Is Nudity something to be ashamed of?

I've been thinking a lot these days about the pre-conceptions of the human mind - it seems certain things follow our culture like a shadow that will not go apart, haunting us throughout the ages. One of them seems to be the fear of Nudity. If a person is stripped amidst the public, it is regarded as the worst type of humiliation, worse than death! WHY?

The purpose of clothing - the necessity - is to provide us with protection from mortal/unpleasant circumstances - be it heat, cold, injury from fast-moving or sharp objects etc. Without clothing, humans wouldn't have survived in the frozen Artic & Antartica, or the hot sands of the great deserts. Historically, I could guess, not having clothing would be a matter of shame, like not having a house to stay, or not having a McLaren F1 to drive! But practically, what is the need of clothing in a room (say, a heated room like an office or a classroom) ?!

From as early as we can remember, we have been told that exposing our genitals in the public is a big No-NO. Some cultures have gone far enough to stone people to death for exposure. Why should a human be punished for not doing something that the society says, if it doesn't harm anyone, including himself/herself ?

In most countries, nudity in public has been banned by law. It is offensive to others, one might argue. But is that notion really valid? I mean there are so many people (including myself) who find it repulsive when in the presence of a cigarette-smoker, who fumigates the surrounding air, with disregard for the health of the people standing next to them. That hasn't compelled the society to ban smoking - even though smoking has been proven to be injurious to health - has it? Then why the hush-hush against nudity? Its similar to referring to sex as the 'S'-word!!

Oh! And by the way, I'm well aware that there are nudist clubs around the world, and would like to insist that I'm not a member of any of them - I'm not someone spreading propaganda for them either. Just my random thoughts for the day..