@hingehead,
I find it really sweet for a father to have to go through all the humiliation just to prove to his son that there's nothing wrong with showing affection to him even in public. I think that's pretty much his goal here.
But our kid's peers might possibly make fun of them because of such stunts though. So I think it's also good to anticipate on how to handle that kind of situation or else your kids might just get in trouble with other kids at school or get low self esteem in result. Just a parenting thought for everyone who can relate.