American Sign Language,
gang signs and the hand signals
used by commando teams
are all gesture languages.
It is very hard to fake or interpret
an unfamiliar gesture language.
A deaf person doesn't know
Crips from Bloods
and even seemingly transparent gestures
like a smile
might be rude or worse
in a culture where showing one's teeth
is thought to be
a sign of aggression.
Sometimes its good to have rules.
No language which contains
only 13 gestures
could be complete.
Note that there is no gesture for
DANGER:
YOU ARE ABOUT TO
KNOCK OVER A TELEPHONE POLE!