William Shatner Takes Aim at IRS for 'Star Trek' Parody
In February, "Star Trek" icon William Shatner called director J.J. Abrams "a pig" for taking on both "Star Trek" and "Star Wars" franchises, and now Shatner is back with some harsh words aimed at a more official target: the Internal Revenue Service.
Shatner was not entertained by a "Star Trek"-inspired parody produced by the government agency, in which IRS workers in "Star Trek" garb vowed "to boldly go where no governmental employee has gone before." Oh yeah, the almost-six-minute video reportedly cost $60,000 and was paid for by taxpayers.
Shatner, the original Capt. James T. Kirk, leveraged Twitter and his nearly 1.5 million followers to create negative buzz around the video.
So I watched that IRS video. I am appalled at the utter waste of US tax dollars.
— William Shatner (@WilliamShatner) March 26, 2013
In a statement, the IRS has apologized for the parody, admitting that it was a mistake: "The IRS recognizes and takes seriously our obligation to be good stewards of government resources and taxpayer dollars. There is no mistaking that this video did not reflect the best stewardship of resources."
