Another Toy Recall
By Nicole Belle Wednesday Aug 01, 2007 5:02pm
Toy-maker Fisher-Price is recalling 83 types of toys - including the popular Big Bird, Elmo, Dora and Diego characters - because their paint contains excessive amounts of lead.
The worldwide recall being announced Thursday involves 967,000 plastic preschool toys made by a Chinese vendor and sold in the United States between May and August. It is the latest in a wave of recalls that has heightened global concern about the safety of Chinese-made products.[..]
Fisher-Price and the commission issued statements saying parents should keep suspect toys away from children and contact the company.[..]
Owners of a recalled toy can exchange it for a voucher for another product of the same value. To see pictures of the recalled toys, visit http://www.service.mattel.com. For more information, call Mattel's recall hot line at 800-916-4498.
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I knew that Elmo was evil. He's an enemy combatant!
Looks like the Chinese as well as the Americans value money over health and life.
all these corporations only care about this financial quarter. There's no quality control in this robber baron age
As long as consumers want to buy a bunch of cheap crap, we will continue to get stories like these.
Outsourcing was supposed to be such a good thing... Remember? That was before the CEO's cut the product testing and customer service departments.
I just had a client witha horror story with LinkSys 'support'... Let me get this straight. Who are you supposed to support?
More toys from China full of lead. An explainer:
http://www.slate.com/id/2168765/
RECALL BUSH/CHENEY/GONZO
Kerry @ 4:
Someone on Salon.com made that point. Over the year, all my family have received the 'Wal-Mart: The high cost of low prices' and everyone of them groaned and bitched about getting it.
It's not called "-------'s favorite store" amongst the familial trolls. Yet they bitch holy hell about people losing their jobs and the state of the economy. If it was any plainer to them it would be invisible.
Thanks Wally World
Come on people, lets get the lead out!
I'm sorry, I'm really ignorant in the ways of toy painting, maybe the full article explains and I'm guilty of just skimming... but why would an excessive amount of lead even be possible? Do these paints require some level of lead at all? The negligence is gross, but how is excessive lead in paint even an issue in 2007?
pinkythebrain @ 8:
Anonymous Source @ 11:
Not in China
Anonymous Source @ 11:
No, lead isn't required, it's just cheap paint because no one else uses it in our civilized world...
Lie down with dogs and you damn well better check those dots on the crackers. They are probably fleas.
In either case, the toys are made for drastically less than what they were made for when they were made here but the price hasn't gone down. The Bushist economy. Another Bush family LIE!
i bought some car parts the other day where the box said the parts were made in u.s.a. the parts inside had "made in canada" stamped in the metal product itself. of course "canada" is more reassuring than "china" but what gives here?
p.s. before i could install the parts my mastiff, i.e. dog, destroyed the box scattering it throughout the garage. is there a lesson here?
burt @ 15:
China is also a huge exporter of cheap Auto Parts..
On the main page of this blog, under Google ads, there is a Vote for Funniest Bush Picture (or something like that).
DO NOT CLICK THIS LINK. I now have to take my computer to repair. This has happened at my home also.
Did they recall the 'Poison Me Elmo" doll too?
Free Market! Free Market!
jay severin has a small pen1s @ 18:
Elmo no like evil american children
E-Coli, free-market, de-regulated, republicanism at work.
[Deleted. Abusive. Try to make your point without the namecalling, m'k?]
Market freedom,capitalism,junk bonds,sub-prime loans,margin,lead paint,profit,no soul,no honor,=welcoming the rapture.Jesus will come and fix these damned non-believers.
Who cares if it`s poison;it`s stuff,and we`re Americans,we like stuff.Give that baby her bottle of Mountain Dew.
Elmo is an enema combatant,and the Chinese killed my cat named China,but then I`m rambling,so I`ll stop.
Good grief... And after all the toy scares and reforms instituted when I was a kid in the 60s, that pretty much changed the whole toy landscape when I was young.. After all that, it's all come down to this crap.... imported junky toys that are dangerous to play with... It seems China has gone from being a little snide joke in the west as regards the products they brought to our market back in the 50's/60's to being a real player of export commodities more recently, to just being another purveyor of dangerous crap foisted on the market place.. Along with everyone else who gets to make money in the market place whether what they're selling has any merit or not... China can up and kill any middle manager they want, (something many here would secretly like to see happen with a few fortune 500 execs) but the truth is.. Killing off their factory managers or political appointees tasked with overseeing their industries doesn't seem to be effecting the quality of the products they want to sell us... and our children.... At this point I think one could almost just send the kids into the back yard to pick up and play with whatever stick or broom or glass bottle, or cardboard box to make a fort with.. and the results probably would, at the least, be no more dangerous than it was for any of us who had that sort of toy experience as children... Couldn't be any worse than playing with toxic or poisonous toys bought anywhere that has been made in China recently......JD
To paraphrase Preznit Chimpy:
"uh, well, ahhh, Money trumps Product safety sometimes . . . "
[Refers to deleted post. Flamewar is over, move on]
apparently zippy you don't understand satire... now go to wal-mart and stock up on more lead laden crap for your kids..
I used to work at Fisher-Price. This would never have happened at the old Fisher-Price I knew. Mattel take-over, closing of all the U.S. plants, hands-off attitude towards manufacturing... this is what you get.
I think China has a master plan to sell (killer) products to us and other nations so they can take over the world. I have heard of China exporting exploding tires, anti-freeze in toothpaste, melamine in pet food (not that I eat pet food), now lead has been found in children's toys.
When my friends and I see the "Made in China" label we say "watch out it's going to kill you" better to put that back on the shelf and walk away.
Nobody cares. Shut up.
The thing is, there are Chinese regulations and whatnot against lead paint, antifreeze in toothpaste, poisonous protein analogs in food, and even a minimum wage! (~$1/hour)
However, these regulations are from China's central government. With China's economy in double digit growth for the past 10-15 years, the central government can't keep up with industries popping up everywhere, so they just tell the provincial/local governments to enforce the regulations... and of course these local enforcers will only answer to the highest bidder.
This is why the Chinese central government says, "that can't happen here... we got regulations against that!", but in reality they don't have a fucking clue as to what happens outside of Beijing.
Yeah but, look how cheap...I mean...look at the profit margin!
burt @ 15:
Don't take your dog to any hockey games?
E. coli conservatism strikes again.
We can thank "Saint" Ronald Reagan for putting China on the list of "most favored nations", a policy continued by his successors. If that had not been done, our trade with China would still be miniscule, and they would not have all our factories now. Of course, the factories might be in India or Mexico, but that can be fixed, too.
Bring back tariffs on imported goods and impose a tariff on imported work products of outsourced labor.
Get the US out of NAFTA, CAFTA, WTO, etc.
What can you do but vote Liberal and be snarky?
Its like a massive self edifying captalist greed wave that is smashing and drowning any and all dissent in it's way.
If you do not believe that money is the answer to all, then we the people MUST change the system to a more Socialist or at least socially responsible system. Do you realize how many people just give up and commit suicide in this country because nobody seems to give a shit about anybody else? Not to mention desperate crime coming from our disillusioned youth?
These are the ideals of the business man; "I know how to make money, screw anybody else that don't".
We fight to the death to protect THIS???!!
Tom Mullowney @ 32:
INDIA is the world's largest democracy...
We don't make stuff in this country anymore. Times were a kid out of high school could go to work in a factory and earn enough, if he /she was smart enough and wanted to, to go on to college, get a degree and be on their way up the ladder to the American Dream.
Nowadays, thanks to NAFTA, (thanks, Clinton) GATT and this new world trade thing that causes outsourcing, where else can a kid go? Well, there is always the service. Jesus H. Christ, what a choice. And this has been the plan all along. Why join the service if you have a good job at decent wages? So, destroy the jobs and you don't need a draft. That way, the rich need not worry. Just us, families with kids or grandkids with no place to go except the service.
Rant over.
You no complain about China. You buy toys NOW!
We have missiles!
China. Lead paint. Big surprise.
I'll betchya that if ya open the toys up you'll find a plutonium battery wrapped in asbestos.
How safe are the cars, they plan on importing, going to be. There is no quality control in China. Buy a new car and wreck it the next day or it just falls apart on you.
Ron @ 38:
Can you say Yugo?
Andy K @ 37:
hey, good idea. We can get american expended urainium pellet-bullets from Iraq and Kuwait. You have source for asbestos? We make deal.
http://www.milkandcookies.com/link/65100/detail/
THIS IS WHY TOY SAFETY IS SO IMPORTANT!
Fisher Price executives. "I think it was a bad idea to move manufacturing to China."
Sick. Fucking sick. As a father...I'm fucking appalled. Luckily, we didnt have any of these toys, but we had about a THIRD of the Thomas toys recalled for the same reason a month or so ago.
Goddammit.
Yeah, companies like Mattel sure did save a whole lotta bucks by shutting down plants in the US and outsourcing the whole thing to the Chinese. That's working out really well for coporations, isn't it.?
burt @ 15:
Ontario supplanted Michigan as the #1 state/province in auto production a coupla years back?
Here's why: In the US, the cost of health-care spent on each worker involved in the process of makin' each vehicle is greater than the cost of the steel in each vehicle. In Canada the government(okay, the tax-payers) foot the medical expenses.
Used to be that ya'd go to a lions game & see all kinds of folks wearin' jackets with their local union logo, and most of those locals were in Michigan. Now the Canadian locals' logos are about on par with the US. Love our Canadian cousins, but it's a fuckin' shame.
Chang Zwe @ 36:
You owe us money!! You pay now!!
Chang Zwe @ 40:
Try Glorious Comrade Mao Primary and Industrial Trainin' School.
CITING TAINTED IMPORTS, KISSINGER REGRETS ‘OPENING’ TO CHINA
Race to the bottom.
Don Davis @ 48:
Kissinger can kiss my rosy red arse. I regret his mother opened her legs.
This crap is out of control. I work at a grocery store and our store brand of apple juice
has stamped on the front 'CONCENTRATE FROM CHINA'. I mean for fuck's sake! How
difficult is it to produce apple juice in the US?! Wonder how much lead or whatever other
contaminate is in that apple juice?
Read the labels from now on folks because even most name brand apple juices are from
China now. Here's and article that some of you might find interesting and helpful...
Avoiding Chinese Food Products Nearly Impossible
http://www.cnn.com/2007/LIVING/wayoflife/07/26/china.products/index.html
Makes me sick!!!
Just remember, if you buy a Chinese Cherry automobile, and it craps out in your driveway, don't chew on the paint in frustration.
I do a hell of a lot of trading with Chinese companies. It is not very difficult to put in place a product specification and a QC system and testing procedures.....which would mean things like this don't have to happen. In this case unless the supplier fabricated results or did not follow the specification the buyer is at fault.
Choke me, Elmo!
One week my wife and I stock up on food at the warehouse, the other week we do carry-out at the rich store with the carpeted aisles, cooking school, wine shop, etc. I was at the latter bored while my wife was shoveling gorp into a bag so I started reading labels on their "organic" bulk foods. Practically everything was "country of origin (US, China)". As in "," means "or". As in, any proportion they choose. You got that? "Organic" is "made in China". How will we know it's organic? Because the Chinese TOLD THE DISTRIBUTOR IT WAS!
Is that hilarious or what? You scam them right, people just hand you money.
.1 of 1% of all toys coming from China. Heard it on npr.
I don't have the link for it, but Google Video has the PBS Frontline episode that explores Wal*Mart in depth.
One of the things that they discovered is how Wal*Mart has (through price pressure) forced companies to move manufacturing to China. The Chinese government has in effect susidized artificially low manufacturing costs and kept wages low, exacerbating the effect. Someone else pointed out that the Chinese government is incapable of proper oversight. I wonder if they are all that willing to insure safety to start with?
The "Chinese Problem" has brought a terrible cascade of problems that are coming home to roost. The loss of manufacturing is obvious. But there are others problems not so visible. One is the disposable electronics industry (among many others) that is filling landfills with a huge amount of hazardous waste. Not to mention the various repair industries that are no longer relavant (or profitable). Just try to find an electronic product that can be repaired, and then try to find someone who will fix it for a price less than it was purchased for.
Betwwen this and the peak oil crisis coming in the next 5-10 years, and the US will be in serious trouble. Hate to sound so pessimistic. Unless we get a properly strong government that effectively regulates business in this country, I fear we will be facing one hell of an economic collapse.
There is a very easy action that can be taken regarding these harmful imports arriving from China, whether its toys, food or pet products... And it doesn't require much in the way of action on the part of the corrupt political machine that accepts millions of dollars in benefits from China corporate interests... LET'S JUST STOP BUYING PRODUCTS MANUFACTURED IN CHINA! And tell your retailers that you are making your purchasing choices because China is an irresponsible provider or products to the USA... There is no action that will get the attention of China faster then a precipitous decline in the volume of items it sells in the USA... Exercise you dismay and concern regarding China's propensity to sell us contaminate foods and toys that are poisonous to their very youngest victims.
China has been laughing at booshit and us for a long time now............I wonder whats going to happen when the US defaults on the funds due.It's a bill ...rite?..
all these jobs outsourced....I wonder what is going to happen to the next generation.Will there be any decent jobs left for them at all.I'm in construction...you might say that industy has been insourcing...
The solution is simple. Stop the import of items that do not meet our standards. Oh, wait, we have no standards. If it is cheap, we'll buy it.
First our pets, then our teeth, now our children. What will be next? Our morales.
The people of this country have to wake up. We import far too much from China and the exchange is not equal. It's as if there is a message they are sending us. If we stop purchasing inferior products, the companies that buy these items will get the idea and stop importing them. Wal-Mart, K-Mart, Target, Kohls, I mean any large distributor in our country, contribute to the growing economy in China. Soon China will be the number one economy in the world followwed by Japan then the USA. If we stop buying their crap, perhaps Their economy will crumble. Well, that will be wishful thinking. We own China a couple of hundred million already in loans.
There's no way out.
Jo @ 50:
Thanks...now I have to wash the monitor off after spewing my drink in a fit of laughter...
The thing is, there IS regulation in China, but the rules are not followed. Industries like Wal-Mart are actually (and surprisingly) pretty strict and will discontinue a contract if labor violations are found. The thing is, the Chinese will "cook the books" and create a show to impress the business they deal with. There are consulting firms that will come "make over" the factory and the accounting. So as far as the US (or whatever) business people know, everything is cool and compliant. Also, when you aren't willing to pay much for a product (as a manufacturer or a consumer), you shouldn't expect much. Don't expect lobster in Bangor if your food budget is $2.00.
If people wonder why lead is still in paint in the year 2007, you should try living in China. I was there last year in the Northwest for a job and we're talking primitive here. Sure they've got cell phones and net cafes, but a toilet is where you squat and coal is used to keep you warm in the winter, so...whaddaya expect?
Check out these links:
http://business.nmsu.edu/~dboje/690/cpscBOOK/cpscCH14.htm
http://www.govtrack.us/congress/record.xpd?id=110-s20070126-17
http://edition.cnn.com/2003/ALLPOLITICS/01/22/bush.boxes/
And yet Penn and Teller keep pushing the garbage idea that cheaper labor means better business - "and its good for the slave labor force because its 10x more than what they normally get"
Stupid libertarians are as socially naive as Communists are economically naive.
Lead being absorbed by humans is known to reduce the intellect. Thus, this is a dire situation. Children with lead-paint laced Elmos are in danger of growing up to be devout Republican voters.
=my2c
Don't blame this on the Chinese. Lay it directly in the lap of Fisher-Price who, solely due to greed, chooses to source its products from an emerging third world country.
FishtownTom @ 67:
Right on!
I love how these greedy bastards can close up factories in the US without any responsibility and when the "pennies an hour" plant overseas makes a product that's inferior, they're all upset. Hey Fisher-Price, you spend shit for workers, dont be so put out when your product is shit too.
Rocks and sticks people. Let the children go back to playing with rocks and sticks. They never should have stopped playing with them in the first place.
[...] Another Toy Recall Owners of a recalled toy can exchange it for a voucher for another product of the same value. To see pictures of the recalled toys, visit http://www.service.mattel.com. For more information, call Mattel?s recall hot line at … [...]
This is really sad is all I can say
Way to go, Corporate America...
How long have Fisher-Price toys had lead in their paints? Low levels of lead paint case significant problems.
How long have the US rates of autism been rising?
I think this needs to be looked at:
Lead Paint Poisoning facts (www.nsc.org/library/facts/lead.htm):
Autism symptoms (www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/autism/detail_autism.htm):
I am a layman, but the symptoms of autism sound horribly similar to those of low-level lead poisoning.
How early do you give a child a toy? One that is plastic and is 'safe' for the child to put in their mouth? Where was the pacifier manufactured?
I think this is something the experts need to immediately investigate. Is the rising rate of autism relative to the rising rate of factories moving overseas? The current, most prevalent theory for autism is vaccinations - it would be criminal to stop a vaccination when it's lead paint poisoning, especially when we've not even thoroughly considered a lead paint issue. Would a physician even check an 'autistic' child who lives in a newly-constructed house and attends a newly-constructed or recently-rehabbed school for lead paint levels?
Does Playschool test their toys for lead? Fisher-Price obviously has NOT until now... How many toys in your child's toybox were made in China?!?
Every parent should be asking questions. From now on, I know I'll be checking country of manufacture when I purchase toys and I'll be asking questions about whether or not the toys are tested for lead paint.
It would be nice if all products had to be labeled correctly, with the country of origin/manufacture. Especially food. I prefer home grown and processed. Like I want to eat some chinese or mexican dudes poop....
Whoa! Did anyone notice that China just all of the sudden started making dangerous products for export to the US?
Wake up! This is an economic, non-tariff attack by the US on China.
Of course China makes cheap shit. You mean to tell me that all the sudden, the shit is drastically more cheap? It doesn't make sense. You hear about Chinese products every other day.
I can't WAIT to rush out and by the New Uranium Teething-Ring for my infant!!!
Made In China -- where children matter only slightly less than they do in the U.S.!
It has com down to this. I have told my wife not to buy anything made in China! There is no telling what these bastards use in anything. Oh and I have given up on any type of safety measures this adminstration is taking on anything...including traffic lights. I don't start driving until someone hoks behind me to make sure that I am not the only one who sees green. You can never trust these bastards! :)
Living in the U. S. is just like living in a third-world country now. All of our consumer goods are produced in third-world places that don't have the safety standards prescribed by our law, so business people just import them anyway--because they're cheap--and neglect to inspect them or find our beforehand how they're produced. That's why all the CEO's in this country are getting richer and richer and we, the people, are suffering for it.
SIMPLE RULE: (that the pols can't figure out): You can't have a global economy unless you have global standards, especially for labor and safety in production.
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