Are you exagerating slightly when you say 10 & 2? If I saw a man or woman sitting with their legs that far apart i think my first thought would be: “why is that person sitting like that?” but really who care’s what i think, sit however is comfortable for you.
Yeah, more like 11 and 1.
“What time is it?”
“I don’t know. Let me go check Themis’ legs.”
Now, a female person wearing pants isn’t exposing any bare nekkid crotch-parts no matter how her legs are arranged – And yet, it’s still considered “unladylike” to sit with knees asunder, lest the position even hint of a suggestion of <hush, hush . . .> female crotch!
I wonder then: Of all the opinions and attitudes expressed in all the posts above, why should not all the same considerations apply to the position of a pants-wearing male’s legs? Males aren’t really supposed to expose bare nekkid crotch-parts (at least, in public or in proper company) any more than females are. (Right? What, too unladylike?) So if a pants-wearing male sits with knees asunder, doesn’t this position hint of a suggestion of <hush, hush . . .> male crotch just the same?
So why the double standard here? Death to the double standard, I say! Victorian prudery equally for all, or bare nekkid crotch parts for all!
The double standard sucks.
I don’t mind the idea of a man or woman exposing their crotch.
Also, the more I like a man (or woman) the more likely I relax my legs. It’s not something I’m entirely conscious about. Like I said, I usually sit with my knees pointed at 11 & 1. But, if I’m hanging around someone I find attractive, sometimes I look down and notice that my knees are pointed at 10 & 2.
I never wear dresses or skirts, and I sit with my legs open (usually around 11 and 1, not spread wide like some guys like to, with each knee in a different time zone). It’s one of the reasons it would probably be a bad idea for me to start wearing dresses/skirts at this point in my life (if I were inclined to, which I’m not): I have no idea how to sit wearing anything but pants, and would probably embarrass myself without realizing it. 
When I used to go to church, I was in the choir. I had to wear skirts/dresses to church. I would sit in the choir stand with my legs wide open, not paying attention to anything. It mortified my parents.
[QUOTE=SpoilerVirgin]
I don’t like the appearance of anyone, male or female, who sits in the 10 and 2 position in the company of other people who haven’t seen them naked. At home alone, or with your SO, sure, but in public it feels disrespectful to me.
[/QUOTE]
I admit to possible Victorian prudery, but not to a double standard.
We thank you for your understanding.
Yes, the casual position for a lady is ankles crossed, and the casual position for a gentleman is one ankle atop the other knee. (So guitar players were already in the clear.) So it has been, so it shall be.
I suppose cello players have very little choice. As a man I don’t pay attention to my legs, they’re open, crossed, or whatever. If you’re a female, sit how you want, especially in pants. If you’re cool with your underwear showing in a skirt, sit however you want. If not, then be careful. I can’t imagine looking down on a woman based on how she manages her legs.
Jeez, guys. It’s not skirts that are the problem. It’s shorter skirts. Wear long ones and you can put your legs wherever you like while keeping the good china safely hidden.
^Wuz gonna say…clearly no hippie chicks on the Dope.
Don’t worry, I’m here. 
Mostly I’m either legs apart or sitting on one bent leg, other leg extended when at rest and legs together in public. But I rarely wear a skirt short enough that it truly matters from a pressing charges standpoint. My skirts tend to be long and flowey, otherwise I’m in (usually scrub) pants.
When I was young, flexible and most importantly, skinny, I would do the pretzel leg wrap too, Hilarity N. Suze. Now, however, there’s too much girth to manage it. 
Hee. “the good china”
I’m a bloke, and I don’t sit with my legs apart, except when I’m at home or in the car. When I was young I was corrected by teachers: now that I’m old, I would be corrected by my in-laws.
Out in the world I cross my legs at the ankle. I used to cross at the knee, which I learned from my mom. Some years ago a chiropractor told her she’d need to see him less often if she stopped doing that. For some reason it stuck with me.
My preference is to sit with a foot stool or ottoman and have my legs out in front of me.
Heh. I’m not even a hippie chick. I just like long skirts. It’s easier to find ones that fit, I don’t have to get them hemmed, and I find them perfectly comfortable. It’s hard to find work-appropriate long skirts, though. I was heartbroken when Syms closed their doors because they catered to the Orthodox Jewish set. Plenty of long skirts in any imaginable style there. Cheap too. 
But in polite company, and especially when wearing pants – legs crossed or knees together isn’t comfortable for me, so assuming anybody can see them, I tend to keep them relatively close together or cross at the ankle or something similar. That might be less comfortable than letting them spread farther apart, but sitting up straight is less comfortable than slouching over too. I try to behave appropriately to the situation, though I do fail a lot too.
I would hate to have a desk without a front on it because I’d hate to think about where I’m keeping my legs when I’m concentrating on some spreadsheet or something.
I tend to sit “criss-cross-applesauce,” as the kids today say, or “Indian style,” as we said back in the day. However, when I’m wearing a skirt and not at my desk or at a table, I do my best to cross my legs at the knees or ankles like a normal person. I might also do the pretzel twist on those occasions. Sitting at 11 and 1 or 10 and 2 is uncomfortable for me.
10 & 2? Do you also do a Sharon Stone scene?
Actually I find it tacky for anyone, male or female, to sit with legs spread. It’s almost like they are trying to advertise what they have.
When I was younger & in better shape I used to sit crosslegged but now I’ll typically sit with ankles crossed. I have chronic low back problems so I can rarely sit in the same position for long. 1 leg cross over the other is good & Indian style doesn’t bother me, but it does when my legs are too close together for any stretch of time. I also don’t wear skirts or dresses, ever.
What has bothered me though for years is a certain kind of guy that just sits all splayed out taking up as much space as he can especially with both knees waving back & forth to fan the stench of his crotch. Clueless, inconsiderate bastards! 
Otherwise I don’t give much thought to the way men or women sit unless there’s an unfortunate odor emanating from their crotches.