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Jesus was a kike

Teenage Millionaire, a company that sells t-shirts with the slogan "Jesus Is My Homeboy," has been using its legal muscle to stop people from parodying its product. The company sent cease-and-desist letters to Dan Sieradski, for instance, who was selling shirts bearing the phrase, "Jesus was a kike." The back-and-forth between the Teenage Millionaire lawyer and Sieradski is certainly worth your while (Sieradski is a bright bulb).

That said, Sieradski is in a poor position to win a legal battle since he used Teenage Millionaire's Jesus pretty much as-is.

Aaron Watson probably has a better case. Like Sieradski, Watson was threated by Teenage Millionaire for selling a parody t-shirt of "Homeboy" via CafePress, one that read, "Arnold is my Homeboy."

But unlike Sieradski, Watson didn't appropriate Teenage Millionaire's imagery; he used a likeness of Mr. Schwarzenegger. Also unlike Sieradski, Watson appears to have the means to fight.

After Teenage Millionaire threatened legal action, CafePress removed both sellers' shirts in compliance with the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. But Watson told me he has secured a lawyer and plans to have an official response soon. When that happens, there's a decent chance CafePress could reconsider its decision and allow him to keep selling his shirts. I talked to Candice Carr in the CafePress legal department and, though she couldn't comment on the case, she said the company is open to working with sellers who have substantial fair use claims. The company did, after all, back the creators of Jib Jab after they were sent a cease-and-desist from Woody Guthrie's estate for using "This Land Is Your Land."

We'll let you know what happens. In the mean time, it's not too late to pick up Buddha is my homeboy or -- my fave -- Darwin is my homeboy t-shirts (Apparently, Teenage Millionaire hasn't found these guys yet).