A New Englander Moves to New Orleans, Chapter Twelve: When Trademarks Fail

Trademarks are supposed to be a form of shorthand. Theoretically, they are protected under U.S. law because they decrease transactional costs: Instead of being overwhelmed every time you shop for something, you can rely on well-known trademarks as harbingers of quality. A trademark tells the consumer, supposedly, exactly what they are going to get, whatever that might be. A trademark can stand for luxury or it can stand for affordability, it can stand for high-ended-ness or it can stand for efficiency or it can stand for environmental-friendliness or it can stand for all of these things at once.

( And Then, I Don't Know, I Talk About Trademarks A Lot )