“The angel’s image is a registered trademark…”

TAYLORSVILLE, Utah (AP) — For a coffee shop, T-shirts of a Mormon angel with java flowing into his trumpet are selling well. But they don’t have the blessing of religious leaders.

The shirts have upset the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Not only is the angel Moroni a revered figure — Mormons believe he appeared to church founder Joseph Smith — but church members are discouraged from drinking coffee.

The shirts show Moroni, a male figure in a robe blowing a trumpet. The trumpet is turned up at an angle as coffee is poured in.

“They’ve been the best-selling T-shirts we’ve ever done,” said Just Add Coffee co-owner Ed Beazer.

The church informed Beazer that the angel’s image is a registered trademark.

“If they provide proof, we’re going to comply,” Beazer said. “We don’t want to break any laws or anything.”

Just Add Coffee put the image on greeting cards about a year ago and started selling the shirts before Christmas. Moroni also appeared in ads that caught the church’s attention.

Church spokesman Scott Trotter said the image is a trademark.

“It was a spoof,” Beazer said. “It was meant to be fun.”

From CNN
Another story here

This I Believe

“I don’t travel in circles where people say, “I have faith, I believe this in my heart and nothing you can say or do can shake my faith.” That’s just a long-winded religious way to say, “shut up,” or another two words that the FCC likes less. But all obscenity is less insulting than, “How I was brought up and my imaginary friend means more to me than anything you can ever say or do.” – Penn Jillette

Read Penn’s article from NPR here
(you can listen if you have Real Player)

INLAND EMPIRE

Holy Fuck. Finally got to see INLAND EMPIRE. Absolutely amazing. I left the theater with my mind racing, there are at least 3 stories swarming around this film about Hollywood, acting, a cursed film, patriarchy, hookers, Polish carnies and much more. Characters change and no one in the film (or watching) can grasp a sense of time
[“I suppose if it was 9:45, I would think it is after midnight.”]…

Read Roger Ebert’s take.