Is this America? The Ryder Cup

[Ukigumo]

I was shocked by the abuse hurled at the European team by the American golf fans at Bethpage's Ryder Cup. Rory Mcllory in particular, received unseemly comments and a fan even threw a beer at his wife. I've never seen anything like it!

Are Americans emboldened by the arrogance of Trump/MAGA/far right? Are these the same types of people misbehaving in Japan and elsewhere?

 

[Lothor]

I was shocked by the abuse hurled at the European team by the American golf fans at Bethpage's Ryder Cup. Rory Mcllory in particular, received unseemly comments and a fan even threw a beer at his wife. I've never seen anything like it!

Are Americans emboldened by the arrogance of Trump/MAGA/far right? Are these the same types of people misbehaving in Japan and elsewhere?

I don't believe that many tourists are misbehaving in Japan. There are incidents fueled by thoughtlessness, cultural ignorance, and playing to social media, though young Japanese men are not immune to the latter (remember the japes at the kaiten-zushi restaurants?). When tourists do misbehave, however, their misdemeanours get a lot of coverage. I do sympathise with Japanese people living in places like Hakuba and Kamakura for having to live with such high densities of tourists, but if 30 million people plus visit Japan, there are bound to be some problems.

I don't think the Trump-fueled MAGA boorishness is related to the behaviour of tourists in Japan. What I am now seeing, though, is a lot more openly racist comments by Americans on social media posts related to immigration in Japan. Apparently, Japan needs to exclude the 'wrong type' of immigrant, so that the country can remain the orientalist fantasy of a certain type of white immigrant American male living here. Some of the comments about Indians, a group that has integrated very well into Japan, have been quite shocking.