11/9/4 - Mossy Rock (WA) to St Helens

I was pokin' around Pufferbelly Toys the other day, lookin' for some Christmas presents for the grandkids. That's when Stephanie, the owner, told me about "the call" she got a few months back: A cryptic phone call from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. She thought it was a prank at first because she couldn't believe Homeland Security would need to investigate a small toy store in St. Helens. But it was real, and the Homeland Security people proceeded to scare her half to death. They refused to tell her what they wanted to see her about. "We're not at liberty to discuss this matter over the telephone," they told her. They agreed to meet in early August. A few days later, the agent canceled and Stephanie thought the matter had blown over. However, in September, the agent called back again to tell her they would be coming the next day. They arrived at her store in two separate cars and flashed her their badges. The agents then asked her to lock the door to make sure that the "building was secure." The whole thing took about 10 minutes. They had come for a dangerous terroist toy called the Magic Cube. It was an illegal copy of the Rubik's Cube, one of the most identifiable toys of all time. He told her to remove all of the Magic Cube from her shelves, and he watched to make sure she complied. "I was shaking in my shoes," she told me. As they were leaving, she asked them why not just contact the factory who makes the Magic Cube? They gave her some strange excuse about "Auburn, Washington being out of their local office's area of responsibility", hopped in their cars and sped away. After the agents left, Stephanie called the manufacturer of the Magic Cube, the Toysmith Group, which is based in Auburn, Washington. A Toysmith representative told her that the Homeland Security agents were wrong: The Rubik's Cube patent had expired, and the Magic Cube did not infringe on rival toy's trademark. John Ryan, corporate counsel for the Toysmith Group, said Homeland Security, which includes US Customs, routinely blocks shipments of products from overseas that violate intellectual property rights, such as patents, copyrights and trademarks. "That's fine. That's not an outrageous federal act by any means," Ryan said. "But we certainly were surprised that a federal agent approached a toy store owner and frightened them." After gaining assurances from Toysmith officials, Stephanie put the Magic Cube back on the shelf soon after the agents left. I picked a couple up for the grandkids before leaving. "I guess there aren't enough terrorists out there," she sighed. "I guess not," I told her. Four more years people.
Tom