Welcome to this episode of the award-winning Best of a LeftPodcast.

This is a sample of our recent bonus episode every couple of weeks or so, our crew of researchers,

Amanda and myself get together for a roundtable discussion.

So here's a few minutes for free so you can see what all the fuss is about.

For reasons that I cannot fully remember at the moment, the other day Aaron and I got

talking about why it is rude to put your elbows on the table.

And so I went and found this explanation on the Ask Historians subreddit and presumably

a historian writes this.

In the case of elbows on the table, it appears guarded.

Think of placing your elbows to either side of your plate and shoveling meat into your mouth

while looking furtively around the table.

Later examples of this behavior is said to have come from sailors who would use their elbows

to stabilize their plates in rough seas, but typically anyone who felt the need to guard

their food while eating, think poor or lower-class folk while not at home, people who lived

on the street or who spent time with violent or aggressive people such as prisoners would

similarly use their arms to guard their food while they ate.

So because of the association with fear, aggression, the lower class, this behavior became considered

rude at a polite dining table.

In general, for a polite dining experience, we want to try to shed any of our behaviors

that relate to being guarded and instead emphasize behavior that gives the appearance of comfort,

relaxation and openness.

And so with that explanation, obviously concern with the lower class, they're uncouth, we

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