I think calling rangers useless is an exaggeration.
I think it's an exaggeration too, but in essence, it is not entirely untrue, either. Rangers lack in both synergy and focus - which they partly did pre-EE, too - but have also been considerably nerfed in the objective sense of the word (as opposed to, say, rogues, which have been nerfed but can still theoretically compensate with synergistic magic or by paying the imposed points tax).
