Simply ages ago, on a long car trip with the kids, it occurred to me that rude hand signs formed a pattern, and that many are effectively free to be used, perhaps to convey new offensivenesses.
Five fingers, each a binary folded /unfolded. Hold right palm facing you, other side facing protagonist. Thumb is the least significant bit.
We could go in order, but why not start at the start instead:
00100 (4) 'I do not like you at all, you should go away. now.'
00011 (3) 'I am slightly old fashioned and slightly more polite, though the meaning of this is very much (4)'
10000 (16) 'you have a teeny tiny penis'
10010 (18) horns - too many meanings to count, depending on culture, music preferences and the patriarchy.
Some are not at all rude:
00000 (0) means 'I, as a member of this large protest group, have a thing to say about privilege and power'
00001 (1) 'can I ride in your car?'
00010 (2) 'look up there'
00111 (5) 'pew pew pew'
11000 (24) 'about this much alcohol in the tumbler please'
10001 (17) 'hang loose' the shaka
10011 (19) Gene Simmons trademark-applied-for horn sign and/or #ILoveYou #ILY
I particularly like 10101 (21) and think it should be 'I have slavishly considered hand gestures, I believe that you are such a very bad person that I am flashing the most difficult one at you, you unutterable bastard.'
