China's own government auditing agency reported last month that 20 percent of the toys made and sold in China had safety hazards such as small parts that could be swallowed or sharp edges that could cut a child, according to a report in China Daily. Officials in China, of course, are fighting back, insisting that its food and other exports are safe and valuable, that new regulations are being put into place and that problem goods account for a tiny portion of all exports.We wonder if the office of some Chinese official has a framed fortune reading: You shall tell many lies today. Lucky Numbers: 24 80 467 20. — CAREY GREENBERG-BERGER
As More Toys Are Recalled, Trail Ends in China [NYT] (Thanks to Ellen!)
]]>I'd sure like to see more detail on online stores about where something is made, the vast majority don't give much info.
I love to be able to find a piece of technology still made in the U.S., Japan, Europe, Australia, etc.
Or even a piece of clothing. Or furniture, which makes me laugh... you can go to your hight priced Restoration Hardware and look at that $3000+ couch, where's in made...China.
Nearly all those little trinkets you see all over Hawaii... China.
I don't have the answer, but that doesn't mean that I don't recognize the problem of these people being exploited. There's no easy solution, but that doesn't mean we should just throw our hands up and say, "Well, what are you gonna do? They make all our crap now." No, that's unnacceptable!
]]>Geez, where's the love, people?
(To the freepers: one of the above three would earn a shrug, two a look askance, but THREE?! Knowing full well that next week it'll come out that they use murdered executed prisoners to supply meat protein (or SOMEthing)? C'mon...)
(And yes, it's also Wal-Mart's fault. But I recall you guys defending them when they show up here, so you doth protest too much in this regard)
]]>More whining on Consumerist!
]]>@mikyrok: I'm actually not a big fan of J.J. Abrams so I don't watch Lost. What happens in Lost that has anything to do with this? I'm curious.
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Correlation is not causation.
]]>I mean just think, companies over there are forcing their workers to work 80 hour work weeks with short breaks and a few hundred dollars a month.
Of course since American companies are getting cheap goods from their labor and Everyone wants to be buddy buddy with the Chinese government people here like to turn a blind eye to all of that.
]]>actually, i suppose it might not be very significant -- what percentage of toys aren't made in china? if it's a low percentage, and i think it is, then having every toy recalled be from china isn't surprising. more toys on the market = more recalls.
that said, maybe china could, you know, also make things better.
]]>I guess everyone should throw away their toys, iPods, computers, cell phones, clothes, and everything else in your house. Probably 90% of your junk is made in China.
]]>I have gone through two sets of "stainless steel" kitchen scissors. Of course, the screw in the middle of the scissors were not of stainless steel and have rusted through, leaving me with two halves of nice stainless steel scissors.
I am not surprised by any of these stories about recalls and shabby Chinese products. If 80% of our toys were made in Japan or made in Germany, I can bet that we wouldn't have a 10th of these many recalls. I have no qualm about saying these things because I am a genetic mix of Chinese and Japanese and have lived for many years in Germany.
If the Americans crave for Made in China like the Chinese craved for Opium back in the 1900s, then get use to more unscrupulous corner cutting from the manufacturers and lies from the officials. That is the Chinese way. I am sad about this, because it's nothing for me to feel proud of.
By the way, I mentioned opium with the intention to make the analogy with the Opium War. China is already dictating the U.S. foreign policy. Mark my words, we will be paying for Made in China products with more ways than just money and high gasoline prices.
One last word: China is a one-party dictatorship. Its decision process is much faster than the democratic system of the U.S. We have a disadvantage of not being able to pull together with a clear strategy except in a true crisis.
]]>Monolithic scapegoat for a lack of quality assurance from US based buyers/outsourcers? A manifestation and side effect of our collective chasing of the lowest price possible?
No. No way. Get outttttta here!!
Does the government of Taiwan fund this site? Maybe it's the Teamsters or whatever the toy manufacturer's union is these days. I'm really baffled.
]]>It appears to me that most of the stuff manufactured in China is designed in the US. It is also sold by US based companies. It seems like it's the manufacturers in China cutting corners to shave a few dollars off the manufacturing cost. Or it's simply a lack of communication and quality control from the US based companies. You get the same issues with US based manufacturers. It goes with getting stuff as cheap as possible.
]]>I'm shocked at the reaction that the Consumerist has on this. Statistically, this is bound to happen. And seriously, only 24 toys were recalled - that's really low.
By the way, vr4z06gt, 4 would never be a lucky number. In fact, Chinese believe that the number 4 is bad luck. Good numbers are 2, 8, and 9.
]]>So they risk their lives and safety to make you Christmas decorations and you won't even buy them? Harsh!
]]>@Bullseye - thanks for that link. I wasn't aware of that site and it looks like a great resource.
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