Paul Krugman, "The Medicare Killers": Krugman on the Verge of an Apoplectic Fit

Yesterday, it was little less than remarkable to observe the titles of the various opinion pieces appearing on the home page of The Washington Post pertaining to Paul Ryan's speech at the Republican Party's Tampa convention: "Mr. Ryan’s misleading speech," "Will Paul Ryan's dishonesty matter to voters?," "Which of Ryan’s distortions in his speech to the Republican National Convention were the worst?," "Paul Ryan’s breathtakingly dishonest speech," and "Ryan: Flunking his own test."

Goodness gracious, Paul Ryan must be the Devil incarnate.

Not to be outdone by WaPo's columnists, Paul Krugman joins the attack against the Republican vice presidential candidate with an apoplectic op-ed entitled "The Medicare Killers" (http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/31/opinion/Krugman.html). Informing us that Ryan’s speech "finally may have dispelled the myth that he is a Serious, Honest Conservative," Krugman calls Ryan's voucher system for the purchase of medical insurance a "big lie" and a "terrible, terrible thing."

However, as acknowledged by the Social Security and Medicare Boards of Trustees in its Summary of the 2012 Annual Reports (http://www.ssa.gov/oact/trsum/index.html), funding of both Social Security and Medicare faces dire challenges. As observed by the Boards of Trustees:

"Lawmakers should address the financial challenges facing Social Security and Medicare as soon as possible. Taking action sooner rather than later will leave more options and more time available to phase in changes so that the public has adequate time to prepare."

Is Ryan "dishonest," a "fraud" and a "liar"? Nah. Although his proposed solutions to the pending Medicare crisis demand discussion, even the Boards of Trustees of Social Security and Medicare recognize that concrete steps to trim the deficits must come immediately. You can disagree vigorously with the specifics of Ryan's plans, but his initiative, which has shaken the federal government and national media from their fool's paradise, can only be deemed commendable.