Etiquette is a social construct that sets the rule concerning all kinds of customs, and good manners that guide how people behave in differing social or professional groups. In the early days of online interaction the term "netiquette" was even coined to define how we should behave online. In those first stages it seems almost naive compared to how we understand online interaction nowadays. Rules concerned things like not eating (and crunching food in their mouths), not clicking your pen or making any kind of noise that can serve to be a distraction. It even governed how to mute your microphone and some rules to enable smooth interaction related to how one should speak and how and when we should interrupt.

Since then it has gone a lot further, but the truth is that [social] etiquette appears in almost every walk of life and that also includes in the Mosh Pit during a heavy metal concert. It may look unruly, chaotic and dangerous, but the fact is that Mosh pit behaviour is defined by some finely nuanced rules and people very rarely get severely injured although minor bumps and scrapes often occur.

Incidentally, if you are wondering why I am picking such an obscure subject it is because I met one of my Godson's today and it was something we were talking about.

The fact is that the Mosh Pit is not the only incarnation, the other extremely popular forms are the self-explanatory Circle Pit and the Wall of Death. In the latter case those who participate form up into two different groups, typically one to the left and one to the right. Then at a given signal - usually provided by the vocalist - the two halves run into each other and come together like they are in some kind of a medieval melee.

However, to quote Tom Araya of Slayer, we are there to "look after each other. If you see somebody go down, help them out because this is what we are here to do".

The rules are very simple whatever kind of pit you find yourself in.

• Other than for protection keep your arms down, don't flail or lash out particularly with your arms.
• If there is an idiot who is not doing this, keep somebody else between yourself and them and wait because there is always a bigger guy who knows the rules and he will take the idiot down and safeguard everybody else.
• As Tom Araya said, if you see somebody in trouble then help them out.

I saw this first hand at a concert I attended with my best friend many, many years ago. 

At one point during the concert my friend and I found ourselves within a swirling mass of humanity and in moments like that you have little or no control over where you go. The press of bodies makes it impossible to fall over, but at the same time the crowd surges and carries you hither and thither just like being caught in a human riptide.

Alas! My friend suddenly shouted at me “shoelace”. An undone shoelace within this seething entity that was the crowd could be catastrophic. I looked around and shouted “shoelace” to anybody and everybody who would listen and what followed was astounding and will remain with me forever. About seven or eight people, including me, wrapped our arms around each other’s shoulders and formed a tight circle and my friend simply went down and retied his shoelace before getting up again. He quickly thanked everybody and then everybody went back to the business of enjoying the concert.

And that is how it works. Tomorrow I will tell you how I was once the bigger guy who dealt with the idiot who was ruining the concert for at least one other person.

As always stay safe and well my friends.