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On the Thirtieth Anniversary of the end of the Vietnam War, this product has been permanently
removed out of respect for those who did not come home. Understand that this tee shirt design was never intended
to insult or offend any person and I apologize for any hardship that I may have caused through the use of this design.
We are in the process of calculating the profits that we have received from the
tee shirt in question and Skin Industries will pay all such profits to the AMERICAN GOLD STARS MOTHERS, INC.
Please accept my sincere apology,
Al Borda
CEO of the SKIN EMPIRE
Skin Industries, Skin
Entertainment & Skin Retail Group
I don't know if it is true, but no one's life should be threatened.
Hopefully, something like this will not be done in the future to trigger such a response.
Thank you to all, who
handled this properly, and with respect to the POW*MIA Issue.
----- Original Message -----
Sent: Wednesday, April 13, 2005
4:36 PM
Thank you for contacting us regarding the design contained on one of our
shirts. As President of Skin, I can assure you that it was not, and is not, our intention to offend those who have
served in the military or members of their family. Skin has thousands of customers on active duty in all branches of
our country's armed forces and regularly receives both requests for merchandise and notes of appreciation from those stationed
overseas.
At this point, you may or may not be aware that I have discussed our prior
design at length with Mr. John Pagel II, the Chairman of a leading POW/MIA organization, Task Force Omega, Inc. We
had an interesting and enjoyable discussion about the POW/MIA issues facing this country and Mr. Pagel suggested minor modifications
to the presentation of this item. We have both renamed and redesigned this item in order to incorporate Mr.
Pagel's suggestions. The new design can be viewed at http://www.skinindustries.com/shop/product68.html.
I hope that you can spread the goods news just as fast as you spread the bad
news. I find it very childish that some people in your groups would call our receptionist and threaten her life because of
something she has no control over. I guess these always a few bad apples in the bunch!
Sincerely,
Al Borda
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"Responsible protest does not include threatening or issuing physical or
property injuries or damages…"
We need to get organized to stop Jane Fonda's new try at American Influence.
Threats of violence only boosters the stereo-typical image, we are trying to remake with the truth...
Rambo's gone for good!
THIS IS MY TOWN is a recent Country-Western hit. I like to think that America is my town.
WE ARE ALL IN THIS TOGETHER.
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----- Original Message -----
Sent: Thursday, April 14, 2005 12:42 PM
Subject: C'mon Guys, let there be no threats...
C'mon Guys,
let there be no threats, save they be economic from not purchasing the product or products with the symbol in discussion...
I received the
following e-mail post moments ago and note the seriousness of the ramifications…. Responsible protest does not
include threatening or issuing physical or property injuries or damages…
If you wish
to protest what they are doing re: the appearing similar rip-off of the POW/MIA symbol, that’s all well and good and
should be made known.
There should
only be responsible protest.
No violence,
no threats of violence, injuries of damages…
Let’s
all be responsible in this.
Thank you…..
Hope…..Rick
-----Original Message-----
From: vva@vva2.talklist.com [mailto:vva@vva2.talklist.com]On Behalf Of Orry133@aol.com
Sent: Wednesday, April 13, 2005 18:22
To:
vva@vva2.talklist.com
Subject: Re: VVA: Skin Industries and POW logo
SOMEHOW I did NOT receive that email about it being settled. I did go down and had
a nice conversation with their rep today. IT SEEMS THERE are a few jackass idiots claiming to be Vietnam
Vets that have been calling up and making very serious threats to their personnel and building. One person called while
I was there claiming to be a VietVet biker and threatened to come and burn their building down. This type of crap
HAS TO STOP. Long Beach Police Department has been informed of this incident and now the phones will be tapped. Pass the word
that this type of behavior HAS TO STOP IMMEDIATELY. We are getting a bad name and it does not do anyone any good will doing
it this way. orry
Mike Oravetz
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Please help with this disgrace. Please write your email
to SkinIndustries and then pass something onto your friends, who might care about this.
Thank You
----- Original Message -----
- Please send these fools your own email to complain about this disgrace.
- John
- Skin Industries, http://www.skinindustries.com/shop/product76.html
- MS. Brittany, brittany@skinindustries.com
- I was shocked to learn that Skin Industries is marketing a shirt that mimics the POW/MIA flag.
I am sure that your company did not intend to offend the Families of the POW/MIA (Prisoners of War & Missing In Action)
and the Veteran community but you have.
- The symbol that you have co-opted by placing the nude silhouette of a woman where a soldiers outline
belongs is the only means for us to remember those who have never come home. The POW/MIAs are Americans who served their
country honorably but we as a people have not been able to account for them
- Please take steps to immediately stop the sale of this offensive shirt. You may consider making
a monetary donation to the POW/MIA families as a step in making amends.
- Sincerely,
- James Simchera
- Vietnam Veteran
- Danny,
- Could you forward this to your email list so that we can get people to send a message to this company
how much they have disrespected the POW/MIAs. I think they know full well what they were copying. I am also going to send
a message to Milo with RFTW and see if they can put out an email to all of the RFTW supporters and maybe to the Rolling Thunder
group also. I think we should start this going around so that we can get as many people as possible to send messages to this
company of the insult of their t-shirt graphic. I went up and talked to the guys wearing them and let them know how disrespectful
the shirt was. There were about 6 or 7 of them. All young with no idea what it represented. They mostly didnt know what the
POW/MIA was. A little enlightenment helped.
- I think the emails should be addressed to the President of Skin Industries. We might even want to make
a ride up to the main store in Signal Hill sometime if they dont take action and stop the printing of the shirt or recall
them all and let them know we are serious. Thats what the message should be is to recall all of the shirts and destroy them.
- We need to stop this NOW!!!
- Thanks,
- Mil Thornton
- NEVER FORGET
- Heres the link for the shirt.
- http://www.skinindustries.com/shop/product76.html
- Heres the email address for their customer service.
- brittany@skinindustries.com
Respectfully,
Joseph A. Jennings III
Exec. Dir.
VVA "BUCKEYE" State Council
"For those that have fought for it, ' FREEDOM
' has a flavor the protected will never know"
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U n i t
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G o d B l e s s A
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Were it not for the BRAVE,
there would be NO "Land of the Free!"
Chuck
*Doc* Stewart Syracuse, New York Patriotic Graphics - http://geckocountry.com/milgraphics.htm Military and Veteran Links - http://geckocountry.com/military.htm Doc's Military Site - http://geckocountry.com/dedication.htm Doc's wife Nancy's Patriotic Prints - http://geckocountry.com/prints.htm Visit the site of Nikki Mendicino, a 15 year old (oops...16 year old now) POW/MIA activist and Veteran Advocate for
the past seven years. Read about her many accomplishments and awards. http://nikkiusa.comEveryone has a photographic memory...some just don't have film.
Remember our POW/MIA's
I'll never forget!
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UPDATES
----- Original Message -----
Sent: Wednesday, April 13, 2005 3:56 AM
Subject: The POW FLAG and or Symbol is not a registered trademark by Al Borda
Mr Borda,
I have read your reply to the complaints you have recieved as noted below.
I have written you an email concerning the design, but first let inform you, the "FLAG" and or "Symbol" is not a registered
trademark and is not a copyright. First of all you can only Trademark a design, you can copyright a concept like a book or
movie. In 1991 Congress after 21 years
recognize that symbol as a flag it is public domain, just like the American flag.
I am not telling you this to make me right and to prove you wrong, this is just to give you the true facts. I understand your
concerns, I really do. After you read my letter I do hope to hear back from you.
I'm sorry you feel that the design
contained on one of our shirts is offensive. As President of Skin, I can assure you that it was not, and is not, our intention
to offend those who have served in the military or members of their family. Skin has thousands of customers on active duty
in all branches of our country's armed forces and regularly receives both requests for merchandise and notes of appreciation
from those stationed overseas. We have offered a fifty percent discount on merchandise to military personnel and have been
supporting our nation's troops long before it was fashionable to do so.
Support for our troops and our nation's veterans
remains extremely important to me on a personal level. Both my father and my stepfather served in the Air Force. My stepfather
completed two tours of duty in Korea and three in Vietnam. In fact, the first five years of my life were spent living
on
military bases overseas. Therefore, I have gone the extra mile on this issue and have discussed our design at length with
Mr. John Pagel II, the Chairman of a leading POW/MIA organization, Task Force Omega, Inc. We had an interesting and enjoyable
discussion about the POW/MIA issues
facing this country and Mr. Pagel suggested minor modifications to the presentation
of this item. I intend to incorporate Mr. Pagel's suggestions into future advertising and production runs.
I understand
that some will take offense to certain merchandise, no matter how it is designed or presented. I hope you can understand that
our customers do not take offense and deserve the right to be able to purchase and enjoy merchandise of their own choosing.
Both my father and my stepfather served in the military in order to help protect and preserve our American freedoms, including
our freedom of expression. This was important to them and it is important to me and to our loyal customers.
Sincerely,
Al
Borda
As a 100% disabled Vietnam veteran your letter is hogwash if you are trying to say no one
realized that this ignorant T-shirt that your company is making is not a spin off of the POW Emblem you are full of it. This
is just to let you know what John Kerry found out last November, the Internet is no place to tick off the Veterans of this
country, this is going to make it's way back to you ten thousand times over. DROP the design, as a possible customer
I am telling you this for your own good, I do find your shirt design to be in very poor taste and a slap in the face
of brave men who DID give you the right of freedom of expression and speech. Now you as a good American must
use these freedoms in such a way that it could not be construed as a slap to the ones who gave you that freedom.
If your people are that hard up for designs I can make a few for you as I am a well known
webmaster who does all my own designs on my well known Vietnam Veterans Web Site.
I'm not writing to you to scare you or threaten you. But I will tell you this, if that design
is not changed in a BIG way you will regret your decision to take on the Veteran community now that this is on the Internet,
we took Kerry down, we can take your little outfit apart. By the way just run my screen name in the Google Search engine (
ViperAsh50 ) I'm dead serious letters will be flying all over the Internet by tomorrow...Do the honorable and correct thing,
don't let your ego get in the way you may even get more new customers than you can handle if you do it right.
Like I said if your designers are so hard up they have to steal ideas give me a yell I do
rather well with graphics. And I won't even charge you for them. As long as they are patriotic!
Sincerely,
165 Vietnam Veteran
Websites many Association or VFW or VVAW Sites.
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