Politicians often pledge to not let their constituents down. But one Oregon lawmaker has taken that pledge to a whole new level, as he and a few colleagues surreptitiously recited the lyrics to Rick Astley's 80s hit, "Never Gonna Give You Up" on the House floor.
The prank known as "rickrolling," emerged as an Internet meme a few years back, and involves tricking someone into clicking on a benignly disguised link to open a web page that blares Astley's unmistakeable song. The phenomenon became so ubiquitous that Astley himself rickrolled the Macy's Day parade in 2008.
According to Yahoo News, Rep. Jefferson Smith (D) convinced a bipartisan group of colleagues to join him in reciting, piece by piece, the entire song in speeches during a special legislative session in February 2010. Since Oregon law requires that legislative proceedings be videotaped, the entire spectacle was secretly captured on tape.
From Yahoo News:
"It was way harder taking words and spreading them out than simply manipulating them (on video)," Smith says. "There are some easy lines in there to say without getting noticed. 'You're never gonna' is easy. 'I just wanna tell you how I'm feeling' is easy. But an 'ooh?' That's tricky."
more:
http://tpmmuckraker.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/04/in_elaborate_prank_oregon_lawmakers_rickroll_the_s.phpvideo:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fZi4JxbTwPo&feature=player_embedded
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