Men Are from Mars, Women are from Venus and Rep. Paul Ryan Is from Pluto

Yeah, Pluto isn’t even recognized as a planet anymore. Paul Ryan is a strange chair for the House Budget Committee as he proved during a recent hearing on “War on Poverty: A Progress Report.” As a matter of fact a lot of folk on that committee seem totally out of touch with reality.

For example Marsha Blackburn (Republican, Tennessee) used her time to attack Sister Simone Campbell the leader of Nuns on a Bus. Yep, religion was talked about in this hearing. Even Ryan thought Blackburn was out of it on this one.

Rep. Ribble (from a family of pastors) weighed in and told the sister, “Christianity is all about serving the poor. What is the Church doing wrong that it had to come to the government to get so much funding.” I think Ribble must of played far out left field in Little League. But it is part of the Republican rhetoric for some time now that the churches should step up to deal with social issues. Sr. Simone replied that a Bread for the World study shows that if the food stamps cut proposed by last years Republican budget had been implemented “every church, synagogue, mosque, and house of worship in the United stated” would have needed to raise $50,000 in additional monies every year for the next 10 years. She then said, “We have a limitation in our capacity to do that.” Rep. responded, “Your capacity is the same as our capacity.” Huh?

As the conversation continued with Ryan wanting more information of anti-poverty programs, which his budgets all want to cut substantially. Sr. Simone was ready again saying, “In 2011, government benefits lifted a total of 40 million people out of poverty, while Social security has the largest impact of any single program, means-tested programs such as SNAP, SSI and EITC lifted almost 20 million Americans, including 8.5 million children out of poverty.” If the House Republican proposal to cut $20.5 billion from SNAP (food stamps) over 10 years then about 5 million people would be eliminated from the program, which would increase federal and state health care costs by $15 million for diabetes alone over 10 years.

The weirdness continued. When will the far right ever realize that these programs save the country money rather than cost taxpayers if implemented? They reflect economic myopia and a general disregard for the common good and the plight of the poor while the increase the divide between the ultra wealthy and the rest of the country by the tax breaks.

Captain Kirk, take Paul Ryan and his unethical cronies to a galaxy long ago far far away. As they appear inhumane and perhaps inhuman.