I have often joked that I would, but I wouldn't.

Because, back home, how someone looks has nothing to do with where they are from.

Lol. I remember the 2008 Olympics. My wife was with me in the UK, and we were watching the track and field events. She could not understand why Britain had black athletes in the team. "But they are not British" she said. Goodness me.

So nope, I would never assume someones cultural identity based on looks.

When a gentleman or lady say 'hi, ciao, kon'nichiwa, bonjour, nihao...etc' it is a greeting. The same said by a thief is his trying out his key with your lock. Which is which, is a test on everything you have learnt regarding human beings.

No, I won't be a dumbass just because many Chinese people don't understand the difference. But if they EVEN DARE call me a wai guo ren, lao wai or something in my own country...

There's going to be a Hyper-Nova of Rage directed 100% at them!

I greeted counter person at the Chinese Embassy with 'ni hao' in my home last December. He replied: 'Chinese environment is very dirty, isn't it?'

Me: 'It depends, where you are in China. In Xinjiang, they wash the roads twice a day.......'

We had chat for a half an hour. Some 25 people were standing in the cue outside. I was leaving Embassy very silently......

No because they'd probably be British & more than likely a Cantonese speaker! So lei ho would be better!

But then why is a Chinese person saying hello to you "invading your privacy". You're more than likely in a public space when they say it. 

Back in in my hometown of Manchester & on the Isle of Man, where I lived for 12 years, people would frequently say hello while walking in the street, if eye contact was made. I never considered that an invasion of my privacy. 

I don't mind the hellos here as long as their is not a smirk involved!

More details on why I asked this.

Some idiot was harassing me in the bus today, repeating "harooooowwww" and making rude / racist comments, saying "laowai budong" *giggles*, after asking him to stop 3 times in a row, I gave him what he deserved, a real hard punch straight in his fat peasant face, then I walked away at the next bus stop, obviously he was not a local as he didn't speak Cantonese.

It feels soooooo good man, I had been waiting for this many years, the instant cool down after so much accumulation of dealing with this BS. I might start punching more of those morons.

I start calling them laowei! 你好老魏！

Nope. I know what it's like and the Chinese people I see back home did nothing to me so I have no beef with them, they're just trying to get by in a foreign country like I am. I never felt the urge.

I do understand why people might want to though.

I tend to avoid randomly yelling at strangers on the street. People who do that where I'm from typically have mental problems, are trying to rob you , or are trying to have sex with you.

I wonder if people also refer to them by racial slurs, and if they get offended, lecture them how it's not really racist, but just the way we refer to foreigners, and they're too sensitive, or don't understand Western culture (whatever it takes to convince them that it's their fault).

Do they keep calling them "foreigners", and making broad generalizations ("In our Britain, it's safe, but it's dangerous in China because foreigners all know kungfu". "Do foreigners know how to use a knife and fork?", or "Do you foreigners like American food?")?

its the giggle afterwards. Otherwise I wouldnt mind. I quite like people saying hello if they are serious. idon't get why they would not think that laugh afterwards is rude. Massive cultural difference there I suppose

yes, I mean no.  wait, is this a trick question.

I am a happy, go lucky guy. I say hello to many of my neighbors. I did so back home in Canada and I do it here in China......  I appreciate "hellos" ...  giggle or not.... small town boy ....  maybe in New York, or Beijing, they scowl at the neighbor, using up space in the elevator or on the street, but where I come from, a pleasant greeting is just plain "nice".

I wanna follow up on what dokken said one post up. That there's a difference in the types of hellos that are anger-inducing and stuff thats not. I don't want anybody reading this to get the idea that we're all anti social dickheads who think locals saying hello to us is offensive.

The guards in my building don't speak any english but greet me each morning with a Hello good morning! And that's nice of them. Ditto the nice lady by the office i buy my breakfast dumplings from. It's a warm greeting intended to make me feel welcome in my home.

I'll even say when for example a mother and a young child where the mother tries to get the child to say hello or something. I find that frustrating because of my personal space boundary issues but it's not offensive in intent so I can live with it.

What we all hate is when you're on the street and (almost always) a punk in a group of scummy looking men just shouts hello at us. Or like eorthisio said on a bus says it and clearly starts talking about you. The intention is everything. That guy's intent is to draw attention to your outsider status. You're just going about your business and you're being made a spectacle of for the amusement of a stupid person. That is offensive. 

i alwsys adk how peoples knees are doing