Chinese Mfrs declare victory in war on American Children

[nbs2]

Having lost on the lead front, it appears that the creative and cunning Chinese mfrs (and their communist corporate counterparts in America) have conspired to seize victory from the pernicious youth of America by adding cadmium to cheap jewelry and selling it cheaply (http://consumerist.com/2010/01/cheap-jewelry-finds-new-better-way-to-poison-your-child.html).

Victory favors the bold! Onward fellow manufacturers!

Seriously, WTF to China and WTF to America. China - are you really letting mfrs use cadmium in material that is being distributed to humans? Those things are ending up in the US, not Taiwan and Tibet. America - are you really letting corporations get away with allowing this? They must be testing this crap before they bring it over from there. And how do you pass a law that imposes crazy testing requirements on small resellers, but fails to comprehensively ban dangerous substances from items targetted towards children (rather than just toys)?

[nomar383]

Not the children! Damn you China!

[abijnk]

Links? Articles? Etc?

Some of us don't know what cadmium is and why it would be harmful. Also, it is hard to debate and discuss and issue without a source to read from.

EDIT:
Also, please allow me to insert my new fav internet pic
http://images.tribe.net/tribe/upload/photo/f60/6ad/f606ad58-47f5-4488-8254-722341a4b726

[Eraserhead]

@OP, Link please?

[nbs2]

Links? Articles? Etc?

Some of us don't know what cadmium is and why it would be harmful. Also, it is hard to debate and discuss and issue without a source to read from.

EDIT:
Also, please allow me to insert my new fav internet pic
http://images.tribe.net/tribe/upload/photo/f60/6ad/f606ad58-47f5-4488-8254-722341a4b726

@OP, Link please?

Yeah, yeah. I even had the link on my clipboard. :D Post is updated.

Linky (http://consumerist.com/2010/01/cheap-jewelry-finds-new-better-way-to-poison-your-child.html)

[abijnk]

Yeah, yeah. I even had the link on my clipboard. :D Post is updated.

Linky (http://consumerist.com/2010/01/cheap-jewelry-finds-new-better-way-to-poison-your-child.html)

Well, that's only slightly disturbing, isn't it? :(

[mkrishnan]

Yeah, yeah. I even had the link on my clipboard. :D Post is updated.

Linky (http://consumerist.com/2010/01/cheap-jewelry-finds-new-better-way-to-poison-your-child.html)

Thanks -- it sounds like it's a legal loophole. If Cadmium should not be in these kinds of products, it should not be allowed in these products... I don't think "good faith" is the way to deal with this kind of problem, because the stakes are too high.

[eawmp1]

At least they are sharing. They've been poisoning their own youth for years.

[Eraserhead]

OK, that looks pretty bad and cadmium looks really dangerous :(.

To be honest if the Chinese have been using it domestically* for years the US should have banned its use in jewellery. I'm surprised this is legal.

* = developing countries don't have the same standards for consumer protection - price is much more of an issue for them.

[Zombie Acorn]

Do you people really buy jewelry for small children who would put it in their mouths? Not saying it makes any better, just seems kind of strange.

[Eraserhead]

I'm sure it happens but the above is why the Chinese haven't (yet) banned this domestically.

[nbs2]

Do you people really buy jewelry for small children who would put it in their mouths? Not saying it makes any better, just seems kind of strange.

You won't buy small items, but a lot of things get licked intentionally or unintentionally. For example, mine has a bracelet that sometimes she'll carry the edge of in her mouth. She also likes to nibble at her necklaces when she gets nervous.

And that's not even considering that she has earrings that stay in her ears.

[Ttownbeast]

Compared to the Chinese today, the good ol USA used to be industrious at killing our kids--they are not trying hard enough. We had lawn darts (a major impaling hazard), micro machines (choking hazard), slip and slides (easily you could crack a rib on that monstrosity), toy zap guns that threw sparks and could set your parents house on fire, chemistry sets (you could make a decent batch of crystal meth or explosives with,"here timmy drink this and see what it does!"), the only dangerous import was Lego at the time.

[Zombie Acorn]

Compared to the Chinese today, the good ol USA used to be industrious at killing our kids--they are not trying hard enough. We had lawn darts (a major impaling hazard), micro machines (choking hazard), slip and slides (easily you could crack a rib on that monstrosity), toy zap guns that threw sparks and could set your parents house on fire, chemistry sets (you could make a decent batch of crystal meth or explosives with,"here timmy drink this and see what it does!"), the only dangerous import was Lego at the time.

Thinking back to when I was a kid, it was pretty messed up that they let me have a chemistry set with all kinds of different chemicals, I must have been around 8 at the time. I have to admit it was awesome at the time using them though. :p

[Peterkro]

Someone will be along in a minute to say the government should keep out of it as they are only depriving the citizen of choice and that private enterprise is the best way to deal with it.:)

[Ttownbeast]

Someone will be along in a minute to say the government should keep out of it as they are only depriving the citizen of choice and that private enterprise is the best way to deal with it.:)

I say let the parent deal with it rather than vote away everyone else's choices on what to buy.

[Gelfin]

Some of us don't know what cadmium is and why it would be harmful.

Those creme-filled chocolate eggs are pretty deadly.

[NT1440]

Someone will be along in a minute to say the government should keep out of it as they are only depriving the citizen of choice and that private enterprise is the best way to deal with it.:)

As shown in the salt thread, that guy happens to be on almost everyone's ignore list, or they just don't respond to him on subjects like this.

[abijnk]

Those creme-filled chocolate eggs are pretty deadly.

Hey now, watch out, my step-mom makes those (sort of)! :p

[Rodimus Prime]

This is sad that it will take the US goverment having to crack down and starting banning the imports from China to make the Chinese goverment do anything about it. I would also start holding companies marketing the items accountable for it things like this as well.

Then at least some pressure domestically will start happening because they will stop importing the products.

either way this is just yet another example why my future kids will not be wearing cheap crap jewelry of any type. More so just justifies me more in it. I already was going to not allow it because my mother, my sister and I all have metal allergies to nickel. A common metal used in cheap crap. This means I have to wear higher quiality stuff for anything metal I have to wear.

[NT1440]

I say let the parent deal with it rather than vote away everyone else's choices on what to buy.

If your serious, could we at least agree on mandatory warning labels and a public campaign to point out the threat these substances pose?

[Zombie Acorn]

This is sad that it will take the US goverment having to crack down and starting banning the imports from China to make the Chinese goverment do anything about it. I would also start holding companies marketing the items accountable for it things like this as well.

Then at least some pressure domestically will start happening because they will stop importing the products.

either way this is just yet another example why my future kids will not be wearing cheap crap jewelry of any type. More so just justifies me more in it. I already was going to not allow it because my mother, my sister and I all have metal allergies to nickel. A common metal used in cheap crap. This means I have to wear higher quiality stuff for anything metal I have to wear.

I have the same allergy, it sucks.

[Eraserhead]

This is sad that it will take the US goverment having to crack down and starting banning the imports from China to make the Chinese goverment do anything about it.

How is it the Chinese government's responsibility what Chinese companies export to the US as long as its legal?

[Rodimus Prime]

How is it the Chinese government's responsibility what Chinese companies export to the US as long as its legal?

For example a US company could never make cheap ass jeweral using dangerous heavy metals or lead in them and then export them. They would be shut down for it.

China does not have those protection on them. They are allowed to export those things and sell them with no problem. Plus the factory getting pressure from there own local government would really cause it to take shape

[mkrishnan]

If your serious

In this case, I think you can stop there. ;)

[nbs2]

How is it the Chinese government's responsibility what Chinese companies export to the US as long as its legal?

In the same vein, how is it the US government's responsibility what American companies import as long as its legal?

In both cases, PR awareness and common sense will trump legality in the long term. While neither government can currently do anything, one would think that limiting/reducing/eliminating production would be a Chinese goal as cadmium is included in domestic products. That regulation would lead to concurrent reductions in exports. In the same way, it is on the American government to ensure that regulations are crafted to avoid problems like this. After the mess in 2008, you would think that this sort of problem wouldn't crop up - after all, it isn't like the Chinese companies have to hide what they are doing.

While I would prefer the market to handle problems, and believe that as a general rule it will, I also believe that government business regulation exists for this very reason - to ensure that the market is free to make accurate and sound decisions, protect those who are fundamentally unable to make those decisions, and punish those who proactively seek to deprive society of the choices it is entitled to. Here, whether it is Chinese mfrs on their own or in cahoots with their American buyers, regulation is warranted and should be rapidly forthcoming.

I would propose labeling of CDC hazardous content on products that are targeted to adults, banning on those that are targeted to children. Products to be intermittently tested, with significant penalties (first failure - fine; second failure - suspension of import license; third - revocation of license) to discourage importers from taking the chance they won't be tested.

[Eraserhead]

For example a US company could never make cheap ass jeweral using dangerous heavy metals or lead in them and then export them. They would be shut down for it.

Why? Its legal to sell in the US so therefore should be legal to make/export.

If that isn't the case the US made a really stupid law on this.

In the same vein, how is it the US government's responsibility what American companies import as long as its legal?

None, but they should ban anything that is dangerous.

EDIT: To clarify both the US and Chinese should ban anything that is dangerous and more dangerous than the value of the original product. So even though cars are dangerous they aren't banned as they are useful. In this case it makes sense for the US to ban this - but it may well not make sense for the Chinese to do so as they are poorer.

Now even if you argue that the Chinese should still ban this, like the US has done here the Chinese might just have made a mistake by not banning it.

[sysiphus]

Another good reason why my family and I have stopped buying Chinese-origin foodstuffs altogether, and are attempting to do the same in other markets, too. (High-tech is nearly impossible to avoid the MIC label, though :( )

[Ttownbeast]

If your serious, could we at least agree on mandatory warning labels and a public campaign to point out the threat these substances pose?

Of course, rational warning labels are a good thing the ones that puzzle me are the common sense ones like "caution this coffee is hot" The steam coming off the Mcdonalds Styrofoam cup which is equivalent visually to that of the clouds forming atop a nuclear cooling tower should be a common sense indicator without needs of warning. I am on the fence about campaigns though--seems a waste sometimes makes me wonder if we shouldn't let nature take its course more often.