South Park Takes Totally Logical Shot at Dan Snyder
Frankly, someone else can argue whether or not the Washington Redskins should change their name.
But it can't be said that the issue isn't fair game.
And this one is right in the wheelhouse of South Park.
NFL owners like Dan Snyder should appreciate the work of series creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone. After all, the duo rose from middle-class obscurity to mega-millions by creating the anti-Beaver Cleaver with a few buddies and putting them in adult situations. They're 1%ers, just like the owners.
South Park's new season begins this Wed 24 Sep on Comedy Central, so it's only natural Parker and Stone would launch an ad campaign to promote it to their core audience of males 25-49. Kinda like what the NFL draws. They just happened to include a certain spot that aired during the fourth quarter of one particular NFL game this afternoon:
If word that the US Patent Office cancelled the team's trademark never completely got to the masses, one of Comedy Central's most popular shows will definitely spread it further.
Actually, the trademark tactic was a hit in Eastern Europe when the Berlin Wall came down. Soviet satellite apparatchiks quickly filed trademarks in their respective countries for names of major Western corporations that had yet to establish presences there. When those organizations came into nations like Bulgaria and Romania, they had to pay what amounted to extortion money to gain the rights to their own names and logos. Totally legal.
To this day, an older Budweiser that brews in the Czech Republic refuses to sell its name rights to the conglomerate that steps on its own ingredients by adding rice to its American beer récipés. Can't blame the Czechs for taking a stand, either. Only money-grubbing bastards mix in rice and call it beer. No wonder Anheuser-Busch and others advertise to serve their products ice-cold. Hides the lack of flavor. Really, how do countries that call themselves civilized not enact the Rheinheitsgebot?
The point is, not owning trademark rights can have consequences.
Another more cutting bit of commentary came from a Daily Show alum, John Oliver, who now has his own gig on HBO.
Who knows if the name thing will ever be resolved? The team's a billion-dollar operation, has the resources to hold its position, and besides, it's just not a front-burner cause for the general public.
But the situation is ridiculous enough on both sides for master satirists to have a go at it. Wit is wonderful.
In that respect, pro or con, keep them coming.