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June 17, 2008

Bush tests fair use law and parody

No, Shrub is not publishing a parody of his bedtime reading, “My Pet Goat.” Rather, many books, including some children’s classics — although I don’t know about “My Pet Goat” itself — are becoming parody gold mines for anti-Bush authors (and others).

And, the courts are just now trying to settle things.

For example, a non-BushCo spoof, “Yiddish with Dick and Jane,” saw the authors sued by the owners of the Dick and Jane series copyright.
“Parody as fair use is a developing area of the law,” said Pamela Golinski, an entertainment lawyer in New York, “and as a result, whether a given parody merits the shield of the fair use doctrine is a complex question.”

Among parodies that DO kick Bush in the pants is “Goodnight Bush,” a takeoff on “Goodnight Moon.”

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