Oprah vs. Omaha may just leave us all speechless
What’s that called when you’re having trouble understanding something and then, all of a sudden, it becomes clear to you? If you said, an “aha moment” you might just owe Mutual of Omaha or Oprah Winfrey some money, depending on who wins the lawsuit.
That’s right — insurance company Mutual of Omaha and Oprah Winfrey’s production company could be going to the U.S. District Court of Omaha to decide who has the rights to the phrase “aha moment.” Mutual of Omaha says it has preliminary approval of a federal trademark for the phrase “official sponsor of the aha moment,” while Harpo Productions claims rights to the phrase “aha moment.”
Seriously? This is what people feel the need to fight over these days? So whenever I have that moment of revelation (oops, got to pay a church for use of the word revelation – it is a book of the bible after all) I have to pay someone for it?
I can understand someone wanting to be paid for their creativity, but for “aha moment”? Shouldn’t Oprah and Mutual of Omaha be paying the ‘80s band A-ha? (To which the band might sing in court, “Take on Me.”)
It reminds me of how angry I felt when I heard about Paris Hilton trying to copyright the phrase “That’s hot” a few years ago. As if hearing it everywhere wasn’t bad enough, she wants to get paid for it.
But this isn’t a rant about the destruction of the English language (yes, kids, we do speak English, not American). Far from fearing that our language will erode because of blogs, instant messaging, and texting, I applaud innovation in language. Language is fluid; it changes with the times. As society has become more progressive in thinking, so too, has the language had to adapt and change.
After all, words give us a way to understand our world. Could we understand something if we didn’t have the words to articulate it? That’s what little phases like “aha” or “that’s hot” do; they articulate thoughts or feelings that we certainly have had, but needed the words or the common catchphrase of how to express that thought or emotion.
Who can say who really came up with the “aha moment”? My wife has been saying things like “redonkulous” for years and is shocked when it is in a TV show or movie (she swears she came up with it).
We contribute to language in our every day lives. While not all of us are Shakespeare (contributing 1700 new words by some accounts), we all dynamically interact with words, and change them to fit the time and situation. Let’s keep language out of the courts and free from being stifled by Omaha or Oprah.
Hey, that’s a pretty good idea. You might even say that a light bulb just went on in my head! But don’t tell Einstein! Or General Electric!
Interact with us! Which words or phrases are just too obvious to copyright?