From a Daily Kos diary:

My Republican sister-in-law lost her health care-UPDATED
by kimtcga
Share this on Twitter - My Republican sister-in-law lost her health
care-UPDATED Mon Jun 22, 2009 at 01:11:21 PM PDT
You know the old chesnut that a conservative is a liberal who has been
mugged? Well, a liberal may be a conservative who lost health care.

My sister-in-law works for a large, multi-national conglomerate in the
northeast. She is 42, pregnant with her first child, and had a stroke
(the Sen. Johnson kind) two years ago. My brother works for a
high-tech start up, and had his pay cut the day they found out she was
expecting. But that was okay, since her job was great, she loved the
company, and (because it was European-based) she had excellent health
insurance and family leave.

Then, last week, she was told that her position was being
"eliminated." That is, she wasn't getting fired or laid off, but they
were erasing the job from the company. She had told them she was
pregnant several weeks before this news; a number of her colleagues
have said to her that the company couldn't fire a pregnant woman, but
they could elimate the job. Twenty other people were elimated
company-wide, which sounds like a lot until you find out the company
has thousands of employees. She suspects (but cannot prove) that they
got rid of her because she was at high risk to cost a lot of money on
their insurance.

While this is indeed horrible, the part that is interesting to our
discussion is the reaction of my parents and my brother-in-law. These
are people who are northeastern Republicans, a dying breed that is
socially liberal, but very fiscally conservative. They railed about
the Clintons wanting to socialize medicine, although my mother, as a
retired educator, has health care for life from the state. When Obama
(whom they did not vote for) was elected, they were beside themselves
with panic that he would have us "rationing" health care,
Soviet-style. Now, suddenly, they are with the program; if only there
were some "public insurance" for people like my brother and his wife,
who will use his company insurance at exhorbitant premiums (heck, her
COBRA would be cheaper).

I read the polls and see that most Americans want this option, but the
(insured) conservatives and moderates in D.C. don't get it, because it
doesn't affect them. Maybe if more conservatives or their families had
to stare high medical costs in the face, we wouldn't be having this
discussion.

UPDATE: Gosh! I wrote this, went to a baseball game, and came home
late to find my very first rec list! I also came home to a message
from my mom. My parents are planning to take my sister-in-law to talk
to a labor lawyer they know, since they are so outraged. I haven't
called back yet, because it will take every ounce of my being to not
be snarky (my dad's business was sued once, and he hates lawsuits--all
made more ironic by having a lawyer for a daughter). I will keep you
posted on whether they decide to use the legal system to upend the
free market.

On Mon, 22 Jun 2009 23:00:09 -0700, jps wrote:

From a Daily Kos diary:

Daily Kos?

BBBAAAWWWAAAHHHHAAAAAA!!!!!!

On Tue, 23 Jun 2009 06:23:08 -0400, Wizard of Woodstock
wrote:

On Mon, 22 Jun 2009 23:00:09 -0700, jps wrote:

From a Daily Kos diary:

Daily Kos?

BBBAAAWWWAAAHHHHAAAAAA!!!!!!

The post is from an American citizen. Just like you and me.

On Jun 23, 2:38*pm, jps wrote:
On Tue, 23 Jun 2009 06:23:08 -0400, Wizard of Woodstock

wrote:
On Mon, 22 Jun 2009 23:00:09 -0700, jps wrote:

From a Daily Kos diary:

Daily Kos?

BBBAAAWWWAAAHHHHAAAAAA!!!!!!

The post is from an American citizen. *Just like you and me.

One that reads "The Daily Kos"!! BBBAAAWWWAAAHHHHAAAAAA!!!!!!

JustWaitAFrekinMinute! wrote:
On Jun 23, 2:38 pm, jps wrote:
On Tue, 23 Jun 2009 06:23:08 -0400, Wizard of Woodstock

wrote:
On Mon, 22 Jun 2009 23:00:09 -0700, jps wrote:
From a Daily Kos diary:
Daily Kos?
BBBAAAWWWAAAHHHHAAAAAA!!!!!!
The post is from an American citizen. Just like you and me.

One that reads "The Daily Kos"!! BBBAAAWWWAAAHHHHAAAAAA!!!!!!

So what? It's not as if it is from where you get your news and
commentary, out of your rectum.