Is "special dispensation" what the kids are calling "being sued" these days? Far from Apple getting some special deal, what really happened--which Cringley oddly goes on to detail himself--was that Apple Cisco for the use of a name it really couldn't have cared less about until it was absolutely clear that Apple was coming out with a phone that nearly everyone had already dubbed "the iPhone."

Really, this is penny ante stuff. Companies have disputes like this . It's 2010 and, frankly, most of the good names are already taken. If Apple pays Fujitsu for the privilege of using a name they're barely known for, who cares? Does Cringley really think Apple's poor ?

Technology pundits, if you have an unnatural love for overplayed metaphors, the Macalope doesn't judge, he just asks that you express that love in the privacy of your own home.