Fight breaks out on train over hamster occupying priority seat
An elderly man and a younger woman got into a physical altercation on a local commuter train in Taipei yesterday, after the woman refused to move a hamster cage occupying the priority seat.
At around 5:30 pm yesterday, a young woman placed a caged hamster on a priority seat as the train left Nangang Station. An elderly man who wanted to sit demanded the woman remove the cage.
However, a confrontation ensued after the woman refused to remove the cage, and called the man “neurotic” and “a meddler.”
An intense quarrel ensued, and when the man tried to physically remove the cage himself, the woman attacked him.
A young man standing nearby stepped in and broke the two up.
The whole incident was recorded on video and uploaded to a popular breaking news Facebook page.
According to witnesses reported in Liberty Times, the woman took her hamster and left the car in tears, while the old man stepped off the train at the next station.
According to Taiwan Railways regulations, pet cages should be placed under the seat, and the woman with the hamster was the first at fault in this incident, a TRA spokesperson said.
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Inconsiderate behaviour regarding seats is quite common on buses and trains in Taiwan. Many people place their bags on seats while timid bystanders to shy to assert themselves wait. Firstly, any person should not even consider placing their bag on a seat. It shows a fundamental disregard for other people. It means your bag is more important than a person. This kind of pretentious behaviour is learned from an entitled childhood or from a false sense of superiority risen from new found economic success or fame. There are many possible reasons for it. The same kind of behaviour goes for certain Mercedes or BMW drivers who believe they own the road just because they own an expensive car. Sadly, the fact that the woman even defended her actions shows that social civility is on the decline. The false sense of entitlement is only gaining ground in the modern world. This is why the number of violent incidents are escalating. Some people are knowingly being fundamentally disrespectful to other people and think they can get away with it. After experiencing many instances like this, some normally mild people lose their temper and become confrontational with sometimes undesirable consequences. I, myself, have harboured evil thoughts of cursing these individuals when I see their blatantly inconsiderate actions. More so, I sometimes even consider, as in this instance, giving the woman a slap on the face and telling her to be mindful, know better, and have respect for others. Unfortunately, we all know what the outcome of that would be. I would be charged with assault, probably have to pay compensation, and the woman would continue her inconsiderate behaviour with a sense of justification. Meanwhile, don’t expect things to get better. This is the world we are creating.