Barack Obama’s Bad Touch

by David ClaiborneApril, 21 2009

It seems that lately, any time the president or first lady of the United States touches anyone, the media has some kind of creepy seizure.

First, there was Michelle Obama touching the Queen!! Oh dear heavens!

Then there was President Obama’s “servile, scraping” handshake/bow with the Saudi King.

If you’re sympathetic to Newt Gingrich, you were no doubt outraged and terrified to see Barack Obama shaking hands with Hugo Chavez earlier this week.

And who can forget Barack and Michelle’s infamous “terrorist fist-jab,” or as another Fox News reporter put it, “fisting with one another.”

At the risk of appearing to make the common mistake of assuming the echo chambers of the media in any way truly resemble popular culture; are we really this hypersensitive about touching? And if so, when the hell did the memo get sent out?

The practice of shaking hands dates back to at least the 2nd century BC, and has been common in the western world since the 16th century. Many believe the ritual of shaking hands finds origin in the act of checking one another for concealed weapons, or as a symbolic disarmament and embrace in the spirit of peace.

Across the world, the etiquette for shaking hands often differs in many small ways, but one thing is virtually universal – to refuse an offered hand without good reason is seen as inappropriate, if not outright insulting.

It is a well-known fact that babies will die if deprived of a human touch. Humans need contact with one another, particularly as a basis for right relations.

Shaking hands, in all its many forms, serves as both a gesture of good faith and an opportunity to evaluate the other person’s character – they say you can learn a lot about a person from their handshake.

It’s no secret that Obama likes to communicate with his touch. Apparently, this is a cause of great concern for some. I understand that one of the best terms for belittling liberals is “touchy-feely” but I’m starting to think this has gone a little too far.

These kneejerk reactions to human contact reinforce a dangerous sense of alienation. As a society we have become so concerned about appearances, terrified of being inadvertently sexual, and mistrusting of one another’s motives that the basic act of touching another human being is becoming taboo.

But maybe I’m being too touchy-feely, and Newt Gingrich is right… like he said, “we didn’t rush over, smile, and greet Russian dictators,” right?

Oh, right… well, it’s unbecoming to the American president or his administration to be too chummy with known dictators from South America, or the Middle East!

Um… Saudi Kings?

Well, apparently world politics is just one big game of grab-ass. Perhaps we should keep that in mind next time some pundit starts hyperventilating over the president’s latest sign of basic human decency.

[Full Disclosure: I probably could have found more images to share, and I wanted to further address the "terrorist fist-jab," but I simply couldn't bring myself to Google for "Bush fisting"]

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