I was listening to one of my favorite radio stations, full of good conservative talk show hosts. One of them was discussing healthcare with a liberal caller.

She kept on changing the subject and making an appeal to emotion, that being "tell me where I can find healthcare now that I can afford? I could afford it when it was 172$/mo, now its 400$/mo and I can't afford it, I tried blu-cross, aetna, etc?"

I think he really dropped the ball on answering her. He said he doesn't know her exact situation so he can't really do that, and that she should be looking at the bigger picture and that she is not answering any of his questions (all true, but not a good answer).

Had a funny moment there: Him: "You are a really hard person to talk to because" Her: "Because I am smart?" Him: "Because we are having two separate discussions here".

So how should he have answered? well, definitely point out that she is going off on a tangent, but also bluntly and truthfully answer her question. What would I have said?

The Proper Answer: look, you keep on going off on tangents and making an appeal to emotion without actually answering any of my points or questions, but I am going to go ahead and give you an answer. You can't find anyone who will give you the insurance you want at the price you want. It is unfortunate and it will require some tough choices, and for some people it is even worse. But handing it over to the government is not going to magically solve your problems, it will make it even worse. Our system is sick, that does not mean that we need to euthanize it. All over the world, and even here in the USA with medicare, medicaid, and the state specific attempts, like the recent one tried in hawaii have all gone bankrupt, resulted in waiting lists and rationing. Yes, life isn't fair; so don't go making it worse by acting in a panic without thinking and with ignoring all fact, evidence and history.