Critics of Hugging-Get Over Yourselves

So in The New York Times for today (May 28,2009) one of the topics on the front page is "For Teenagers, Hello Means 'How About a Hug?'". So I was curious what it was going to say on it and I just said "Wow." People make little things so BIG and DRAMATIC because they want attention or something. It is ridiculous how it criticizes that teens hug as part of their greeting. One DRAMATIC parent said about her kid hugging was that "Witnessing this interaction always makes me feel like I am a tourist in a country where I do not know the customs and cannot speak the language." "Wow!" I shouted in my head. You people are so dramatic, especially some adults. Why is it you cannot accept what we do, especially when you do not actually ask or listen to why we do what we do. I understand the "old fashion" people but they do not take the chance to understand why and our reasons for hugging. We are not completely stupid and helpless.

"Comforting as the hug may be, principals across the country have clamped down. 'Touching and physical contact is very dangerous territory."

My, my, this is intense. Oh also, "Some parents find it paradoxical that a generation so steeped in hands-off virtual communication would be so eager to hug." Ok, first of all, "hands-off virtual communication"? That does not mean we do it because we do not want to be face to face with the person or hug them. Technology just makes it easier to stay in contact with people. This was even better,

"Maybe it's because all these kids do is text and go on Facebook so they don't even have human contact anymore," said Dona Eicher, the mother of freshman and junior girls at the high school in Montvale. She added: 'I hug people I'm close to. But now you're hugging people you don't even know. Hugging used to mean something.'"

We do not have human contact anymore? Really? We go to school everyday, we see our friends all the time, and we KEEP IN CONTACT with them because they are our friends; this means texting and yes, Facebook too. Oh, plus, I like how in the article they add things like "how rapidly the ritual is spreading," and "Hugging appears to be a grassroots phenomenon and not an imitation of a character or custom on TV or in movies." Wow, they go right to the sources of entertainment? Not like the adults are addicted to how the celebrities dress, their romances, or even what they wear and use in their home. HELLO: MARTHA STEWART!

So, why do teens hug as part of their greetings today? Well, today teens are realizing how important it is to rely on friends. When you share common interests, have FUN together, joke around, and vent to them they become close. Usually your friends know more about you than your parents. I know I hug people because they have a special part in my life, whether they cheer me up when im sad, we have millions of inside jokes, or I am their advice giver they mean something to me and why do I have to reject a hug when we have fun memories together? Typically teens DO NOT HUG EVERYONE. That is too weird and invades personal space. Some are more "huggy" than others but that's who they are and people are fine with it. If they are uncomfortable, these days, they tell them that. Parents and Media, stop making such little trends so dramatic because you have nothing else to report or complain about.

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