On good galactic empires, ewoks, and evolution

Over at Right Wing News last year, there was a discussion about whether The Empire from Star Wars fame should be worthy of a little more respect (HT-The Office of Homeland Security). It is an interesting thought, but I can't contribute to the conversation because I never followed Star Wars close enough to intelligently enter the debate. When it comes to Lucas's six films, the only mystery that I'm qualified to mull over is whether or not this guy is the genetic ancestor of these guys.