Colts Player Found in a Ditch, Charges with Public Intoxication

WTHR reports that Colts player John Gill, 23, was found in a ditch on Lafayette Road on the city's northwest side. He was found without shoes, and his clothes were described as "disheveled and soiled." The report goes on to say that officers claim he fell several times while attempting to stand, reeked of alcohol, and his speech was slurred. Gill was released and charged with pubic intoxication.

So will this finally put an end to the "Pacers are thugs, Colts are saints" talking point that is often mentioned when comparing the two? Also, how will Prosecutor Carl Brizzi handle this? Brizzi has a professional relationship with Colts player Peyton Manning. They are both investors in the restaurant/bar Harry and Izzy's.

Indianapolis Business Journal's Editorial on the Superbowl and Copyright

While reading Indy Tax Dollars, I noticed this entry cited an unlinked editorial from the pages of the Indianapolis Business Journal. After some searching, I found the editorial:

So ... how ’bout that Super Bowl?

This year’s gridiron battle between the Indianapolis Colts and New Orleans Saints in Super Bowl XLIV has been the talk of the town, to be sure. Sort of.

Despite all the buzz about the Colts’ second trip in four years to the National Football League championship, it’s nearly impossible to find a public reference to the Super Bowl. That’s not because of a lack of civic pride—sports-crazy Indianapolis is in its element when it has a hometown contender.

No, it seems the NFL doesn’t want anyone to call the Super Bowl the Super Bowl.

Seriously?

Yep, the league has trademarked “Super Bowl”—along with “Super Sunday” and “NFL”—and is notorious for the lengths it will go to in order to protect its brands. Its stance: Commercial uses of the protected words by anyone other than paid sponsors lowers the value of the (multimillion-dollar) sponsorships. Businesses that dare to call the Super Bowl by name could find themselves on the receiving end of a legal smackdown. Same goes for any reference to NFL teams, which also are trademarked.

Hence, the ubiquitous references to “The Big Game” by bars, restaurants, retailers and others who stand to benefit from consumers’ interest in the Super Bowl. In fact, use of “The Big Game” as a euphemism for the Super Bowl is so widespread that the NFL filed paperwork in 2006 to trademark that phrase, too. In a rare show of restraint, it later dropped the request.

OK, let’s get this straight: The NFL has spent 44 years building a brand that has instant name recognition. Say “Super Bowl” (if you dare) and people know what you’re talking about. But instead of reveling in its ability to make the Super Bowl so much more than a football game, the league goes to extreme lengths to squeeze every penny out of it. Talk about super greedy.

For whatever reason, the Super Bowl is an event most fans don’t want to watch alone. Only two cities send teams to compete each year, but Super Bowl parties are common nationwide. Whip up a pot of chili, buy a case of beer, turn on your new widescreen TV, and you have an instant celebration. Want to avoid the mess? Head to the neighborhood hangout and cheer on your favorite team. That’s part of what makes the Super Bowl the Super Bowl instead of just another football game.

So why shouldn’t that neighborhood hangout be able to promote its Super Bowl party? Why can’t the grocery store urge customers to stop in for Super Bowl refreshments? Does letting the electronics store advertise its pre-Super Bowl sale really hurt the sponsors whose messages will be delivered on that new TV?

We understand why the NFL cracks down on unlicensed merchandise, as reporter Scott Olson wrote about in a Friday story on IBJ.com, even if we think the league sometimes takes enforcement too far. But forbidding businesses from simply using the name is ridiculous. It’s the Super Bowl, and everyone should be able to call it that.

Despite how much I agree with the editorial, it misses the forest for the trees. It is only because of the lax trademark laws (or possibly, how lax the enforcement is) that have led to this problem. While the National Football League gets some criticism around Super Bowl time every year, this is not just one organization abusing trademarks.

McDonald's has threatened or bought forth legal action numerous times for others that have dared to use the letters "Mc" in their business' name. A spokesman for McDonald's said:

"We have made a significant investment over the years to build up the reputation for restaurant services and food itmes associated with this trademark and also of the golden arches logo, which is also registered.

"If someone, either deliberately, or unintentionally, uses our trademarks in their own food or retaurant-related business they are effectively using something that does not belong to them."

McDonald's also forced Elizabeth McCaughey, owner of the business formally known as McCoffee, to change the name of her business even though it had been in operation for 17 years, as seen here.

So kudos to the Indianapolis Business Journal for bringing up the issue, but it is a far larger problem than just the NFL's abuse of it.

Preview Post

I've got several stories somewhere between "think of something to write about" and "write the damn thing already." My professional obligations are winding down, and my academic work seems to be getting into a flow that is somewhat manageable, so more time for blogging. Here's a summary of what will be posted really, really soon:

• My interview with former Mayor of Indianapolis, Bill Hudnut, will be posted soon. The cassette tape is sitting on my desk and I just got to sit down and learn how to transfer the audio from the cassette to my computer. I'm still debating on to if I should just post the raw audio, or post the raw audio and write an article as well.
• On that note, Mayor Hudnut will be speaking to the Marion County Republican Party. You can read about his appearance, as well as how to attend, here.
• I've filed a public records request with the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department. The white signs that restrict parking due to an "EMERGENCY ORDER" site a specific code in the lower right hand corner. I'll be posting pictures, and type up my original letter and what I received from City Legal late last week. You can read the sample letter that I used to base mine on over here. And for additional "fun", you can read the relevant Indiana Code over here.
• I'm also trying to get down to the General Assembly to track legislation that I'm interested in, but I'm having the worst luck in getting down there in between my professional and academic obligations. It only happens at the beginning of the year, so I really want to start covering it as soon as possible. Senate Joint Resolution 7 (Marriage Amendment to the IN Constitution) passed in the Senate but is DOA in the House, and Senate Bill 192 (Domestic Partnerships and their rights) seems to be getting no traction in either legislative body.
• I've also been "re-tweeting" or linking to several articles worth reading about the NFL and/or Superbowl. So go check out my Twitter page
  

And in news from other blogs:

• The Indiana Law Blog reports that there is no Roll Call log on the votes for Senate Joint Resolution 7. The roll call is listed as Roll Call 67, but Roll Call 67 is not even in the log of all the Roll Calls.
• Advance Indiana, IPOPA, and Ogden On Politics are all reporting on the 26 (of 29) City-Council reps who took the Colts up on the offer of purchasing two tickets to the Superbowl at $800 per ticket. At the time of this posting, Christine Scales (R) and Ed Coleman (L) have come out as two of the three council reps who did NOT purchase the tickets. As I speculated over at iPOPA, I believe Doris Minton-McNeil is the third since she is inactive at the council due to recovering from an illness. Paul Ogden also brings up that most of the council reps are of a fairly modest background and even being able to afford $1,600 for the tickets, it'd be a challenge to afford the associated travel costs. He's speculating that they are being sold to brokers. I'd also speculate they might be buying them on behalf of friends or family who can afford them.
• The homicide rate jumped quite a bit in the last few days of January. Bart Lies has the number at 14. Let's pray for better (or in this case, slightly less worse) news in the future.
• Finally, Abdul Hakim-Shabazz over at Indiana Barrister and Pat Andrews at Had Enough Indy? have been doing bang-up coverage of Indianapolis Public Schools and Decatur Township Schools respectively.
  

Let's do this more often!

UPDATE: Advance Indiana and iPOPA are now reporting all three council members who turned down the Colts. They are Edward Coleman (L-At Large), Christine Scales (R-4th) and Angela Mansfield (D-2nd). Angela Mansfield also said that all council members who purchased tickets had to sign an agreement saying they wouldn't re-sell the tickets at more than face value. Ms. Mansfield also said that it was disrespectful to assume the worst of intentions of council members. But to that, I ask Ms. Mansfield to look around at her company, who all too often skirt around ethical issues about lobbying and conflicts of interest.

Ms. Mansfield is an honorable representative of the people. She was the lone Democrat who showed up at a committee meeting on the Capital Improvement Board bailout and voted against it, and did the same during the full council vote. Other council members would be wise to learn a few lessons from her.