Are you anything like me, in that you wanna participate in our democracy but you also wanna just, like, freakin’ chill out and house a bunch of chips dipped in salad dressing? Have I found the thing for you.
Ariel Zimman, a 29-year-old Portland, Oregon resident, has begun selling homemade ceramic pipes decorated with Bernie Sanders’ campaign logo and head shape. The utilitarian tchotchkes are a great way to ensure all you think about for the rest of the evening is, “But what even is money?”
The main “Burners for Bernie” set goes for $60. Chillums are $30.
The Center for Public Integrity reports, however, that independent vendors that use candidates’ logos are not immune to legal action from the campaigns:
While most observers say political campaigns are unlikely to take legal action against their own supporters, attorneys say entrepreneurs open themselves to risk by using candidates’ names, likenesses or logos—especially when promising to donate a specific portion of their sales.
“You can’t promise to pass the money along to the candidate,” said Joe Birkenstock, an attorney at Sandler Reiff who previously served as the chief counsel of the Democratic National Committee.
Apparently, Zimman hasn’t had a problem.
“Because of the wonderful support of the Bernie community we have reached the maximum legal donation for any donor to the Sanders campaign,” the shop’s website reads.
“All donations past the legal limit will be focused toward charities that support girls and woman [sic] in STEM and the Arts.”
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Image via Stonedware Co.