Thread: Rude Chinese Tourists - news story

But crapping on a floor in an airport ... is rude in ANY language!

A slightly different take on this story, from a Hong Kong news site, complete with picture:

A photo of a mainland toddler defecating in public at an airport in Taiwan has sparked anger and criticism from internet users in Taiwan and China.
It showed a toddler relieving himself on paper possibly prepared by her mother. A toilet was only a minute's walk away, said the report.

"There aren’t enough public toilets in China and the ones they do have are usually dirty," commented a Taiwanese blogger, "This might explain mainlanders' poor hygiene habits."

"This is a typical mainland parent who spoils their children," said a mainland netizen on China's twitter-like Sina Weibo.
"This is so embarassing, " said another mainland blogger.

I thought the observation from the Taiwanese commenter was especially insightful -- possibly, the mother allowed her child to crap on a newspaper not because she was a terribly rude person, but because she believed (mistakenly) that the public toilets in Taiwanese airports are as filthy and stinky as the typical public toilets in mainland China.

It's also possible that in the traditional rural culture of mainland China, encouraging the kid to poop on a piece of newspaper is considered to be more hygienic/healthy than placing the child's bottom on a modern, Western-style public toilet seat (other people's asses have been on the toilet seat, and besides, brown poopy water might splash up on the child's butt!). In other words, the woman wasn't being "rude"; she was just acting like a hick/hayseed/hillbilly.

Finally, I would point out that while the blogger from Taiwan avoided moral judgement, the Twitter users from the Chinese mainland described their "fellow mainlander" as anembarrassing parent who spoils her child.

Which is to say, they were harsher towards "one of their own", just as certain Americans [waving at Deborski] are particularly critical of other Americans!

Originally Posted by Throbert McGee

Which is to say, they were harsher towards "one of their own", just as certain Americans [waving at Deborski] are particularly critical of other Americans!

I think we ALL should be critical of our own! Criticism helps to bring about needed changes.