I think in this day of international travel, working overseas Etc that people should be free to say something if they have been done over or done something to, no matter where it happens. The driver could have stopped the bus and called the police if he felt he had been hard done by.

Considering the loud altercations between locals, that I often witness, this is no biggie.
The foreigner was not violent, or overly aggresive towards the bus driver. Just angry. I would be.
I can see it now. I am standing at the bus stop, the driver swamps me, I get on the bus and the driver (embarrassed) gives that stupid grin and tries to laugh it off. Result, I get angry.

I'm not guilty by association simply because I'm closer in skin colour to this guy than I am to local Chinese. Expat websites like gokunming are hugely beneficial but they can also serve to perpetuate the idea that 'we' are fundamentally different to those who happen to be born in China. This guy was pissed off, so would I be, and, lo and behold, so would just about every single Chinese that Ive ever come across in the last decade and certainly every single Chinese I've spoken to this afternoon. He did not get angry because he was 'white' or because he was 'not Chinese', he got angry because, like many bus drivers, this driver had disregard for him as another bona fide highway user. You feel guilty if you want to, but I refuse to take responsibility for another's actions simply because of skin colour - that borders on racism. I will not pander to the undercurrent of nationalism or perpetuate the myth that I am fundamentally different to those who happen to be Chinese. All this hand ringing by self appointed apologists points more to their sense of insecurity and perceived vulnerability. It does nothing to serve acceptance and integration.

Dazzer wrote: "We all look the same, and are guilty by association."

That logic is totally and utterly absurd and silly. I know some people think like that, but it's absurd.

Example: a black guy picks your pocket. therefore all blacks are criminals. guilty by association, right?

but wait a minute. Martin Luther King does something extraordinary

to advance the human race and sacrifices his life in the process.

so do we apply the same logic? are all blacks criminals or great and heroic people? both? neither? depends? shall we stop this silly discussion for once and for all maybe?

Absurd, and silly? perhaps illogical.
But people's perceptions will out trump the truth every time.

This guy could have been a million times more rude and pissed off, or even more aggressive.

It's not about where you are from or where you reside. It's about doing something that is plain right, for the greater good of society.
That jackass would have done it a thousand times more, if that foreign fool wouldn't have 'made his day'.

I think it's bullshit when people give you that "it's their culture crap".

What a rotten f&@#ing culture that is, where people treat each other like shit everyday.
What should you do if you see someone drown a baby because it's born with the 'unbearable' birthdefect of being a female, should you just walk by and say ..."Hey, look what you gonna do? It's their culture."

Who cares if some idiot loses his face if it gives a 0.01% chance of that idiot giving whatever he does a second thought of a possible consequence, and the well being of another person, even if it's not a "hao pengyou" and chances are extremely slim

I say: "French-Russian-Serb" get 'em all! And "Ni you ha ha wo" some sense into them.

If there is a culture that is in need of an upgrade to modern global civilization, here is a great place to start.

And I am not talking about some rotten colonialist white guy stuff, I have travelled a few rough places and people treated their enemies with more respect, than most people treat their fellow men here, in this place.

5000 years of culture my ass, I can't see any 'real' culture in here at all, besides aggression, war-mongering, nationalism, and hatred, everything else is a Disneyland version of what once was. I was just told by a "preschooler"!!! that the thing he hates the most is [spoiler alert] ...Japan.

Is it beautiful to look at that guy having a fit? Nope...because we have all been there, Foreign or Chinese, is he right and does he have the right to do it, disregarding his passport, skin color and where he resides. Yepididoo.

In the Western culture a jerk will stand out, In China a benevolent person will.

- A quote of a Chinese scholar, I'm honoured to call a friend..

Well, it seems like the laowais who don't look like the "we" people just got lucky here.

How many train wrecks do we need to see?
Before we lose touch of
We thought this was low
It's bad getting worse so

[Chorus:]
Where'd all the good people go?
I've been changing channels
I don't see them on the TV shows
Where'd all the good people go?
We got heaps and heaps of what we sow

They got this and that and
With a rattle a tat
Testing one two,
Now what you gonna do?
Bad news, misused,
Got too much to lose
Gimme some truth
Now whose side are we on?
Whatever you say
Turn on the boob tube
I'm in the mood to obey
So lead me astray by the way, now

I'm kind of wondering why he was standing in such a way that he COULD get splashed by a bus driver. Firstly, bus drivers tend to be very special IQ - it's a criteria, as they must drive the same route daily for years - spanning into decades. I'm sure that's something that could be automated, but China needs to keep people employed - so we're stuck with morons, susceptible to emotional or mood swings.

Secondly - the driver was probably somewhat amused that he got to splash someone big time - in a rather mean way - but slapstick humor is overwhelmingly appealing to the uncouth masses. Regardless of country - one should expect to get splashed (or tidal waved, in this case) in rainy weather and one should dress appropriately.

So although I sympathize with the victim's indignation - expecting courtesy and respect within a country filled with selfish, self-serving, uncouth, uneducated riffraff is an exercise in futility. As a literati - the guy should have armored himself up to wage battle (aka a cheap minimalist rain suit).

I think that all the foreigner was expecting was some apologetic look. Not getting laughed at. Like I said, that would pi** me off.
I doubt the driver did it deliberately, just carelessly. This is the land of random acts, thoughtlessness and lack of care afterall.
5000 years of culture. We are talking low culture here, not high culture. 5000 years of how ch do things, have always done them, and will for for the foreseeable.