Vocal celebrity anti-capitalists can be pretty funny. It often does not take long for them to contradict themselves (see Michael Moore making a whole lot of money on movies decrying capitalism). It often makes you wonder if they have any idea what they are talking about.

Russell Brand, who has said some good things against the state but also is apparently against capitalism, has decided that he wants to trademark “his” spelling of the word “Revolution” so that he can exclusively sell the logo on his merchandise. What’s great about this is that emphasis of “evol” (“love” backwards) was popularized by the Ron Paul movement before Brand used it. So for him to claim ownership of it is just silly.

Many have accused Brand of being a hypocrite for pursuing this trademark since they say it means that he’s embracing capitalism. But if Brand is interested in taking a stand against true capitalism, i.e. free market capitalism, then his trademark does not contradict his anti-capitalist beliefs. Having a government grant monopolies to certain individuals or businesses via intellectual property is antithetical to free markets.

Brand is paying off the government to give him the sole privilege of using “his” logo to sell on merchandise. What supporter of free market capitalism would support that?

Now that is not to suggest that people should happy with Russell Brand over this. For someone who wants to emphasize “love” in his message, isn’t it a bit ironic that he’s going to use the guns of the government to protect the sales of his products?