Who's the Crazy One Around Here?

From New Hampshire Fosters.com ran the following curious story:

A public backlash has followed the comments of a 91-year-old freshman state representative who said Thursday that funding for the mentally ill should be cut because he doesn't support state funding for "the crazy people" who should be sent to "Siberia."

State Rep. Martin Harty, R-Barrington, told Sharon Omand, a program manager at Community Partners, which provides behavioral health and developmental services for Strafford County, that he believed in eugenics and disagreed with her about the need for funds for mental health services.

"The world population has gotten too big and the world is being inherited by too many defective people," he told her....

..."New Hampshire is committed to taking care of those less fortunate and has a long history of doing so," said Republican former state Sen. George Lovejoy in a statement sent to the paper. "The goal of the new Republican majority of our legislature is to serve the voice of the people and Representative Harty does not."

Kate Messler is a special-needs student at Oyster River High School, and a player-manager for the girls' basketball team. She has been featured in Foster's for her participation in team sports.

Her mother, Patricia, said she was sickened by Harty's comments.

"The importance of groups like Community Partners and the support services within the schools are why Kate has prospered," she said. "Without them Kate would not be the person she is today."

Messler added there are no defective people.

"Everyone can make a difference whether you're able or disabled," she said. "There are no defective people in this world. No one is perfect."

UPDATE: Harty is resigning due to the "slightly unfavorable publicity" generated by his comments.