Dear Randy, James, et al, What is going on with copyright laws in
this country is insane. I understand that Mr. "highly effective"
Stephen Covey claims copyright on “First Things First,” one of the
most popular 12 Step slogans. And now I know why the old symbol isn’t
on the AA World Service web site! Does someone know who now holds
copyright on the AA “logo”?
But hold on…the upward pointing triangle “contained” by the circle
is an ancient symbol for the “masculine” contained by the "feminine,"
i.e. the God contained within and an aspect of the Great Goddess.
Is there a lawyer out there who handles class action suits on these
things? If everyone in AA joined with everyone “in” Neo-Paganism (and
there’s a lot of overlap, never mind the overlap with Orchid–as some
of you have let me know), couldn’t we at least try to get the courts
to return what is an ancient symbol to the public domain?
Lisa Orlando
Aphrodite’s Ornaments
Benicia, CA
Hi Lisa,
I’ve read the thread for the AA logo, and yes, they assimilated a
symbol used in magic to contain spirit within wholeness, or the
spirit in the microcosm. I think that there is no concern with
returning the symbol to the public domain, because it has never left
it.
The way I understand it, a logo is merely a symbol associated with a
company or product – a branding. It is supposed to be unique. If
a case ever came to court, it wouldn’t take a gifted lawyer to prove
the long history and public useage of this symbol. Therefore, it’s
uniqueness in association with AA was a legal “loophole” agreed to
by people who were unaware of the permeation of public useage. Now
if it is found in association with the words “Alchoholic’s
Anonymous” or “AA”, they could prove infringement, but not with the
symbol by itself.
As an aside, I think that it was a wonderful symbol for AA to
choose, given it’s meaning. I just don’t believe that AA has sole
claim to it.
–Terri