taboo attraction?

[Dennis R. Preston]

>larry,

I've heard and used this for some time. The sense, which seems
transparent, is that one was promised (or assumed one was) the real
thing (i.e., sexual intercourse) but ended up with only a "hand job."

dInIs

>(as opposed to taboo avoidance)
>
>On a recent NYPD blue, the head of the squad, Lt. Tony Rodriguez,
>uses "hand job" in the sense of 'con job'.  He's talking to his
>ex-wife, who is trying to get off drugs, explaining how he had to
>call in a lot of favors to get her into a detox center in Brooklyn.
>"So if this is another hand job...", he says.  To which she assures
>him that no, she's really serious about quitting this time.  Is this
>use of the compound otherwise attested?  Or were they just trying to
>see if we were paying attention and/or trying to earn their "viewer
>discretion" label?
>
>larry

--
Dennis R. Preston
Professor of Linguistics
Department of Linguistics & Germanic, Slavic,
      Asian & African Languages
Michigan State University
East Lansing, MI 48824-1027
e-mail: preston at msu.edu
phone: (517) 353-9290