Toxic toys made in China, what should we do?

[Grands]

Hi guys.
I've recently seen a documentary that spoke about how toxic are toys which are made in China and sold in local shop.
It' a great problem because they contains an amount of plastics that do not respect European standard ( in my case) but I suppose also USA standards.
They have a terrible smell and are very dangerous for kids that can lick them or put them in their mouth while they are playing.

What's the problem?
That I see that every day a new chinese shops open and I don't know why authorities don't do something to avoid this huge problem.
They are poisoning our kids.

I also started to think that the majority of electronically products are made in China, so I started to be skeptical of everything I use.
I'm afraid of this situation, and I'm afraid of the fact that Cina will because more and more stronger, that they will dominate the market and oblige us to buy their products because are cheaper.
Obviously I'm talking about products that do not have the CE symbol. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CE_marking

What's your opinion about?

 

[Greg Bernhardt]

Buy local

 

[Buffu]

Can you import something in EU without CE mark ?

 

[Evo]

I'm afraid of this situation, and I'm afraid of the fact that Cina will because more and more stronger, that they will dominate the market and oblige us to buy their products because are cheaper.

We are not "obliged" to buy products from China because they are cheaper. What value do you place on your children? Also, the high end toys that children want likely won't be cheap illegal knock offs from China. If money is an issue, maybe don't buy that pack of cigarettes or that bottle of wine, or that piece of expensive beef, have pasta instead, skip Starbucks, take sandwiches to work. I don't even use bread, I love lettuce wraps.

 

[jerromyjon]

It's more than just toys they are trying to whittle us down with. Car parts that don't work or fail prematurely, sheet rock that destroys plumbing and wiring, dishes and cookware that leech chemicals, the list is large.

 

[CWatters]

Perhaps vote for a government that supports the cpsc ...

http://www.motherjones.com/politics...inistration-made-america-safe-dangerous-toys/

 

[Grands]

Buy local

Local shops are closing for this reason.

 

[Grands]

Can you import something in EU without CE mark ?

No, but they counterfeit the logo CE and you cannot be sure if that product is safe.

 

[Grands]

We are not "obliged" to buy products from China because they are cheaper.

None of us is obliged, but in our days, at least were I leave the new chinese shops are opening every day, so I'm afraid they will be anywhere and will obliged the local shops to close.
What's more?

They come here form China and buy local activities and restaurants, they have very cheap menu, a portion of pasta cost 3 euros, while in others restaurant 8 euros.
Why they are dominating?
Because of the economical crisi people prefer to spend the less possible.
Why chinese have so good prices in restaurants?
Because they do not send children to school, they don't have cars, they are happy to earn 5 euros per hours, plus they don't have a house, they sleep in their restaurant.

 

[Vanadium 50]

Buy local

Local shops are closing for this reason.

Because people buy local?

 

[Grands]

Because people buy local?

No, they are closing because chinese open their cheap one, or in some cases they buy local activities.

 

[Greg Bernhardt]

No, they are closing because chinese open their cheap one, or in some cases they buy local activities.

No, they are closing because PEOPLE are choosing to abandon their local community shops. You get what you deserve. Want cheap items, well, guess what, their going to BE cheap and cheap products are many times more likely to be used with suspicious low quality materials. You have the choice, choose local. It's a concept that I didn't fully appreciate until I moved out of downtown and into a close knit community. Now I actually live near the shop owners. I get it now. Keep the money in your neighborhood or city.

 

[StatGuy2000]

It's important to keep in mind that just because something is made in China doesn't necessarily mean that those products are inferior or dangerous. Manufacturing in China is highly varied and diverse, from some of the most advanced manufacturing in the world with very high standards all the way to sweatshops where corners are constantly cut.

Part of the difficulty is in determining which products are of high quality or safe, versus what isn't. This is a dilemma that Chinese consumers themselves face when looking for various goods. This is where stronger local regulation to properly inspect goods coming into the US or the EU would come in.

 

[phinds]

I've recently seen a documentary that spoke about how toxic are toys which are made in China ...

This is very old news. I've been seeing stories about it for years. A few years back, some of the most dangerous toys were removed from American stores.

 

[symbolipoint]

It's important to keep in mind that just because something is made in China doesn't necessarily mean that those products are inferior or dangerous. Manufacturing in China is highly varied and diverse, from some of the most advanced manufacturing in the world with very high standards all the way to sweatshops where corners are constantly cut.

Part of the difficulty is in determining which products are of high quality or safe, versus what isn't. This is a dilemma that Chinese consumers themselves face when looking for various goods. This is where stronger local regulation to properly inspect goods coming into the US or the EU would come in.

Vague memories about studying the development of unions and manufacturing regulations including for consumer protection...

 

[Windadct]

Price - price - price... when it comes down to it, the #1 factor in most purchasing decisions is price, it is the one metric that is firm and always known. 2 toys on the shelf - 95% of the people will buy the cheaper one - you do not KNOW one is more safe than the other, you do not know if the labor was treated fairly, you do not know how long it will last - but you KNOW the price.

Honestly- China is implementing more regulations at a faster rate than most countries, on safety, environmental, and labor protection, it is really a long and drawn out equalization process.

 

[Grands]

No, they are closing because PEOPLE are choosing to abandon their local community shops. You get what you deserve. Want cheap items, well, guess what, their going to BE cheap and cheap products are many times more likely to be used with suspicious low quality materials. You have the choice, choose local. It's a concept that I didn't fully appreciate until I moved out of downtown and into a close knit community. Now I actually live near the shop owners. I get it now. Keep the money in your neighborhood or city.

Yes, they do that without understanding the consequences of their actions.
This is happening all with Amazon, that killed lots of tech shops ( in my area), and this is because you can buy exactly the same product, or in some cases a chinese version that is less expensive.

I personally ( It's just my opinion) don't agree with not buying product from people that came from outside and open a new in a small town.
I had friends that opened a food shop with a very different kind of food, but no one bought from it because people thought that we don't have to be open to "strangers", " outside culture mustn't be accepted".
Nowadays when it comes to choose a product they accept the chinese version just because it's less expensive.

This is happening for the way our economy works, who have the product that all the people want will have more probability to sell and make money, no matter if that product its toxic.

It's important to keep in mind that just because something is made in China doesn't necessarily mean that those products are inferior or dangerous. Manufacturing in China is highly varied and diverse, from some of the most advanced manufacturing in the world with very high standards all the way to sweatshops where corners are constantly cut.

I partially agree.
When I enter in a chinese shop I fell the terrible smell from 2 meters.
That doesn't mean that all the product are bad, but from what I know, I never found an italian, german, japanese or american product that is unhealthy.

A few years back, some of the most dangerous toys were removed from American stores.

Also in some cities the police arrested chinese shop's owners.

 

[Evo]

Also in some cities the police arrested chinese shop's owners

Please do not post statements like this without also posting a link to the valid source.

You might want to browse through the US government saftery recall site for consumer products. Your country, I'm sure also has one.

https://www.cpsc.gov/

and for food

https://www.foodsafety.gov/recalls/recent/index.html

 

[Drakkith]

Nowadays when it comes to choose a product they accept the chinese version just because it's less expensive.

This is happening for the way our economy works, who have the product that all the people want will have more probability to sell and make money, no matter if that product its toxic.

No, this is either just plain wrong, or you're meaning something different than what you're typing. The only reason that toxic products get sold is because the consumer doesn't know they're toxic or just doesn't have any other choice and can't afford not to buy them. People don't purchase products they believe to be toxic as a general rule.

I also have a seriously difficult time believing that there are any modern and industrialized countries without appropriate safety standards in place and laws established to enforce these standards. You will certainly have people and companies that violate these standards, but as soon as the violation is discovered it is usually corrected quickly. I know of plenty of products here in the U.S. that have been recalled and/or banned over the years, but they only constitute a tiny fraction of all the products sold. I am confident that this is true for other countries as well.

Also remember that documentaries often portray their topics inaccurately. Exaggerations are quite common. They are often designed to attract attention instead of give the viewer an accurate picture and I wouldn't trust the accuracy of a documentary about a topic like this without corroborating evidence from other, independent, trustworthy sources.

 

[mfb]

That doesn't mean that all the product are bad, but from what I know, I never found an italian, german, japanese or american product that is unhealthy.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Asbestos_disasters
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thalidomide
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Food_safety_scandals (not sorted by country)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Health_disasters_in_the_United_States
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Health_disasters_in_Japan
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Health_disasters_in_Italy

And various others.

 

[Windadct]

I worked for a company that did some contract packaging for Knex - relevant art in the WSJ on this topic... outside of consumer pricing issues - it can just be better to do it here ( or local to the region) - there are other issues not mentioned in the article, and the whole Knex story is pretty good as well... another day...

 

[dipole]

Why does anyone need to buy toys? Kids are perfectly capable of finding ways to entertain themselves with nothing more than a ball and some space to play.

 

[Greg Bernhardt]

Why does anyone need to buy toys? Kids are perfectly capable of finding ways to entertain themselves with nothing more than a ball and some space to play.

Just for transparency, do you have kids of your own? I generally agree though, kids are given way too much.

 

[symbolipoint]

Why does anyone need to buy toys? Kids are perfectly capable of finding ways to entertain themselves with nothing more than a ball and some space to play.

Just for transparency, do you have kids of your own? I generally agree though, kids are given way too much.

Children very much want a variety of fun diversions. This can be extremely helpful for children. Not all such young people will be satisfied with just a ball and some space to play.

 

[Drakkith]

Children very much want a variety of fun diversions. This can be extremely helpful for children. Not all such young people will be satisfied with just a ball and some space to play.

I'd have been bored out of my mind after a few minutes.

 

[jedishrfu]

When we give kids toys, we can expand their creativity but when we give them toys like today's Legos we diminish their creativity to build new things because the Legos have become the toys never to be taken apart (at least many kids view them as such).

I've had that experience with my kids and Legos whereas I was raised with Kenner's building sets, American bricks and Gilbert Erector sets. We would make our own toys with the parts and when we were tired of them remake them into new toys. Eventually, we made toys out of all sorts of junk. I remember making a starship out of a flat piece of wood, some cardboard wings and a Timex box for the cockpit. We made a space station from a lampshade and hung it in the garage to make a docking station.

Another creativity destroyer has been the prepackaged computer games. My first encounter with a computer was writing a game in Basic. Who does that now? I'd wager very few kids compared to the computer availability.

 

[BillTre]

When I was in High School, I spent hours a day working out how to throw a forkball (baseball pitch which for me was like a fast knuckleball).

 

[Evo]

What ever happened to using microscopes and making your own slides, using telescopes, sculpting toys out of balsa wood and soap bars? These things were fun! Of course we also made mud pies and forts out of sticks, rocks and mud. Do kids do these things anymore?

 

[Windadct]

And here we sit in isolation, discussing the perils of technology using a global social media platform. Do people even meet face to face anymore?

 

[jedishrfu]

And here we sit in isolation, discussing the perils of technology using a global social media platform. Do people even meet face to face anymore?

Nope, we're all bots now.

 

[russ_watters]

What ever happened to using microscopes and making your own slides, using telescopes...

This year, my 8-year old nephew got his first telescope for christmas. Next year, if his uncle remembers, he's likely to get his first microscope kit...

...though that said, there is a good chance mine still exists and works.

 

[Evo]

This year, my 8-year old nephew got his first telescope for christmas. Next year, if his uncle remembers, he's likely to get his first microscope kit...

...though that said, there is a good chance mine still exists and works.

Sounds like he has a good Uncle!

I remember when I was little, every Christmas I would ask for a Chemistry set, Sears sold different levels of them, but my mom didn't think it was a good idea, I had a microscope and a telescope, she was afraid of what I'd do with a chemistry set. I was already creating "potions" from household items.

 

[Windadct]

HA -- My father was a PhD Chemist - as a kid he basically made Thermite in the attic - it extinguished itself in the basement.

 

[Psinter]

Keep the money in your neighborhood or city.

Pretty much everything on where I live is imported. Either from China or the US. Sometimes from Japan, but that's rare. No local products of anything.

No, but they counterfeit the logo CE and you cannot be sure if that product is safe.

This couldn't be more true. I saw a documentary in which in one part they explained how they could replicate perfect logos of different brands, etc. And. And. They were proud of it.

I was already creating "potions" from household items.

Evo was like: This is a potion, this is a Hi-Potion, this is a Max Potion... And then you had a Potion store.

 

[jerromyjon]

I remember when I was little, every Christmas I would ask for a Chemistry set, Sears sold different levels of them, but my mom didn't think it was a good idea, I had a microscope and a telescope, she was afraid of what I'd do with a chemistry set. I was already creating "potions" from household items.

My mom smashed my chemistry set that I obtained myself because she thought I'd blow up the house. No, mom, I would have blown up OTHERS houses. So I guess it worked out.

 

[Evo]

My mom smashed my chemistry set that I obtained myself because she thought I'd blow up the house. No, mom, I would have blown up OTHERS houses. So I guess it worked out.

Oh MOM, TRUST US! I was sad that neither of my daughters had an interest in science. I bought them microscopes and telescopes and they wouldn't touch them. I bought them the coolest stuff. Stuff I would have DIED for if it had been around when I was their age. I just had to realize that it wasn't their thing. I did find out that at age 12 my oldest daughter had gotten into my computer and taught herself how to code and was doing websites for businesses (for free) and had a website where she was counseling teenagers. And she was doing an Excellent job! But I was afraid of repercussions, so asked her to stop the advice site. This was in the mid 90's. She's a gifted artist and she's a computer whiz and that's her occupation now.

 

[Buffu]

I was sad that neither of my daughters had an interest in science.

I did find out that at age 12 my oldest daughter had gotten into my computer and taught herself how to code

But computer science is a science.

 

[Evo]

But computer science is a science.

Yes, but not astronomy, which was my favorite.

 

[jedishrfu]

We once set fire to a piece of paper using a toy Fresnel lens (plastic lens made by Radio Shack) under the mistaken belief that you couldn’t do this indoors ie thru a window using a cheap plastic lens. Boy were we wrong. Fortunately, the toilet was nearby to flush away any evidence except for the brown spot on the wood floor.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fresnel_lens

Some years later, I was inspecting a quartz crystal globe at a Quartzite Az rock and gem show when I felt a burning feeling in my hand. The quartz globe acted as a lens. The vendor said that you should never place the globes in direct sunlight as they have been known to cause fires. You could actually see where some wood bases had burn marks already because they got some direct sun while on display.

 

[russ_watters]

Yes, but not astronomy, which was my favorite.

I feel your pain.

 

[StatGuy2000]

When we give kids toys, we can expand their creativity but when we give them toys like today's Legos we diminish their creativity to build new things because the Legos have become the toys never to be taken apart (at least many kids view them as such).

I've had that experience with my kids and Legos whereas I was raised with Kenner's building sets, American bricks and Gilbert Erector sets. We would make our own toys with the parts and when we were tired of them remake them into new toys. Eventually, we made toys out of all sorts of junk. I remember making a starship out of a flat piece of wood, some cardboard wings and a Timex box for the cockpit. We made a space station from a lampshade and hung it in the garage to make a docking station.

Another creativity destroyer has been the prepackaged computer games. My first encounter with a computer was writing a game in Basic. Who does that now? I'd wager very few kids compared to the computer availability.

The implication seems to be that you think that today's kids (or perhaps today's teenagers) are somehow less creative than the preceding generation by comparison. Do we have any empirical evidence that this is the case?

 

[symbolipoint]

The implication seems to be that you think that today's kids (or perhaps today's teenagers) are somehow less creative than the preceding generation by comparison. Do we have any empirical evidence that this is the case?

jedishrfu gave his discussion based on his experienced opinion - EXPERIENCED opinion.

 

[Evo]

The implication seems to be that you think that today's kids (or perhaps today's teenagers) are somehow less creative than the preceding generation by comparison. Do we have any empirical evidence that this is the case?

Well, that they seem to spend much more time on their phones? I know my kids do. Of course their thumbs move so fast they are blurs.

 

[jedishrfu]

The implication seems to be that you think that today's kids (or perhaps today's teenagers) are somehow less creative than the preceding generation by comparison. Do we have any empirical evidence that this is the case?

Sadly, yes.

https://www.livescience.com/15535-children-creative.html

and the actual study is here:

https://www.nesacenter.org/uploaded/conferences/SEC/2013/handouts/Kim_Creativity-Crisis_CRJ2011.pdf

My experience is from working with kids over the years and comparing notes. I grew up without organized sports, with boy scouts being too pricey to join, with parents willing to buy me books and science/education related toys and an uncle who inspired me with a microscope and a CRC math book. We watched TV but there were limited science or scifi shows on. My favorites were the Outer Limits, Forbidden Planet, the Invisible Boy and TOBOR the Great. I always wanted to see more movies and shows like them but discovered much later that there weren't any more. They were the best of the times.

Moved discussion to a new thread so as not to derail this one...

https://www.physicsforums.com/threads/the-loss-of-creativity-as-technology-rises.936298/

 

[symbolipoint]

jedishrfu,
I like your last great post #44, but it is not the titled topic of "Toxic toys...". Your posting deserves a new topic. Maybe along the lines of "creativity and technological and societal changes".

 

[jedishrfu]

jedishrfu,
I like your last great post #44, but it is not the titled topic of "Toxic toys...". Your posting deserves a new topic. Maybe along the lines of "creativity and technological and societal changes".

I took up your suggestion and moved it to a new thread. Thanks for suggesting that. I knew it had the potential to derail things...

https://www.physicsforums.com/threads/the-loss-of-creativity-as-technology-rises.936298/