Why is there such fear and loathing at the health care NY town hall evident?”
HONEOYE FALLS, N.Y. — He wasn’t shouted down or chased to his car. But freshman Rep. Eric Massa (D-N.Y.) still felt the heat during a two-hour health care town hall meeting Thursday night. The fervor came from both sides, although opponents to Democrats’ health reform efforts appeared to outnumber the supporters. Opponents asked him to tell House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) that “we are not Nazis.” Supporters urged him to push harder for a single-payer national health plan. Pro and con, they spoke with emotion about personal experiences. “We really don’t trust the government,” said one man, who said his father received poor treatment in the Veterans Health Administration system. “I’m scared. I’m scared s—-less,” said a small business owner, who said she can’t afford health care for herself or her two employees. The intensity on both sides at event highlighted the difficult choice ahead on for Massa and other Democrats from split or conservative-leaning districts — the very members
