Michael Ryan Admits Tea Baggers are Gullible/Stupid

Re: "Truth just isn't in the cards," from the April 30th edition of the Augusta Chronicle editorial page.

Mary Schorsch very cleverly was handing out red, white, and blue cards at Augusta's latest tea party asking the tea baggers to fill out a form saying they want to discontinue their Social Security, Medicare, etc. because they were socialist programs.

One of the reasons Mr. Ryan takes issue with this is because the cards are in a patriotic color. As if only conservatives are allowed to use patriotic colors.

Mr. Ryan felt it necessary to warn Tea Baggers not to fill out the card. This is an inadvertent admission that Tea Baggers are gullible and stupid.

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Below the above mentioned mess, we have another column from Michelle Malkin, another reliable shithead.

She claims that the Mexican government bars foreigners if the "equilibrium of national demographics" is upset.

This is nonsense. The Mexican government happily welcomes any rich white people from the U.S. who want to retire there and spend money.

I can't believe any newspaper prints her ridiculous columns.

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Mr. Ryan won a homeboy award issued by the Augusta Rotary Club. Something named after some Augusta Chronicle editorialist who probably wrote anti-desegragation columns for 30 years.

I didn't know plagiarism wins awards.

On this blog I've documented 4 cases of Mr. Ryan's plagiarism.

See: 1. The Drudge Report
2. An anonymous chain email.
3. Kathryn Lopez of the National Review
4. Glenn Beck

Mr. Ryan is now an award winning plagiarist.

Michael Ryan was for the National Consumption Tax Before He was Against It

Re: "A huge step backward," from the April 25th edition of the Augusta Chronicle editorial page.

I can't believe this one. For at least a decade the Augusta Chronicle editorial page has written strong opinion pieces in favor of a National Sales Tax. They come up with propaganda favoring a national consumption tax on average about once a month, so they've printed an estimated 120 unsigned editorials in favor of the National Sales Tax.

In this column Mr. Ryan opposes a Value Added Tax, or VAT, which is the same thing as a consumption tax, but with a realistic closure of black market loopholes.

I agree with Mr. Ryan that a VAT would "suffocate" the economy (as would the consumption tax he's been in favor of for years).

Why would he be in favor of a consumption tax but opposed to a VAT when they're virtually the same thing?

Because democrats are in charge, and some may be in favor of this. So he's pretty much against it now because democrats might favor it. This is just like the health care reform bill that recently passed. It consisted of mostly republican ideas, but conservatives and republicans were against it because democrats were for it.

In any case there's no way a VAT would pass now. President Obama would never support this piece of political suicide, and the Senate did some kind of straw poll that showed 84 of them opposed it.

There was no need to comment on this, but Mr. Ryan did--I guess so he can illustrate his hypocrisy again.

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Re: "Cue the outrage," from the April 27th edition of the Augusta Chronicle editorial page.

Mr. Ryan likens the outrage over the passage of Arizona's new racist anti-immigration law with President Obama's defense of Henry Gates, when this African-American professor was arrested for no reason.

Supposedly, President Obama was somehow in error when he accused the policeman of stupidity.

Guess what--Obama was right. Gates was never convicted of any crime. The policeman was wrong.

And people are right to be outraged over Arizona's new law which legalizes racism. It gives police the right to harrass people because of their skin color. This is something that's unbelievable in this day and age.

But Mr. Ryan supports it.

His support for a racist law makes him a...racist.

Mr. Ryan brings up a poll that shows 70% of the people in the state support the law. So what? Even higher percentages of people in the south opposed desegregation back in the 1960's. That didn't make it right.

BTW, don't forget, Arizona was also the last state to make MLK day a holiday.

Michael Ryan Blunders over History

Re: "Pray this ruling is struck down," from the April 24th edition of the Augusta Chronicle.

Michael Ryan is whining about the supposed oppression of religion again. He complains about a court ruling that a national day of prayer is unconstitutional, despite the clearly worded passage of the first amendment--"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise therof..."

Having a national day of prayer obviously conflicts with the first amendment. It requires a law promoting a generic religion. It's not necessary to have a national day of prayer to pray. No one's stopping him. Go ahead and pray, Mr. Ryan.

Anyway, I thought Mr. Ryan was against government intrusion into our personal lives. Prayer is something that should be highly personal. How can he be in favor of the government calling for everyone to pray?

His big blunder over history is from the third to last paragraph when he states, "The people who formed this nation called for a national day of prayer back in 1775. Did they, too, act "unconstitutionally"?

The constitution wasn't adopted until 1787. Oops!

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Re: "Two big nuisances," from the April 22nd edition of the Augusta Chronicle editorial page.

Here, Mr. Ryan takes the side of the NIMBY Nazis who are campaigning against a charity and are harrassing people with different lifestyles that they disapprove of.

I'm just glad I don't have people like Lori Davis and Butch Palmer as neighbors.

If they don't like their neighborhood and the other people in it, why don't they move.

It seems to me they're messing their britches because they see other people having a good time and they can't stand it. I think they're a couple of religious nuts who see African-Americans having a party instead of slaving in the fields, and they think it's armageddon.

The controversy they're drumming up is totally based on racism.

I'd take drug dealers as neighbors over racist, nasty old white people any day.

In fact, when I used to work in that neighborhood for the Augusta Chronicle circulation department, I found those old white people that live in Harrisburg to be, by far, the nastiest people in all of Augusta (and this isn't a particularly friendly town compared to others I've lived in). They're a bunch of good ole boy, bad tempered, rednecks.

I hope Lori Davis and Butch Palmer lose every battle they start.

My New Book--Georgia Before People--is available for sale

I'm taking a time out on this blog from my usual criticisms of Michael Ryan's editorial page to promote my new book--Georgia Before People: Land of the Saber-tooths, Mastodons, Vampire Bats, and Other Strange Creatures.

My book doesn't have anything to do with politics, though there is a chapter about the science behind global warming, and another debunking Creationism.

For some reason the blog I use to promote my book doesn't directly show up on a google search, but The Michael Ryan Watch does, so that's why I'm cross-promoting it here.

Georgia Before People is about what the landscapes were like in southeastern North America before people (even Indians) colonized the land. The book thoroughly describes Georgia's flora, fauna, and climate before man had any influence on the ecosystem.

The book is now available at http://www.amazon.com/. Just type in the title of the book to find it.
It's also available through special order from most book stores.

It's available directly from the printer at http://stores.lulu.com/GeorgiaBeforePeople for $24. It only costs $3 to download.

Signed copies are available directly from me for $24 (this includes shipping). Send a check or money order to:
Mark Gelbart
1144 Piney Grove Road
Augusta, Georgia 30906

My blog about Pleistocene ecology is http://markgelbart.wordpress.com/

Michael Ryan Characterizes Rape as a Thrill

Re: The bottom line from the April 17th edition of the Augusta Chronicle editorial page.

In this untitled column Mr. Ryan compared the actions of Tiger Woods with those of Ben Roethlisberger. In a patronizing fashion he criticized both.

The two are not really comparable. What Tiger Woods did was a symptom of a character flaw; what Roethlisberger did (probably raping two women with the help of his bodyguards) is monstrous.

Mr. Ryan's biggest boner in this column was this quote: "The 28-year old (Roethlisberger) seemed destined for a Hall of Fame career before these allegation. And though they're only allegations--he's not been criminally charged in either situation--they have forever tainted his image, and he joins a long and inglorious line, right behind Tiger Woods, of big money athletes who risk everything and lose much for reckless fleeting thrills.

There you have it: Mr. Ryan considers rape a thrill.

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The column above this one "It's the un-American way," is extremely hypocritical. Not long ago, Mr. Ryan was praising the angry townhall meetings about health care reform where the basic tactic of the Tea Baggers was to shout down intelligent debate.

In this column he criticizes leftist groups who heckle Tea Partiers and give them a dose of their own medicine.

I can't think of a better example of hypocrisy.

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Re: "A grand delusion," from the April 18th edition of the Augusta Chronicle editorial page.

Mr. Ryan keeps writing over and over about how the Tea Party is not racist. Repeating the same lie 7,888 times does not turn it into truth.

Tea baggers carry pictures of President Obama depicted as a monkey and a witch doctor. According to Mr. Ryan's own paper, one Tea bagger in Augusta last week carried a sign saying "A village in Kenya is missing an idiot." This is undoubtedly racist as is the whole birther controversy. They want to believe Obama is an African not born in the U.S., so they can deny his legitimacy.

Mr. Ryan just has no credibility about this, unless he acknowledges the Tea Party movement is based on at least some racist element.

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Re: Today's bottom line.

Mr. Ryan wants to add words to the constitution. He wants to add "a particular" religion to the separation of church and state clause. He rails against judicial activism in other columns. Adding words to the constitution is without a doubt activist.

How hypocritical...yet again.

Michael Ryan Now Favors a Middle Class Tax Increase

Re: "Responsibility takes a holiday," from the April 15th edition of the Augusta Chronicle editorial page.

Not long ago as I noted on this blog, Mr. Ryan irresponsibly and incredibly called for an income tax moratorium.

He must have gotten his conservative talking points mixed up because in yesterday's column he whines about how 47% of people pay no federal income taxes. He quotes Curtis Dubay who said, "We have 50 % of the people getting somethingh for nothing."

So if this is bad, as Mr. Ryan suggests, he must therefore think there needs to be an increase in middle class taxes so more people will be paying income taxes. I know he would deny this, but what's his point. Usually, he's dead set against any taxes, but now conservative talking heads are complaining about the number of people who don't pay income taxes, and I guess he thinks he's got to follow suit, no matter how inconsistent this is with his other columns.

His point, however, is misleading because of one big fat factor that conservatives alway leave out when bringing up how much in federal income taxes the richest 1% pay.

Federal payroll taxes. Everyone who works a job pays federal payroll taxes. When this is factored into the statistics he touts, it totally changes the results.

Mr. Ryan noted that the richest 1% pay 40% of federal income taxes. What he doesn't say is that the richest 1% have 40% of the financial wealth in this country, so this is actually about right. Factor in payroll taxes though, and the richest 1% are paying only 22% of all federal taxes. So to be fair, they should actually either pay more than 40% of federal income taxes or their contributions to Social Security should be made higher.

In reality the tax burden is unfairly shifted on those with less money in this country. This began with Reaganomics and the now disproven supply side theory. In 1979 the richest 1% had 20% of the total net worth. By 2007 they had 34% of total net worth. Yet, their tax burden has decreased compared to the rest of us.

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Rick Mckee's cartoon of today, Friday 16th, is another idiotic one.

The U.S. has 14,000 nuclear warheads. Iran doesn't have any.

Which side would he rather be on, the one that carries a big stick and speaks softly, or the one that has no stick but has a big mouth?

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Kudos to Eugene Robinson's column today. Excellent. I'm surprised the rednecky Chronicle runs it.

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Check out the front page of the Chronicle today. The photo of the Tea Party chumps. Every single one has gray hair. What a bunch of old racist ignoramuses.

Michael Ryan Promotes Psychotic Tea Partiers

Re: "Don't miss this Party," from the April 14th edition of the Augusta Chronicle.

Mr. Ryan is promoting a local meeting of those psychotic tea partiers scheduled for the Augusta Commons.

Over the past week, he's desperately been trying to portray these extremist nuts and ignoramuses. He cited one Rasmussen poll that showed more Americans agreed with the Tea Partiers than with President Obama. However, he didn't say with what issues they agreed with them. In fact, according to mediamatters.org, a Fox poll showed that Obama is far more popular than the Tea Party. Obama has a 50% favorable rating compared to 36% for the Tea Partiers. I invite the Tea Party to field a presidential candidate. Wow, what a landslide victory for Obama that would be.

Here's some facts about the Tea Baggers:

28% think Obama is the anti-christ. There is no such thing as the anti-christ. People who believe in the anti-christ are irrational to say the least, and in my opinion borderline psychotic.

Most don't believe Obama was born in the U.S. despite obvious proof. This demonstrates close-mindedness to the truth.

90% don't know that for most people, Obama has lowered taxes or kept them the same. This is a movement about taxes whose members are almost entirely ignorant about current tax events.

How embarrassing for them?

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A lot of letters to the editor from people upset about the new Health Care Reform Law throw the word, socialist, around quite a bit. None of them demonstrate any understanding of what socialism is. The Health Care Reform Law is not socialist because it keeps private insurance alive.

A letter from Hardy Wylie, one the Chronicle features in April 11th, was laughably amusing. He opposes the new law. Then he wrote that meaningful health reform should have tort reform, insurance coverage for people with pre-existing conditions. Medicare and Medicaid fraud reform, limitations on payments for illegal immigrants, and no abortion funding. All of this is covered in the Health Care Reform Law that he rails against.

What an ignorant moron.

Robert Shmuck, oops I mean Smock, wrote a bunch of ridiculous lies again. He claims opposition to health care reform was from a majority of the people. This is untrue--it was a plurality. Then he claims it was unread. What B.S. Congress wrote it so obviously at least some of them read it.

Randall Hatcher perhaps wrote one of the stupidest letters of the week. He called the Health Care Reform Law socialist which I explained it how it wasn't. Most of the Health Care Reform Law consisted of republican ideas. Republicans opposed it because democrats were for it, and the former had the goal of destroying Obama's presidency by blocking reform. Hatcher falsely claims Medicare and Medicaid are financial wrecks and will be broke by 2014. And he falsely claims that Europeans come to the U.S. for health care. Very few do so. Almost all European countries have higher rated health care than ours.

And of course yesterday, the Chronicle featured a homophobic letter from Denis Thomas. I wouldn't be surprised if Denis Thomas was a closet homosexual.

Mr. Ryan should be ashamed of himself.

What Fantasy World Does Michael Ryan Live In?

Re: "What is he doing in Congress?" from the April 5th edition of the Augusta Chronicle editorial page.

Michael Ryan makes a big deal about comments Congressman Phil Hare made which were obviously taken out of context. Here's the truth. Some Tea Partiers were harrassing him in a little meeting that is available on youtube. When asked about the constitutionality of the Health Care Refrom Law, he carelessly said, "I don't worry about the Constitution on this, to be honest."

Obviously, he meant he didn't worry that it was unconstitutional, but conservatives stupidly insisted he was saying he didn't care about the constitution. I hate people like this...they take a statement somebody misspeaks out of context and totally twist it around to mean something else.

All those tea partiers are a bunch of stupid assholes and so is Mr. Ryan.

To make matters worse, Hare stupidly didn't know where in the constitution a Health Care Reform Law was legal. The answer was easy--the Commerce Clause.

Hare screwed up, and conservative shitheads jumped all over it.

The stupidest thing about Mr. Ryan's column though was his ridiculous claim that "No one in America goes without health care..."

What fantasy world does he live in? According to the American Journal of Public Health, an estimated 45,000 Americans die every year because they have no health insurance. www.cnn.com/2009/Health?09/18/deaths.health.insurance/

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In another idiotic column below the one I commented on above entitled "Trawling for scapegoats," Mr. Ryan takes issue with Henry Waxman for wanting to know why big corporations are using the passage of the Health Care Reform Law as an excuse to cheat on their taxes.

I, for one, am a big fan of Henry Waxman. He's one of the few congressman who actually does his job.

Mr. Ryan thinks AT&T is going to be losing money because of changes due to the health care law. How stupid? AT&T is not going to lose money.

Mr. Ryan writes, "It's simply frightening what this country has come to."

Why? Because big corporations are going to have to give decent benefits to their workers?

Bush and Cheney Should be Arrested for War Crimes

Re: "Reality in bloom," from the March 30th edition of the Augusta Chronicle editorial page.

Michael Ryan's response to left wing criticism of conservative violence and threats in the wake of the passage of the health care law seems to be that radical liberals were even worse when Bush was president.

This seems a dubious claim to me. Mr. Ryan does produce some good examples of radical leftist protestors carrying signs advocating the assassination of Bush. BTW, I found all of these examples on a blog. Mr. Ryan never gave a source. I suspect he lifted these examples from this source but was ashamed to say he got them from a blog. Nevertheless, I accept these examples.

Mr. Ryan, however, expressed outrage that some liberals think Bush and Cheney should be arrested for combatting terrorism. Here, he completely mischaracterizes the argument. No one is saying Bush and Cheney should be prosecuted for conducting a war on terrorist. But there is a plausible case to be made that they committed hundreds of war crimes.

A book written by Michael Haas entitled George W. Bush, war criminal?: The Bush Administration's Liability for 269 war crimes makes a compelling case that the Bush administration is guilty of numerous war crimes, including the worst of all--telling lies in order to get this country in an unnecessary war of aggression against Iraq.

Mr. Ryan finishes this column with a pack of lies about what President Obama. Obama never suggested we quit in our war against terror. He did promise to withdraw troops from Iraq, and they are scheduled to withdraw.

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Letters to the editor this week prove that Augusta has its share of imbeciles.

A.C. Forgay told a bunch of anti-semitic lies about Israel which I debunked on the AC forum.

Mary Beth Seaha of Aiken compared the passage of the health care reform law with Marxist communism, even though most of the reform is based on conservative republican ideas. The only reason republicans opposed it now is because democrats were for it.

Kevin Palmer made the ridiculous claim that America is a Christian nation.

Bill Heaton wants to take our country back. I suppose when his side loses elections, the U.S. is not his country any more.

Arlene Candy thinks our country died, simply because poor people will now be able to get necessary health care.

Henry James fantasizes that republicans can legislatively overturn health care.

Imbeciles, all of them.