"Hey, how are you?"

This question really bothers me.  We hear this, from a wide variety of people, multiple times a day.  But in nine times out of ten, they don't really mean it.  I'm not suggesting that the ones asking the question don't really care (though that may be the case), the question has become a social norm devoid of normal meaning.
I've actually read that only a "bore" would answer this question literally.  If this is actually the case or not, it is pretty sad that a question of genuine concern has been gutted of meaning. 
In my opinion, let your yes be yes and your no be no.  Let your words mean what the words actually mean, and follow up on them.  If you want to ask that question, let it be known that you want an honest answer and that you actually care about the person giving the answer.
Maybe we could use this as a way to communicate love to someone else.