Y’all, I want to talk about beans.
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Y’all, I want to talk about beans. And capitalism. And stupidity and greed. You know, the American Way.
Now Bean Clubs, ie people who trade beans, have been around forever. US clubs as far back as the 1800s, and the 4H Club has had an active Bean Club since the 1930s.
But #RanchoGordo has expensive beans for rich white people, and copyrighted the term #BeanClub, and is threatening to sue anyone who uses the term. This has got to be one of the stupidest copyright claims I have ever seen.
They have literally sent cease and desist letters to heirloom bean growers and distributors.
Y’all, beans. We’re talking about beans. Late stage capitalism is so goddamn stupid. I’m tempted to go start a porn site called BeanClub, just for the giggles of it.
America’s Most Famous Bean Club Is Getting Litigious With Other Legume Leagues
Heirloom bean company Rancho Gordo has a trademark on the name "bean club" and is making sure other legume companies stop using it. They spill the beans.
TODAY.com (www.today.com)
I used to buy their beans, but I haven’t in a long time. Now I won’t ever again and that’s not likely that I ever would anyway because there are a lot of other ways to get beans like that.
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@MissConstrue It gets even better. From the Wiki article:
"Steve Sando was a former web designer, Jazz radio DJ, and wholesaler of Esprit clothing, when he burned out, moved to Napa, and decided to grow heirloom tomatoes despite having no experience in agriculture..."
*kids singing "G-R-I-N-G-O" around the campfire*
"Sando founded Rancho Gordo in 2001... Around this time, Sando gathered bean seeds from Seed Savers Exchange, incorporating varieties of beans from Oaxaca, Mexico."
@YakyuNightOwl @MissConstrue Thank your for sharing this. Rancho Gordo is now on my "never list". What a lousy human.
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@MissConstrue paging @riotmuffin ^
@grayhaven @MissConstrue I’m going to take it a step further and copyright the word BEANS
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Y’all, I want to talk about beans. And capitalism. And stupidity and greed. You know, the American Way.
Now Bean Clubs, ie people who trade beans, have been around forever. US clubs as far back as the 1800s, and the 4H Club has had an active Bean Club since the 1930s.
But #RanchoGordo has expensive beans for rich white people, and copyrighted the term #BeanClub, and is threatening to sue anyone who uses the term. This has got to be one of the stupidest copyright claims I have ever seen.
They have literally sent cease and desist letters to heirloom bean growers and distributors.
Y’all, beans. We’re talking about beans. Late stage capitalism is so goddamn stupid. I’m tempted to go start a porn site called BeanClub, just for the giggles of it.
America’s Most Famous Bean Club Is Getting Litigious With Other Legume Leagues
Heirloom bean company Rancho Gordo has a trademark on the name "bean club" and is making sure other legume companies stop using it. They spill the beans.
TODAY.com (www.today.com)
@MissConstrue favoriting this ONLY because I think it’s an awesome idea of yours at the end
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This is utterly stupid… maybe we should all start making a “bean club” and do ALL SORTS of things in the club
Maybe a bunch of accountants (bean pushers
) getting together to have tea once a week and play scrabble or scrimmage 
I don’t know ANYTHING! I’d rather that than these stupid privileged “business owners” claim that they and only they can have this name. -
Y’all, I want to talk about beans. And capitalism. And stupidity and greed. You know, the American Way.
Now Bean Clubs, ie people who trade beans, have been around forever. US clubs as far back as the 1800s, and the 4H Club has had an active Bean Club since the 1930s.
But #RanchoGordo has expensive beans for rich white people, and copyrighted the term #BeanClub, and is threatening to sue anyone who uses the term. This has got to be one of the stupidest copyright claims I have ever seen.
They have literally sent cease and desist letters to heirloom bean growers and distributors.
Y’all, beans. We’re talking about beans. Late stage capitalism is so goddamn stupid. I’m tempted to go start a porn site called BeanClub, just for the giggles of it.
America’s Most Famous Bean Club Is Getting Litigious With Other Legume Leagues
Heirloom bean company Rancho Gordo has a trademark on the name "bean club" and is making sure other legume companies stop using it. They spill the beans.
TODAY.com (www.today.com)
@MissConstrue Corporations already control “plant patents”, that was a mistake that should never have happened EVER
NO
I do not want or need more greedy corporations taking away any more, this again is absurd -
@MissConstrue that’s a trademark, and good luck to Rancho defending that. Where can I find a non-Rancho affiliated bean club in my area?
@be_far Kleenex and Xerox cannot enforce theirs, this will be the same principle. Although, I wonder how they got it granted in the first place.
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Y’all, I want to talk about beans. And capitalism. And stupidity and greed. You know, the American Way.
Now Bean Clubs, ie people who trade beans, have been around forever. US clubs as far back as the 1800s, and the 4H Club has had an active Bean Club since the 1930s.
But #RanchoGordo has expensive beans for rich white people, and copyrighted the term #BeanClub, and is threatening to sue anyone who uses the term. This has got to be one of the stupidest copyright claims I have ever seen.
They have literally sent cease and desist letters to heirloom bean growers and distributors.
Y’all, beans. We’re talking about beans. Late stage capitalism is so goddamn stupid. I’m tempted to go start a porn site called BeanClub, just for the giggles of it.
America’s Most Famous Bean Club Is Getting Litigious With Other Legume Leagues
Heirloom bean company Rancho Gordo has a trademark on the name "bean club" and is making sure other legume companies stop using it. They spill the beans.
TODAY.com (www.today.com)
@MissConstrue trademark protection is a thing. You have to defend your trademark or risk losing it. I'm a longtime Bean Club member and am fine with this.
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@be_far Kleenex and Xerox cannot enforce theirs, this will be the same principle. Although, I wonder how they got it granted in the first place.
@tweetsjen @MissConstrue those are fanciful terms that became generic over time. The standard in this case will probably be slightly different, if the claim is that their mark is descriptive they will have to prove secondary meaning. I checked TSS, the mark was registered in ‘23 so they may have a difficult time proving to a jury that this term is associated with their brand.
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@GGMcBG The Legion of Legumes
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@MissConstrue Copyrights aren't even a part of the market. That's literally the government. Crazy how capitalism just takes the blame for anything and everything
@uncanny_creature Sorry, it was trademark, not copyright. I got the two confused again.
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@MissConstrue if you started a porn site, I would never see it because the state of Missouri requires age verification and that ain't going to happen.
@McCrankyface oh poop, I’m in Texas, I couldn’t see it either.

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Looks like "bean club" may be a descriptive term.
Inside the Food World's Secret Society: Bean Clubs
Bean clubs by companies like Rancho Gordo have become popular among people in the food taste-making set.
InsideHook (www.insidehook.com)
These other bean clubs should threaten to invalidate Rancho's trademark. That will probably shut Rancho up pretty quick. However, it requires the will to fight.
$160 American dollars for 24 pounds of beans. $6.66 cents a pound. For beans. Beans.
We live in hell.
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Y’all, I want to talk about beans. And capitalism. And stupidity and greed. You know, the American Way.
Now Bean Clubs, ie people who trade beans, have been around forever. US clubs as far back as the 1800s, and the 4H Club has had an active Bean Club since the 1930s.
But #RanchoGordo has expensive beans for rich white people, and copyrighted the term #BeanClub, and is threatening to sue anyone who uses the term. This has got to be one of the stupidest copyright claims I have ever seen.
They have literally sent cease and desist letters to heirloom bean growers and distributors.
Y’all, beans. We’re talking about beans. Late stage capitalism is so goddamn stupid. I’m tempted to go start a porn site called BeanClub, just for the giggles of it.
America’s Most Famous Bean Club Is Getting Litigious With Other Legume Leagues
Heirloom bean company Rancho Gordo has a trademark on the name "bean club" and is making sure other legume companies stop using it. They spill the beans.
TODAY.com (www.today.com)
A lot of people don’t know this, but beans are crazy easy to grow, and they’ll work even in bad soil. Plus the plants are great for refurbishing old and tired soil. And pollinators love them.
Heritage plants are great, and seeds are available. Note that companies like Rancho Gordo treat their beans so they cannot be sprouted. There are companies that sell heritage and sproutable beans in bulk.
Go to any ethnic market that sells beans bulk, and I will bet folding money they will sprout.
Beans are the planet’s most viable and inexpensive protein and complex carb food source. We cannot let a few people gatekeep this most precious of resources.
Grow beans. Share seeds.
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Y’all, I want to talk about beans. And capitalism. And stupidity and greed. You know, the American Way.
Now Bean Clubs, ie people who trade beans, have been around forever. US clubs as far back as the 1800s, and the 4H Club has had an active Bean Club since the 1930s.
But #RanchoGordo has expensive beans for rich white people, and copyrighted the term #BeanClub, and is threatening to sue anyone who uses the term. This has got to be one of the stupidest copyright claims I have ever seen.
They have literally sent cease and desist letters to heirloom bean growers and distributors.
Y’all, beans. We’re talking about beans. Late stage capitalism is so goddamn stupid. I’m tempted to go start a porn site called BeanClub, just for the giggles of it.
America’s Most Famous Bean Club Is Getting Litigious With Other Legume Leagues
Heirloom bean company Rancho Gordo has a trademark on the name "bean club" and is making sure other legume companies stop using it. They spill the beans.
TODAY.com (www.today.com)
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A lot of people don’t know this, but beans are crazy easy to grow, and they’ll work even in bad soil. Plus the plants are great for refurbishing old and tired soil. And pollinators love them.
Heritage plants are great, and seeds are available. Note that companies like Rancho Gordo treat their beans so they cannot be sprouted. There are companies that sell heritage and sproutable beans in bulk.
Go to any ethnic market that sells beans bulk, and I will bet folding money they will sprout.
Beans are the planet’s most viable and inexpensive protein and complex carb food source. We cannot let a few people gatekeep this most precious of resources.
Grow beans. Share seeds.
@MissConstrue What kind of bean do you recommend for a first-time bean grower? I've got space in my garden this year and am willing to give it a go.
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Y’all, I want to talk about beans. And capitalism. And stupidity and greed. You know, the American Way.
Now Bean Clubs, ie people who trade beans, have been around forever. US clubs as far back as the 1800s, and the 4H Club has had an active Bean Club since the 1930s.
But #RanchoGordo has expensive beans for rich white people, and copyrighted the term #BeanClub, and is threatening to sue anyone who uses the term. This has got to be one of the stupidest copyright claims I have ever seen.
They have literally sent cease and desist letters to heirloom bean growers and distributors.
Y’all, beans. We’re talking about beans. Late stage capitalism is so goddamn stupid. I’m tempted to go start a porn site called BeanClub, just for the giggles of it.
America’s Most Famous Bean Club Is Getting Litigious With Other Legume Leagues
Heirloom bean company Rancho Gordo has a trademark on the name "bean club" and is making sure other legume companies stop using it. They spill the beans.
TODAY.com (www.today.com)
@MissConstrue @lisamelton they are facilitating the rise of bean mobs!
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@random_regret @MissConstrue Disney needs to go. They've been farming Mickey for like a century.
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@uncanny_creature Sorry, it was trademark, not copyright. I got the two confused again.
@MissConstrue I stand by my statement regardless
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A lot of people don’t know this, but beans are crazy easy to grow, and they’ll work even in bad soil. Plus the plants are great for refurbishing old and tired soil. And pollinators love them.
Heritage plants are great, and seeds are available. Note that companies like Rancho Gordo treat their beans so they cannot be sprouted. There are companies that sell heritage and sproutable beans in bulk.
Go to any ethnic market that sells beans bulk, and I will bet folding money they will sprout.
Beans are the planet’s most viable and inexpensive protein and complex carb food source. We cannot let a few people gatekeep this most precious of resources.
Grow beans. Share seeds.
@MissConstrue I believe we ordered bean seedlings this year. I am sad to admit that I had not had "fresh" beans until about three years ago, and they were a revelation. (Cranberry beans, nature's most gorgeous source of protein.)
And wow, didn't know that about Rancho Gordo. Now I don't feel bad about not being on their list.
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A lot of people don’t know this, but beans are crazy easy to grow, and they’ll work even in bad soil. Plus the plants are great for refurbishing old and tired soil. And pollinators love them.
Heritage plants are great, and seeds are available. Note that companies like Rancho Gordo treat their beans so they cannot be sprouted. There are companies that sell heritage and sproutable beans in bulk.
Go to any ethnic market that sells beans bulk, and I will bet folding money they will sprout.
Beans are the planet’s most viable and inexpensive protein and complex carb food source. We cannot let a few people gatekeep this most precious of resources.
Grow beans. Share seeds.
@MissConstrue CONSUME LEGUME
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