>>169931And, in case you misunderstand
>>169946 as simple semantics, let me lay this out for you to understand as clearly as possible: when you say that the purpose of a beard is to signify masculinity, that is a purpose that YOU are ascribing to the function served by beards.
And for you to ascribe that purpose to facial hair, it means that your definition of what constitutes manliness or masculinity is, to some degree, reducible to the amount of body hair a person grows.
And, if you believe that body hair is what defines you as being masculine, then I think that your definition of masculinity is cowardly.