As an English person I am finding this thread very confusing because I encounter very few situations where "ask" doesn't mean exactly what patio11 is describing

As an English person I am finding this thread very confusing because I encounter very few situations where "ask" doesn't mean exactly what patio11 is describing. This is especially true when the dialogue is between two people (or entities) of different social status or power, but it's also pretty rude to not oblige when you are close to the person. The only time it is truly voluntary is when there is no relationship and nothing to lose by declining.