The Angel Moroni Can't Drink Coffee

Post by **_Bryan Inks** » Sat Mar 24, 2007 12:31 am

KSL has a news item that just cropped up.

A coffee shop in utah has t-shirts that have the hand of God pouring coffee and an angel drinking it.

The LDS Church is apparently taking them to court for Registered Trademark infringement. At least, that's my understanding.

http://www.ksl.com/?nid=148&sid=1023445

Hmmm. Re-reading the snippet there, doesn't give much information.

Post by **_moksha** » Sat Mar 24, 2007 12:52 am

Organizations guard their trademarks zealously. I remember some years ago when the McDonalds Fast Food industry sent threatening letters to the McDonald Castle in Scotland, claiming they were infringing on their trademark. I think they finally desisted when one of their junior lawyers posed the question of what would they do if the McDonald Clan, countersued for infringement on the right to the name. The thought of having to change all their signs to Kroc's was enough to cool McDonalds Burger jets. A Kroc Burger by that name would taste even nastier.

Post by **_twinkie** » Sat Mar 24, 2007 12:54 am

I can see trademarking Mickey Mouse or Spongebob Squarepants, but Moroni is a real... person, right? Can you trademark people? If Jesus was drinking the coffee would or could they sue? How can they trademark Moroni?

Post by **_Sethbag** » Sat Mar 24, 2007 12:56 am

So, everyone that uses the image of Moroni blowing that trumpet has to license the rights to do so from the church?

I wonder, is all the crap they sell at Mr. Mac's and the other stores catering specifically to the LDS missionary "mormony stuff" market is all properly licensed?

Kinda wierd. In the case of the Moroni trademark, however, I'm sure it's not about excluding competition so much as "protecting the image" of the church.

Too bad. I think this kind of thing is funny, and I like seeing people with a sense of humor around.

Post by **_Sethbag** » Sat Mar 24, 2007 12:57 am

twinkie wrote:I can see trademarking Mickey Mouse or Spongebob Squarepants, but Moroni is a real... person, right? Can you trademark people? If Jesus was drinking the coffee would or could they sue? How can they trademark Moroni?

They're not trademarking just anything with Moroni, they're trademarking a specific image of Moroni, ie: the temple statue one with the trumpet. You could make some other image, call it Moroni, and do with it as you will. The temple statue image is highly recognizable, and hence the wish to protect it.

Post by **_Bryan Inks** » Sat Mar 24, 2007 1:55 am

Sethbag wrote:
twinkie wrote:I can see trademarking Mickey Mouse or Spongebob Squarepants, but Moroni is a real... person, right? Can you trademark people? If Jesus was drinking the coffee would or could they sue? How can they trademark Moroni?

They're not trademarking just anything with Moroni, they're trademarking a specific image of Moroni, ie: the temple statue one with the trumpet. You could make some other image, call it Moroni, and do with it as you will. The temple statue image is highly recognizable, and hence the wish to protect it.

I tested that very theory on another forum (average users online: 128,000).

Out of the 3.5 thousand people that responded, only those were LDS, lived in Utah or were former LDS members had any idea what the image was (There were only 175 people, roughly, that knew what the image was and who it depicted, another 43 people recognized it as being on top of a building).

Widely recognized? Nah. Just here.

Post by **_skippy the dead** » Sat Mar 24, 2007 2:22 am

Here's an article that's got a picture of the offending shirt:

http://deseretnews.com/dn/view/0,1249,660205539,00.html

Wonder if they'll mail one to me. . .

Post by **_Sethbag** » Sat Mar 24, 2007 2:32 am

Bryan Inks wrote:
Sethbag wrote:
twinkie wrote:I can see trademarking Mickey Mouse or Spongebob Squarepants, but Moroni is a real... person, right? Can you trademark people? If Jesus was drinking the coffee would or could they sue? How can they trademark Moroni?

They're not trademarking just anything with Moroni, they're trademarking a specific image of Moroni, ie: the temple statue one with the trumpet. You could make some other image, call it Moroni, and do with it as you will. The temple statue image is highly recognizable, and hence the wish to protect it.

I tested that very theory on another forum (average users online: 128,000).

Out of the 3.5 thousand people that responded, only those were LDS, lived in Utah or were former LDS members had any idea what the image was (There were only 175 people, roughly, that knew what the image was and who it depicted, another 43 people recognized it as being on top of a building).

Widely recognized? Nah. Just here.

Yeah, well the store, the ads, and the t-shirts are "just here" too. They're protecting an image that is widely recognized in Utah, from being "sullied" in Utah, by a Utah company. Pretty simple.

I, for one, think it's pretty funny. Kinda wish the church would lighten up and just ignore stuff like this.

Post by **_Gazelam** » Sat Mar 24, 2007 5:32 am

What kind of buttwipes go into a Mormon community and produce a shirt like that?

Would you go to India and sell shirts of a guy butchering a cow? Go to Iran and sell shirts of Mohammad smokeing your favorite brand of Hookah? These guys are mocking a religion and are damn lucky they haven't been drug out into the street and curb-stomped.

Post by **_Bond...James Bond** » Sat Mar 24, 2007 5:39 am

Gazelam wrote:What kind of buttwipes go into a Mormon community and produce a shirt like that?

The kind that have no respect for the Mormon church.

These guys are mocking a religion and are damn lucky they haven't been drug out into the street and curb-stomped.

Whatever. People say much worse on this board and other boards about Mormonism, and you never say they deserve to be curb-stomped. Would you curb-stomp someone? Could you curb-stomp someone?