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Japanese hospital threatens to stab owners of illegally parked cars with needles

Casey Baseel Oct 3, 2018
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The parking lot is for people seeking medical treatment, and this hospital says it’s willing to give you a shot whether you need one or not.

In Japan, people generally try to avoid direct confrontations. There are a lot of reasons for this, but a major one is that Japanese cities are crowded, and being able to let small transgressions slide goes a long way towards keeping things peaceful and civil in the hundreds of little interactions you’ll have with complete strangers during the course of your day.

Sometimes the lack of space can be a cause of conflict too, though. For example, free parking spaces are few and far between, and if you’ve driven somewhere you’re usually going to have to pay to leave your car in a lot or a garage. However, some businesses do have complimentary lots for customers, and sometimes the allure of free parking is so strong that even people who aren’t patrons of the establishment will secretly leave their car there. That’s a problem the Seibu General Hospital in Saitama City has been dealing with recently, and the medical center has come up with a uniquely terrifying way of addressing the problem, as shared in this photo from Japanese Twitter user @matsujun5213.

さいたま市にある、西武総合病院の駐車場に無断駐車をすると、
罰金か注射をされる。

どんな注射かはわからない。でも罰だから予防接種とかじゃないだろう。 pic.twitter.com/8ua0y2S2ZB

— まつじ (@matsujun5213) September 26, 2018

The sign reads:

● Parking by non-hospital visitors is strictly prohibited.
● Owners of unauthorized cars will be fined 10,000 yen [US$90] or given an injection.**
● The hospital bears no responsibility for accidents, theft, or other damages incurred while parked in the lot.

The first and third points are pretty standard, but it’s the second one that’s sending chills down Internet users’ spines, and not just because 10,000 yen is a hefty parking fine. “Since it’s supposed to be a punishment, I’m guessing the injection isn’t something beneficial, like a vaccine,” mused @matsujun5213, and theories and reactions from online commenters have included:

“Maybe it’s just a vitamin booster injection?”
“I’ve heard that if you inject 10 ccs of air into a person’s blood vessels, it can be fatal.”
“Maybe they have the most inexperienced nurse use you for injection practice. They have her draw blood, give you an IV, subcutaneous, intradermal, and muscular injections. The whole works.”
“I hate needles. I’d rather pay the fine.”
“I kind of want to go take a look at the sign, but I’m worried they’d fine me 10,000 yen while I was parked in their lot.”
“I think they’d scare off even more people if they threatened to give them unwanted surgery.”

Aside from the obvious fear, some commenters reacted with respect for the cleverness, including one who pointed out that the words for “parking” and “injection” in Japanese are both pronounced chusha. Then there was one masochistic individual who chimes in with “I think I’d like to take them up on this offer.”

We should mention that, so far, there haven’t been any reports of Seibu General Hospital staff sticking people with needles against their will, and even the sign itself leaves the choice between paying a fine and getting pricked up to the car’s owner. Odds are it’s all just a tongue-in-cheek way of showing how troublesome it is for the hospital’s parking lot to be clogged with unauthorized vehicles, but all the same, unless you’re coming in for medical treatment or visiting someone who’s recovering in the facility, we’d recommend parking somewhere else (though not in this parking lot).

Source: Twitter/@matsujun5213 via Jin
Top image: Pakutaso