This makes me mad: A junior high school out in Mesa, AZ is banning hugs longer than two seconds. I don’t quite get why that angers me so much, but it does. School rules sometimes go way too far and really test the boundaries of reality. I understand the need to shelter children — they’re still children, after all — from situations that may be dangerous to them or may not be appropriate in a public environment (like people making out or having really crazy, touchy-feely, pre-makeout hugs in front of everyone). But limiting hugs to two seconds? That’s not reflective of reality in the slightest. That just screws people up and teaches them that human contact is taboo, among other things. There’s nothing wrong with a good, solid, platonic hug. It’s perfectly natural and good for the soul.

This goes right up there with the insane 14-point dress code that was instituted in my middle school when I was in 7th grade, which actually forbade students from wearing shorts from October until March. Forbade them from wearing shorts. What harm, exactly, did shorts-wearing in the winter months pose to campus safety (which was the reason why we had to tuck our shirts in, which was also a pretty big stretch)? OMG! LEGS! RUNNNN FOR YOUR LIIIIIVES!!!

But back on the topic at hand — this really draws parallels with that ridiculous scare brochure I was given in 7th grade that basically said all flirting would land me expelled from school and in court. I don’t think I could have put this particular situation in Mesa any better than James did after I tweeted about it.

Good for the students who protested with a giant group hug. Show them that you don’t surrender all your human instinct when you walk through the school doors. Here’s a little support for sanity, hoping it prevails.