Extended family relative upset about cuts to healthcare....

[Honeycombe8]

My brother tells me that an extended family relative (and wife), who are big users of Obamacare (back surgeries, medications, diabetes, you name it), are upset about Trump's cuts to healthcare.

After he tells me this, I say, well...it's not surprising. He ran on the repealing of Obamacare, after all. What did they think would happen? Who did they vote for (I say, knowing full well they wouldn't have voted for Clinton)?

My brother says he doesn't know.

I tell my brother that I think it's unlikely they voted for Clinton. Brother agrees there's no way they would have voted for Clinton.

So I tell him..well, then. Either they voted for Trump or they didn't vote. So they don't have a right to complain.

(Those relatives are hard core far-righters...Medicaid users are deadbeats, libruls are evil, gay rights are sh*t, it's fine to incarcerate kids of illegal immigrants - it's their own fault, the Clintons kill children and are evil and those emails!)

But when their healthcare is threatened by Trump (pre-existing conditions, subsidies from govt to ins cos have been temporarily halted, etc.), NOW they are upset? Nothing he's done to other people before now has given them pause? The grabbing of women, the misogyny, the "fine people" comments about Nazi sympathizers, the hiring of racists into the administration, the alienation of our allies, praising dictators who murder and starve people, etc. None of that gave them pause? Disgusting.

This shows how much attention they paid to Trump's campaign. They just heard the rhetoric about brown people, and America First, and a wall, and jobs, and didn't hear or pay attention to anything else.

[dalton99a]

1. They're ok with it as long as the brown people suffer more

[LonePirate]

4. They are OK with it so long as anybody but white people like them suffer.

Guess what? They are not in the 1% so they are going to suffer.

[redstatebluegirl]

31. White, straight, Christian people.

[TheBlackAdder]

7. Brown people -and- sticking it to the libs.

[CCExile]

17. Maybe people like this are beginning to find out that they DO care.

And jeez, is it ever painful!

[RestoreAmerica2020]

40. President Lyndon B Johnson: "If you can convince the lowest white man

....he's better than the best colored man, he won't notice you're picking his pocket. Hell, give him somebody to look down on, and he'll empty his pockets for you."

[dawg]

2. You should use this to try and coerce two Democratic votes this November.

Hillary (or Trump for that matter) won't be on the ballot. But someone who might try to help them with their health care problems will be.

[Honeycombe8]

5. Good thinking.

I don't know them and have never met them. But I know their son, and I know what kind of people they are.

So I'll put a bug in my brother's ear about mentioning that the only way to save their Obamacare is to vote Democratic this November. Nothing else will do...not voting is not an option, esp in this area.

BTW...my brother didn't vote. He's not registered because he doesn't want to have to do jury duty. I'm going to hound him about registering and voting. Esp now that MEDICARE is on the chopping block. He's in Medicare.

I don't understand these far righters not voting, and then having the nerve to be surprised or complain that the Republicans do what they always say they want to do. I also don't understand not wanting to do jury duty. He's retired, for gosh sakes. Jury duty is our duty as citizens. I've done it several times, and I had to take off work. Sheesh.

[CCExile]

18. Some people are surprised

that I don't mind paying taxes or serving jury duty. They think I'm a weirdo. Maybe I am. I'm a humanist.

[Honeycombe8]

21. I feel pretty much the same way.

I don't mind paying my fair share of taxes. It takes revenue to pay for the street lights, infrastructure, staff the agencies, etc. And I think it's a duty to serve on a jury. If we don't, who is left to serve on juries?

I also take voting very seriously. I wouldn't not register because I don't want to serve on a jury.

[Ohiogal]

33. Me, too.

Taxes are a necessity if you want roads, services, schools, etc. I don't mind paying my fair share, either.

But my Republican family members act as though they are being robbed blind by paying even one dime in taxes.

[Honeycombe8]

37. +1. nt

[kag]

20. I've never understood people not wanting to do jury duty.

I think it's one of the most fascinating parts of our legal system.

[sdfernando]

28. I know what you mean

Last edited Mon Jul 9, 2018, 05:18 PM - Edit history (1)

I have people like that in our extended family...and we are every shade of brown you can imagine!

Re: Jury Duty. I've done it several times, just civil cases, no capital charges. I actually quite enjoyed it. Very good learning experience about how the courts work. I don't know why people don't like doing it.

[Honeycombe8]

38. Me, too. I did serve on one federal (white collar) criminal case.

It's a heady experience.

[Dan]

39. In some states, not sure what state you are from

they obtain list of potential jurors from a combination of Drivers License and State ID card.

[sdfernando]

41. I'm in San Diego CA

Driver's license and/or Voter registration

[uponit7771]

8. +1

[yonder]

3. Beat me and make me write bad checks.

I don't get it, and can never understand that disconnect. I've given up on trying to make sense to those folks.

[vsrazdem]

6. They are okay with everything he does, until it happens to them.

[kimbutgar]

9. If one really looked at twitlers past history they would have known he was a lying con man

They got what they voted for, a fool.

[Honeycombe8]

23. Yep. But to be fair, I don't think they voted for him.

Their blame is that they probably didn't vote for Clinton, either.

[cstanleytech]

10. Actually they still have a right to complain but only themselves to blame.

[BigmanPigman]

11. A lot of the deplorables were not aware the ACA and OBAMACARE weren't

the same thing. DUH! I have no sympathy for their stupidity. I am getting screwed with my rising ACA costs and changes and I have no choices thanks to the deplorables who voted for the sick fucker.

[Bernardo de La Paz]

16. 1) Ignorance of that is no excuse, 2) Such ignorance is fostered by using single source for news,...

... 3) RepubliCons foster and nurture such ignorance in multiple ways. They depend on it to run their CON game / con the marks with their confidence tricks.

[47of74]

35. Yeah I'm at that point myself with Branch Trumpvidians

If it wasn't for the innocent people getting hurt I'd say fuck you to the Branch Trumpvidians whining now, and that they voted for him so they can goddamn well live with the consequences of their decisions. I'm done with the tolerant understanding of these clowns and I sure as hell am not going to forgive them for their decision either.

[mehrrh]

12. attention

You present an example of people who don't pay attention to what is happening until it affects them personally.
When they don't know anyone who is affected, they are unconcerned -- but their views change when things become personal.
Many older women don't care about those who want to preserve Roe v. Wade because it doesn't affect them.
Many working middle class people don't care about those who can't make ends meet on minimum wage, or who have no employment opportunities available, because they themselves are working and can pay their bills.
Tariffs are too complicated to understand, so until they are hit with an increase in costs, they pay no heed.
And so on -- until it finally affects them, it's really hard to get them to pay attention.

[Honeycombe8]

26. This is true. And a sad fact. nt

[No Vested Interest]

13. I think many of us Dems don't fully realize how deep some people's hate of Hillary Clinton

really goes.
Anyone who consistently watches Fox, or reads the many right-wing sites has been preached to for years on the evil of Hillary.
They came to accept Trump as keeping Hillary out of office, and nothing else mattered.
Even though some may now be "disappointed" in what Trump is doing, or undoing, they are unlikely to change their voting patterns.
It's like renouncing their country or their religion; it is a deeply held belief and renouncing means renouncing all their thinking for years past.

I think Honeycombe handled the exchange with her brother very well.
Speak calmly, with facts.

[Ferrets are Cool]

15. I've been saying this for years. Living in the DEEP south, I know how much hate there is for her. nt

[Honeycombe8]

27. :)

Thanks! It's hard to know how to react sometimes. But it's sad that we're all getting experience with this.

[Ferrets are Cool]

14. They are "minions". They do what Faux Snooze tells them to do. Who to hate and

who to vote for. To hell with the consequences. I'm surprised that he didn't tell you it was Obama's fault for the healthcare cuts.

[rurallib]

19. But her emails ........

[Honeycombe8]

30. Yes...the emails had a YUGE effect on the rural folks.

They don't understand it, exactly, but are convinced she committed some serious crime regarding the emails, and she has not even been legitimately investigated for it! They're not sure what the crime is. Just that they've been told she committed a serious crime, so they believe it. Their hate of the Clintons is so entrenched that they'll believe almost anything about them.

[lunatica]

22. It seems the cows are beginning to come home

Karma. Remember they didn’t care until it affects them.

[Grins]

24. Been saying it for years (And another story..)

Been saying it for years - only when it affects them personally will the "deplorables" wake up. It's a (small) reason why I disagree with the "Impeach the bastard!" movement. Better to have billboards/ad in the red states with a simple messages:

When you voted for 'him" did you realize you were voting for someone who would cause China to stop buying your soybean crops?
When you voted for 'him" did you realize you were voting for someone who would cause the prices of your appliances to go up?
When you voted for 'him" did you realize you were voting for someone who would cause the prices of ALL cars to go up?
When you voted for 'him" did you realize his steel tariffs would put your employer out of business and you out of a job?
When you voted for 'him" did you realize you were voting for someone who will reduce your Social Security?
When you voted for 'him" did you realize you were voting for someone who will kill your health care?
When you voted for 'him" did you realize you were voting for someone who will kill your Medicare?

My other story - my brother's neighbor.

Big Trump supporter/voter. And annoyingly VERY vocal about that, too.
He's in his late 50's, VERY overweight, and with a heart problem. His wife - the same.
Last year his long-time employer got bought out by another company.
The resulting merger caused him to be the one to be let go ("What? Me? I'm 59!" Mgt.: "Don't need two if you guys now, do we?&quot
He winds up on COBRA, thinking some other company will quickly hire someone in their late 50's with health problems.
Oops!
Six months later, unemployed & dipping into his savings, his COBRA about to run out, he starts looking around to buy health insurance.
Double oops!
Cost for the overweight guy in his late 50's with a heart condition - $2,000. A month.
About 5X what he paid as an employee, and he's no longer an employee.
Did I mention that $2,000 doesn't include his equally overweight wife in her late 50's with a heart condition? No...?
DOUBLE IT! Almost $5,000 a month and he has to pay for all of it with his post-tax dollars*.
Suddenly - Miraculously! - Obamacare is lookin' pretty darn good.....
Or was.


* Even though his last employer paid a good part of his health insurance under their company plan, that amount is not considered taxable income. A benefit employees of companies that do not have company plans do not get.

[Honeycombe8]

32. I am just amazed at people like your neighbor.

How can it be possible that he never envisioned how it is for someone at his age being laid off w/no healthcare? Well, I'm not happy about anyone being in that situation, but it does mean that karma is alive and well.

If he had listened to other people about healthcare (like me! I've been in Obamacare for a few years), he would have known how expensive it is.

BTW..you know the stories about illegal immigrants getting Obamacare? He is finding out that he has to prove his citizenship in order to get it. I'm sure that's a rude awakening, too. They don't take your word for it. Being in the U S for years doesn't cut it, either.

He is also finding out that he has to have a minum income to get it. Obamacare doesn't take someone below a certain income threshold. There's a way he can work that, though, if he has a retirement account.

His situation is precisely one of the things Obamacare was created to help with: older Americans who find themselves out of work and having to live on their retirement savings. The govt decided it is for the benefit of the country if they get some assistance w/health care, rather than use up all their retirement savings on medical expenses, and then be left to rely on the govt for the remainder of their lives, or live in abject poverty.

[keithbvadu2]

25. Tell them to blame Trumpcare... There is no more Obamacare.

Tell them to blame Trumpcare... There is no more Obamacare.

Trump: There is no such thing as ObamaCare anymore (June 2017)

http://thehill.com/policy/healthcare/355658-trump-there-is-no-such-thing-as-obamacare-anymore

[Honeycombe8]

36. +1. nt

[Doodley]

29. They are victims of brainwashing. One can hope that one day their minds will be free.

[Ohiogal]

34. "But he was supposed to make others' lives miserable, not mine!"