So I was watching the Republican tea party debate on CNN, led by Wolf Blitzer, whom I usually don’t care for at all.

But I perked up when Blitzer asked a tough question of Ron Paul. Blitzer presented him with the following hypothetical:

“A healthy young, 30-year-old man has a good job, makes a good living but decides, ‘You know what? I’m not going to spend $200 or $300 a month on health insurance because I’m healthy, I don’t need it.’ But something terrible happens, all of a sudden he needs it. What’s going to happen if he goes into a coma? Who pays for that?”

Ron Paul, who is showing himself in these debates to be a heartless old fool, amazingly responded by saying, “That’s what freedom is all about. Taking your own risks.” And he belittled what he called “this whole idea that you have to prepare to take care of everybody.”

Blitzer, to his credit, followed up:

“Are you saying society should just let him die?”

Before Paul had a chance to answer (and he eventually said churches and neighbors would take care of the patient), members of the audience responded with shouts of “Yes!” and “Yeah!”

What a scary bunch of people!

Just as the Republican audience last time showed their bloodlust when they cheered Rick Perry’s 234 executions, here in this debate they were even more callous and creepy.

Talk about death panels!

The angry crowd even turned its wrath on Perry himself when he defended his policy in Texas of allowing children who came across the border with their parents illegally to pay in-state tuition at state colleges there.

If you’re looking for a cup of compassion and an ounce of human decency, you’ll have a hard time finding it in these crowds.

There’s a lot of cold, hateful people wanting their pound of flesh.

If you liked this story by Matthew Rothschild, the editor of The Progressive magazine, check out his story "Obama Talks Progressive Again on the Economy."

Follow Matthew Rothschild @mattrothschild on Twitter