If you have to leave, you can at least make sure they never forget you.

David Waddell, a councilman in the town of Indian Trail, N.C., announced this week that he would resign his seat on the council effective Jan. 31. He wrote two letters announcing his departure, one to the public expressing his frustration with the way the council handles development and public requests for information, and another to mayor Michael Alvarez to formally give up his seat. The first letter was written, naturally, in English. The second Waddell wrote in Klingon. Yes, Klingon.

Yes, Waddell was kind enough to provide a translation for the mayor, but taking the time to compose the letter in a fictional language first certainly took some commitment.

“Folks don’t know what to think of me half the time,” Waddell said. “...I might as well have one last laugh..."

Waddell described the use of Klingon in his resignation letter as an inside joke. The mayor, however, wasn't laughing.

“It’s an embarrassment for Indian Trail, and it’s an embarrassment for North Carolina,” Alvarez said.

In addition to his frustrations with how the council approached certain policies, Waddell also said he's leaving both because he's hoping to devote more time to helping with a Constitution Party senate campaign, and because he believes he can do more good by addressing the council as a private citizen. So here's hoping he takes some time to go back and complain in a public forum with some elaborate Klingon speeches.

(Via The Charlotte Observer)