Last night I posted the judge's order in the strange case of "Holly Kerodin et al., Plaintiffs versus Servicemagic, Inc. et al., Defendants" under the title There is nothing new under the Kerodin dark star. I posted this at 7:15 PM Central Standard.
Twenty-three minutes later, at 8:38 PM Eastern Standard, self-described "real man" Kerodin fired his own torpedo in my general direction: III Arms Company: Justice for all.
Since Kerodin's posts have a distressing tendency to disappear, here it is in its entirety. We will discuss its factual errors afterward.
Many of you recognize the III above as the Trademark for III Arms Company. Many of you also know that Mike Vanderboegh, in an effort to destroy III Arms, President Jim Miller, and the nearly 50 III Patriots who helped make the company a reality, convinced Randy Booth of Red Dot Arms to use the III Arms Trademark on Red Dot firearms.
This is a legal battle, and it is not over.
Mike's attempt to ruin III Arms, yet again, blew up in his face spectacularly in the last week. Holly has quite the legal remedy headed his way for tortious interference. Yeah, he's a sick old man, but that doesn't give him license to try to steal from people who actually work for a living.
Randy Booth, owner of Red Dot Arms, and the FFL directly responsible for knowingly engaging in Trademark Infringement (which is illegal), profiting from it at the expense of III Arms Founders & customers, damaging the established goodwill of III Arms Company both nationally and within the Patriot Community, very quietly took all products using the trademarked III Arms logo off his website in the middle of the night.
No, Randy, not good enough. Holly and III Arms are still coming for you. On July 25, 2013, you lied to Holly in email. You clearly asserted that you stopped using the Mark. She'll be happy to forward that email to your legal counsel. Bad faith business practices have legal consequences and you will pay dearly. Holly really isn't fond of liars. As Holly said just moments ago "...the appearance of compliance is not the same as actual compliance; it is our legal obligation to police and protect the Mark, therefore, Red Dot Arms must provide proof of compliance and be held liable for all injury based on mis-use of the III Arms Mark..."
Some of you may wonder why the Kerodins find the courts a suitable battle space. It is a civilized forum for the remedy of certain wrongs.
So, court it is. People think I am anti-government and anti-courts. No. I am anti-BIG government, anti-meddlesome government, and anti-ambulance chasing. I'm all for legitimate conflict resolution using courts when necessary.
So, as an update on the latest kerfuffle that started when MBV looped poor Randy Booth of Red Dot Arms into breaking the law to further his personal vendetta against me - he loses. Again.
You may wonder why I go so hard when people mess with III Arms, especially since I am not a member, earn no income from it, or am in any manner legally part of the company. It is simple: Nearly 50 III Patriots entrusted me with the task of getting this going. That is a lot of trust. For those of you who understand Japanese feudal concept of on, or obligation, you understand. I owe these people my absolute protection in any manner I am able, from every threat. I won't ever neglect that obligation.
More as warranted.
Kerodin
Now for the factual errors.
1. "Many of you also know that Mike Vanderboegh, in an effort to destroy III Arms, President Jim Miller, and the nearly 50 III Patriots who helped make the company a reality, convinced Randy Booth of Red Dot Arms to use the III Arms Trademark on Red Dot firearms."
Actually, Red Dot was making III uppers long before I ever walked in the door and met Randall Booth at his shop. I was drawn there by a rifle I saw at the range, which I posted on here on 16 July of this year. Holly Kerodin sent her first demand email to Randall on 25 July. It was some days after that when I walked into his shop, introduced myself and, sometime during the conversation, the III Arms demand came up. My initial reaction was to laugh at the sheer effrontery of the demand. I explained to Randall who Holly Kerodin was and something of her husband's checkered past. But in no way could I have talked Mr. Booth into anything, since he had already been producing them before I walked in the door. And no, for you jail-house lawyers out there, I had not had any prior discussion by phone or email of III marked firearms with Randall or any other employee of Red Dot, either. Kerodin evidently sees me behind every bush, but I think that is called "paranoia." In any case, Mr. Booth ceased production of the III marked uppers after the demand email and notified Holly Kerodin of that. All this before I ever walked in the door, AND ALL WITHOUT AN OFFICIAL TRADEMARK WHICH HAS NOT BEEN OFFICIALLY AWARDED IN FINAL FASHION TO THIS DATE.
One other thing before I move on. I have no desire to "destroy III Arms." I gave the III concept to the world. If Miller wants to put the III on weapons I am happy for him. What I object to is the misuse of the federal trademark system to profit from an exclusive right of what was a. almost generic in nature and b. in use in commerce by others long before Kerodin tried to appropriate it for his own wallet's sake -- something that his criminal history and the failed court case I posted demonstrate he and his wife have a history of doing.
2. As above, it is impossible for Randall Booth to have "knowingly (engaged) in Trademark Infringement" when the Kerodins didn't have the trademark officially -- and still don't.
3. The idea of Kerodin suing anyone is laughable. Where is he going to get the scratch to press such a lawsuit, especially when any attorney with PACER anda modicum of financial self-interest can access his and her sorry record in a number of cases? Not to mention the horror that any attorney would view the many threatening posts that the "real man" Kerodin has left all over the Internet. The idea of him proceeding as a pro se litigant is equally laughable. Now, if Kerodin sued me, for example, I have a several offers on the table of a pro bono defense and the attorneys I have spoken to find the prospect of discovery with such a criminal creature to be delightful, although I would have to come up with the money for the depositions. I think I could manage that. Lord knows Kerodin has made enough other enemies with his threats that other folks would be lining up to chip in.
But even more telling is that fact that Kerodin has gone doggo since my post of last night, except to beg his audience for money to facilitate his planned move to Idaho. He has not mentioned the court case that demonstrates clearly a previous attempt to misuse the law and the courts to extort money from innocent businessmen. Not a peep. Not a whimper. Which may demonstrate that there are other adults in the room restraining him, or just that he is scared spitless that someone else will notice if he responds.
So, one may reasonably conclude, my torpedo of truth hit its target and Kerodin is in full damage control mode. As for his underwater attack on Randall Booth, it was so factually challenged that it was never a serious threat to begin with. Sort of like a malignant child playing with a toy submarine in the bathtub. And neither he nor his wife as yet own the official, enforceable trademark on the little toy torpedo. I haven't talked with Randall about how he feels about this latest impotent threat, but I know that I'm laughing MY ass off. I'll be glad when this guy finally discredits himself, tires of the III game that he has created as unrewarding of his great intellect and either goes back to extorting money from the heating and cooling industry or finds another scam.