» Dana

CPSIA – Dem CPSC Commissioner Bias Against Manufacturers MUST Be Stopped!

Dana — Wed, 13 Apr 2011 16:03:00 +0000

Before the April 7th House hearing on the CPSIA, the three Democratic CPSC Commissioners joined together to assert that in the absence of their “leadership” at the agency and their vaunted CPSIA law, manufacturers would be “dosing” children with lead in ever greater amounts. To be precise , they said they oppose “any change in the law that would lead to an increase in the doses of lead to which our children are exposed on a daily basis . . . .” According to them, changing the law means that “doses” of lead WILL increase (but leaving everything “as is”, including their position at the helm, means that children will remain “safe”). In other words, they were warning Congress that “we” are planning to or will inevitably increase lead “doses” upon a change in the law. Our company is a manufacturer of children’s products, in particular educational materials and educational products. This scurrilous libel applies to me. I don’t like it one bit, either. Despite having previously raised this point in this space, I am still not quite sure people fully comprehend how offensive this action by Tenenbaum, Adler and Moore actually is. Of course, we all know the word “dosing” is offensive on its face. Everyone also knows that accusing me and my manufacturing peers of an absence of values and integrity, not to mention an actual present intent to harm children, is remarkably slanderous, unfair, untrue and completely unknowable. It’s practically a blood libel . But what I don’t think is clear is how grievously the three Democrats have violated a basic tenet of American social justice. in their panicky effort to appease consumer group zealots, the Dems have demonstrated a bias, a dyed-in-the-wool prejudice against an amorphous mass of people tied together only by false accusation. It would be their undoing if they had used the same logic to attack just about anyone else. Consider the following: How would you feel IF Inez Tenenbaum said she was opposed to changes in CPSIA lead rules because she didn’t want black people or gays to start “dosing” children with more lead? or . . . IF Bob Adler objected to changes in CPSIA lead rules because he said he wanted to prevent Jews from “dosing” children with more lead as they are wont to do? or . . . IF Thomas Moore pointed to Muslims as the principal danger in relaxing CPSIA lead rules? The shock waves would reach tsunami heights. None of these people would still be working for the federal government, either. Public outrage would ride them out on a rail. Of course, they didn’t say any of these things (to my knowledge). Instead, the three Dem CPSC Commissioners stood shoulder-to-shoulder and simply said they can’t abide the changes because manufacturers will “dose” children with lead. Can’t trust manufacturers . . . . This apparently is quite believable. The media bites down hard on the silly story, that’s for sure. Consider Jeff Gelles of the Philadelphia Inquirer : “With bigger matters at stake, it was easy to overlook another drama unfolding last week: a little-noticed assault on the Consumer Product Safety Commission’s efforts to improve children’s safety and the transparency of its complaint-handling process. But it sadly fits right into the theme of a Republican Party eager to please its core constituencies – in this case, business groups that often bristle at any regulation, even ones designed to protect children from unsafe products.” If it’s “obvious”, it must be true, right? Yes, if you are biased . . . or a bigot . . . or gullible. So apparently, it’s “believable” when politicians abuse their power by accusing me of an intent to harm children (despite the fact that we have a virtually unblemished record of safety and I have devoted my business life to making children’s lives better) – all because I am a member of a group called “manufacturers”. Had they leveled the same accusation at me or at a group including me based on race, creed, color, gender, religion, sexual preference or some such, they would be banished from our government. This is a dirty bias exposed, plain and simple. The Dems’ accusation is also the height of cowardice, relying on political power to bludgeon a group of randomly-selected citizens for political gain. They know they have overwhelming power and are unlikely to be accountable for this malicious lie. This isn’t the first time Inez Tenenbaum has resorted to this kind of unscrupulous media and Congressional pandering. You may recall my outrage over her statement to ABC News on the first day of the Xmas selling season last year (September 30th) when she used the occasion of Mattel’s 11 million unit recall to warn America against “manufacturers” who don’t design in safety up front. In my blogpost entitled ” Recall the CPSC “, I questioned why Ms. Tenenbaum was warning American consumers about our company – after all, we are a manufacturer. What had we done to deserve this treatment from Ms. Tenenbaum? Had WE suffered a massive recall? Had WE injured children? Did she have ANY evidence that WE were doing a bad job of “[building] safety into the product from the very beginning”? Nope, she didn’t – she made that accusation without any cause to do so. Mattel erred (if they actually did), NOT US. This is called bias. Read her remarks but substitute in the words “Jews”, “black people”, “gays” or “Muslims” for “manufacturers” to see the effect clearly. She was WAAAAAY off-base, but who held her to account? No one. It’s okay to have a bias against manufacturers. What can we do about this? I think it’s incumbent on Congress to do something about it. Let’s be frank – Congress appointed these people and they are accountable for the government that we “enjoy”. Is Congress ready to let bigotry and bias form the basis of our laws and our regulatory system? Is Congress ready to abandon its responsibility for oversight and to manage these rogues? How about a sense of basic fairness – there are huge numbers of manufacturers serving the American market. They are our neighbors, our friends, our relatives. Are we satisfied having a government run by people who HATE and DISTRUST manufacturers, think that “justice” involves taking away their due process and deciding cases before evidence is heard? I sure hope somebody’s listening. This is a MAJOR PROBLEM. It’s time to end the reign of terror at the CPSC!

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CPSIA – Dem CPSC Commissioner Bias Against Manufacturers MUST Be Stopped!

CPSIA – Comment to My Blogpost

Dana — Mon, 11 Apr 2011 09:15:00 +0000

I received this comment on my recent blog on lead: “I am a victim of lead poisoning. In one of Dana Bests written testimonies to Congress she suggests that the lead limit should be 40 parts per million, half of the 80 parts per million level at which a child loses 1/2 an IQ point. Given that she made no mention of blood levels or absorbability she seems to imply that 80 ppm in substrate = loss of 1/2 point of IQ. Give these facts I can calculate my lost IQ. I was born with an IQ of approximately 6,350. You see, as a child I played with solid lead toy soldiers. I started fishing at a young age and handled lead fishing weights frequently. I helped my dad make large fishing weights for bottom fishing with melted lead. Worst of all I clamped lead split shot onto fishing line with my teeth. It’s tragic really, the loss of over 6,000 IQ points. I could have solved world hunger. I could have unified relativity and quantum mechanics. Instead I’m just a normal IT guy. Dana Best, with the help of her special calculator, is about to usher in a new age of soaring IQs. Soon we will all live forever and never get sick. But this may never happen if we don’t hold a righteous fear of lead in our heart. Vote Democrat – BE AFRAID.”

See the article here:
CPSIA – Comment to My Blogpost

Crackdown on Toxic Toys (MI)

Dana — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 02:56:19 +0000

Another law is being proposed in Michigan that would require manufacturers to report exactly what chemicals they use in their products.

Click here to read the article.

Further Evidence of the Flaws in the CPSIA – ATV Stay (Press Release)

Dana — Sat, 18 Apr 2009 01:59:57 +0000

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

April 17, 2009

Contact: Ashley Hutto
(202) 828-7637

CPSC ANNOUNCES ANOTHER LEAD LAW STAY OF ENFORCEMENT, THIS TIME FOR ATVS; ALLIANCE ASKS HOW MANY STAYS IT WILL TAKE FOR CONGRESS TO CHANGE FLAWED LAW

Washington, DC – The Alliance for Children’s Product Safety today called the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC)’s intention to issue yet another stay of enforcement of lead standards for products – this time youth-model ATVs and motorcycles – “further evidence of the flaws in the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA), which Congress must fix quickly to stop the marketplace chaos it is causing.”

Today’s CPSC stay announcement is at least the third time that the agency has acted to delay implementation of a CPSIA provision. CPSC has previously stayed enforcement of testing and certification requirements, and also promised to exercise enforcement discretion and not prosecute certain products, including children’s products made of certain natural materials, children’s books printed after 1985; and dyed or undyed textiles.

“The action of the CPSC to avoid the most damaging application of the law is commendable but is an admission that the law simply doesn’t work. Ironically, the CPSC has been encouraged to skirt the law by the authors of the legislation,” said Rick Woldenberg, Chairman of the Alliance for Children’s Product Safety. “It’s time for Congress to act responsibly and admit their error in passing the CPSIA. This ‘landmark’ legislation implemented a safety system lacking common sense, creates confusion, and results in either economic devastation or massive noncompliance. As the 31 speakers made clear at our rally to amend the CPSIA attended by overflow crowds at the U.S. Capitol on April 1, CPSIA is going to destroy thousands of small businesses unless it is fixed by Congress.”

The Alliance for Children’s Product Safety is a coalition of small business owners, manufacturers, crafters and entrepreneurs who are impacted by the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act. To view the Alliance’s Capitol Hill rally that took place last week, visit www.AmendTheCPSIA.com. For more information, please contact Ashley Hutto at (202) 828-7637.

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Barbara Beck’s Letter to WSJ

Dana — Thu, 16 Apr 2009 15:09:37 +0000

Barbara Beck wrote a letter to the Editor of the Wall Street Journal. The letter can be found by clicking here.

Rally Clip: Dr. Steve Kanor, Toys for Special Children, Inc.

Dana — Fri, 10 Apr 2009 21:17:12 +0000

Rally Clip: Rep George Radanovich (CA)

Dana — Fri, 10 Apr 2009 21:12:07 +0000

Rally Clip: Melanie Tommey, Mel’s Country Crafts

Dana — Fri, 10 Apr 2009 21:05:35 +0000

Rally Clip: Scott Krueger, Westwood Design

Dana — Fri, 10 Apr 2009 21:02:32 +0000

Rally Clip: Susan Baustian, Once Upon a Child/Winmark Corp

Dana — Fri, 10 Apr 2009 21:01:04 +0000