[MD] An unintended Pirsig joke

[Micah]

That's a good nit pick on your part. Here's mine - it's called anesthesia,
which effectively turns off the patient. But I have seen mechanics remove
engines from a car, balance it (to remove vibration), run it and re-install
the engine. I have even watched a mechanic change a belt while the engine
was running (very dangerous). There are many things mechanics do while the
vehicle is running that surgeons don't do with humans and vice versa. Your
story wasn't a joke from the doctor's perspective, it was a social quality
put down in response to a search for intellectual quality. You're either a
doctor or someone that is unfamiliar with auto repair in order to continue
beat a horse (not the moderator) which I clearly killed in my first
response.

I do get your "joke's" basic point - the difference between a doctor and
god, is that god doesn't think it's a doctor; and being a mechanic is
something someone does when they're not smart enough to do anything else.
Gotta know your place in the social order.

Micah



----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Michael R. Brown" <mrb at fuguewriter.com>
To: <moq_discuss at moqtalk.org>
Sent: Saturday, November 03, 2012 8:17 PM
Subject: Re: [MD] An unintended Pirsig joke


> Micah -
>
> You overlooked this important part of the setup:
>
> > A mechanic was removing a cylinder head from the motor
>
> Is that going to happen while the cycle's running?