Let's fight H1N1 by abolishing the handshake.

[Valteron]

The World Health Organization has just declared H1N1 (wrongly known as swine flu) to have reached level 6, making it a pandemic.

We all know some version of the story by which a 19th-Century British Doctor, John Snow, reduced the incidence of Cholera in London by simply removing the handle from a public drinking water pump that he suspected of being infested with the disease. See John Snow - Wikipedia

Now, we know that H1N1, and regular flu (which kills about half a million persons annually, don’t forget!) are both spread by human contact. And the handshake is probably the biggest villain.

I also notice that at the present time, the new flu strain is especially present in countries where people shake hands as a social greeting.

So how about it? Let’s start a movement to abolish the handshake.

After all what does the handshake achieve anyhow? It was supposedly a way of showing people you met that you had no weapon in your hand. So what?

Since we need a form of social greeting, why not just raise a hand, nod our head in the direction of the person, and say “Hi there” or “Pleased to meet you”.

If the person you are meeting offers you their hand anyhow, just say “Sorry, it’s a new custom for the flu season, but I am pleased to meet you” and repeat the gesture with a friendly smile. Before long, people would catch on.

With the power of the Internet, we could abolish the unsanitary handshake in a matter of weeks everywhere on Earth. It would not end the flu, but it would do a lot to counteract it.

Who is with me on this? Get on Youtube, get on Facebook, spread the word. Let’s get a catchy name for the new custom.

[Beadalin]

I think you’d be a lot more successful – which is to say, not very – convincing people to just wash their damn hands. It’s not that hard to do, and it prevents the spread of the flu and plenty of other diseases better than… well, than pretty much anything.

[Valteron]

@Beadalin

I think you’d be a lot more successful – which is to say, not very – convincing people to just wash their damn hands. It’s not that hard to do, and it prevents the spread of the flu and plenty of other diseases better than… well, than pretty much anything.

So who sez you can’t do both? You actually prove my point by saying that not everybody washes their hands. Think of the politician who carefully washes his hands and then goes out to greet 50 constituents. ALL of them have washed their hands except for number 4, who has just sneezed a bunch of flu germs into his palm. So now our clean-handed politician moves down the line and spreads flu germs to constituents no. 5 thru 50.

If we can encourage people to wash we can encourage people to abolish the handshake.

[Uosdwis_R.Dewoh]

I’ll give you my handshake when you take it from my cold, dead hands. The Nazis didn’t shake hands, you don’t want to be a Nazi, do you?:dubious:

But seriously. How many times do we shake hands per day? I bet we get more germs from opening doors, using handrails and pushing shopping carts.

[LilShieste]

Person A: Hey, how’s it going?
extends handshake

Person B: I’m alright.
raises hand to wave

Person A: Oh, I see. You’re just too good to shake my hand, huh? Geez, people like you make me sick!
spits

[Valteron]

@LilShieste

Person A: Hey, how’s it going?
extends handshake

Person B: I’m alright.
raises hand to wave

Person A: Oh, I see. You’re just too good to shake my hand, huh? Geez, people like you make me sick!
spits

All you have to say is “It’s a new custom to help fight the flu. What makes you think I am avoiding YOUR germs? How do you know I am not the one who has the germs on HIS hand?”

[Valteron]

@Uosdwis_R.Dewoh

I’ll give you my handshake when you take it from my cold, dead hands. The Nazis didn’t shake hands, you don’t want to be a Nazi, do you?:dubious:

But seriously. How many times do we shake hands per day? I bet we get more germs from opening doors, using handrails and pushing shopping carts.

There are politicians and business persons who shake hands hundreds of times a day. And guess what, nobody says you can’t put hand sanitizers near shopping carts.

What is with you people? I don’t remember saying “Let’s abolish handshaking and then take no further measures.”

[LilShieste]

@Valteron

And guess what, nobody says you can’t put hand sanitizers near shopping carts.

Well, by that token, nobody says that you can’t just carry around one of those small bottles of hand sanitizer in your pocket. After you shake someone’s hand, sanitize your own.

Trying to abolish the handshake to address this problem is a bit like nuking it from orbit.

[Ravenman]

I like handshakes. I think it is a a social custom that is a bulwark against the increasing sterility of society, where people think the Internet is a reasonable substitute for a real social life, where soap isn’t trusted unless it is advertised as antibacterial, where the thought that germs and dirt exist in hotel rooms is regarded as completely disgusting, and where everything has to be individually wrapped to protect it from the world. It’s human contact! It’s a good thing! Not to be feared!

If anything, I say we do more handshakes, more hugs, and even more of those air kissy thingies.

[Kobal2]

@LilShieste

Well, by that token, nobody says that you can’t just carry around one of those small bottles of hand sanitizer in your pocket. After you shake someone’s hand, sanitize your own.

Trying to abolish the handshake to address this problem is a bit like nuking it from orbit.

Actually, it’s more like asking everyone to close their eyes so that the Alien hive ceases to exist.

[Baal_Houtham]

Anytime I can get away with it, I match a proffered hand with a fist and say, “Terrorist fist bump.” I won’t do it if I could directly lose money by spurning the handshake.

Frequently this leads to short, involving conversations about Obama, and germs, and it’s more interesting than the handshake would have been.

As for for just washing hands instead of giving up handshakes, I find myself rubbing (or picking) my nose many times a day. Recently my daughter had a staph infection and everyone in the house was using hand sanitizer at the start and end of every restroom visit. I’d sanitize my hands and then three minutes later realize that I had to rub my nostrils.

My understanding is that diseases are usually spread hand to hand, but the nose is where they incubate and survive long term.

[Bryan_Ekers]

My army unit’s installed hand-sanitizer dispensers everywhere.

Well, plus we salute about as much as we handshake, anyway.

[begbert2]

@Bryan_Ekers

My army unit’s installed hand-sanitizer dispensers everywhere.

Well, plus we salute about as much as we handshake, anyway.

We’ll let you keep the salute.

For now.

[sailor]

@Ravenman

I like handshakes. I think it is a a social custom that is a bulwark against the increasing sterility of society, where people think the Internet is a reasonable substitute for a real social life, where soap isn’t trusted unless it is advertised as antibacterial, where the thought that germs and dirt exist in hotel rooms is regarded as completely disgusting, and where everything has to be individually wrapped to protect it from the world. It’s human contact! It’s a good thing! Not to be feared!

If anything, I say we do more handshakes, more hugs, and even more of those air kissy thingies.

And get rid of condoms! Enjoy your sex! It’s just HIV for chassakes!

[Chronos]

I don’t know if this is practical in society at large, but we could probably get the handshake replaced with the Vulcan “Live Long and Prosper” salute in the circles I usually move in.

[El_Kabong]

Here you go; don’t even need to change the name. You want to greet someone, each person stands about six feet apart, raises their right hand to shoulder level and, well, shakes it around a little.

There, the new model hand shake.

[begbert2]

@Chronos

I don’t know if this is practical in society at large, but we could probably get the handshake replaced with the Vulcan “Live Long and Prosper” salute in the circles I usually move in.

Is that a salutation, though? I (having watched deplirably little Star Trek) always had the impression that was done upon parting.

@El_Kabong

Here you go; don’t even need to change the name. You want to greet someone, each person stands about six feet apart, raises their right hand to shoulder level and, well, shakes it around a little.

There, the new model hand shake.

Tricky to do in an elevator, though.
Personally I suggest that whenever somebody extends a hand to shake yours, sneeze into your own hand. Odds are decent that they’ll pull back their hand without being asked.

[foolsguinea]

@El_Kabong

Here you go; don’t even need to change the name. You want to greet someone, each person stands about six feet apart, raises their right hand to shoulder level and, well, shakes it around a little.

There, the new model hand shake.

I like it. I remember I really found handshakes annoying when I was a young’un, since it turns into a dominance thing, seeing who can crush whose hand. Now I’ve learned to tolerate it, but I feel bad sometimes, especially if I feel unwell. I am also prone to weird fungal skin infections (IN MY RIGHT HAND) & I rub my nose, lips, & eyes a fair bit. Really, don’t shake my hand.

[Markxxx]

It’s Burma, Peking, and last but not least the Swine Flu. Anything else is just wrong.

[Sunspace]

I know! Let’s start bowing! We already have ads on the subway instructing people to sneeze into their sleeves instead of the open air; bowing is the logical next step.

Now we just have to do something about the condition of the well-gripped poles on the subway…