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The rage of Japanese railfans

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When railway otaku are taking pictures of a special train, they absolutely hate people who block their camera shots. Don’t believe me? Just watch this clip of one poor Japan Rail employee facing the anger of railfans:

[via Zaeega]

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24 comments - What do you think? Posted by James - July 16, 2009 at 7:51 am

Categories: Odd / Strange Tags: otaku, railfan, trains

stupid git

At least they’re allowed to take pictures of trains from stations without getting bullied by the police.
Greg

Really? You have to feel bad for people that are that obsessed with trains.
Matt

Amazing! Relentless! I love it!
helical

Ah that’s a famous one.
Railfans are one of the most notorious kinds of otaku for being absolute assholes. They hurl insults and obscenities at anyone (including station workers just doing their jobs) who are in the way of their perfect pictures, and have been known to remove installed equipment like fences just because it would get in the way of their pictures.

A truck is in the way.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k9OJL0c-CBg

A station worker and one of their brethren is in the way.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I7nMFPYuF7o

A station worker is in the way.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5SMIgGAHAoU

The only saving grace is that, for all their rage, there aren’t any tales of anybody being physically attacked … as far as I know.

helical

Gah, I just realized the last one is the same one in the article.
Now I feel dumb.
http://www.chirimotsumoreba.net Jordan

They sound like cats fighting in the night.

http://www.chirimotsumoreba.net Jordan

They ought to be humbled with a night in slammer. Morons.

RMilner

What! For trying to take a photo and some prick deliberately stands in the way?

How about rail way employees show a bit more respect to customers.

http://www.chirimotsumoreba.net Jordan

… Whose performing their duties as a railway attendant and who are the annoying pricks getting their panties in a bunch about a picture of a fucking train? This is a closed book test.

If you can’t figure out why screaming your bloody head off at someone in charge of safety at a train station like a toddler over a train should get you a night in the slammer you are probably as self-absorbed as these twits.

binsentokun

For all their yelling, I wonder what they would do if confronted with an irrate tourist who wouldn’t take their crap?
taksan

some otaku bullies or just simply major devoted rail fans. kinda scary lol
pixel_bomber

I don’t get it…

Why are they yelling at trains?

Can anyone explain this in English?

Darien Shields

These gentlemen are participating in the national pastime of “Trainshout!” (電車うるさい！), a fun activity enjoyed by many throughout the country. Together they loudly air their grievances of life and love at the cold, unmoving train. The objective of the game is to pile so many grievances upon the train that it is literally moved back along the rails. Of course, this is impossible, but as all Trainshout! enthusiasts know, it is the shouting, not the moving that counts.

The man wearing the hat is in fact a Trainshout! Lineman who ensures that all gentlemen present adhere to the rules of Trainshout! and do not use any illegal (banned) words that might give them an unfair advantage in offending the train.

http://www.chirimotsumoreba.net Jordan

HA! BRILLIANT!
G4tsu.P

Nice!
Japan need YOU to write their history textbooks ^^’
http://www.zdwonline.de Haf

Hehe, that’s a great interpretation!

Those guys really, really need to get laid…

RMilner

These guys are what we call ‘trainspotters’ in England.

Their hobby is to find out when rare or unusual locomotives are running and go to take a photo of the train.

They are yelling at the railway employee because he is deliberately standing in the way to stop them taking a photo.

I’ve never heard of bad behaviour by English trainspotters, but in England they are happily accommodated by railway staff so long as they do not cause danger.

helical

The station worker is standing in the midst of them precisely because they’re a bunch of hooligans who are standing right at the edge of the platform, beyond the safe yellow/white line.
The station worker has the responsibility to ensure the smooth operation of the trains and safety of ALL customers, regardless of whether they are regular passengers, or camera-toting, vulgarity-spewing douchebags. The best position to do so just happened to be in the way of their precious pictures.

His priority is ensuring safety and normal operations, so he’s not obligated one bit to humor the assholes who are nothing more than a nuisance, or worse.
In fact, all the people yelling at him could be liable for forcible obstruction of business under Japanese law, as they’re interfering with him carrying out his duties.

Hearing the attitudes of the railfans, being a prick to them is least of what they deserve.

http://www.chirimotsumoreba.net Jordan

Winner, winner, chicken dinner.
RMilner

If you look at the start of the clip, it’s quite clear that the photographers are behind the yellow line. Only the ones whose LoS is obstructed by the railway guy get angry.

Any danger created is caused by the railwayman’s bad public management skills. He could defuse the entire situation by stepping back out of the LoS.

I suspect (this is simply an attribution and may be wrong) that the railway guy feels his ‘authoritah’ is being flouted and he wants to try and impose it.

The Overthinker

Hell, if I was being rudely yelled at by a bunch of nerds I would not cooperate either. Whatever happened to “please”? In fact I would get on my CB thing to the station police and claim I felt in danger.
schwelty

Hey RMilner, STUF AND GTFO.

David

I agree with helical. What a bunch of assholes.
Flaffer

I would note that if someone in, say, NYC or Chicago, yelled like that at a train employee, they would soon be removing railroad spikes from their posterior region, as well as pummeling the train employees’fists with their face.

The rage of Japanese railfans

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