don’t ask

You  don’t  want  to  hear  bad  news, a  long  story, or  something unpleasant  or  embarrassing. This  slangy  phrase,  used  since  the  1960s  and only in conversation, may be a response to a direct question, such as “How did you do on the exam?” or used to impart information, as in “Ask me how much  we  have  left  in  the  bank.”—“How  much?”—“Don’t  ask.”  It  differs from don’t ask me, said with the emphasis on me, which is a casual and some- what  impolite  reply  that  means  “I  don’t  know”  (as  in  “‘When  does  the restaurant open?’—‘Don’t ask me.’” A newer variation is don’t ask, don’t tell, which  in  the  early  1990s  began  to  designate  a  policy  on  homosexuality adopted by the U.S. military in 1994.  Under this policy, personnel are not asked about their sexual orientation, and homosexuals are allowed to serve provided  they  do  not  openly  reveal  their  orientation.   This  usage  quickly spread  to  other  contexts,  as  in  “Our  veterinarian  has  a  “‘don’t  ask,  don’t tell’” policy about what happens to pets who must be put away.”