Nov 4 2009The Airshake: Because Nobody Wants H1-N1
First of all, I thought we all agreed to call it H1N1 or the swine flu and NOT the Mexican Flu. Geez, no need to point fingers. Obvious racism aside, Belgian telecommunications company Telenet has suggested a way to shake hands in which we can still greet each other, but without actually making human contact: the airshake.
"...we desperately need a new way of greeting each other, since greeting is the cornerstone of our social and political life. It's a sign of mutual respect, friendship and equality. As of today we propose to replace the firm handshake by an airshake, that's a handshake without touching one another. So concerned are they, they even created a short video demonstration with Jarabe Tapatio--aka the Mexican Hat Dance--as the soundtrack.
That's right, they used the Mexican Hat Dance. Are all Belgians this racist? Because I will boycott their waffles. It won't be easy but I'll do it.
Hit the jump for a short video demonstration on airshaking.
Belgium Telecom Creates Mexican Hat Dance "Airshake" Video [animalnewyork]
Thanks to Rox, who just invented airhigh-fives.
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Reader Comments
1. davenjer - November 4, 2009 10:27 AM
wow do we really need to be that paranoid.
2. catch22 - November 4, 2009 10:28 AM
i just love casual racism
stupid belgiums setting us back another 50 years
3. Closet Nerd - November 4, 2009 10:28 AM
The touch free gesture I know, it to roll your fingers like you are holding a broom in one hand, then procede to oscilate in an arc motion from the groin region.
4. Closet Nerd - November 4, 2009 10:31 AM
Do you know the difference between 'Bird Flu' and 'Swine Flu'?
One needs 'tweet'ment and the other needs 'oink'ment.
5. mblack - November 4, 2009 10:31 AM
pshh, who needs any more fancy handshakes?
6. STOMPY (wants your mario kart friend code) - November 4, 2009 10:31 AM
@Closet Nerd
Check your FB
funny commercial... all I hear is blah blah blah AIRSHAKE blah blah blah AIRSHAKE....
Pretty soon all human contact will be pointless, kinda like in demolition man where they wear the heaset thingies to knock boots...
7. me.vicky - November 4, 2009 10:32 AM
Or, in an effort to unite EVERYONE in the world, we should all start french-kissing people we meet on the street. If everyone has swine flu, there's no need to worry anymore! Right?
8. Conductor - November 4, 2009 10:35 AM
Great viral. Do you really believe everything on telly?
9. LSDiesel - November 4, 2009 10:38 AM
Shake it more than twice and you're playing with it.
10. Timbo - November 4, 2009 10:38 AM
Let's be real...it's the Mexican Flu....
Don't try to church it up...
11. mandable - November 4, 2009 10:38 AM
Maybe we should start sniffing each others butts, seem to work out for dogs!
12. Pat - November 4, 2009 10:39 AM
@1 Germ wise, shaking hands is a pretty filthy activity among human behavior. However, a properly working immune system is also designed to destroy most contagions.
13. STOMPY (wants your mario kart friend code) - November 4, 2009 10:39 AM
@7
My mom is waiting for her tongue kiss
http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/dd73/rudedoggonzo/real-ugly-face.jpg
14. Leonidas - November 4, 2009 10:42 AM
I'm not the most polidically correk kinda guy, but I never knew that "Mexican" is its own race. Oh well.
15. Charles - November 4, 2009 10:47 AM
Hmmm... Demolition Man? Happy happy, joy joy...
16. Iris - November 4, 2009 10:52 AM
you'd be willing to sacrifice waffles for the mexicans?
17. Jiakasuma - November 4, 2009 10:59 AM
I'd rather get the flu than do this dumbass air shake
18. hollywood_hillbilly - November 4, 2009 11:07 AM
Most waffle houses I have been to recently have mexicans working in the kitchen. Not sure what that means, but there it is.
19. JADE - November 4, 2009 11:07 AM
Damn let's throw in the elbow bump while we're at it. How bout just saying hi and leave it at that.
20. Gargamel - November 4, 2009 11:13 AM
First the "Dry Hump", now this?!
21. Hugo Galletas - November 4, 2009 11:25 AM
Hahaha, I´m from mexico and actually find it pretty funny... except the "mexican hat dance" part---
Bit racist, but still funny.
22. GoSS Jerk no longer sterilized for your pleasure - November 4, 2009 11:25 AM
there was more to it than racism in changing the name from mexican flu to h1-n1, this thing actually started in the United States, but the us played it down south.
23. s3xt0y - November 4, 2009 11:29 AM
lol, so true, mexicans are dirty.
24. Carlito - November 4, 2009 11:52 AM
The Mexican Flu?, so next time the virus mutates on someone in spain its gonna be the spaniard flu??
25. Jaded Icon - November 4, 2009 11:56 AM
This is silly, everyone knows that only AMERICANS are racist....
26. Ollie Williams - November 4, 2009 12:11 PM
This is why when I say hello to people I give them a big slobbery make out session. Open mouth. Tongue. That's how I roll. Now serving number 27. Stompy, I think that's you buddy. Come to daddy.
27. Freddy K - November 4, 2009 12:14 PM
Oh this is great. Not sure what I like better "mexican flu", the hat dance, or the stupid hand shake.
Its a win all around... you know unless you actually got offended. And if you did.... oh well.
28. Leonidas - November 4, 2009 12:18 PM
So I just checked out on W to the ikipedia. Mexican is not a race (hispanic, anybody?). This may be a lot of things, but it ain't racist.
29. Mr. C - November 4, 2009 12:50 PM
Omg he said Mexican! Stfu. Demolition man it shall be
30. Dr. Nappy - November 4, 2009 1:00 PM
Very Demolition Man-esque.
31. scurl - November 4, 2009 1:58 PM
this reminds me of my h1n1-era greeting..."hi, don't touch me and get out of my f*cking face" but i couldn't work anything about mexicans in the commercial for it, so it bombed.
i think they should just shoot and imediately cremate anyone who coughs more than twice a day. vaporizer sales would skyrocket...
32. scurl - November 4, 2009 2:00 PM
this reminds me of my h1n1-era greeting..."hi, don't touch me and get out of my f*cking face" but i couldn't work anything about mexicans in the commercial for it, so it bombed.
i think they should just shoot and immediately cremate anyone who coughs more than twice a day. vaporizer sales would skyrocket...
face it people, if yer gonna die from a virus, yer gonna die, just think of it as mother nature applying some lotion to her scabies.
33. Vektor - November 4, 2009 2:44 PM
We're getting closer and closer to the times from the movie Demolition Man...
34. Ollie Williams - November 4, 2009 2:48 PM
Has anyone mentioned yet that this is totally off Demolition Man?
35. dan - November 4, 2009 3:38 PM
they already have something like this... tattoo artists touch elbows when gloved up
36. Neil - November 4, 2009 4:38 PM
Someone thought this lame ass, pointless idea was so good they actually made up a poster.
37. hairy_testicles - November 4, 2009 7:19 PM
H1N1 is a virus, not bacteria....doesnt matter if you use a antibacterial soap/hand cleaner..just as touching isnt going to change much...
38. lalo - November 4, 2009 8:52 PM
mexican flu looool
39. Eric - November 4, 2009 9:03 PM
First off everyone knows the flu comes from the Chinese. Second the FIST BUMP is better and looks cool.
40. JJtoob - November 4, 2009 9:31 PM
Yup, totally Demolition Man. Also, the virus can't do the hat dance. Case closed.
41. JJtoob - November 4, 2009 9:33 PM
I got a better idea! High five me! Siiiiike! Aahaha, it's both safe aaand fun!
Also, H1N1 came over without documents. So it should be deported back to Mexico. Lol. Please don't kill me, I'm actually Mexican. I can do the hat dance (Actually I did it in elementary school and hated it, you american brats don't know how good you have it).
42. Rebel664 - November 5, 2009 2:52 AM
I'm mexican and i find this video to be so offensive that it made me laugh, oh those belgiums and there shenanigans
43. Synch G - November 5, 2009 7:32 AM
stupid mexicans, setting us back another 50 years
44. rosweed - November 5, 2009 7:39 AM
Calling it the Mexican flu is very ignorant. This mis-information is the last thing Mexico needs right now. The country is really suffering from the loss of tourism created by scary mis-information about gang killings and "Mexican" flu. I have written to the Belgian company suggesting they get rid of the word "Mexican" and I would encourage you to do the same: press@staff.telenet.be
Thank you.
45. Jaded Icon - November 5, 2009 8:00 AM
@ 45
Oh? Thank goodness it was all "misinformation"! Hurray! No more "kidnap capital of the world", no more drug cartels warring with police/army, no more "most corrupt police in the world"! I'm packing my bags now!
P.S. Belgians couldn't give a flying rat's *ss about your protest. You (rosweed) are DEFINATELY American and although that's not necessarily a bad thing. You need to check that arrogance at the door, or embrace the HELL out of it like I do.
46. geo - November 6, 2009 1:40 PM
If it was the Mexican flu.. then all these fat folk from the United States.. cuz America is a continent... anyway all these people that only get fatter as they age would already have it.. since they are too lazy or too good to do any job that has then do anything they consider degrading.. like picking up after themselves or making their own fat full meals. LOL
47. edc - November 7, 2009 6:41 PM
how do you use the three shells?
48. guy from belgium - November 9, 2009 5:21 AM
first of all:
@catch22 and others: it's "stupid Belgians", not "stupid Belgiums".
Second of all I would want to explain why we call it the mexican flu here in belgium:
I agree that this company made a mistake by not translating the term "mexican flu" into "swine flu or "H1-N1". Since the term "mexican flu" is only used locally. Originally the belgian media called it the swine flu. But you must know that here in belgium, and most other european countries, we have had a lot of epidemies amongst animals. Like the dioxine-crisis (poisoned chicken meat), mad cow disease and swine fever. All in the last couple of years. Which made consumers feel distrustful of meat products. Farmers made great losses by that perception. And still.
So when the swine flu was called the swine flu, belgian farmers were afraid that people would wrongfully become afraid to buy any more pig meat. So the belgian media started calling it the mexican flu, after the country where the first cases were discovered. Like spanish flu also was called after the origin of it.
So it has nothing to do with racism. In belgium we emotionally are not that close with mexico as you americans are. We don't relate the virus itself to mexican people or the country itself.
But as i said, the advertising agency of this ad would have done good by translating to the internationally used term, since non-belgians are not used to the term mexican flu (as is made more than clear by your comments).
49. scurl - November 10, 2009 7:08 PM
this reminds me of my h1n1-era greeting..."hi, don't touch me and get out of my f*cking face" but i couldn't work anything about mexicans in the commercial for it, so it bombed.
i think they should just shoot and imediately cremate anyone who coughs more than twice a day. vaporizer sales would skyrocket...