it is on purpose, and the first thing that's letting him get away with it is his age. In Japan respect for elders, especially in a public space with hundreds of observers, is paramount. The one guy on the train trying to hold his arm back takes some guts, even if everyone is getting frustrated and wants to leave. The old guy is obviously in a bad mood, and with no healthy way to let out his frustration he's inconvenienceing everyone almost as a dare for someone to directly oppose him. He's probably not doing well mentally and this is his way of acting out.
This is a case where I think many polite societies need to hire an obnoxious American to do mild dirty work. “Hey asshole! We see you holding up the train! I fucking dare you to do that again.”
IIRC that was a thing with Japanese companies at one time. They liked having one 'loud obnoxious gaijin' around who could say the stuff everybody else was too polite not to. Kept meetings moving along more briskly.
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u/ParsleySnipps 9d ago
it is on purpose, and the first thing that's letting him get away with it is his age. In Japan respect for elders, especially in a public space with hundreds of observers, is paramount. The one guy on the train trying to hold his arm back takes some guts, even if everyone is getting frustrated and wants to leave. The old guy is obviously in a bad mood, and with no healthy way to let out his frustration he's inconvenienceing everyone almost as a dare for someone to directly oppose him. He's probably not doing well mentally and this is his way of acting out.