Paleo Retiree writes:

I’m curious about where visitors stand on the way that so many guys these days, on greeting each other, routinely give each other a great big bear hug, as though they haven’t seen each other in decades. Me, I’m much happier with a hand-shake than a hug.
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About Paleo Retiree
Onetime media flunky and movie buff and very glad to have left that mess behind. Formerly Michael Blowhard of the cultureblog 2Blowhards.com. Now a rootless parasite and bon vivant on a quest to find the perfectly-crafted artisanal cocktail.
Hugs are for special occasions only.
I hug my father when I haven’t seen him for a while.
I hug my friends at weddings.
One important hug was when I was a teenager and accidentally spilled a lit bottle of kerosene in my garage (don’t do this!) and my garage was on fire and me and my best friend just barely prevented my entire house from burning down. When we finally put the fire out we spontaneously hugged.
I think hugging outside of important occassions is pretty effeminate/gay. A strong handshake is acceptable male touch.
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Definitely not a hugger.
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Gay.
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Never. A handshake is fine. But it’s a generational thing. We lose
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Hugging isn’t normal; stop trying to make it a thing. What’s typical is the half-hug: clasp right hands and slap backs with the left. The guys in the photo are either in theater or live in New York… or are gay… or all of the above.
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Some male friends I hug, some I do the handshake/half hug and some just a handshake. Hugging ain’t “gay” but is probably a generational thing. For what it’s worth, my great-uncles on my mom’s side would kiss each other on the lips when greeting. I’ve seen straight elderly men holding hands on numerous occasions. I don’t worry too much about it. The one thing that does big me is when guys give each other the “just got out of prison” long, meaningful hug when simply greeting a friend. Just a pet peeve of mine.
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“Me, I’m much happier with a hand-shake than a hug.”
Thank goodness there’s at least one other in the world. Thought I was the only one left.
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