Eye Recommend - Scott's Story and the Election

SCOTT'S STORY AND THE ELECTION, by Nicholas D. Kristoff -- Mr. Kristoff writes of the death of his unemployed friend who could not afford health insurance.  The callous responses he received reflects the Republican every-man-for-himself attitude that makes me sad for my country. Note the comment about the elderly, (underline is mine).  If a Democrat had said anything even remotely like this, the right would be screaming "Death panels!" at the top of their lungs.

"'Not sure why I’m to feel guilty about your friend’s problem,' Terry from Oregon wrote on my blog. 'I take care of myself and mine, and I am not responsible for anyone else.'

Bruce wrote that many people in hospitals are there because of their own poor choices: 'Smoking, obesity, drugs, alcohol, noncompliance with medical advice. Extreme age and debility, patients so sick, old, demented, weak, that if families had to pay one-tenth the cost of keeping the poor souls alive, they would instantly see that it was money wasted.'

That harsh view is gaining ground, particularly on the right. Pew Research Center polling has found that the proportion of Republicans who agree that 'it is the responsibility of the government to take care of people who can’t take care of themselves' has slipped from 58 percent in 2007 to just 40 percent today."
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/18/opinion/kristof-scotts-story-and-the-election.html