"Who Dat?"

There was an article in the news today about the NFL claiming ownership of the phrase “Who dat” in reference to the New Orleans Saints football team and are considering ownership rights to the fleur-de-lis. The article says that the NFL sent a cease-and-desist order to some lady in New Orleans who was selling t-shirts with the logo “Who Dat” on them.

That got me thinking, and I must admit that the thinking made my brain hurt.

If the NFL can claim to own the rights to a phrase and to a symbolic flower used in cultures long before football was invented, then I may be violating some NFL rule because I’m feeding the cardinals and the ravens in my back yard. And the neighbor’s bronco could never be used to stud a horse and have colts without the permission of the NFL.

I suppose when counting my chickens before they hatch I have to skip the number between 48 and 50 unless I notify the NFL.

I guess when Pam and I talk about clothing we have to avoid saying anything about earth tones and browns.

If and when the sun ever comes out and I get a sunburn, I suppose I’ll have to pay royalties to the NFL when describing my sore redskin.

Energy has become a political issue, and we don’t need the NFL criticizing when we connect a charger to a deep cycle battery to get ready for an ice storm.

The next time we grow some sweet corn, even though we won’t sell it for a buccaneer (that would be a high price for corn), we should be able to get a few bills per bag without the NFL complaining about it.

And if we ever moved again we should be able to hire some excellent packers without worrying about what the NFL has to say.

One of my chief enjoyments is to scan the skies for aircraft and jets and I certainly don’t want some NFL lawyer ramming some cease-and-desist order down my throat when I write about it in this blog. I mean, after all, we seahawks and eagles and an occasional falcon out here all the time, but if the NFL gets its way we won’t be able to tell anybody.

Admittedly, out in these parts there are not many large predatory cats, such as jaguars and panthers and Bengal tigers, but why should my free speech be limited if I want to warn Pam about other midnight raiders getting into the chicken coop?

Being in Oklahoma, we live near all those Texans, and I can’t imagine those folks putting up with the NFL telling them they can’t say certain things. The consequences could be titanic.

Bear with me for a moment: We should not be lion around and letting the NFL make people jump through hoops like the dolphins at Sea World. We have to stand up and be patriots or we may all suffer the same fate northern Europe did back in the days when the Vikings were looting and pillaging with impunity. That’s exactly what the NFL is trying to do to the good folks in New Orleans. (OK, I admit it, the analogy may be a bit off, but I’m trying to describe just how badly the NFL is treating that t-shirt lady and trying to steeler profits.)

Let’s face facts, here, the NFL doesn’t own the language, and “Who dat” ain’t the only question:

“Where dat NFL get da nerve to tell people dey can’t say ‘Who dat’?”
“What dat NFL tink der doin?”
“When dat NFL gonna git a brain?”
“Why dat NFL so uppity about a t-shirt?”
“How dat NFL gonna get away wid dis?”

I’m not suggesting the people running the NFL should suddenly turn into saints. After all, the NFL has a right to protect its interests. But this could turn into a giant issue for the NFL and I think they should cowboy-up and just drop the whole thing.