Can you say "hi, how are you?" on a date and say nothing else?

i dont think so, i think you need to say more than that

Not if you want the date to go well.

No there is more to it than that my friend.

No. That's not a date.  

If you want your date to think you're a strange-o, yes. People go on dates to get to know each other, and you can't do that without talking.

You can take a big crap on the table if you really want to........

Only if you really, really, really don't want another date.