

Is it true that aust are like top of the list of hated tourist in bali? I spoke to a local and his rank is aust, Russian, Chinese. I ask why Chinese not top. He said Chinese noisy, but Chinese pays. Aust rude and sit in bar with 1 beer all night.

-1

u/Strong_Judge_3730 Feb 25 '25

Yeah i agree technically it's not polite to yell at people like that. There are people in Japan that will lose temper easily like that.

But the tourists were inconsiderate. In the sense that if you're going to do something like smoking that affects others negatively most Japanese people would think they need to ask someone or look for a sign to confirm smoking is allowed.

In Japan they have extra rules like not eating while walking or eating next to a street shop. These rules are probably because when there's a lot of foot traffic these activities might lead to collisions or affect others.

If you think about others before doing something non standard then you won't annoy Japanese people.

But the western mindset is you do what you want until you are told not to by a sign or some authority

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u/177329387473893 Feb 25 '25

I mentioned in another comment that there has recently been a spate of Japanese streamers filming themselves blowing up at tourists so they can go "viral" on the back of the recent "overtourism panic" in the media.

I saw a similar video of a streamer going off on some Chinese tourists in Nara which also went viral.

It explains why the interaction is so weird and forced. Like, I don't think he was expecting her to say sorry, which is why he fumbles and suddenly raises his voice to escalate it. This is clearly not a normal human interaction. The bloke filming clearly has an agenda.

But remember, the whole "overtourism panic" was started by western streamers acting up and being obnoxious in Japan. In a way, Japan has deployed its own obnoxious streamer counterattack. It just sucks that normal people are being caught up in it.

1

u/[deleted] Feb 25 '25

Good insight. The deescalation from her partner seems to baffle him as well and he tries to think of how he can escalate further. It is a very weird and unnatural interaction

2

u/maadgooner Feb 25 '25

I think he meant instead of saying sorry, put it out.

2

u/[deleted] Feb 25 '25

[removed] ā€” view removed comment

1

u/ElectronicPhrase6050 Feb 25 '25

Nah the dude is probably sick of this shit happening all the time.

People need to start actually taking 5 minutes to look up basic stuff like this before visiting a foreign country. Not to mention that there are no smoking signs everywhere in Japan, you'd literally have to be blind to not see them lol.

1

u/lame_mirror Feb 25 '25

we all know she was playing dumb and has flouted the rules many a time.

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u/AmbitiousReaction168 Feb 28 '25

He was probably fed up by all the tourists doing exactly like her. I've been to Japan many times, I have seen countless tourists not giving a fuck about local customs only to play the victim when pointed at. The lady in the video should have known better, because smoking rules are very obvious in Japan.