Ted Cruz Pseudo-Filibuster, Abridged Version

Senator Ted Cruz's whole 21-hour "filibuster"of September 24-25th, 2013 in less than a minute:

The Sci-Fi Version of the "Moon Bill" in Congress

As seen on Hardball:

On Monday, two house democrats introduced bill HR 2617, otherwise known as "The Apollo Lunar Landing Legacy Act", which is intended to establish a national park on the moon. The so-called "Moon Bill" has little chance of being enacted, but it's received a lot of attention and some mockery in the press over the last several days. It may not be a great leap, or even a small step, toward colonizing the moon, or creating a secret "death star" in space, it has delighted some sci-fi fans none-the-less.

As kuck would have it, on Wednesday, President Obama awarded George Lucas the National Medal of Arts and Humanities. While he didn't mention any future "lunar ambitions" in his speech, he did diverge from his prepared remarks to reflect on the legacy of "Star Wars": "I remember when I first saw Star Wars. There is a whole generation who think special effects always looked like they do today. But it used to be your see that string on the little model spaceships."

Much like the "Moon Bill" in congress, Lucas's original idea for "Star Wars" was met with skepticism at first, but he got it done with a mix of good storytelling and innovative special effects. Maybe the "Moon Bill" supporters should take those lessons and "repackage" their bill in a format more familiar to Star Wars fans in Congress. Here's what that might look like, enhanced with some "special effects" -- as seen on Thursday's "Hardball" on MSNBC:

Dick Cheney for Congress 1978 TV Advertisement

Check out this 1978 campaign ad for Dick Cheney for Congress in Wyoming. The setting is rather bizarre, as he's crouched on a lawn with several young voters. He appears to be defending his fitness for office, discussing his heart attack and comparing himself to other politicians that had heart trouble, including LBJ and Ike: