Hand wringing over Handshakes

So, a Somali Muslim man who was due to receive a reward for fund raising for Amnesty International was snubbed and the award given to someone else because he did not want to shake hands with the female doing the presenting. One look at the comments at the bottom of the article shows what a field day bigots have with this kind of thing.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/ireland/article4188508.ece

Non-muslims always attribute the Muslim attitude of modesty and restricted interaction between the sexes to some kind of superiority complex of the Muslim male. The truth is, it is simply a question of modesty and it applies equally to both sexes - BUT if a Muslim woman didn't want to shake hands with a man, would she be accused of sexism and demeaning behaviour towards men? I'm not sure that she would. More likely she would be accused of an inferiority complex (by non-Muslims I mean).

In Islam, the reasons for not touching, or shaking hands, with the opposite sex are the same for both men and women. It is to avoid any action which may lead to that spark of attraction between two people. If a Muslim man doesn't shake hands with women, it is not because he thinks she is dirty or contaminated, it is actually the complete opposite - he loves women and thinks they are beautiful, they make his heart skip a beat and touching (yes even a handshake) might cause a yearning that he does not want to fulfill, as he wants to obey God and avoid a feeling of attraction to a woman he is not married to. And before you ask, since we can't only refuse to shake hands with people who attract us, it is better to make it a general rule and stick to it for everyone, even those we might find mightily unattractive.

Is there anyone who disputes that men and women have a powerful attraction for each other? Is it admirable or contemptible for a person, man or woman, to want to avoid that feeling of attraction because they prefer to be as 'chaste' as they possibly can? A Muslim should direct all their sexuality towards their spouse - admiring looks, longing gazes, flirtatious words, affectionate squeezes - none of these should go outside the marital relationship. How do 'crushes' develop? From a look, a touch, a joke shared.....married people are not immune, being in love with someone else doesn't always make one immune either. I don't want to leave myself open to that kind of possibility, and many other people feel the same, men and women, Muslim or not. Is that unacceptable in this society? Are we not welcome because we don't want to join in the fun?