This entry was posted on
Thursday, July 2nd, 2009 at
6:01 pm and is filed
under The Political Weblog Movement.
News reaches me via this comment in this thread that copyright for the ‘logo’ that Paul Staines has been using for well over 4 years on the ‘Guido Fawkes’ site most likely rests with IPC Magazines, and not Paul Staines (or any of the names/entities that he or his many relatives trade under).
I recall clearly the day I accused Staines of helping himself to other peoples’ copyright-protected material and hosting it on MessageSpace servers and he drunkenly threw Donal Blaney in my face, so I’ll choose my words carefully this time (not least because I also hear that some people in this country are sensitive to a mix of expletives and pejorative terms… e.g. like ‘two-bit thieving twunt’):
So, Paul, have you always had a formal arrangement with IPC magazines for ongoing commercial use of this image that we’re/they’re somehow unaware of?
If not, then exactly how many t-shirts (and other tat/objects) have you sold with this face on it? How often have you printed or otherwise broadcast/distributed this image for publicity, gain or profit? Because I think that might be a bit of an issue if that image doesn’t belong to you.
(PS – Overheads must be a doddle if you’re as likely to just take stuff as pay for it. Is this part of the reason why you find profit-generation so effortless?)
By Sim-O July 2, 2009 - 7:44 pm
Be fair, Manic. He is a Libertarian (apparently). The normal rules, like copyright or drink driving, don't apply.
By jailhouselawyer July 2, 2009 - 9:48 pm
Parapet head above aim fire. It appears this is not the first time Paul Staines has had an image problem. In a few days I will be at Hull College…
By james c July 2, 2009 - 11:12 pm
Cool story.
By Henry North July 3, 2009 - 7:31 am
Oh this gets weirder by the minute….Chill!
By Bartholomew July 3, 2009 - 9:38 am
Somebody should let Tharg know about this.
By Bartholomew July 3, 2009 - 10:37 am
Actually, it comes back to me now – IPC used to provide these masks pretty much every year, drawn one way or another. I remember them from "Whoopee!", late 70s/early 80s.