<p>Now there is a sign of total inexperience combined with fear mongering. Something like 80% of all toys in the US now come from China. Less than a fraction of 1% have had problems–mostly with paint that could be easily tested before the shipment is sold.</p>
<p><a href=“http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/04/us/politics/04transcript-debate.html?pagewanted=10[/url]”>http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/04/us/politics/04transcript-debate.html?pagewanted=10</a></p>
<p>You might want to update your facts:</p>
<p><a href=“http://today.reuters.com/news/articlenews.aspx?type=healthNews&storyid=2007-12-05T151318Z_01_N05562982_RTRUKOC_0_US-TOYS-TESTS.xml[/url]”>http://today.reuters.com/news/articlenews.aspx?type=healthNews&storyid=2007-12-05T151318Z_01_N05562982_RTRUKOC_0_US-TOYS-TESTS.xml</a></p>
<p>I heard a report about this on the radio today. They said only 20% of the toys tested show NO lead, mercury, cadmium, etc. </p>
<p>But since it is almost impossible to buy toys not made in China, I don’t think a ban is feasible. Better/more frequent testing is what is needed.</p>
<p>Many of those substances are in every day items like batteries we have in many of our devices with no problems. The question is does it pose a real hazard and under what circumstances.</p>
<p>guess if Barrons wants to buy his grandbabies sippy cups made in China with little to no inspections, guess its your grandchilds life in your hands</p>
<p>me, I won’t even buy my dogs chewy toys from China</p>
<p>and its not JUST the safety issues involved either</p>
<p>and how sad is it that we no longer make toys in the US of A…sad sad indeed</p>
<p>why stop with toys? how bout we stop relying on China for everything and putting ourselves in their pockets? there are plenty of reasons to stop trade with the Chinese and lead paint is just one.</p>
<p>and to stop buying toys from china is not impossible and it would benefit the U.S.'s economy too so i’m all for it</p>
<p>They were not talking about metals in batteries, but in the paint or plastic used to make the toys.</p>
<p>Batteries are safe, unless ingested, and we know not to give them to small children who may eat them.</p>
<p>"why stop with toys? how bout we stop relying on China for everything and putting ourselves in their pockets? there are plenty of reasons to stop trade with the Chinese and lead paint is just one.</p>
<p>and to stop buying toys from china is not impossible and it would benefit the U.S.'s economy too so i’m all for it"</p>
<p>It’s not impossible, but China is cheaper, ultimately. You would need to last out a depression in sales and supply, and while attempting to shift the country’s buying patterns, toy prices would rise. Oh, and you’d also really tick the Chinese government off even more. Economically and politically, it isn’t a very pretty option.</p>
<p>Trade had typically proven to be the best way to build positve relations with other countries and reduce conflicts. Our trade with Japan and Germany post WW II has helped make former enemies strong economic forces and stable places we don’t need to worry much about attacking us. China is moving in that direction and most times economic success means peace and prosperity for the country–and less chance they decide to upset the system that is making them grow.</p>
<p>So I buy lots of stuff made in China because it is generally cheap and a good value–but I try not to chew on them too much. Clothes, furniture, electronic goods are all items that seem good values. If that keeps China busy plotting new products rather than new military programs all the better.</p>
<p>China only makes goods cheaper because of slave labor. You shouldn’t be saying that their goods being cheap is a good thing. Your “good value” is riding on the suffering of millions.</p>
<p>Also it is definitely possible to slowly but surely ween ourselves off Chinese goods and it is in our best interests as we are losing manufacturing jobs here and we are relying too much on a foreign power that supports countries like North Korea and Iran.</p>
<p>Its pretty much B.S. that China still has most favored nation status. They don’t deserve it as they are now a major manufacturing power.</p>
<p>Lastly, I couldn’t careless if the U.S. has good relations with China. The dictatorship that runs the country is a human rights abuser and are oppressing the Chinese people with censorship.</p>
<p>Also, barrons, for your comment on keeping them from plotting military programs, all we are doing is supporting those by sending them lots of money to fund these programs with.</p>
<p>Ah Layered_Cake, I see, so I guess if we stop trading with them and remove the livelihood that all those “slaves” depend on, they’ll be better off, right? Because clearly not having a job is better than having a crappy job. Oh wait…</p>
<p>Right. Boycotts that aren’t endorsed or led by the “slave laborers” themselves are not necessarily helping them or solving the problem in any meaningful way.</p>
<p><sarcasm on=“”>Trade is great. We get lots of cheap stuff. </sarcasm></p>
<p>Americans (of which I am one) apparently made the decision it is better to have 10 pair of shoes that cost $20 ea instead of 4 pairs that cost $50 each. You can apply this same logic to virtually EVERY product made overseas - computer, tv, clothing…</p>
<p>We (excluding myself) made the choice that we would rather pay $100 for shoes endorsed by an overpaid ‘celebrity’. I remember seeing a break down of where the money went on a pair of Nikes. Guess what, the smallest part went into material and labor. </p>
<p>If all the cheap stuff we can get was actually manufactured in this country, it wouldn’t be as cheap. We as a nation have to acknowledge that we are materialist and greedy and value quantity over quality. </p>
<p>There used to be a time when spending more for a product meant it was better quality, those days are gone. A $100 shoe is made in the same factory as the $20 one at Payless or Walmart. </p>
<p>PUT AMERICAN’s back to work making products for AMERICAN’s. </p>
<p>I don’t buy into the consumer society. I have a TV from 1987, a microwave from 1984 (made in USA).</p>
<p>Give people, especially the less educated access to jobs that pay a living wage. Then rearrange the mentality that it’s okay to buy less, and have it cost more. </p>
<p>Do you really think we are raising the standard of living of the vast majority of third world countries by paying people pennies an hour to make consumer goods for the materialist people in this world.</p>
<p>And while I’m on my rant, what does it say about us as a society that we will pay athletes and entertainers millions of dollars, but balk at paying for healthcare for our citizens.</p>
<p>I wonder how many people who are so “sad” about jobs being shifted to China are also mad at George Bush for not endorsing the Kyoto accord which would have had the net result of sending even more jobs to China and India which were excluded from the provisions.</p>
<p>Those socalled pennies are several times more than many people earned previously and are allowing a huge middleclass to form in places like India, China, and throughout Southeast Asia.</p>
<p>You should really upgrade that TV. Nothing like hi-def and good sound to make watching TV better than going to the theater. Your hairshirt is wearing thin too. You can get a nice cashmere replacement for under $100 at Costco.</p>
<p>Slightly OT: Seattle Times reported that Airbus is looking to outsource its manufacturing to a country with weak currency and abundance of skilled labor, and it is not India ;)</p>
<p>Back to toys: so Obama is for a complete ban? Doesn’t he know that abstinence only programs do not work? The beast is out of its cage, and it is not going back! Trade with China is not going to stop. Instead of yelling “Ban!”, we need to have more testing and controls in place.</p>
<p>guess some people here don’t much care about America…interesting</p>
<p>Me, I try and buy American as much as possilb,e American workers and tax base and American’s having a decent life…a concept ignored by some</p>
<p>Does anyone think if we ban Chinese imports they won’t retaliate by banning our goods? It’s a global economy and we’d better get used to it.</p>
<p>I’m far past the nationalistic idea of “home-grown” goods being inherently better than goods from abroad in any way. If it is good quality, and it’s cheap, I don’t care if it’s made in America or in Timbuktu. The fact of the matter is, if American products are inferior when compared to Chinese goods, why should we buy them? Ignoring their faults and buying them because of where they come from effectively subsidizes companies who are performing badly; it removes the incentive for them to improve, and as such is counterproductive.</p>