Nike now lets you personalize your shoes by submitting a word or phrase
which they will stitch onto your shoes, under the swoosh. So Jonah
Perett filled out the form and sent them $50 to stitch "SWEATSHOP" onto
his shoes.  Here's the responses he got... let the fun and games with
Nike begin...

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Subject: RE: Your NIKE iD order o16468000

Your NIKE iD order was cancelled for one or more of the following
reasons:

1) Your Personal iD contains another party's trademark or other
intellectual property

2) Your Personal iD contains the name of an athlete or team we do not
have the legal right to use

3) Your Personal iD was left blank. Did you not want any
personalization?

4) Your Personal iD contains profanity or inappropriate slang, and
besides, your mother would slap us.

If you wish to reorder your NIKE iD product with a new personalization
please visit us again at www.nike.com

Thank you, NIKE iD

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From: Jonah H. Peretti

To: nikeid_personalize@nike.com

Subject: RE: Your NIKE iD order o16468000

Greetings,

My order was cancelled but my personal NIKE iD does not violate any of
the criteria outlined in your message. The Personal iD on my custom ZOOM
XC USA running shoes was the word "sweatshop." Sweatshop is not:

1) another's party's trademark,

2) the name of an athlete,

3) blank, or

4) profanity.

I choose the iD because I wanted to remember the toil and labor of the
children that made my shoes. Could you please ship them to me
immediately?  Thanks and Happy New Year, Jonah Peretti

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From: nikeid_personalize@nike.com

To: Jonah H. Peretti

Subject: RE: Your NIKE iD order o16468000

Dear NIKE iD Customer,

Your NIKE iD order was cancelled because the iD you have chosen
contains, as stated in the previous e-mail correspondence,
"inappropriate slang". If you wish to reorder your NIKE iD product with
a new personalization please visit us again at nike.com

Thank you, NIKE iD

**************************************************

From: Jonah H. Peretti

To: nikeid_personalize@nike.com

Subject: RE: Your NIKE iD order o16468000

Dear NIKE iD,

Thank you for your quick response to my inquiry about my custom ZOOM XC
USA running shoes. Although I commend you for your prompt customer
service, I disagree with the claim that my personal iD was inappropriate
slang. After consulting Webster's Dictionary, I discovered that
"sweatshop" is in fact part of standard English, and not slang. The word
means: "a shop or factory in which workers are employed for long hours
at low wages and under unhealthy conditions" and its origin dates from
1892. So my personal iD does meet the criteria detailed in your first
email.Your web site advertises that the NIKE iD program is "about
freedom to choose and freedom to express who you are." I share Nike's
love of freedom and personal expression. The site also says that "If you
want it done right...build it yourself." I was thrilled to be able to
build my own shoes, and my personal iD was offered as a small token of
appreciation for the sweatshop workers poised to help me realize my
vision. I hope that you will value my freedom of expression and
reconsider your decision to reject my order.

Thank you, Jonah Peretti

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From: nikeid_personalize@nike.com

To: Jonah H. Peretti

Subject: RE: Your NIKE iD order o16468000

Dear NIKE iD Customer,

Regarding the rules for personalization it also states on the NIKE iD
web site that "Nike reserves the right to cancel any personal iD up to
24 hours after it has been submitted". In addition, it further explains:

"While we honor most personal iDs, we cannot honor every one. Some may
be (or contain) other's trademarks, or the names of certain professional
sports teams, athletes or celebrities that Nike does not have the right
to use. Others may contain material that we consider inappropriate or
simply do not want to place on our products. Unfortunately, at times
this obliges us to decline personal iDs that may otherwise seem
unobjectionable. In any event, we will let you know if we decline your
personal iD, and we will offer you the chance to submit another." With
these rules in mind, we cannot accept your order as submitted. If you
wish to reorder your NIKE iD product with a new personalization please
visit us again at www.nike.com

Thank you, NIKE iD

**************************************************

From: Jonah H. Peretti

To: nikeid_personalize@nike.com

Subject: RE: Your NIKE iD order o16468000

Dear NIKE iD,

Thank you for the time and energy you have spent on my request. I have
decided to order the shoes with a different iD, but I would like to make
one small request. Could you please send me a color snapshot of the
ten-year-old Vietnamese girl who makes my shoes?

Thanks,

Jonah Peretti

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no response