Cartoon : ‘Give it to me straight!’

Cartoon by Steve Kelley of The New Orleans Times-Picayune published on 28 September 2009.

- If you say “Give it to me straight,” you’re asking someone to tell you something directly and very simply without hiding the unpleasant facts. This means you want a straight answer, one that is honest and true. In the case of your doctor, you don’t want him to beat around bush; you want him to be straight with you. Unfortunately, most politicians don’t have a reputation for straight talking.

- If you are sick and tired of something, this means that you are unhappy about something, especially something that has continued for a while. Usually during presidential election campaigns, the public grows sick and tired of political advertising. In another variation of this expression, you can also say, “I’m sick to death of campaign advertisements!” In the cartoon, the doctor could have said, “You’re sick to death of the health care debate.”