A review by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution showed that a long-awaited report by Gov. Sonny Perdue's mental health commission borrowed extensively from a 2004 Michigan study and two other sources. None of the pirated material is credited to the original publications.

This blatant theft underscores that if you steal from one author, it's plagiarism, but if you steal from two, it's research. (That line, by the way, is stolen from rakish screenwriter Wilson Mizner.)

Not that the Georgia report represents inspired pilfering. Some information was lifted wholesale without any thought. For example, the Georgia report duplicates the Michigan original in directing readers to "Appendix E" for more information. Only problem: There is no Appendix E in the Georgia version.

Reading over the stilted language and vague conclusions, it's tempting to grab a red pen and write, "Your manuscript is both good and original. But the part that is good is not original, and the part that is original is not good." (That quote is often attributed to Samuel Johnson, but it's not certain he ever said it, so we'll claim it for the time being.)

An unnamed former state employee wrote the report, according to the Georgia Department of Human Resources. The ex-employee has probably taken her flair for imitation to TV, where it's appreciated. The beleaguered author of the report would probably blame the cribbing on too many projects, too little time, and no direction. And, after all, creativity is great, but plagiarism is faster. (Nope, not our line, either; one of those little gems circulating the Internet with no clear parentage.)

Let's hope that Georgia doesn't copy everything Michigan did. Earlier this year, the Mental Health Association of Michigan gave the state an "F" for failing to follow through on most of the 71 recommendations in its 2004 mental health report.

— Maureen Downey, for the editorial board (mdowney@ajc.com)