This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2007, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
Head out to eBay and do a quick search for "Moroni." If your results were anything like mine, you'll probably end up with over 100 hits. I saw items for sale from a variety of vendors, including Moroni lapel pins, neckties and Christmas tree ornaments. Am I to assume that all of these are legally licensed items that don't infringe on the Mormons' sacred trademark? If not, when can we expect the lawyers at LDS, Inc., to start shutting them down?
Telling Just Add Coffee to pull their T-shirts isn't about protecting trademarks at all ("Coffee shop will end ads that spoof LDS icon," Tribune, March 24). It's a lesson in what can happen when a single group has enough power, money and attorneys to exercise its absolute contempt for the First Amendment. Ironic, really, when you consider that group might not exist without it.
Doug Humphries
West Jordan
