Not really about politics (no, really! It's not!)

[capri0mni]

Mostly copied (with editing and additions) from a reply to a post in haddayr's LJ:

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One of the people in my f'list (uncacreamy) came across a link to this picture in chat, and she loved it so much, she copied it to her own scrapbook. I've done the same. It just makes me happy to see it:



(I'm not sure, but based on the context, and what's going on in the background, I think it was taken on Wednesday morning, and at his daughters' school.)

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Now, to the real subject of this post: that "fist-bump" gesture. I know, during the election (was it as far back as the primaries? I honestly can't remember), the fearmongers said it was a "terrorist" thing -- like some secret code, or something.

And what I want to know is "Why would anyone believe that?"

I mean, how many of us, and how many of Obama's oponants, have actually seen a bunch of terrorists bumping their knuckles together? I know I haven't seen any.

But I have seen that gesture before Obama started using it, but where I'd seen it didn't come back to me until this afternoon: I've seen it while watching televised baseball games, when one player gets on base, or gets a homerun, or something, his teammates will "fist bump" him in congratulations -- it's like a handshake, but quicker (and you can do it while holding your batting gloves in your hand).

...I think that's where I've seen it, anyway...

I certainly know it was around for a long time before he and Michelle shared the gesture at a political rally...

Obviously, the "oh, look! He's a terrorist" meme didn't stick as well as his opponants hoped it would, because he got elected. But why did this meme stick at all? Is it through some vague association with the Black Panthers' upraised fist power salute?

Anyway, I just think the wide variety of ways that we greet and congratulate each other is interesting.

...

Off to do more writing, now.

Comments

[daibhid-c.livejournal.com]

Heck, it was used as a gag on Scrubs a few years back: Turk holds his fist out for a fist-bump from Ted, and Ted high-fives it.

[capriuni.livejournal.com]

And after I posted this, I remembered that it was also a gag in a series of Taco-Bell commericials, here also a few years back, where three white yuppie executives (two men and a woman) are sitting around a picnic table during their lunchbreak, coming up with new words to describe how wonderful the food is, and when one of them comes up with an especially good term, he expects, or gets (depending on which version they show) a fist-bump.

Part of the gag, of course, is that because there are three people, one person is always left out, and shown to be the nerd...

All the ads featured exactly the same actors in the same setting, but depending on which length of commercial they were using, it was a different person left out each time.

[leenah.livejournal.com]

i first saw this picture at newsweek online, in their section about the campaign that they hold until after it's over, so they can dish all the dish.

the caption said it was the child of one of obama's higher level campaign people.

[capriuni.livejournal.com]

Okay, thanks for the context. I didn't see it until last Monday. I'll go edit my description of it, in my scrapbook.

(though this context does give support that it's a "yay, team!" salute)

I love the security guy holding the door... you can tell he's trying to be all serious, but is really wanting to smile...