Hugs vs hand shakes at opening ceremony

[TheMagicPenguin]

I didn't get to be a winner at world's but I was a finalist. I won in Pennsylvania for FTC. When I won at my state championship, I was rewarded with hugs and handshakes from mentors, volenetters, and peers alike. People who I barely knew from other teams where hugging me. It felt amazing, and I knew they appreciated what I had done for the state and my team.

I do belive that it is a little strange maybe even a little sexist (if that's even the right term) for all the females to be expected to hug an males expexted to just shake hands. Hugging and shaling hands is acceptable for both males and females.

I don't belive that hugging is inappropriate or unprofessional when celebrating on any level. Often after an event when I'm saying goodbye to volunteers at an event we share in a hug (males and females) and on occasions go out to dinner together.

FIRST is more then just a bunch of professionals. We are a family who care for one another and we build friendshis with adults and peers alike. A student can have an authority figure who they are friends with.

*edit* - word choice

[unpopularideas]

Originally Posted by TheMagicPenguin

I do belive that it is a little sexist (or whatever is the politically correct term at this point) for the females to all be hugged and the males getting handshaks.

Hey there, Burner Account Here....

It's very sad that sexism go only one way. What you are referring to here is the new age definition of equality. Men have one expectation, and women another.

See sexism is a term only applied to the unfair treatment of women. Here discussion is girls are being treated unfairly compared to males. Are they asking if hugs are harassment? I don't understand the upset regarding hugs. Is argument hugs are unprofessional?

*Sorry for bad english*

[Billfred]

Originally Posted by unpopularideas

Hey there, Burner Account Here....

It's very sad that sexism go only one way. What you are referring to here is the new age definition of equality. Men have one expectation, and women another.

See sexism is a term only applied to the unfair treatment of women. Here discussion is girls are being treated unfairly compared to males. Are they asking if hugs are harassment? I don't understand the upset regarding hugs. Is argument hugs are unprofessional?

*Sorry for bad english*

Sexism totally goes both ways, but women historically get the short end of the stick more. Are hugs unwelcome or unprofessional? It depends on the person, and while the Experient system may have asked about dietary restrictions or mobility issues they didn't ask about hugs. Handshakes, though, are pretty universally accepted (and will be for at least a while longer). Equality would be to go for the handshake for all unless both sides are okay with a hug. (In practice, let the kid make the first move.) It's a simple tweak, it doesn't take an army of lawyers or gender theory experts, everyone feels welcomed and nobody feels uncomfortable.

*Side note: The admins can totally look up IPs on burner accounts, which are still not permitted by the CD rules.

[Nathan Streeter]

Originally Posted by unpopularideas

Hey there, Burner Account Here....

It's very sad that sexism go only one way. What you are referring to here is the new age definition of equality. Men have one expectation, and women another.

See sexism is a term only applied to the unfair treatment of women. Here discussion is girls are being treated unfairly compared to males. Are they asking if hugs are harassment? I don't understand the upset regarding hugs. Is argument hugs are unprofessional?

*Sorry for bad english*

This sounds like an opinion (albeit, slightly unpopular)... not something so controversial that you "need" a throwaway/burner account.

It seems like throwaway/burner accounts are becoming far too common now... I understand their use for posts seeking help in a (seemingly) toxic team situation, but other than that, I'd like for people to either 1) be willing to 'own' their opinion or situation, or 2) not post that, if it's really too controversial to attach to your name and team.

[39V]

Its depends on thier tradition.

[Chief Hedgehog]

Back to the OP - I understand the concern, but I believe that there is a backdrop to all of this.

As our collective culture is forever changing, there are going to be instances and situations where circumstances at very public events are viewed differently by many people. I think the handshakes/hugs are a part of this shift.

However, as we have a community that is quite large and very diverse, there should not be a standard on how we show appreciation or emotion. Case in point - I am not a person that likes to share a 'hug'. I am a person that does not know how to show emotion in times of joy (which is part of the reason my Soccer team gave me the nickname of Hedgehog).

I will say, before my involvement with FRC, I was not comfortable with "the hug". It wasn't until FRC 4607 won a regional back in 2013 that I actually may or may not have hugged another man that was not my family (but this is just a rumor until proven otherwise). This year, however, I think I have openly hugged more people that are not family than I am completely comfortable to admit at this point

So back to the OP: let's not judge people or a community on how and when they show there emotion and gratitude. We are all still working through this strange congratulatory period between people that we admire and those that are receiving an award that acknowledges their hard work.

[The Swaggy P]

Originally Posted by Billfred

*Side note: The admins can totally look up IPs on burner accounts, which are still not permitted by the CD rules.

Easily avoided. Just pull out an old PC and put it on the same network, or put it on a different network if you want to be real anonymous.

[Andy Baker]

Originally Posted by Nathan Streeter

It seems like throwaway/burner accounts are becoming far too common now... I understand their use for posts seeking help in a (seemingly) toxic team situation, but other than that, I'd like for people to either 1) be willing to 'own' their opinion or situation, or 2) not post that, if it's really too controversial to attach to your name and team.

or,

3) The rest of us can voice our opinion if we like or dislike these burner accounts by providing negative or positive reputation points.

I will be giving out negative rep points for folks using burner and apparently duplicate accounts.

Andy B.