Why do seemingly all politicians (and no one else) do that hand gesture when they talk, the one where it looks like they're holding an invisible fishing rod?
Is it an affectation that they're trained to deploy? (If so, why?) Or is it just a natural thing that happens in the very specific circumstance of being a politician on the campaign trail, and that's why no one else seems to do it?
I don't think I've seen it in any other context 🤔
Cheers!
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from what i remember, they are coached to do it because pointing is seen as too aggressive but not making any hand gestures is too robotic. so its a way to make a non-aggressive emphatic hand gesture.
Which, ironically, makes them seem even more robotic
Only to people who are actually paying attention to a lot of politicians and likely looking exactly this up.
For the majority of the public? it is just "good public speaking".
I miss Obama and other politicians who could actually speak.
Yeah.
Although I recently heard him on Marc Maron's podcast, and was rather disappointed.
He's still far, far more lucid than most other politicians, but he came off as wildly out of touch, which I didn't recall him being 10 years ago.
Oh well, that's the match of time for you.
Well, the man's retired so he can be I suppose? When (if?) I'm able to retire, I plan on being as out of touch as possible :D
you don't remember him ordering grey poupon? Like a french aristocrat?
Oh that's right!
And now I'm remembering his scandalous tan suit!
Was he wearing a tan suit?
Obama 》》Grandpa Freeman
I didn’t look it up and here I am.
And plenty of people use chatgpt instead of google. Not really sure what point you think you are making but...
Your statement could be true about anything depending on the perspective so I wasn’t sure what point you were trying to make
Still, maybe if Zucc did it people would actually find him cool.
("Cool" as in, like an average politician, which is still way cooler than he is now.)
Thanks for pointing that out.
Rimshot!
I feel it also adds cadence to a speech, which can help people listen more to what you’re saying.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chironomia
They are taught by "experts" that pointing is an ugly aggressive hand gesture.
It's silly how some of them do this while simultaneously pushing ugly and aggressive policies.
Gotta make those policies seem friendly and non-aggressive!
They’re squeezing their hands like that so they don’t accidentally do the nazi solute again.
That's neat.
Why does that article contain no references more recent than 1806 though. Is it called something else these days? It seems like there should be more modern information on the practice.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hand_jive
Not really tho.
honestly with drawings like that I half expected at least one panel be involving bloodletting
And this is safer than "air dicking".
wow, so Trump is doing "Liberatem resigno" ("I give up my freedom") but with rubber shackles.
It's one of many gestures that are used by trained public speakers as non-verbal communication cues. Here are some examples, including the one you asked about: https://qz.com/work/1093701/a-guide-to-ted-talk-hands-seven-signature-moves
There are many more beyond those. Using hand gestures in public speaking has been around since at least classical times.
Thanks for posting that quote from the article.
They all go to Ivy League colleges, and they all take the same public speaking classes.
It's a big club, but we're not in it.
This is the real answer.
No the real answer is that literally nearly every possible configuration of your hands and movement is offensive and rude to some culture, person or religion.
It's fucking damn near impossible to find ANY that are actually safe.
This has been a problem of public speaking for longer then America has been a country, and longer then the ivy leagues have been a thing.
Public speaking hand gestures go back literally hundreds of years.
Okay but the reason they all do it today is because they went to the same rich people colleges and courses. The reason those courses teach these things may have historical background, but that’s not what we’re referring to here.
I've heard that before too but being an old bastard, I'm pretty certain Clinton didn't do it until after he was debating Bob Dole. Bob Dole used this gesture because he held a pen during debates. And he held a pen in his non-dominant hand because he had an injury in WWII and the way his hand curled made him look weak.
I remember it as a Dole gesture originally, too
Its what you do when you naturally want to point but dont want to be seen as rude and aggressive.
Correct answer right there. Politicians and business people are very aware of their body language. Another rule is never touch your face. When they do, photographers will snap a picture. In the photo they will look frustrated
LOL that's why I will never be a politician. I would be so frustrated by not being allowed to touch my face! The irony of it would just overwhelm me.
There are very few configurations of the hand and fingers that aren't offensive to someone. This one is one of the last few remaining, with "thousand points o' laght", a list that doesn't include "yuge" or the double "okay" sign.
So everyone does it.
"How dare you insult me with your flaccid mockery of a fishing pole grip, you will pay for your insolence"
It's the I'm-pointing-at-you-with-a-pen-but-I-forgot-my-pen gesture.
If you work for a large company, ask around if there is a toastmasters group. If so join it and you will be let in on all the secrets of public speaking.
trump and his accordion hands are very noticible, especially when he has to make a lie on the spot.
It's a wand. They are actually enchanting you, the first spell always makes the wand invisible. That's why you never see it.
Jerking themselves off to the idea of fucking their citizens over
It’s not a fishing rod, it’s something much more personal
Like... your favourite PH2 driver?
Torx is superior. I could accept Robertson as well.
It is. But everyone needs a dedicated PH2. With torx, a bit set is the better approach.
Get them from Vessel Tools, best screwdrivers I have ever used.
I just recently got a PZ2 driver from Vessel for my Honda. It was remarkable how nice it was to use compared to a Phillips screw and driver. I felt so much torque could be applied while the grip stayed rock solid.
Also learned PZ screws are often used in cabinetry, and lo and behold, all my kitchen cabinet do in fact have that tell-tale X mark to indicate they are Pozidrive screws.
I've still not had the opportunity to use a square drive Roberston screw, but would still like to use them for something one day.
I get my drivers from Ironside, and bits from Bosch.
Remember Biden's "I did that!" (lying) stickers that were placed on gas pumps by maga freaks? It's trivial to put your political opponent in an ad where they are saying something they're not, because pointing is seen as an aggressive gesture by the people coaching them for speeches, debates, etc. So they do the silly thumb-point for emphasis recommended by political strategists...
Oh that?
Thats the motion you make when fanning through dollar bills, one handed, to count em.
They're doing a pavlovian reflex everytime they need to remind themselves where their money comes from, and how its time to focus in on delivering
shareholderlobbyist value.Trump just channels his childhood accordion lessons. He doesn't even realize he's doing it.
Someone should have told him how to hold the accordion right. According to this theory he held it feet away from the body, which just by physics, must have made his little hands hurt.
Maybe it was a really, really dirty accordion.
their fishing rods are invisible for you? including the hook and line? that must be rough. how do you avoid getting caught when you can't even see them?
It's more of a public speaker thing than just a politician thing, but... Well, politicians are all public speakers, so it makes sense that that's the context you've seen it in.
It's literally a practiced gesture - public speaking makes use of some gestures that telegraph well to crowds, but seem unusual otherwise. IIRC, that fishing rod grip is an alternative to gesturing with a fist - it looks less aggressive, but gets the point across.
i think they just want to be a kpop star 🤩🥰
I always thought it was so comedians can do impressions of them.
You have to do something with your hand. This one's pretty neutral, because it's nothing.
"People who are more emotive with their gestures than me must be fake"
"People who are less emotive with their gestures than me are robotic lol"
Most people hold both of those views but have wildly different levels of emotiveness... The result? Posts like this
Bill Clinton started it. Drives chicks crazy.
Way before Clinton. Jfk was doing it in black and white days. I dunno if he was the first though either.
As I said, drove chicks crazy, even Marilyn Monroe could not resist.
Esoterically speaking, it is a modification of the sign of the fig—a vaginal hand symbol indicating that you are creating with your words. The traditional sign of the fig has the thumb placed between the index and middle finger, which you see Bill Clinton do a lot. Others put the thumb on top, I imagine for plausible deniability of being satanic or something. The gesture is very old, going back to Ancient Greece or earlier.
Historically, politicians have been influenced by groups such as the Masons and the Rosicrucians who would have been aware of the meaning of these gestures, and then it filters down over time to become standard political gestures for people who aren’t aware of their origin.
this could be total bullshit but i wouldnt know. seems legit but ya know? lacks references but has the air of authority
I’m a practicing occultist, so my knowledge of the gesture is from that angle. I’m at work right now, so I can’t drag up the best sources at the moment, but here’s a Wikipedia article about it:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fig_sign
And here is a Wikipedia article about hand gestures that mentions the “Clinton Thumb” under the single handed gestures section:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_gestures
I believe I first heard the Masonic political connection from Lon Milo DuQuette, who I believe is a Mason as well as a practicing occultist like myself. He has over 1000 videos on occultism on YouTube, and I think I probably heard it from there as well as other sources about occult hand gestures.
For the record, I’m not saying it is an occult gesture to imply any conspiracy—just that the history of Masonry and other occult interests in politicians over history have led to certain themes and gestures blending in to the common political vernacular.
Learn somethin new every day. Thanks for the refs and summary. ❤️
The gesture is very old because, and I know this is a wild unsubstantiated theory, it's a pretty natural and organic way to hold your hand when speaking to or before a large group? I suppose magic makes more sense.
These gestures aren’t exclusive to any particular group—part of the reason they last is that they are easy to discover multiple times and use in multiple ways, plus they seem somewhat natural. It’s similar to how the “devil horns” gesture can also be seen as an owl, a longhorn, or an I Love You. They’re multi-purpose, which is part of why they end up being commonly used.
I’m not suggesting that everyone who uses the sign of the fig is using it in a Masonic or occult way, but rather that some politicians probably picked it up from that background and began using it, and then it was copied by other politicians who liked their style. Eventually, it just becomes a standard political gesture, and only some politicians would be aware of its roots.
It’s possible that they just came up with it independently and copied each other, but if that were the case, I’d expect to see more closed fists with the thumb around the fingers mixed in rather than them synchronizing to the thumb on top (the “fishing reel” as described in this post). This is just my theory—I never had the chance to ask Bill Clinton where his thumb gesture came from, but it aligns with what we know about the connections between American politics and Masonry.
Edit: Here is a good photo of Clinton with his thumb on the middle finger. He did it more commonly in his earlier years, later changing it to the thumb on top with his pointer knuckle jutting out as a base:
https://media.gettyimages.com/id/50372601/photo/bill-clinton-and-hillary-rodham-clinton.jpg?s=1024x1024&w=gi&k=20&c=i2AwLQrnLVW64MFRCNF1_fRJN2D_gNeVo5PE-7L_sFM%3D
Fair. I appreciate your reasonable and informative reply to my admittedly more than a bit snarky post!
And Clinton likely picked it up from Bob dole..
The Wikipedia article that talks about the Clinton thumb theorizes it is from JFK.
Public speaking is a performance and like any performance some people are good at it and some become good at it and some aren't really good at it.
The "counting money" gesture? You still have to ask this?
It's so other lizard people know.
Actually it's only a small part of the secret handshake that lets you into Epstein island. But it is a prerequisite.
They learn it at The Bohemian Grove.
It's a conductor's baton.
It's so they don't point their finger and wag or shake a fist while they are taking. It is seen as a less offensive gesture to people watching body language.
My guess is that they're accustomed to holding note cards and it's just a reflexive stance after a while
You got me thinking. Pretty sure I do this when addressing groups, like teaching a class in the workplace. Maybe I finger point in place of the fishing rod? Next time I hold a talk, I'm going to record it.
Of course, by now, this has become an aggressive hand gesture.
even cats don't like to be pointed at
They just sniff the finger
They are trying to appear human. Somehow that seems to involve catching invisible fish.
It's rude to point, and they all have arthritis.
It’s all about portraying authority and trying to give off the “trust me” vibe.
I’d love to see an interviewer respond with a bizarre hand gesture in response.
In my non edumacated knowledge, they pretend to whip the heard into believing what they spew.
It's a natural resting form for our lizardian overlords.
Air-dicking is a hard practice to break free from, ig... easier to retrain into air-fishing
the slang term used to be 'thumb wrestling' and the politicians were called thumb wrestlers when they did it.
Because concertina hands are too nazi-ish
Gesticulation has long been a part of public speaker training.
It helps frame your words and your message and also direct meaning in a way that punctuation does in the written word.
As punctuation is to reading, as gesticulation is to speaking.
It's part of body language being part of speaking to someone (a person or an audience) and can help people relate to the speaker.
That particular gesture was famously popularized/lampooned due to Bill Clinton
Because you can learn how to be an asshole.
It's zuck's new toy /s
This, I think, is a sign or symbol of some sort. What symbol? I have no clue.