According to this is sounds like the big boys (some of whom were the biggest offenders - Mattel) have the most to gain by pushing this through and eliminating the little guys (like model train manufacturers!).
I just can’t imagine how I and my children survived.
Oh wait: Perhaps it’s because my parents, then my wife and I, and now my daughters take responsibility for the health and safety of our kids. Seems lots of today’s parents are either too stupid or too lazy to look after their progeny. That gives rise to a whole lot of folks believing the “government” should take over their responsibilities.
Following that logic leads directly to the nanny government that has previously done so well at protecting us from the dangers of life and modern civilization. Just look at the current peanut product situation where there apparently were law violations and known cases of salmonella deaths six or more months before the government took action.
In that case, the responsible parties still have not been charged and today the company president refused to testify in front of congress, citing his lawyer’s advice. Some government protection!
I know some will point out the ineptitude of former President Bush as being responsible, but IMHO, this situation really appears to be typical of the way government executes when it comes to protecting its citizenry.
Happy RRing,
Jerry
One thing that really bugs me is the hysteria and media reports surrounding so-called toxins in products. There’s never any context, and it’s always posed in the most absolute terms possible! IE, if it’s “toxic” it’s bad and should never be present in any amount, in any product.
For instance, our local paper had an article not long ago about children’s plastic furniture containing lead. They didn’t say how much lead it contains, or how much of the chair a kid would have to eat in order to absorb a harmful level. Nor was there any mention of whether or not the body can even absorb lead out of the plastic. And how do the levels of lead in these products compare to other common household items?
If the same degree of scrutiny and risk-aversion were applied to ordinary, natural items, everything would be banned. For instance, peach pits contain cyanide at levels high enough to be dangerous if ingested, and there have been cases of children who died from eating peach pits. Of course, you’re not supposed to eat the pits, but it happens. Can you imagine the outrage if a manufacturer sold a perfectly harmless candy bar that comes with an inedible plastic toy containing similar levels of cyanide?
Ray I like the way you think.
Hows the weather been for you in San Diego?
we have had a cold wet spell her in LaQuinta.
So, do you know if there is lead in the dessert sand?
With all this wind in the vally I’m sure I have eaten some.
Anything mined from the ground can be found in the dust on the surface, including lead.
Weather here’s a bit chilly, by San Diego standards. Meaning highs in the upper 50’s. Supposed to get more rain this weekend.
Of course there’s alarmism and of course you can over regulate. This may indeed be a bad law.
But Jerry, maybe you can explain to me how I’m suppose to “take responsibility” for my daughter’s exposure to lead or other toxins in toys? She’s too old to chew on stuff, so that part’s over, but I suppose I could buy a case of lead testing kits, and test every toy that comes into the house and also the toys at the neighbor’s houses when she has a “play date,” and every time grandma gives her a toy I could test it before she’s allowed to go near it. If she’s a t a birthday party at another kid’s house I cold stay there the whole time and make sure she does not play with any toys that I haven’t personally tested. Ok, that might work for lead, even though it runs against common sense and seems pretty ridiculous. But lead’s not the only problem. My daughter was born in china, she’s adopted. She may very well have been fed that milk powder with the nasty melamine supplement–the one they think caused kidney stones, multiple deaths, and possible long term kidney damage. She seems perfectly fine, and I don’t worry about it too much, but there is no way–no way at all–for me to test for melamine in milk. I don’t have a lab or access to a lab or the expertise to do daily tests on all the milk she drinks. Fortunately the US has more effective regulations than China.
Do you know how to test for phthalates in plastic, something the new law bans? Is this something I can do at home? I’m thinking no, and so I have to rely on–gulp–government regulation. If you can show me a real world, practical way for me to test every toy or plastic item my daughter comes in contact with for phthalates or lead, I’ll be happy to “take responsibility” and do so. Otherwise, I have no choice but to rely on flawed laws, and I take responsibility by investigating those laws and what they do. I still can’t quite figure out what this law does and does not do. The signal to noise ratio in reporting on this law is particularly bad. As I said, it may indeed be a bad law, I’m just looking for clear evidence.
But the blanket argument that there’s no need for government regulation, that it’s all the responsibility of the parent, seems to me unrealistic and counter productive.OF COURSE parents have to take responsibility for their children’s upbringing. Who would argue otherwise? But it’s simply impossible for parents to run spectrographic analyses on every plastic object in the house
When it comes down to it, a toy manufacturers certification that the product has been tested is no guarantee that the product is free of the nasty stuff. At some point, don’t we have to trust someone? Wouldn’t the paint manufacturer’s certification be sufficient?
O this law gets even better. I do not have the e-mail here at work but will post it later but it seems that this lead thing is being applied to ATV’s for kids. Yes those little 50’s and 90’s. It seems that the lead in the battery used to start them is to high. I will post the e-mail I got from the AMA about it later.
So mike you think someone needs to do this and I think someone is over doing it.
A recent study results, conducted over the last fifty years in a Scandinavian country, has shown that average sperm count is now half what it was in the average male back in the 1950’s. One reason given was the effects of pollutants in the environment.
Tim Brien said:I thought the idea of the greenies was to reduce the population pressure on good ol' Mother Earth?
A recent study results, conducted over the last fifty years in a Scandinavian country, has shown that average sperm count is now half what it was in the average male back in the 1950's. One reason given was the effects of pollutants in the environment.
Lets see…
I lived in a house painted with lead based paint. I should be dead.
I rode unprotected in the back of a pickup truck. I should be dead.
I climbed every tree I could get to. I should be dead.
I rode in cars without seatbelts. I should be dead.
I’ve eaten greasy hamburgers all my life. I should be dead.
I rode my bicycle day after day without a helmet. I should be dead.
I played “guns” almost every day as a child but have never murdered or robbed a bank. I should be dead.
I watched every John Wayne movie. I should be dead.
I loved war movies the best as a child. I should be dead.
I played softball and baseball with a simple cotton cap on my head. I should be dead.
I hated and seldom ate my vegetables. I should be dead.
I ate candy and still do. I should be dead.
I love doughnuts!!! I should be dead.
I served in the USAF. I most certainly should be dead.
I own guns but have never hurt anyone. I should be dead.
I grew up with loaded guns in the house. I should be dead.
I drove cars that didn’t have airbags, seatbelts or padded dashes. I should be dead.
I rode unprotected in rumble seats. I should be dead.
I’ve been married to the same wonderful woman for 40 years. Should I be dead? hehe!
Either I’m incredibly lucky or maybe, just maybe, all the dangers espoused by certain learned individuals are a bit exagerated. You think?
Her that part of the AMA news letter I was talking about.
“According to section 101(a) of the enacted legislation, all youth products containing lead must have less than 600 parts per million (ppm) by weight. The CPSC has interpreted the law to apply to various components of youth OHVs including the engine, brakes, suspension, battery and other mechanical parts. Even though the lead levels in these parts are small, they are still above the minimum threshold.”
If you would like to read the whole think let meknow and I will e-mail it to you. Did not wont to take up that much space here.
Richard
I like the way you think.
For me a seat belt was my mom or dads arm (front seat only) or the back of the front seat if you were in the back.
Geoff George said:
Her that part of the AMA news letter I was talking about.“According to section 101(a) of the enacted legislation, all youth products containing lead must have less than 600 parts per million (ppm) by weight. The CPSC has interpreted the law to apply to various components of youth OHVs including the engine, brakes, suspension, battery and other mechanical parts. Even though the lead levels in these parts are small, they are still above the minimum threshold.”
If you would like to read the whole think let meknow and I will e-mail it to you. Did not wont to take up that much space here.
Richard
I like the way you think.
For me a seat belt was my mom or dads arm (front seat only) or the back of the front seat if you were in the back.
Watched two kids eject out the side window of a Dodge Aspen wagon and die on the street because their dad ran a red, seemed he din’t believe in seatbelts either. Broadsided by a car doing 60. I do not equate laws that force a foolish parent into protecting their children with a burdonsome law controling toys. The no-lead law has the serious potential to crush small business. Do you know if I make wooden toys, and cover them with a certified lead-free varnish I still need to have them tested?! I was working on starting a small renaissance festival business but this law, and it’s potential pitfall’s have me stoped cold.
Richard Smith said:Yes you should! From old age! :P :lol: :D
I rode unprotected in rumble seats. I should be dead.
Steve Featherkile said:Hmmm! Too old to die! But thanks for your well wishes. :P ;)Richard Smith said:Yes you should! From old age! :P :lol: :D
I rode unprotected in rumble seats. I should be dead.