Are you pro-beard or anti-beard? (For men, anyway.) Why?--Al

-- Al Schreoder (al.schroeder@nashville.com), August 12, 2001

Answers

Pro Beard. I have been everything but a baldy and nature is taking care of that. When I go completely bald, then I will have to make the fated decision. I have had worn everything from shoulder length hair, beard and mustache to almost a convict cut (which I detested on me). So in beards as in babies, I am pro choice.

-- Denver doug (ionoi@webtv.net), August 13, 2001.

Me pro-beard too. Walt was clean shaven when I married him and ever since he grew the beard--years ago--I haven't let him shave it off.

-- Bev Sykes (basykes@dcn.davis.ca.us), August 13, 2001.

I'm pro-choice on the subject. And let's just say I've never met one I didn't like.

-- Becky (becky@beckysays.com), August 13, 2001.

I'm neither, really. I tend to like goatees. Are they considered beards, in a sense? I wouldn't choose a man with facial hair over a man without or vice-versa.

My dad wears a beard and I have never seen him without one. He would look utterly estrange.... But some men grow beards and it makes them look odd, the beard out of place.

I suppose it really depends in all cases.

-- Jen (Jen@echoside.net), August 13, 2001.

Well, I'm pro-beard in the case of my husband. It's probably Freudian. When I was a small kid, my dad had a beard, then my little sister came along and bit it so often that he shaved it off in self-defense - how much more Freudian can a beard-scenario be?
In general, I don't really seem to react that strongly one way or the other, just depends on the person.... But I really dislike the mustache-no-beard look on most people. It just feels ... I mean... If you're going to shave the damn thing off, why leave that little worm on your lip? Geez. I just basically don't like most mustaches unless they are conjugated properly with their beards. Not real fond of the mustache/goatee look either, though goatees on their own are usually okay.

-- Marianne (marseillaise@hotmail.com), August 14, 2001.

My husband has a red beard. He would look about 16 without it. So I'm pro-beard. It helps men look mature, so I don't feel like I'm robbing the cradle. I also associate beards with nature loving outdoorsy types like my Dad.

-- AJ (joijoijoi@hotmail.com), August 14, 2001.

Pro-beard. I've never seen my husband's chin. I take it on faith that he has one. All of the men I dated for more than a year had beards. I just like them.

-- Ellen Henak (henak@execpc.com), August 15, 2001.

Oh, I like them, and I think Gore's is really nice.

-- Jan (fossilfreak.geo@yahoo.com), August 20, 2001.

Gotta have that beard!

-- Sunshyn (sunshyndaydream@lanset.com), August 20, 2001.

I think it depends on the guy. I mean some guys look better with them, while others look better without them. I don't really have anything against people with beards as long as they keep them nicely cut and clean (no food particles stuck in them!). Personally, I prefer the clean-shaven look (no beard), but maybe that's because I'm oriental and most oriental men that I've known can't grow a full beard at all!

-- Crystalline (soul_echoes@yahoo.com), August 22, 2001.

My hubby, back in the days of yore (1988) when we met and he and I were still in our mid-late teens, grew a little bit of a mustache (it looked like a hairy caterpillar had taken up residence on his upper lip!) Since then, he hasn't kept his facial hair except on camping trips or leisurely vacations. Stubble's too rough and scratchy, but whenever he wants to try something else I'm game. Nature's thinning his hair up on top, and I'm mentally warming up to the idea that he'll do the beard thing at some point to help offset that. (He'll be adorable in my eyes, regardless.) I'm just glad he grows facial hair now, instead of that weird caterpillar thing back in his teens. :-)

-- Shannon (shannon@wildtexas.com), September 02, 2001.

P.S.: My father shaved his mustache off recently and I still can't get used to him without it! He had a mustache ever since he left the Navy, and he looks so different -- not bad, just very different.

-- Shannon (shannon@wildtexas.com), September 02, 2001.

It realy depends on what one looks like with or without one... on a woman I would say without.

-- alice (alice@3harpiesltd.com), September 09, 2001.

All the men in my life have had facial hair. Seems if the relationship was to be a long one, facial hair played into it. My husband has a full beard and I could not imagine him without one.

-- Lisa (lisa@delort.com), October 21, 2001.

What a loaded question. I'm not so much a beard fan as I am a stubble fan. My dad has always had stubble, so I suppose it's some sort of Electra thing. It's the texture more than anything. If it looks odd, then I'd prefer a clean-shaven chin.

-- frootjoos (frootjoos@likescheese.com), November 08, 2001.

Depends on the guy, really. My husband has a beard, and I told him that if he shaves it off, I'll leave him. :-) On the other hand, I've seen other guys with beards that are obviously Hiding Something. One downside to beards: kissing a bearded guy can give you beard-burn if not done correctly!

-- Debbie Ridpath Ohi (ohi@electricpenguin.com), November 24, 2001.

I think goatees are woooonderful. All the guys I've been head over heels for, ever since I've been old enough to date guys with facial hair, have had one. Now, Taliban-regulation beards kind of bug me. But I bet they're warm in the winter!!

-- Kara Leah (tinky@jestercourt.com), December 11, 2001.

I have a brutal, red, super taliban---but dirty and uncut beard. I have it because I don't know why not to have it. Moreover, I have 1001 other reasons why I wear it, so I cannot even mention them right now. I'm also, indeed, ``Hiding Something'' by it, but more of my soul than of my appearance.

I'm often mistaken for Ussamah bin Ladin by people recently, which practically adds to my charisma. After all, I really maintain contacts with Pakistan...

My postulate is that people being more into masculine role should wear beards, and people more enjoying their feminine aspects & liking to expose shapeful features of appearance (like many women and transvestites) should keep their skin naked & smooth.

BTW, author of this question has incredible luck for pro-beard (and female!) responders :-). Is this audience specifically biased???

(I'm sorry if level of my English proficiency made me misarticulate something.)

-- Matthew (25/Poland) (interXXCAPSXXme@pocztaNON-AUTOMATIC-LETTERS-WELCOME-REMOVE-ALL-CAPS-MANUALLY.onet.pl), January 02, 2002.

Having experienced both during my lifetime....I must say, I am pro- beard. When the hair on top of my head began to recede and decline in mass, I adopted the attitude that I would not impede the natural growth of hair anywhere else on my body. I must add however that if one is going to grow a beard it should be groomed appropriately. Actually I found that having a beard was easier to maintain than a clean shaven face. It gave me a distinguished appearance and I liked the color pattern of my beard. It had two white or gray areas around the corners of my mouth and looked really special. I liked to stroke my beard when I was deep in thought. It seemed to help the process somehow. Today, I still find myself touching my face when I'm deep in thought but all that results in is my realization that I need to shave so that in itself is a considerable distraction from the thinking process. Beards can be "nasty" looking things when one allows then to run wild. Consider how the group Z Z top looked. Beards also should not become storage places for residual food bits or homes for wayward bugs or spiders. I've always said that a woman won't mind wading through a little brush to get to a picnic but I don't think she will like having to make her way through an overgrown jungle full of vermin. I can attest to this much...my wife complained a long while after I shaved mine off this last time. Perhaps I should consult her as to why and get back with all of you.

-- Clarence Bowles (cbowles11@Home.Com), January 05, 2002.

Actually, I can't stand facial hair of any sort on a man (or a woman!). It turns me off completely. I've known men with and without beards, but I've never been attracted to a man who had facial hair. My husband is clean shaven. For anyone interested, my father had a moustache for most of the early years (till I was about 7) then stayed clean-shaven after that. :) Definitely anti-beards. Facial hair is gross! :P

-- Elanor Maud (elanormaud@stories.com), March 16, 2002.

I am DEFINITELY pro-facial hair, as long as it is kept neatly trimmed and it is worn in such a way to enhance the man's features and bone structure.! In my opinion, most men look distinguished and regal with a beard and mustache.

After several years of hints and suggestions, my husband finally grew a beard a little over a year ago when his face became sunburned and he could not shave. After three weeks of not shaving, he decided to try to grow a beard and mustache. He was both surprised and delighted at how nicely they grew and how very handsome he looks. As for me? I AM HAPPY!!!!! though it tickles.....LOLOLOLOL

-- Margi Alvarez Spencer (gdsfavour7@aol.com), May 07, 2002.

I think it depends on the individual person and which way would look the best on him. My father claims that no woman has ever liked a beard. He obiously doesn't like them.

-- Mike Shugart (poetnc@hotmail.com), March 03, 2003.

Very much pro-beard! A man has to be awfully good looking to NOT look better with a beard - or at least some facial hair. Beards are sexy, as is long hair on men. Just can't seem to get excited (as in fantasy) over a short haired, clean shaven nerd - they all look like CPA's to me. No slur on CPA's but you know what I mean. Give me a Lumberjack or Viking anytime over a paper pusher.

-- Leanne Hildebrand (Lhildebrand0604@wideopenwest.com), September 25, 2003.

I think chin beards are sexy. The guy that I like has one, and it brings out his manliness and sexiness. I am pro beard!

-- jaqueline moray (fgasdfg@hotmali.com), November 06, 2003.

I am DEFINATELY pro-beard, though I'm only 19. I've always enjoyed facial (not only, also on chest) hair and recently it's become almost my fetish. Such simple thing makes me lose my mind.

-- Salomea (killlah@operamail.com), June 28, 2004.

I think that beards are cool. Enough of these "metrosexuals" and other types of "pretty boys" that are devoid of all body hair. As I man, I feel that I should have a beard. I am not a woman, and I do not intend to look like one. Besides, where I live, it gets so cold in the winter that you will be glad that you have one. Another reason is that when I used to shave, my skin would turn red and start flaking off in irritation.

-- Barry Ecker (hepavore@yahoo.com), November 06, 2004.