Sarah Palin files paperwork to trademark her name!

With a reality show and two books under her belt, Sarah Palin has become a one-woman industry, and now she's seeking to protect her brand.

As Politics Daily's Suzi Parker reports, Palin recently filed paperwork with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to trademark her name, as well as the name of her oldest daughter Bristol, who's become something of a celebrity brand in her own right.

Palin's paperwork was filed in November, shortly before the premiere of her TLC show, "Sarah Palin's Alaska." Bristol Palin's application was filed in September, a few days before she began her own reality TV stint on ABC's "Dancing with the Stars." The applications are still pending, amid several queries by the Patent office.

It's hard for an individual to trademark their name, but it's not without precedent. Pop singer-songwriter Billy Joel has done it, for example. If Palin's applications are granted, many politicians seeking to keep tighter commercial control of their images may well follow suit.

Since President Obama was elected, the White House has openly grumbled about advertisers using Obama's name and likeness to sell products. Last year, Obama aides publicly complained after the Weatherproof Garment Company installed a billboard in Times Square showing Obama wearing one of its jackets on a trip to China. But there was little the administration could legally do,  since Obama's image and name aren't legally protected. The billboard was eventually removed—though not because of complaints.

*Seriously! This is a crazy!*

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Female circumcision migrating to West: IOM

Female genital mutilation has established itself in Western countries in recent years because of growing migration flows, the head of an international migration agency said on Friday.

"With the growth in migration in recent years, the phenomenon has unfortunately reached Europe (and) the United States," said William Lacy Swing, head of the International Organisation for Migration (IOM).

In an event to mark the international day of "zero tolerance" to female genital mutilation, Swing highlighted European Parliament estimates of 500,000 circumcised women living in Europe.

The IOM estimates that 100-140 million women and girls have suffered from the traditional practice.

Most of the victims are in Africa, with a few cases in Indonesia and Malaysia, according to the Inter Parliamentary Union, an association of world parliaments.

Nonetheless, it is on the wane in "many African countries" including Burkina Faso, Ghana and Ethiopia, according to African anti-circumcision campaign group CIAF.

"It's torture. Knives are used to cut the most sensitive part of the body," said CIAF head Berhane Ras-Work.

Nineteen African and 12 European countries, as well Australia, Canada, New Zealand and the United States, have adopted laws outlawing female genital mutilation.

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MGA files antitrust case against Mattel over Bratz!

Barbie Against Bratz doll!

MGA Entertainment Inc. filed an antitrust lawsuit Thursday against Mattel Inc., its archrival in the world of fashion dolls.

The case is the latest volley in an ongoing dispute over MGA's Bratz dolls. It was filed in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles and alleges unfair business practices and anticompetitive conduct.

MGA claims Mattel used a "scorched earth strategy" to infiltrate confidential showrooms at industry events to copy new Bratz products, rearrange Barbie and Bratz displays at retailers, intimidate licensees and pay retailers not to buy MGA products.

MGA claims Mattel uses litigation instead of competition to protect Barbie's monopoly over the fashion doll market and deprive consumers of choices.

The lawsuit also names Mattel CEO Robert Eckert, who it says "embraced the 'litigate MGA to death' strategy — a whatever it takes process Mattel successfully employed to destroy the approximate $1 billion net worth of MGA, as well as the 'Kill Bratz' and 'Operation Cast Doubt on Bratz' battle plan to poison MGA in the marketplace."

The case opens a new front in the battle over the right to make and market Bratz dolls — the sassy, street-wise line that flew off the shelves when it was introduced and gave Barbie a run for her money.

Two years ago, a federal jury awarded Mattel $100 million and found that Bratz designer Carter Bryant had developed the concept for the Bratz dolls while working for Mattel. An appeals court later overturned the verdict and the retrial is under way in Santa Ana.

Since Bratz dolls first hit shelves in 2001, Los Angeles-based MGA has sold $3.3 billion in related products, with $292 million in profits, according to Mattel. The doll also decreased Mattel's Barbie profits by $393 million.

*Barbie is always the Queen of Baby dolls!*

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