A great many politicians are in love with using Purell Hand Sanitizer when mingling with mere mortals. While I can certainly see rubbing my hands down with some, if I can’t get to a sink to wash my hands after shaking a whole roomful of people’s hands, I would never be so crass as to expect the people standing in line to shake my hand at a fundraiser to disinfect their hands before touching me. That’s just the utter epitome of rudeness, wouldn’t you say?

Like so many other people involved in politics these days, Mrs. Ryun has become obsessive about using hand sanitizer and ensuring that others do, too. She squirted Purell, the antiseptic goop of choice on the stump and self-proclaimed killer of “99.99 percent of most common germs that may cause illness,” on people lined up to meet Vice President Dick Cheney this month at a fund-raiser in Topeka.

What? Cheney can’t keep himself from touching his eyes, nose or mouth for the amount of time it takes him to press the flesh? I can think of no situation, outside hospitals or other sterile environments, where expecting someone to disinfect their hands before being allowed to touch you would even begin to be considered good form. It’s just crass and rude.