Can Men and Women Be Friends?

​Now every once in awhile, we are blessed with a certain presence. In this case, it's our man's man, Mr. M. You see, Mr. M is outgoing and funny (as you can see). He tells us jokes and makes us laugh. He even educates us on certain "things you outta know about men". In this past week, for some reason, our office topic was "Can Men and Women Be Friends?" There seems to be a consensus that the answer is no, unfortunately. The belief is that if a woman and a man are friends, then someone wants to sleep with the other person. Apparently, no man wants to befriend a woman just for the sake of friendship and vice versa. I, however, would like to argue that but am outnumbered and "naive". So, is there anyone out there who shares the beliefs of Team Vu?
History: I remember when I was in dental school. I was studying with a male classmate. His girlfriend then (now wife) argued that he was attracted to me so that's why we were studying together. As he was telling the story as it unfolds to me and another female classmate, he turned to look at each of us and said, "Can you believe that? Me and Vu? No offense, but you're so non-threatening." That was a pin to the ego but I knew what he meant. As the bastard laughed at his own story, I had the uneasy smile. I was thinking I am threatening. I am beautiful. I am smart. I am WOMAN! (roarrrr- as Tiana likes to do). But I am also just a friend, nothing more. And the classmate? He was ugly, dumb and blind. Just kidding, he was actually very nice, smart (as he was quizzing me) and a wonderful friend.