Is Jack Lew's loopy signature the sign of a man with an image problem?

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2013/jan/11/jack-lew-signature

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Money is such a virtual fact nowadays, it makes a pleasant change to discuss its physical appearance. The US treasury secretary nominee, Jack Lew, had his signature unveiled this week – the signature that may be carried on every US banknote. It is a startling shape, consisting of nothing more than eight loops, diminishing and then increasing in size. It bears no apparent relation to Lew's name, and even President Obama was moved to remark that if he had known what Lew's signature looked like, he might have reconsidered his nomination.

Signatures are on the way out as a means of identification, replaced by pin numbers, thumbprints and other biological devices. They still possess, however, some kind of indication of the outward self, and a beautifully distinguished signature carries a mark of a distinguished person.

Conversely, a poor quality or childish signature may continue to make a poor impression. The signature of Quentin Thomas, the former head of the British Board of Film Classification, whose certificates precede films shown in UK cinemas, is startlingly childish. If you look at a UK banknote, neither the outgoing chief cashier of the Bank of England, Andrew Bailey, or his successor, Chris Salmon, have distinguished or elegant signatures – Salmon's is mostly printed.

Signatures are either continuations of normal handwriting, or florid departures from it. It has sometimes been said that a signature contains something of how a person wishes to be seen by the world. Does a signature that is dramatically different from a person's normal writing suggest someone who is somewhat dissatisfied by the impression they generally make? Or might a signature that is just a writing out of a name suggest someone who is lacking in imaginative life?

Can one come to any conclusions about Lew on the basis of this calligraphic flourish? It can't be anything like his normal handwriting.

It belongs to the world of someone who, like many financial authorities in the past, has had to sign his name on documents so many times that an illegible hieroglyphic has emerged for practical purposes. Like many celebrities, the other class of person who regularly sign their names, Lew has devised a signature more closely resembling an abstract logo than a name. He should be wary, however: many actors and musicians have discovered that too fast a scribble may outrage fans, who feel they deserve something more. A bookshop owner once told me that she was visited by a cricketing legend, who proceeded to sign 300 of his books in about 20 minutes. On examining his work, she discovered that he had simplified the nine letters of his name to a single straight line. She had the nerve to tell him to go back and do them all again, as her customers wouldn't believe that was any kind of signature. But for the most part, as Jack Lew is demonstrating, we believe even the most rudimentary of signatures carry something important about the person who made it, and how he is choosing to be seen.