First, people who get fired after public outcry will have, well, Google problems. I know, I know: That’s half the point, making sure everyone knows just how angry this person made others. But that kind of stigma can attach itself fairly permanently, making work hard to find in the future. If you have any kind of principled stance either for work (that is, that people ought to take care of themselves) or against poverty (that is, that a society as rich as ours should do everything it can to mitigate poverty), then intentionally inflicting unemployment on someone is very wrong.

Second, 49 percent of Americans receive their health coverage through their employers — and that includes spouses, children and other family members who rely on their policy bearer’s insurance. It’s possible, in some cases, to get on Medicaid when one’s employee-sponsored health insurance goes away — but there are often gaps and difficulties in the process, and you never know what kind of treatment is being interrupted when health coverage abruptly disappears. Annoying online comments are bothersome, but I’ve never seen one that made me think, that guy’s wife should have to pay for her chemo out of pocket.