tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6726176143932759835.post5418168717453005331..comments2023-10-26T02:57:18.181-07:00Comments on Rants & Raves: The PledgeJenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13164420416881517854noreply@blogger.comBlogger19125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6726176143932759835.post-25286960426800951162007-11-28T13:37:00.000-08:002007-11-28T13:37:00.000-08:00You're so right. There was a radio show on over h...You're so right. There was a radio show on over here the other day where they asked listeners to take off all their clothes and report on the country where they were made - almost none were made in the UK. It is very worrying.Sparxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04075991922896922279noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6726176143932759835.post-21801325384679266842007-11-28T11:34:00.000-08:002007-11-28T11:34:00.000-08:00Thanks for visiting my blog. I am totally with you...Thanks for visiting my blog. I am totally with you on this topic. My sister-in-law has a 5-year-old who loves Thomas the Tank Engine. He collects them, even had a Thomas themed birthday party last year. it is scary to think about all those toys now sitting in his toybox, and makes me wonder: Is the lead paint problem a recent issue, or one that they've been getting away with for awhile that the powers that be only just discovered?<BR/><BR/>Regardless, I am now striving to not purchase anything bearing the "Made in China" label, and of the items I have that do have that stamped on there, I'm looking to find American-made replacements. (And by American-made, that includes no parts that may have come from China...which probably will mean that I won't be doing much shopping from the big stores.)Musical Midnighthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18079788960636934414noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6726176143932759835.post-87892630505605974422007-11-27T21:39:00.000-08:002007-11-27T21:39:00.000-08:00This is our favorite coffee. http://www.groundsfor...This is our favorite coffee. http://www.groundsforchange.com Fair trade, shade grown, organic... Drink up.<BR/><BR/>Joelle<BR/>http://www.joelleanthony.comJoellehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07166968502208229069noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6726176143932759835.post-80685075060522700512007-11-27T19:41:00.000-08:002007-11-27T19:41:00.000-08:00even worse check out the children and adults ensla...even worse check out the children and adults enslaved to pick coffee beans. so you know only 4% of starbucks coffee is actually fair trade. soooo depressing.Zoehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06316768306476213276noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6726176143932759835.post-44217436558625916362007-11-27T18:30:00.000-08:002007-11-27T18:30:00.000-08:00I'm afraid I think you are unfortuntaely correct i...I'm afraid I think you are unfortuntaely correct in assuming we Americans want cheap things, and plenty of them, at all costs -- hence China's manufacturing industry. I fully believe our consumerist society has some responsibility to bear in all of this. If we didn't need our gazillions of toys and our $10 Walmart toasters we wouldn't be in this situation with China, which is NOT to absolve China of its appalling safety record and practices. <BR/><BR/>As a South African who oved to the US some years back I was always struck by how cheap everything was here and how much we in th US expect things to be cheap. If a toaster is broken you toss it out and get a new one. Not so in other countries. We are a commodity-driven country -- and our kids have so much stuff it's crazy but you can't blame that on China. I agree with you --boycott China. If you can. Not sure it's even possible but we have to stop supporting this country's industry.<BR/><BR/>I should also add as a mom that the toy safety thing worries me, but for every one child out of millions who gets hurt by a Chinese toy, there are millions of Chinese suffering in polluted and toxic work/live conditions. The toy thing certainly has a bad impact on us...but just imagine the impact on them, not to speak of the environment at large. <BR/><BR/>Too awful. Good luck in your China-less quest, Jen, and thanks for stopping by Crabmommy. I surely do appreciate your readership!Amandahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07829207348618699058noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6726176143932759835.post-37322841310198146732007-11-27T10:46:00.000-08:002007-11-27T10:46:00.000-08:00Hi, Jen.I think this is an excellent post. Have yo...Hi, Jen.<BR/>I think this is an excellent post. Have you considered writing it up as a letter to the editor and sending it to your local or state newspaper? Or USA Today (do they take letters to the editor?). This Christmas, shop at craft fairs and markets. Buy handmade toys and gifts. Read Jerry Spinelli's CRASH and see what it has to say about toys and what's important. Buy used books...Joellehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07166968502208229069noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6726176143932759835.post-19846986377860240722007-11-27T07:28:00.000-08:002007-11-27T07:28:00.000-08:00Chiming in a little late since I'm still catching ...Chiming in a little late since I'm still catching up on everything I missed over Thanksgiving weekend. I'm with you 100%. I've been making a concerted effort over the last year to live life more simply -- cutting back on consumerism, buying locally when possible, eating whole foods rather than gobs of chemicals and byproducts. That means making the gifts I give, rather than buying "made in china" time bombs. Who knows what will be recalled next? And given their human rights issues, I wouldn't want to support them even if they could guarantee the products were non-toxic. <BR/><BR/>Oh, and I second Karen's suggestion of etsy. I am continually amazed by the adorable, affordable gifts I find there. And I'm about to open my own shop as well. It's a great way to support individuals rather than corporations.Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02549607902659753397noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6726176143932759835.post-39293178776430531532007-11-27T05:21:00.000-08:002007-11-27T05:21:00.000-08:00Thanks to all of you who commented about this post...Thanks to all of you who commented about this post! It is a serious problem, and if we all made some noise about it, maybe something would be done. Keeping our children safe is our number one priority! Thanks also for the websites - I plan to check out each one.Jenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13164420416881517854noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6726176143932759835.post-86614313703146532872007-11-27T04:50:00.000-08:002007-11-27T04:50:00.000-08:00I truly hate all the store stuff anyway. Not that...I truly hate all the store stuff anyway. Not that we don't have any... I sell at a place called Etsy and everything is handmade. They've got some awesome toys there. If you need to do some Christmas shopping check out Etsy.comKarenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09037928148778848386noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6726176143932759835.post-41751132014553121962007-11-26T22:32:00.000-08:002007-11-26T22:32:00.000-08:00My uncle just wrote to the companies themselves ab...My uncle just wrote to the companies themselves about this very issue. It's a big problem. There is a lot of corruption over there right now. If everyone made a loud noise, it could help things to change.Shelliehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12851446861098955538noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6726176143932759835.post-61658696889361877872007-11-26T13:25:00.000-08:002007-11-26T13:25:00.000-08:00I agree with Kellan - get this published!!I agree with Kellan - get this published!!Joannahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16052498539654003254noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6726176143932759835.post-64321122296584751892007-11-25T19:32:00.000-08:002007-11-25T19:32:00.000-08:00great post and i am with you on this.great post and i am with you on this.Amyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00447128976667732712noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6726176143932759835.post-66102146950439162812007-11-25T18:00:00.000-08:002007-11-25T18:00:00.000-08:00Hi Jen! Just wanted to stop by and say no problem...Hi Jen! Just wanted to stop by and say no problem! I understand you can't real all blogs every day...thanks for stopping by when you can - I appreciate it. I'm enjoying reading your blog.<BR/><BR/>You are right on with this post too! Way to go to you!Pamhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07156212038739784644noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6726176143932759835.post-70768950808330197302007-11-25T06:43:00.000-08:002007-11-25T06:43:00.000-08:00Kudos to you - I know that I alread had one of the...Kudos to you - I know that I alread had one of the most recent toys purchased and wrapped for our nephew when I read abou the recall. It was pretty scary. Giving a kid that contains the date rape drug just makes me sick.<BR/><BR/>HallieWonderful World of Weinershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12704174092907120103noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6726176143932759835.post-75767969159628746542007-11-24T17:41:00.000-08:002007-11-24T17:41:00.000-08:00Thanks for stopping by my blog! I, too, am appall...Thanks for stopping by my blog! I, too, am appalled by the number of items saying "Made In China" that I have in my home. Something must be done and I applaud your efforts at keeping your family safe!Tonihttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11122493201161475552noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6726176143932759835.post-32897946613067385672007-11-24T10:56:00.000-08:002007-11-24T10:56:00.000-08:00Unbelievable! Back in July, I started looking for...Unbelievable! Back in July, I started looking for Made in USA products, for many reasons. I did decide to act. The result is a database where busy people can go and lookup products that are Made in USA. Fast and Easy. It will even tell you what retailer sells the items. I hope it will add to the cause! www.madebyyankees.netyankee617https://www.blogger.com/profile/14910080876168698223noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6726176143932759835.post-17403445405616318242007-11-23T17:04:00.000-08:002007-11-23T17:04:00.000-08:00Thats unimaginably horrible!! I had heard about th...Thats unimaginably horrible!! I had heard about the recalls, but childhood slavery....OMG. i don't shop at Walmart, but i better keep a close eye on where my products are manufactured. This is scary business!Kristi @ Mi Vida Ocupadahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08033353912749619320noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6726176143932759835.post-38683667964859598902007-11-23T15:45:00.000-08:002007-11-23T15:45:00.000-08:00I have a link to a related story about recently re...I have a link to a related story about recently recalled toys and product safety. For full disclosure I own the website which features only fair trade, organic and green gifts. Non-toxic and eco-friendly. I will say that there are a couple of game companies that manufacture in China but they are very strict about adherence to fair trade principles, human rights and safe eco-frindly products so they use things like soy inks etc. They also go to the factories and inspect everything and actually talk to the workers, they would pull out if their products were in any way harmful to the people that make them or the people who use them, that includes working conditions. I think a large part of the problem is that some companies know and don't care, others believe they are being told the truth about human rights and safety when in fact they are not. Good intentions don't go far enough. In any case, please take a look at this article which addresses many of these issues. <BR/>http://www.taraluna.com/Press/RecentlyRecalledToys.htm<BR/><BR/>Thank you for your insightful and information packed essay.<BR/><BR/>Penny Schafer<BR/>Taraluna<BR/>http://www.taraluna.comAnonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02740633595030427387noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6726176143932759835.post-83803974731576091312007-11-23T15:09:00.000-08:002007-11-23T15:09:00.000-08:00I think we should boycot China for all the reasons...I think we should boycot China for all the reasons you mention. Good post - you need to send this post to the magazines or newpapers - it is publishable!! Take care and see you soon. KellanKellanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07882991320065439298noreply@blogger.com