The Mc"Clans" are In Danger

[CDNSushi]

I think we should all go out for a nice glass of "Johnny Walker",my treat......John R. Walker

Whew! I agree - time out, you guys! Take a break. Trademark and copyright laws are extremely complex and we likely won't get to the bottom of it with this one emotionally charged discussion. I had to read an entire chapter on this when I did my "Business Law" course last year as part of my MBA studies. It really is a tricky issue, and although there are certain basic guidelines (like not being able to trademark the letter "A" for instance), there's a LOT of gray area and room for multiple interpretations. I really don't want to get into it much more than this, but commonly used nouns often cannot be trademarked. Take for instance Coca-Cola's unsuccessful attempt at trademarking the word "cola." It was disallowed in part because the word had become common parlance in describing an entire type of beverage, rather than just one particular company's take on it. So yes, there are rules governing what seems to be a mess and I would recommend leaving that mess to the parties involved.

However, recognizing that we have many activists and kindered spirits on the forum, again, I would repeat what I said early on in the thread. If you are so fired about this, consider getting the head of your clan or association to contact McD's and express your sentiments.