US Patent Office Cancels Washington "Redskins" Trademark Registration

[GGGG]

Why don't you just answer the question?  Are they naive?  That was your implication?

I never implied they were naive.  Of course they aren't.  They are freely able to form their own opinions about the word.

[ChicosBailBonds]

I never implied they were naive.  Of course they aren't.  They are freely able to form their own opinions about the word.

Perfect.  We have common ground. 

Next question, do their opinions count less than those that are offended? 

[GGGG]

Because it is private property, the gov't has no role in this, and because most Native Americans are fine with it.  That's why.  Can't make it any clearer for you.

Again, by law, "most" isn't the standard.  And if you, and CTWarrior, believe that "government should have better things to do," go ahead and lobby Congress to change trademark law.

So I am a little perplexed why people have a problem with the Patent Office doing what the people asked them to do.

[GGGG]

Perfect.  We have common ground. 

Next question, do their opinions count less than those that are offended? 

Of course not. 

[ChicosBailBonds]

Again, by law, "most" isn't the standard.  And if you, and CTWarrior, believe that "government should have better things to do," go ahead and lobby Congress to change trademark law.

So I am a little perplexed why people have a problem with the Patent Office doing what the people asked them to do.

It's not about trademark law, it's the interpretation of it.  It was a 3 voter panel, 2 to 1 was the vote.  They couldn't even get consensus that it was any type of violation.

Perplexed?  I just gave you example after example where the PTO said other items were not offensive.  You posted only part of the regs the other day.  The gov't response also said the dictionary defines Redskins as a slur.  Dago is defined that way as well....does this mean PTO just took that day off and wasn't doing their job that day?  Sorry, why are you questioning or stating perplexity when that is a perfect example.  Both defined as slurs in a dictionary, one approved and one not.  Interesting.  Almost like non profit status is approved for some groups and not others, but those damn emails and hard drives can't be found any longer.

[CTWarrior]

Again, by law, "most" isn't the standard.  And if you, and CTWarrior, believe that "government should have better things to do," go ahead and lobby Congress to change trademark law.

So I am a little perplexed why people have a problem with the Patent Office doing what the people asked them to do.

I wasn't referring to the Patent Office, who were asked to make a ruling and did, but more to guys like Harry Reid and my local CT elected contingent who waste so much of their time and ours with their posturing on this issue, when it should be so far down their priority list that they never get to it.

In this country you get a lot of rights.  The right to not be offended is not one of them.

[GGGG]

It's not about trademark law, it's the interpretation of it.  It was a 3 voter panel, 2 to 1 was the vote.  They couldn't even get consensus that it was any type of violation.

Perplexed?  I just gave you example after example where the PTO said other items were not offensive.  You posted only part of the regs the other day.  The gov't response also said the dictionary defines Redskins as a slur.  Dago is defined that way as well....does this mean PTO just took that day off and wasn't doing their job that day?  Sorry, why are you questioning or stating perplexity when that is a perfect example.  Both defined as slurs in a dictionary, one approved and one not.  Interesting.  Almost like non profit status is approved for some groups and not others, but those damn emails and hard drives can't be found any longer.

Again...deflection.  This issue has nothing to do with the IRS.  So why did you bring it up again??? 

And as I have said with issues like DAGO or NEGRO...go ahead an file a complaint.  Follow the same procedure that they followed with Redskins.  The difference is that no one has filed such a complaint in those two cases. 

The Patent Office doesn't simply look up a word in a dictionary to figure out if it's offensive you know.

[ChicosBailBonds]

Again...deflection.  This issue has nothing to do with the IRS.  So why did you bring it up again??? 

And as I have said with issues like DAGO or NEGRO...go ahead an file a complaint.  Follow the same procedure that they followed with Redskins.  The difference is that no one has filed such a complaint in those two cases. 

The Patent Office doesn't simply look up a word in a dictionary to figure out if it's offensive you know.

It's an example of the same Administration (IRS, Patent Office, HHS, etc,) are part of Executive Branch and I'd like to know how much more incompetency we need to see from IRS and HHS just in the last 18 months.  Pattern of incompetence, that's why.  No deflection, part of gov't.

The gov't said the other day in their response, that dictionary definition was one of the sources it used to make its decision.  Their words, not mine.  Apparently when other trademarks show slurs, etc, per a dictionary, it doesn't matter.  This was a 100% political decision.

http://www.santafenewmexican.com/news/patent-office-follows-law-studies-dictionaries-to-rule-on-trademarks/article_f5a403b4-8f07-5a86-93fc-de3993a5b3f9.html

[ChicosBailBonds]

My bad, I should have linked this article here and not the other thread.

Now we learn the Patent office did not receive a SINGLE complaint about the Redskins name.

Contrived outrage at its best.

http://p.washingtontimes.com/news/2014/jul/1/redskins-name-drew-no-public-complaints-patent-off/

[GGGG]

Of course they buried the part where they say "there is no mechanism for input from the general public" and such input isn't part of their process.

Something is contrived here...and it isn't the outrage over the Redskins name.

[Coleman]

Chicos is posting the same garbage in two threads hoping he won't get called out in at least one of them.

http://www.muscoop.com/index.php?topic=40002.msg635282;topicseen#new

[forgetful]

My bad, I should have linked this article here and not the other thread.

Now we learn the Patent office did not receive a SINGLE complaint about the Redskins name.

Contrived outrage at its best.

http://p.washingtontimes.com/news/2014/jul/1/redskins-name-drew-no-public-complaints-patent-off/

I'm not wading into this argument besides this point, because I find it a colossal waste of good energy.  But you do realize that you are posting articles that directly contradict each other.

The SantafeNewMexican story indicating the use of dictionary's indicates this all started (the most recent time) with a petition to have the name reexamined and a resulting court case that took 9 years. 

It also specifically mentions that the National Council of American Indians has been formally lobbying against the name since the 1960's.

So if the washington post article is to be believed at all it is a matter of semantics about what they deem a "complaint". 

You are going out of your way on this one to create an agenda and there are far more interesting things out there to spend time on.

[Benny B]

I've got a question... in the movie Hot Shots!, when the two paratroopers yell "Geronimo" as they jump out of the plane, was that offensive? Or was that made ok by Geronimo jumping out of the plane after them yelling, "meeeeeeeeee?"

[Lennys Tap]

I've got a question... in the movie Hot Shots!, when the two paratroopers yell "Geronimo" as they jump out of the plane, was that offensive? Or was that made ok by Geronimo jumping out of the plane after them yelling, "meeeeeeeeee?"

Now that's funny. Good one, Benny.

[rocket surgeon]

I'm not wading into this argument besides this point, because I find it a colossal waste of good energy.  But you do realize that you are posting articles that directly contradict each other.

The SantafeNewMexican story indicating the use of dictionary's indicates this all started (the most recent time) with a petition to have the name reexamined and a resulting court case that took 9 years. 

It also specifically mentions that the National Council of American Indians has been formally lobbying against the name since the 1960's.

So if the washington post article is to be believed at all it is a matter of semantics about what they deem a "complaint". 

You are going out of your way on this one to create an agenda and there are far more interesting things out there to spend time on.

you are missing the elephant in the room or the forest through the trees or...if this, what's next??

[WellsstreetWanderer]

If you don't think this was politically driven you are naïve. Papers out here report that there was never even one grievance filed with the USPO.

  Let's create controversy to distract from the real crises. 

[ChicosBailBonds]

I'm not wading into this argument besides this point, because I find it a colossal waste of good energy.  But you do realize that you are posting articles that directly contradict each other.

The SantafeNewMexican story indicating the use of dictionary's indicates this all started (the most recent time) with a petition to have the name reexamined and a resulting court case that took 9 years. 

It also specifically mentions that the National Council of American Indians has been formally lobbying against the name since the 1960's.

So if the washington post article is to be believed at all it is a matter of semantics about what they deem a "complaint". 

You are going out of your way on this one to create an agenda and there are far more interesting things out there to spend time on.

yet you just spent time on it.  LOL.   Sorry, but there is a lot of stuff in the ComPost that doesn't see the light of day when it should.  A FOIA was put forth and turned up zero complaints.  Pretty simple.  One wonders why the brilliance of the ComPOST didn't think to file a FOIA on the subject, but I guess it's a lot easier to simply take the word of those that believe in the same agenda they push.

[ChicosBailBonds]

I've got a question... in the movie Hot Shots!, when the two paratroopers yell "Geronimo" as they jump out of the plane, was that offensive? Or was that made ok by Geronimo jumping out of the plane after them yelling, "meeeeeeeeee?"

What about if they jumped out of a Apache helicopter and yelled Geronimo....then what?

Holy crap. 

Considering the asshats out there that now want the military to change the names of the Blackhawk, Apache, etc, we may never know.

[GGGG]

If you don't think this was politically driven you are naïve. Papers out here report that there was never even one grievance filed with the USPO.

  Let's create controversy to distract from the real crises. 

Please, for the love of all that is holy, if you are going to mindlessly mimic talking points at least see what has been written about this topic on this very board.

The Patent Office didn't get public complaints because they don't have a process to accept them as it isn't part of their decision making process.

[ChicosBailBonds]

Please, for the love of all that is holy, if you are going to mindlessly mimic talking points at least see what has been written about this topic on this very board.

The Patent Office didn't get public complaints because they don't have a process to accept them as it isn't part of their decision making process.

WRONG.

The Patent Office acknowledged it got public complaints AFTER the ruling...so now they are keeping track but weren't before?  LOL.

Furthermore, the Patent Office has acknowledged receiving public complaints about OTHER trademarks in the past but approving them anyway.

I guess you want to keep believing that they don't have a "process" for this because someone said so, yet if that's the case how then do they know they got complaints AFTER their ruling and how did they acknowledge receiving complaints PRIOR on other trademarks.

Appreciate an answer of logic other than just, "well they don't have a process because some bureaucrat said so".

[Canned Goods n Ammo]

WRONG.

The Patent Office acknowledged it got public complaints AFTER the ruling...so now they are keeping track but weren't before?  LOL.

Furthermore, the Patent Office has acknowledged receiving public complaints about OTHER trademarks in the past but approving them anyway.

I guess you want to keep believing that they don't have a "process" for this because someone said so, yet if that's the case how then do they know they got complaints AFTER their ruling and how did they acknowledge receiving complaints PRIOR on other trademarks.

Appreciate an answer of logic other than just, "well they don't have a process because some bureaucrat said so".

I don't have a horse in this race, but it's not hard to imagine that the patent office might receive a small handful of complaints each year sent to their general email or regular mailing address. The number was small enough that they didn't need a system to address them.

Now, with the public announcement of the nickname thing, more people are aware, and more people have been writing emails and letters.

Seems reasonable, right?

[ChicosBailBonds]

I don't have a horse in this race, but it's not hard to imagine that the patent office might receive a small handful of complaints each year sent to their general email or regular mailing address. The number was small enough that they didn't need a system to address them.

Now, with the public announcement of the nickname thing, more people are aware, and more people have been writing emails and letters.

Seems reasonable, right?

Of course, but it doesn't explain why they acknowledged receiving complaints over the years on other trademarks that were approved anyway (so you can eliminate the "more people are aware" excuse), which means they had a process or some mechanism to receive those complaints in the past, but didn't for this one?  They recall the complaints they go for some random trademark, but this most offensive trademark that they claim 35% of Native Americans are impacted by the received none.   Maybe they are on a broken or lost hard drive somewhere, lot of that going on lately.

[Canned Goods n Ammo]

Of course, but it doesn't explain why they acknowledged receiving complaints over the years on other trademarks that were approved anyway (so you can eliminate the "more people are aware" excuse), which means they had a process or some mechanism to receive those complaints in the past, but didn't for this one?  They recall the complaints they go for some random trademark, but this most offensive trademark that they claim 35% of Native Americans are impacted by the received none.   Maybe they are on a broken or lost hard drive somewhere, lot of that going on lately.

To be honest, I chalk that up more to broken government bureaucracy than politics.

A government agency that doesn't run efficiently? I'm shocked.

They could have a boxes and boxes of complaints that they don't know about and I wouldn't be surprised.

[keefe]

I've got a question... in the movie Hot Shots!, when the two paratroopers yell "Geronimo" as they jump out of the plane, was that offensive? Or was that made ok by Geronimo jumping out of the plane after them yelling, "meeeeeeeeee?"

You know, I went through jump training at Benning and Yuma and not once did I ever hear any one yell "Geronimo." And on operational jumps we were usually on oxygen and miked up so no one was yelling anything.

My first night HALO though I think I yelled, "SH1T!" as I egressed the aircraft.

[GGGG]

WRONG.

The Patent Office acknowledged it got public complaints AFTER the ruling...so now they are keeping track but weren't before?  LOL.

Furthermore, the Patent Office has acknowledged receiving public complaints about OTHER trademarks in the past but approving them anyway.

I guess you want to keep believing that they don't have a "process" for this because someone said so, yet if that's the case how then do they know they got complaints AFTER their ruling and how did they acknowledge receiving complaints PRIOR on other trademarks.

Appreciate an answer of logic other than just, "well they don't have a process because some bureaucrat said so".

The Patent Office doesn't get many complaints about their decisions because there isn't a process to accept them.

If that isn't acceptable to you, deal with it and keep mimicking.  No problem.