The United Stats Olympic Committee has issued a formal letter stating its intent to sue the “Redneck Olympics” over the use of the word “Olympic.” The Committee insists that it owns the word Olympic — despite the fact that it refers to an ancient sporting even from Greece that preceded both the United States and copyright/trademark laws. (It turns out that this early depiction of the Greek Olympics had been long misinterpreted as a race. It is actually early Greek lawyers serving an organizer with a complaint over the use of the word Olympic in 776 BC).I have previously complained about the ever-expanding claims of copyright and trademark rights over common terms or symbols. Congress and the Obama Administration have continued to yield to lobbyists demanding more protections, including criminal protections, despite the stifling impact on creativity and discourse.
This would be akin to someone claiming ownership of the word “Redneck.”
It appears that a special law was passed given the Committee this ownership over a term created thousands of years ago:
But Town of Tarboro will hold BLACK FAMILY DAY at the expense of taxpayers and forego the Fireworks we've had every year since I can remember!!!!!!!!!!!
ReplyDeleteD.Stroud
Tarboro, NC
Yes, if that ain't the damnedest thing I ever saw. PC will kill us yet, if not fought with a .45.
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