Here’s an interesting consequence of reactionary legislation. Many of you will recall what I think of as last year’s Summer of Lead, where some 45 million toys were recalled over concerns about lead poisoning. It didn’t seem that a day could pass without another breathless press report about Chinese-manufactured toys that just might/possibly/could make American kids sick.  Okay, I should probably be a little less breezy about it, as toy safety and lead poisoning are both serious matters. That said, it doesn’t appear that the politicians who were happy to slap together a legislative response took it seriously enough:
The law (CPSIA) to protect American children from lead and pthalate tainted mass produced Chinese toys is being used as a bludgeon by the Consumer Products Safety Commission (CPSC) to force toy stores to take all untested toys off shelves by February 10. The CPSIA goes into effect in February but the CPSC has not exempted handcrafted American and European toys made from natural materials and safe coatings. Individual toymakers cannot afford to pay for thousands of dollars of product testing designed by Congress for mass produced Chinese toys. Small shop owners cannot afford to test their inventory. Owners are threaten with $100,000 fines.
No more hand-carved dolls from the roadside stands around Pigeon Forge, TN? Probably not what everyone had in mind. Or maybe it wasn’t quite unintended – I’m sure Mattel and Hasbro had lots of input on the bill. I’m sure they’d be happy to supply any shop with certified toys.