John Oliver has always been quick to call the NFL on its bullshit, and on Sundays Last Week Tonight, he once again took the fight to the leagues most bullshit franchise the Washington Redskins.
In July, a federal judge affirmed an earlier decision by the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board byordering the cancellation of the Redskins trademark, saying the name disparaged Native Americans. The franchise, however, wasted no time appealing thatdecision in perhaps the most fitting way possible.
In essence, the Redskins built their entire case on pointing out other offensive trademarks that have received governmental approval, including MILF Weed, Jizz Underwear and Hot Octopuss anti-premature ejaculation creams. Free and clear on HBO, Oliver read all those names and plenty more on his show, and pointed out that Washingtons defense is pretty much absurd.
The 15 Worst Owners in SportsThe 10 Wildest Led Zeppelin Legends, Fact-CheckedEmmys 2019: 10 Biggest Snubs
For the record, that means the Redskins moral defense is now essentially, Hey, our name is no worse than that of and, again, this is another real trademark cited in their case the Shank The Bitch board game,' he said.
Further complicating matters is the teamsargument that any name can be derogatory depending on the individual at hand. The problem: Theres little denying the Redskins nameis disparaging and, oh, its directed towards a very specific group of individuals.
Maybe the most obnoxious part of the Redskins entire 82-page appeal is when they argued Just about everything is potentially disparaging to someone because: A) No it isnt, and B) Thats not the fucking point, Oliver ranted, The word Redskins isnt potentially disparaging to someone. It is currently disparaging to specific individuals.
Thats when Oliver had a heartfelt one-on-one with Redskins owner Daniel Snyder, who has said in the past that the teams name is meantto honor Native Americans, not offend them. And, in keeping with that spirit, Oliver came up with a plan to honor Snyder with a new name for your fantasy football team.
Since you seem to feel differently, Oliver said, let me suggest that everyone now honor Dan Snyder by renaming their fantasy football teams, Dan Snyder is a thin-skinned racist whose sunglasses look like something a tacky pedophile might settle for.'
Done!