# Look, just massage my ass, don't share your political opinions! **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [December 7, 2009, 10:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/look-just-massage-my-ass-dont-share-your-political-opinions/520373 "2009-12-07T22:14:07Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Unauthorized\_Cinnamon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/bc8723/32.png) [@Unauthorized\_Cinnamon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Unauthorized_Cinnamon)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2009, 10:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/look-just-massage-my-ass-dont-share-your-political-opinions/520373/1 "2009-12-07T22:14:07Z")
Typing that title actually made me feel better - I’m so juvenile! So I was at physical therapy today, where yes, part of my care is soft tissue work to release spastic muscles around my SI joint, and I was complimenting my therapist on the office’s practice model. I commented that people probably feel really attached to her (she’d mentioned patients sending thank you notes and stuff) because the experience is much more warm and fuzzy due to them spending more time on you, really focusing on you as a person and what’s happened in the last week (or less - also seeing people often and for a long time period is nice), versus seeing a GP who typically has 15 minutes to see you and then basically says, “See you in 12 months! Good luck doing all that stuff I’ve ordered you to do without any further support!” Naturally, this caused her to compare US healthcare favorably to Australia’s (her home country) public health system, and in doing so actually mention “death panels” in an all-too-ingenuous manner. Since that is such an idiotic topic, I couldn’t resist mentioning that no matter what, resources are limited regardless of the system, it’s just a question of who is acting as a “death panel” and how it’s handled. Her response was that “she hadn’t seen that” in the US system. So evidently her belief is the free market system magically creates infinite amounts of money and time to spend on healthcare! But I wasn’t about to get into it with her - this is someone I rely on to take care of me, after all. I used my verbal judo technique of agreeing with a certain small part of what is said and using it to steer the conversation down another path. But it was irksome. Sure, let’s chat about our kids or what we did for Thanksgiving, but please keep the topics neutral for the sake of professionalism! ---
**Author:** ![Giraffe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/giraffe/32/129_2.png) [@Giraffe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Giraffe)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2009, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/look-just-massage-my-ass-dont-share-your-political-opinions/520373/2 "2009-12-07T22:16:20Z")
I think a nice loud fart would have been a perfectly reasonable rebuttal. ---
**Author:** ![Contrapuntal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e274bd/32.png) [@Contrapuntal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Contrapuntal)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2009, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/look-just-massage-my-ass-dont-share-your-political-opinions/520373/3 "2009-12-07T23:27:08Z")
> [@Giraffe](#): > > I think a nice loud fart would have been a perfectly reasonable rebuttal. I see what you did there. ---
**Author:** ![Knorf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/58956e/32.png) [@Knorf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Knorf)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2009, 11:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/look-just-massage-my-ass-dont-share-your-political-opinions/520373/4 "2009-12-07T23:31:32Z")
> [@Giraffe](#): > > I think a nice loud fart would have been a perfectly reasonable rebuttal. Men and animals have been slain for less.:mad: 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Squink](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5e925/32.png) [@Squink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Squink)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2009, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/look-just-massage-my-ass-dont-share-your-political-opinions/520373/5 "2009-12-07T23:36:24Z")
> [@Unauthorized\_Cinnamon](#): > > So evidently her belief is the free market system magically creates infinite amounts of money and time to spend on healthcare People from third world nations frequently think like this once they get to America. Her children will no doubt develop a more realistic perspective of the benefits and drawbacks of American capitalism. ---
**Author:** ![Brown\_Eyed\_Girl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/brown_eyed_girl/32/3574_2.png) [@Brown\_Eyed\_Girl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Brown_Eyed_Girl)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2009, 11:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/look-just-massage-my-ass-dont-share-your-political-opinions/520373/6 "2009-12-07T23:48:26Z")
> [@Squink](#): > > People from third world nations frequently think like this once they get to America. Her children will no doubt develop a more realistic perspective of the benefits and drawbacks of American capitalism. Wait. Australia is a third world nation now? 😕 ---
**Author:** ![PunditLisa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/4af34b/32.png) [@PunditLisa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PunditLisa)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2009, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/look-just-massage-my-ass-dont-share-your-political-opinions/520373/7 "2009-12-07T23:55:32Z")
> [@Giraffe](#): > > I think a nice loud fart would have been a perfectly reasonable rebuttal. That would have been assinine. ---
**Author:** ![Uosdwis\_R.Dewoh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Uosdwis\_R.Dewoh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Uosdwis_R.Dewoh)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2009, 11:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/look-just-massage-my-ass-dont-share-your-political-opinions/520373/8 "2009-12-07T23:58:25Z")
> [@Giraffe](#): > > I think a nice loud fart would have been a perfectly reasonable rebuttal. I’m asstonished you would even suggest something like that. ---
**Author:** ![Unauthorized\_Cinnamon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/bc8723/32.png) [@Unauthorized\_Cinnamon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Unauthorized_Cinnamon)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2009, 11:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/look-just-massage-my-ass-dont-share-your-political-opinions/520373/9 "2009-12-07T23:58:40Z")
> [@Brown\_Eyed\_Girl](#): > > Wait. Australia is a third world nation now? 😕 Yeah . . . I’ve been trying to figure out if that was a deliberate rib, or what. ---
**Author:** ![Chimera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Chimera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chimera)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2009, 12:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/look-just-massage-my-ass-dont-share-your-political-opinions/520373/10 "2009-12-08T00:10:12Z")
Most people have a rather tenuous grasp of Economics. ---
**Author:** ![Giraffe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/giraffe/32/129_2.png) [@Giraffe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Giraffe)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2009, 12:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/look-just-massage-my-ass-dont-share-your-political-opinions/520373/11 "2009-12-08T00:16:18Z")
> [@Contrapuntal](#): > > I see what you did there. Would you believe it was completely unintentional? Because it was. (I’m generally anti-pun.) ---
**Author:** ![Contrapuntal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e274bd/32.png) [@Contrapuntal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Contrapuntal)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2009, 12:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/look-just-massage-my-ass-dont-share-your-political-opinions/520373/12 "2009-12-08T00:20:14Z")
> [@Giraffe](#): > > Would you believe it was completely unintentional? Sure, why not. You seem like decent enough fellow. But I’ll be watching you a bit more closely now. Just to be on the safe side. ---
**Author:** ![Giraffe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/giraffe/32/129_2.png) [@Giraffe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Giraffe)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2009, 12:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/look-just-massage-my-ass-dont-share-your-political-opinions/520373/13 "2009-12-08T00:22:03Z")
> [@Contrapuntal](#): > > Sure, why not. You seem like decent enough fellow. But I’ll be watching you a bit more closely now. Just to be on the safe side. Maybe keep an eye out for me in your _rear_ view mirror??? 😛 ::crickets:: [sub]Now you see why I don’t pun?[/sub] ---
**Author:** ![Jamaika\_a\_jamaikaiake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/7993a0/32.png) [@Jamaika\_a\_jamaikaiake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jamaika_a_jamaikaiake)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2009, 12:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/look-just-massage-my-ass-dont-share-your-political-opinions/520373/14 "2009-12-08T00:29:21Z")
> [@Uosdwis\_R.Dewoh](#): > > I’m asstonished you would even suggest something like that. There’s a misspelling in your post, dumbass. Butt. ---
**Author:** ![begbert2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/begbert2/32/3357_2.png) [@begbert2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/begbert2)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2009, 12:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/look-just-massage-my-ass-dont-share-your-political-opinions/520373/15 "2009-12-08T00:36:36Z")
> [@Jamaika\_a\_jamaikaiake](#): > > There’s a misspelling in your post, dumbass. You assume that’s a misspelling, but I can assure you that there is a massive class of variant spellings assigned for just these kinds of passive rebuttals. (Okay, that’s a little tongue-in-cheek, but bare with me.) ---
**Author:** ![Contrapuntal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e274bd/32.png) [@Contrapuntal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Contrapuntal)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2009, 12:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/look-just-massage-my-ass-dont-share-your-political-opinions/520373/16 "2009-12-08T00:40:55Z")
> [@begbert2](#): > > (Okay, that’s a little tongue-in-cheek, but bare with me.) Don’t let \*\*Giraffe \*\*get his tongue in there. ---
**Author:** ![VinylTurnip](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b2d939/32.png) [@VinylTurnip](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VinylTurnip)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2009, 12:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/look-just-massage-my-ass-dont-share-your-political-opinions/520373/17 "2009-12-08T00:42:39Z")
> [@Chimera](#): > > Most people have a rather tenuous grasp of Economics. When you squeeze hard, something yucky comes out. ---
**Author:** ![Squink](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5e925/32.png) [@Squink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Squink)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2009, 12:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/look-just-massage-my-ass-dont-share-your-political-opinions/520373/18 "2009-12-08T00:47:53Z")
> [@Unauthorized\_Cinnamon](#): > > Yeah . . . I’ve been trying to figure out if that was a deliberate rib, or what. You do know that it’s only been four years since Australia got around to [characterizing the decapod fauna of its southwest coast](http://www.metafilter.com/87250/Name-That-Newly-Found-Species-for-Charity)? Talk about backwards nations! ---
**Author:** ![Spiny\_Norman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9de0a6/32.png) [@Spiny\_Norman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiny_Norman)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2009, 1:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/look-just-massage-my-ass-dont-share-your-political-opinions/520373/19 "2009-12-08T01:02:08Z")
> [@Giraffe](#): > > Would you believe it was completely unintentional? Because it was. (I’m generally anti-pun.) Nah, you looked all over for something to turn into a butt-masseur pun. No stern was left untoned. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [December 8, 2009, 4:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/look-just-massage-my-ass-dont-share-your-political-opinions/520373/20 "2009-12-08T04:31:55Z")
> [@](#): > > So evidently her belief is the free market system magically creates infinite amounts of money and time to spend on healthcare Maybe she has a perfect understanding of the American health care system. You’re a patient but she’s a health care professional. She might prefer a system that favors the interests of the people inside the system over patient interests. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/look-just-massage-my-ass-dont-share-your-political-opinions/520373.md?page=2)