A call to regulate the term "kilt"

[Arlen]

*Sighs*
Articles about Kilts and Tartan in the Scotsman frustrate me so much.
Here's what a kilt is: A M.U.G with a double apron, closing on the right hand side, pleated in the rear and ending at the level of the knee.
Yes, they were 'invented' in Scotland.
But I can't really see any of my ancestors laughing at someone in a denim kilt or a P.V. kilt.
I mean, if we're all going to talk about being thrifty Scots, would they not think it was a great idea to get a nice knockaround kilt and keep their expensive wool kilt clean so they didn't have to pay for dry-cleaning?

A kilt's a kilt regardless of where it's made or what with.
Just don't pretend it was made in Scotland if it wasn't and everything is just fine.

[Archangel]

This is actually a big issue in the world right now. I forget the acronym but there's an international moratorium right now on registering names ("intellectual property"). It's there to give places like Champagne a chance to register their product. The bad guy in this is US law firms and companies waiting for someone to slip so they can register the product. (Sorry)

The losers here are not going to be the EEC producers but third world producers who don't have the legal defense to prevent it. Certain foods are already registered by US firms and the traditional farmers have lost control of their own trade. It's a form of Bio-Piracy

It's why emotions run so high at WTO and G8(?) events.

And we're probably about to get too political for this forum. Just google everything I've said.

[Fedgunner]

Y'all hush!

I got me a bunch of kilts on order.
If this sillyness goes through, they will all be "pre-bans" and worth a fortune!

I got me a "pre-ban" toilet too!

(tounge planted firmly in cheek)

[Thomas]

Just my 2 cents on it- What makes a dress a national dress? It´s the people. Many of my friends (although living in Scotland) own so called drinking kilts made of less and man made fabric. Some of them don´t even own a traditional wool kilt because the average man simply can´t afford a tank.
I agree, that a tank is the real thing and it always will be- but you can´t ignore that the kilt has got another image,too. It´s worn casual more often. If you wipe out inexpensive casual kilts at an affordable price, I´m sure you will wipe out kilt wearing average men. Would be a pity, I think.

[M. A. C. Newsome]

A court of law can proclaim that the sky is legally green, but that doesn't make it so.

[macwilkin]

A court of law can proclaim that the sky is legally green, but that doesn't make it so.

Reminds me of the old story about President Eisenhower being asked if he thought of himself as a Texan since he was born there (but grew up in Kansas). Ike reportedly said:

"If a cat has kittens in the oven, do you call them biscuits?"



T.

[MacWage]

Part of what I do for work is to look up trademarks and intellectual properties, as well as doing corporate branding and history research.

Companies cannot trademark a "general term," but can do a specific derivative of that term. The US Patent office even puts in a statement that the firm ONLY holds the patent for the FULL term and NO rights to the main/common part. Companies may (and have) copyrighted a COLOR, but it ONLY works IN THAT INDUSTRY, and is registered ONLY AFTER it can be PROVED that that color is UNIQUE to that company and recognized as an indicator of that company's products. For example, Owens Corning OWNS pink in the insulation field. Companies can make their product in ANY color that they want, but not pink. Likewise, Coca-Cola owns "Coke" and several similar variations of their name. However, they DO NOT own "Cola," even though it was part of their original trademark and coined (a mis-spelling of a bean) by them. They LOST all rights to it by general usage soon after competitors used "Cola" as a general descriptive to their product (for example-> Pepsi-Cola).
As for the food analogy . . .
Videlia is a city in Georgia. Actions were taken to protect the term "Videlia Onion," which means that ONLY onions from Videlia can be called such. BUT, they have NO rights over "Onion."
Champagne is a region of France, as is Burgundy and Chartreuse. In the WINE field, there are rights issues with using those terms. However, the terms burgundy and chartreuse have taken the color of the wines made there and entered the common lexicon.

I think that the term "kilt" is WAY to common to be upheld by such copyrights/patents/rights legislation. They COULD hold "Scottish Kilt" (maybe) or some more specific variation. Of course, the courts and copyright matters don't always use logic, so I could be wrong.
My doubt is based on the WIDE spread usage of the term world-wide in business and copyrighted names and branding. One cannot return the stuff into Pandora's Box, once opened.

Most people, however, would STILL use the centuries old terms "kilt" and "kilts" for the men's pleated garment we all know and love. So, I doubt they will be ABLE to enforce any actual legislation in the world-at-large (and I doubt they could do so in Scotland itself).
It would be like the US Congress dictating that ONLY the Carolinas and Georgia are "The South." EVERYONE would just ignore it and include Virginia, Alabama, Miss., Tennessee, Florida, Louisiana, Arkansas, and probably Kentucky, West Virginia, Texas, Oklahoma, and the rest (even Maryland-> whose NORTHERN border IS the "Mason-Dixon Line").

So, I think such attempts would be uninforcible for the term "Kilt," though some term may be created for what we call a "tank" that would be.

[slohairt]

Well said,MacWage!

Topics like this make me uncertain whether to laugh or cry! (As I sit here wearing my as-of-yet unofficially named Scottish national costume.)

Does anyone know if its true that Utilikilts patented the reverse Kingussie style of pleating? If so, how pathetic. It almost makes me want to patent the other styles and allow everyone to use them unhindered!

[MysticMead]

Well said,MacWage!

Topics like this make me uncertain whether to laugh or cry! (As I sit here wearing my as-of-yet unofficially named Scottish national costume.)

Does anyone know if its true that Utilikilts patented the reverse Kingussie style of pleating? If so, how pathetic. It almost makes me want to patent the other styles and allow everyone to use them unhindered!

the only thing that I've seen on the Utilikilt website in the past about patents.. was the way they had to stitch the leather kilts...

[The Wizard of BC]

All of my products have a hang-tag attached telling the customer the fabric content, amount of fabric used, and place of manufacture. They also have a little Canadian Flag on the back pocket flap.

The only legislation that would truly work is that we impose on ourselves. If all manufacturers fully stated the details of their product it would help but never eliminate the cases of people attempting to mis-lead the public.

It would however get the word out that some manufacturers care about their product and are not ashamed to say so. Loudly and Clearly. I don't hide behind, or expect laws or regulations to let my customers know the quality of the product I produce. I scream it at the top of my lungs. I want my customers to know why he is paying hundreds of his hard earned dollars for my product.

Believe it or not, but I'm not the only kiltmaker in the world. I wouldn't want to be. I like the competition. It serves the customer far better if he has a choice. And he has a choice, to buy from me or from someone else. To spend a few dollars or the spend thousands. That's called commerce. And it's thriving.

If a competitor is not as honest and forthright as I try to be, I may advise him that perhaps he should re-think his advertising because history has proven that open, honest, business will survive and thrive and sneaky business die a quick death. But in the end I am responsible only to my own business. What the Gold Brothers do is not illegal. And they abide by the first rule of business which is, make a profit.

If I see a guy go into a competitors shop and buy his product I can't get angry at him. Jeez, he did something right, he got a customer in his door. It's my job to figure out why that guy didn't come into my shop and if necessary change what I do.

Most times it not necessary to do anything because it is a fact of business that not everyone will buy the exact same thing. And that's the beauty of business. We all get to try. Some will thrive and some will fail.

All I can do is try the best I can. Whining only makes me unhappy.