US Patent Office Cancels Redskins Trademark

Wait until PETA gets involved and convinces the masses to ban animal names.  It will take some time... laugh now, shake your head later. 

 

A 2-Fer....., Washington Great Whites.

peta already tried that with the Packers.  No worries there.

My point is that 'Gamecocks' has to do with cockfighting, which our society has decided is immoral and since made illegal. It's like calling a team the 'Dogfighters.' 

Then someone needs to sue the Miami Dolphins pronto. 

I think it's a bit humorous that this whole thing seemed to pick up steam when the dumdums with the team seemingly came out of nowhere to say 'FU' to changing the name.  It's almost as if they had a big part in creating their own ****storm here.  If they had just what had been done for a long time - STFU about it and let people complain, it would have gone away or at least stayed under the radar for awhile.  

 

To the point of an earlier post, the nutballs at PETA actually did try to get the GBP to change their name in the 90s because it connotes the killing of animals.  Wolf handled it perfectly when asked about it - he laughed it off and said, "Fine, let them protest or whatever and we'll see how far they get."  That was the end of it - no statements, no press conferences, no politically-charged letters sent, none of that bullcrap.

 

The team deserves a lot of the blame here, and much of it has nothing to do with the name itself.

I just remembered that Wolf basically did the same thing a couple of years later when he fired Rhodes.  Jesse freaking Jackson and other 'do-gooders' were making noise about coming to protest the firing, and Wolf just dead-panned a response to the reporter along the lines of, "Were we racists a year ago when we hired him?"  That was it.  No more talk about it.

 

 

He did bring this on himself, but Danny isn't completely dum,

He's selling the crap out of the "old" jerseys now in a move of public defiance.

Current fans lap it up..." Us against the world !"

 

And then when he inevitably changes the name, he'll sell another eleventy billion new ones all while keeping his football-irrelevant franchise in the news

The other owners won't squawk because they all get a piece of both pies.

 

(follow the money....) 

 

 

Do you say that because Snyder is... er... nevermind. 

True, but the name is going to change at some point.  If Danny had done it right, he'd have announced that in, say, a year, the new name would be revealed.  That would have protected the revenue streams both for old jersey sales and new ones.  As of now, 800 bazillion 'official' Redskins jerseys are probably coming off the presses in China that will sell for about 8 bucks since there will be no licensing fees attached.

 

Taking the whole politically-charged element out of it for a minute, it's an interesting conundrum.  He would have made a ton with the new name anyway, but in the meantime cash is going to fly into the pockets of those who have nothing to do with the NFL.  

No worries Dr. Bob, The Onion is already on it 

 

http://www.theonion.com/articl...ms-offens,34292/?utm

 

“The Redskins represent 81 years of great history and tradition, and it’s a source of pride for our fans,” said the hook-nosed kike, stressing that the team’s insulting moniker is “absolutely not a racial slur by any means.”

Good call.

Now is the perfect time to sell a "Redskins Suck !"  line of gear to all their detractors in NY, philly and dullass

.

 The name's been around for 70+ years, and suddenly this month not only do 50 U.S. Senators take the time from their busy schedules to formally "request" a name change, but the U.S. Patent Office cancels the trademark registration... and the leadership sends out a statement that the Senate Majority Leader will boycott the games until justice is done.

 

Meanwhile, for far more than 70 years, the Native American population has had among the highest unemployment rates, among the highest teen pregnancy rates, among the highest divorce rates, among the highest homeless rates, and among the highest alcoholism rates in the United States.

 

I'm so glad that our leadership is finally taking an interest in the Native American plight in this country.  It is high time.

Olympic Mascot. Word?

I know we're not supposed to get political here, but well said. 

Satori, How much in residuals do you get from Arizona State?  This might be valuable information that puts this whole argument and thread to rest.

I think that Pandora's box has been opened. I honestly do not care either way if the name is changed but I do believe this is only the start. In the ruling it said something like they found the name to be derogatory.  So when will other names offend people and a change be forced?  yes I get it that it can be seen as a slur to a group of people I am not disputing that but who is up next for a name change?  Any team that uses any Indian likeness or name?  We have seen over time teams changing nicknames away from Warriors etc.  So what would be an acceptable name for the Redskins? should the team be allowed to pick their own name and if they do will they need to work with people to ensure no one gets their sensitivities hurt? Will they need to make the decision now to completely break away from anything Indian at all out of fear they will have to just change it down the line? Or maybe we should just go the Alabama route and only have team colors and number on the helmets and the only logo is the letter from the city or state the team is in.  This way no one can be hurt by it.

 

good post.  I always ask the change the name folks if anyone's life will truly be any better if the name changes.  I personally think if they want to do something good how about we do something about the things you mentioned in your post instead of worrying about a team name.

Sorry, but this popular theme of a "slippery slope" is just a steaming pile of bs

Total and complete bull****

 

None of the other names are a racial slur. That's the entire point and the reason that many object to using the R-word. Very simple stuff. It has nothing to do with just being derogatory or hurting someones feelings- its a racial slur

 

But some want to turn it into a tirade against PC and a bunch of other stuff that has zero relation to what's really going on.

 

We all live within spitting distance of an Indian reservation or casino- how about you go in there and call them a bunch of no good Redskins, and then report back here on how that goes over. And if you're really feeling frisky, try it at bar time

 

Good Luck

 

Let's be clear about this.  No one has forced Washington to change the name or the mascot.  A government branch has simply stated they won't protect the name from copyright/trademark infringement on a federal level.  Local protections can and will still be enforced.  There's no slippery slope here... just bystanders getting their feelings hurt on both sides and the groups involved fighting in court.  But as others have indicated, money will be the deciding factor if any change ultimately gets made or not. 

If "pure economics" should decide whether the name should be changed then why must the government strip Washington of trademark protection?  Let the economics dictate whether NFL fans (or the world) are outraged and NOT purchase their merchandise.

 

While the US Bureau of Patents and Trademarks are at it why are they allowing the glorification of Raiders, Buccaneers, and Vikings?  Hollywood has glorified their exploits but since when is marauding, pillaging, raping and murdering innocent law-abiding citizens something to be glorified?  THEY should be the next targets of congress, who apparently have nothing more important to "fix".

You inserted the word "should".  I only said "would". 

The NFL wins either way as fans buy up the "old" jerseys before they stop making them and then they sell another bazillion new jerseys when the name changes

 

 

 

....after the "Redskins" have had a bottle of whiskey consumed. 

Of course, you're right Satori.  The NFL as a whole makes money anyway, although I wonder who pays the legal fees to fight this... the NFL or Washington? 

 

Edit:  This is a fascinating irony though.  Those wishing to hold onto the "Redskin" name are complaining about mistreatment by the US government.  Perhaps as a peace offering the government should provide the blankets for a season opener give away. 

I still don't get why those mofo Injuns are so upset. If they don't want to be so honored, Snyder should just honor another group. What about black people? The DC area is about 51% black. (Did IC really shudder at that stat?) My proposal? Honor the black people of DC. Change the name to the Washington Niggers. That mascot should be quite striking with its brilliant **** eating grin, watermelon in hand. I tell you, as I write this there are tears of pride in my eyes. I feel so honored.

Goalline. Too much.

Woah hey! No need work to blue there friend!

well played, Goalline, well played. 

"Perhaps as a peace offering the government should provide the blankets for a season opener give away"

 

And those blanket would be for what? - Sending smoke signals, perhaps?

 

quote:

Sorry, but this popular theme of a "slippery slope" is just a steaming pile of bs

Total and complete bull****

30 years ago when the cigarette banners were really taking off, there were people saying, "The next thing you know, government is going to be telling us what we can and cannot eat."  Such people were derided, but they've pretty much turned out to be right.  Michael Bloomberg and his minions tried to ban salt, wrong-sized sodas, and trans-fats, the last of which only came into vogue because the evil control freaks at CSPI and other such organizations insisted that trans-fats were better than lard for frying.

Apparently I was too subtle.  I was referring to the supposed practice of commanders giving small pox-infested blankets to Native Americans to spread the disease.

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/N...nst_Native_Americans

"It's not up to the offending class to say what offends the offended."

Viking season ticket holders. You're argument is invalid.

I've already taken "WashingtonDaffodils.com, .org, .nfl website names.

 

Pretty sure I'm going to make out like a bandit

Chili, have you ever had shredded fried hash brown balls? I'm thinking of making some for your visit.

I try to avoid any threads/topics here that are even remotely political in origin (what makes this forum so great is that we try to avoid that stuff), but this article from the Onion had me laughing my ass off: http://www.theonion.com/articl...nkPreview:NA:InFocus

isn't bar time "all the time" at a casino?