Poll: Facial Hair. Yay, Nay or damn that's just hay.

[Vigormortis]

Well, I'll put it this way.

There seems to be a direct correlation between the level of (properly groomed[footnote]This is key, gentlemen. You HAVE to groom your facial hair, otherwise you'll just come off as a hobo.[/footnote]) facial hair I have and the number of women (and men) that approach me amicably, even suggestively. The more I have (within reason), the more I'm approached.

In short: Since going from clean-shaven to a van dyke to a full beard and 'tach, I get way more....well, I'll keep the post clean.

So my vote is yes. Grow on, my Bearded Brothers. Grow on.

As a man with a nice full beard, I can't ever go back to my highschool days of having a naked chin, a naked chin is a waste of beard space. I beard, therefore I am.

Spoken like a true Beard Brother.

Praise be unto the Facial Hair!

Spoiler: I mean, what kind of monster would insist these be shaved off?

 

[DarkhoIlow]

At first I was really against facial hair and was shaving my beard every few days when I finally decided that I really wanted to get a goatee so I left a patch of my beard from my chin to grow out while shaving the rest.

The problem is that my moustache has barely grown to the point where I can actually complete the goatee so atm it's just half of a one, but I'm diggin the new look. I don't know how to trim it however (since I never did it) and I fear that I will reach a point that it's going to be a ***** to actually shave it off (if it becomes too big).

 

[Patrick Buck]

I like it because other people seem to like it. It doesn't bother me really, but I can't be arsed to shave sometimes and the fact people seem to think it looks good aids me in my apathy.

 

[conmag9]

I've been able to grow a full beard for quite a long time. It's become such a distinctive part of my face (and the fact that I look very, very bad without one, in my opinion) that I can't really imagine going clean shaven without some very compelling reason. Granted, I've been told by family that I should probably take better care of it, but it's a feature for me and I feel uncomfortable just thinking about getting rid of it.

 

[thehorror2]

Were I into dudes I suspect I'd be into dudes with facial hair, but what facial hair I can grow comes in slowly and sparse. Barely even get a patchy goatee-mustache combo, and that takes almost a month. I can't win; I look like a prematurely-balding 16-year-old when I shave it, and a hobo with it.

 

[Trippy Turtle]

Eh. I'd like some manly stubble but a beard just seems like it would get in the way.

 

[Johnny Impact]

I have a short chin-scruff I keep because I look about fourteen if I shave completely.

I tried growing a beard once, mostly just to see if I could. Turns out I cannot. It looked like that square of carpet by the front door -- you know, the one that's all patchy, beaten down, and straggly? I didn't look distinguished, I looked homeless. It also itched like absolute hell.

As I'm a straight guy, facial hair on a partner isn't really a thing. I probably wouldn't like it.

 

[FalloutJack]

Just call me Cap'n Beardface. It's the right way to live.

 

[FirstNameLastName]

I've always had some kind of facial hair, although I mostly just keep a small goatee. This is probably due to the fact that I had extremely long hair in highschool, and so, without facial hair I could probably pass as an ugly flat-chested woman.

At the moment I'm actually growing a beard, albeit, in a rather uncommitted way. I'm past the itchy stage, but I'll probably shave it sometime soon.

 

[Riot3000]

I got facial hair right now most because mine does not itch I don't have that issue I only shave it off on a whim for no particular reason since I don't have SO to be on my case about it to be consistent. But I always keep my goat which grows long and I stroke it all the time like master in kill bill. I mean I shaved it off once went to stroke it but it was not there and I felt empty and a lone we will never part again.

Only the haters hate says Jeff Langum

Glorious let the facial hear neo nazi's hate.

 

[Guffe]

Been growing a beard for about half a year. Before that I had a small patch on the cheek, now I have a goatee with a little beard on the sides. I like beards, especially when someone has a really big and magnificent one, it's a bit of an artform

My GF said she doesn't like hairy people... why/how she chose me is a mystery in that case... but she doesn't think it's too bad at the moment at least

 

[Odbarc]

I used to 'need' to shave at least every 3rd day before it got too itchy and irritated to tolerate.
I'm older now so I basically just let it grow until I get food in it. It doesn't bother me any more and I end up just 'forgetting' to shave it for a few months at a time.
It doesn't look like a good beard so it's not a style choice. I'm just too lazy to get rid of it ALL the time.

 

[Slenn]

I don't like having facial hair. I tried sideburns, didn't work. Had a beard, didn't like it. I just don't like it as it makes me look trashy, and I feel so much fresher after shaving.

 

[Parasondox]

When I do a clean shave, it becomes really itchy when it starts to grows back and creates loads of bumps. It happens a lot with black men and luckily my father always has a cream for it. But when I do have a full beard, it's perfect for the winter but annoying during the summer. I'm kinda both on the matter. I just don't like the baby face look, on myself, in my mid twenties.

 

[Imperioratorex Caprae]

Sometimes I shave because hair on face suddenly gets extremely annoying. Then a week later its basically back to nearly full beard anyway. I've got like super rogaine or some shit going on with facial hair. My 5 o' clock shadow happens around noon...
Its basically how long I can stand to have hair on my face before I say "fuck it" and shave. Usually keep the goatee though. I shave the upper lip as much as possible though, I hate drinking anything without a straw if I have a mustache.... Annoying as fuck.
*shrug* I've no real preference except that after shaving I tend to get carded more often (well I used to til I quit smoking and I don't drink anymore) but still I do get asked if I'm really 35.

 

[Canadamus Prime]

I've grown facial hair a number of times, but I always found it such a pain to maintain so I'd always end up shaving it off.

 

[Tsun Tzu]

I have a supreme case of "baby face" without facial hair, so...beard it is.

On a partner? I'd prefer that she not be bearded, thank you.

 

[Malpraxis]

I look about 8 years older than I actually am. Doesn't help that I have a fondness for wearing suits all the time. I think I look better with a beard, but it makes me look even older, and my dating pool gets a bit too old for my taste, so I stay clean shaven to date women in my age range.

 

[JohnnyDelRay]

I've been rather fortunate/unfortunate in so far as I don't grow much at all, even if I wanted to. But left along, at least it takes on a decent shape without too much fussing around. Always wondered what it's like to have sideburns though.

Personally don't mind it so much, I think some people pull it off really well, myself personally I don't think having a full on beard and 'burns would turn out that great. My wife doesn't care either way, so I just let it go on weekends and vacations and keep minimal stubble under control during weekdays.

 

[Recusant]

A few clarifications.
Firstly, facial hair is (biologically) supposed to cover pretty much the entire lower front half of your head. Calling a man "neckbeard" is like calling a woman "chestboobs"; they may well be offended, but it's not actually an insult, the thing in question is supposed to be there.
Secondly, having a beard doesn't itch- not having a beard (or, more to the point, hairs growing in those first few millimeters) itches. Once the hair comes in, the itching stops. Shaving is, by and large, for the impatient (or for those smooching the hairy ones; I claim no firsthand knowledge on that front); the genuine inability to grow facial hair is rather uncommon, most people just can't be bothered to wait. As Chesterton so eloquently put it, "you cannot grow a beard in a moment of passion", after all.

Claiming it is supposed to cover your face is silly, thankfully where I come from the men do not grow facial hair outside of eyebrows, and have no need to shave. Hopefully in the future men will stop having the ability to grow them at all. Just as we are happy now we are not walking around with tails sticking out, we will be happy when men do not have pubes on their face.

No one has pubes on their face, that's not how faces work. The things atop your head are not called "scalps"; hair is hair, not where it grows. More to the point, claiming it's supposed to cover your face is reflective of biological reality; our most recent evolutionary steps in this department didn't take facial away, they gave us more- look at the other apes. It's not due to speciesism that no chimp or gorilla has ever won a beard and mustache contest.

As to the lack of tails: those are bold words from a bipedal animal that can crack its head open and die just from falling down while walking normally. We'd do well to ask if leaving them behind was really such a good idea.