as much as i enjoy the normalization (in some subcultures?) of hugging as a casual greeting i actually also find hugging quite intimate. i think you reveal a lot of information about the tension in your body and how net good you feel about someone from hugging them
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Exactly - gotta check for spies, narcs, people wearing wires, concealed boners, poor hygiene, smoking status, muscle development, stress level. Plus it feels good to get a hug.
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I think in those cultures people also get good at wearing a “body mask” if that makes sense!
Similar to the very functional way some Europeans will kiss strangers on the cheek
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imagine a culture in which that level of intimacy and attunement with everyone was not only safe, but also actually felt good! as social maintenance
( I doubt we live in it currently, but also I’ve found micropockets of it 😊 )
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If hugging was as normal of a greeting as "how's it going", I would be quite uncomfortable, but the world would be a better place.
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I guess there's hugging and there's hugging, impersonal or emotional...perception would also depend on what culture you were bought up in as well as your parental upbrining.
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To be fair, the difference between a courteous hug and an intimate one is night and day.
People can hug with near zero connection involved.
I've had hugs with friends for a long time, and it always felt like an empty signal, sometimes even creating distance.
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Now the first proper hug from a friend I got I will never forget. Outright transformative.