Going where the right-wing thinks you've always been

By Richard K. Barry

We all know the right wing loves to talk about government waste, as if all we need to do is cut the fat and Bob's your uncle as far deficits are concerned. It's always bullshit, but they never tire of saying it.

Apparently, just for the hell of it, the IRS decided it would be a great idea to spend $60,000 on a Star Trek parody with some kind of a tax theme, and call it a training video:

The six-minute "Star Trek" video made in Maryland was shown to agency employees at a conference in 2010. In the video, IRS workers are meticulously dressed as characters from the popular TV show and are flying a staged space craft towards the planet "Notax."

I don't know what I find sillier, that they spent so much money on something so bad or that someone sought out William Shatner, aka Capt. Kirk, to ask him what he thought about the whole thing.

For the record, he was appalled and thought it was a waste of money. Great.

And thank you, IRS, for giving the right wing something to talk about for decades. We already loved you anyway.