i've never felt comfortable shaking a woman's hand -- either in a professional or social setting. the custom of handshaking clearly belongs to the white male, similar to the bow of the japanese.

that women have penetrated the male handshake clubhouse is hardly a victory. women's membership has forged no new cultural rules, customs, or behaviors. it remains a male game, and when the woman extends her hand with blind confidence, i can't help but feel the mockery.

women concerned with real progress should seek to replace the handshake with a much more appropriate act, a modern symbol that captures how long a journey it's been for them to reach this point.

perhaps a slap on the shoulder. or maybe a punch in the gut -- a gesture of a punch, though these don't quite do it. i'd go further and suggest the obvious -- a slap in the face. if the handshake can be called a male ritual, then certainly the face-slap is a traditionally female act, their most romanticized act of defiance. of course the slap across the face would be gentle to allow personal or professional business to succeed. the slaps are empty but loaded with meaning, impossible to ignore. as the years pass, the slaps no longer draw attention, but, like the handshake, become part of the social landscape.

what a wonderful symbol for the collective consciousness of a culture. a relentless reminder of the past, and a brutal warning for the future. a new form of justice -- punishment through social etiquette.