Legal Defense Fund for Carryabigsticker.com

So apparently a few retarded states have banned these T-Shirts be sold. Parents of a soldier killed in Iraq brought forth a $40 billion dollar lawsuit against the owner of carryabigsticker.com for selling the shirts. If a piece of cotton upsets them this much they should try using tampons with sayings on them. Cool, but sheesh, can't read em very well and dry as hell all up there! Futhermore, don't they yet know that most republicans are against Bush now? He doesn't read and you know if someone put this in his wardrobe he'd wear it without blinking.

Read the owner's side of the story below:

Dan Frazier comments on $40.5 billion class-action lawsuit brought by the parents of the late Sgt. Brandon M. Read

I learned April 30, 2008 that the lawsuit filed against my company related to the sale of anti-war T-shirts has been amended. Read amended complaint. According to an AP story, the lawsuit that was initially brought by the parents of the late Sgt. Brandon Michael Read is now a class-action lawsuit seeking $40.5 billion in compensation for the heirs of U.S. troops killed in the Middle East since 2001. I have set up a legal defense fund and am soliciting donations to assist with defraying the anticipated cost of my legal defense.

I am sure that the pain and suffering the families of the fallen have experienced is incalculable. It would far exceed $40 billion if you could somehow put a dollar value on it. I believe that whatever pain and suffering my T-shirts have caused pales in comparison to the pain and suffering caused by having a loved one killed in a war, especially a controversial war like Iraq. Though I do not feel responsible for what these families are going through, like most other Americans, I do wish I could help to ease their suffering. Unfortunately, neither I nor my company has anywhere near the $40 billion some families are apparently now seeking. Despite the popularity of some of our products, we remain a company deeply mired in debt. But we can and will continue to sell our anti-war T-shirts that list the names of the fallen in an effort raise awareness of the enormous human toll that this war is taking on American families. Perhaps we can play a small part in ending the war so that other families will not have to go through what the parents of Brandon Read are going through.

As the class-action lawsuit moves forward, and various families of the fallen have an opportunity to get involved, it will become apparent that the families are far from united in their views of the war, or in their views of the T-shirts we sell. I have heard from a number of family members who are supportive of the T-shirts we sell, and some family members have even bought these shirts. News reports have often failed to mention that in addition to selling a t-shirt that overlays the words "Bush Lied - They Died" on the names of the fallen, we also sell a shirt that overlays the words "Support our Remaining Troops - Bring the Rest Home Alive" on the names of the fallen.

Regardless of whether this lawsuit against me is brought by two people or 2,000, or whether it seeks $10 million or $40 billion, the fact remains that the t-shirts we sell are political speech protected by the First Amendment. I am very confident that we will ultimately prevail in court.

I am hoping to work with the ACLU of Tennessee on my defense. The ACLU has been very helpful here in Arizona in my effort to overturn the new Arizona law aimed at stopping the sale of my t-shirts (along with the Law Offices of Lee Phillips). However, the ACLU of Tennessee has yet to respond to my written request for assistance. The request was mailed just a few days ago, and it may take a few weeks for the ACLU to respond. As a general matter, the ACLU rarely involves itself in civil litigation between individuals, focusing instead on government-related litigation. If I am not able to work with the ACLU of Tennessee, I will seek private counsel.

Ironically, the lawsuit faults me for not getting permission from the families of the fallen before using the names of the fallen on the t-shirts my company sells. Meanwhile, this class-action lawsuit on behalf of the families of the fallen makes clear that no attempt has yet been made to sign up all the legal heirs of the fallen to make them active participants in the lawsuit. Apparently, I have to get permission from family members to sell t-shirts, but it's OK to bring a lawsuit on behalf of family members without getting similar permission.

The amended lawsuit compares me to a "mentally-challenged monkey," saying, "Even the aforesaid 'mentally-challenged monkey' should be worried about potential exposure in this amount." For the record, I am not worried. I am however concerned for the reputations of primates everywhere and regret that primates are once again the butt of jokes in a Tennessee legal proceeding.

In the original lawsuit and in the amended lawsuit my name is misspelled (Dan Fraser). It should be Dan R. Frazier.

To assist in defraying what could be substantial legal expenses related to my defense, I have set up a legal defense fund. Even if I am able to work with the ACLU on my defense, because this is not a case involving the government, there could be attorney's fees and other legal expenses that I will need to pay out of the fund. Those who wish to make a donation may do so on my Web site (below). In the event that donations exceed my legal expenses, any unspent monies will eventually be donated to an organization that benefits families of fallen U.S. troops.

To donate to his legal defense fund visit his site HERE