CPSIA - The Chicago Tribune is Making Fun of You (How'd You Manage to Lose THEIR Support?)

From: Rick Woldenberg

Sent: Sun 3/1/2009 2:08 PM

To: 'Christian.Fjeld@mail.house.gov'; 'robin.appleberry@mail.house.gov'; andrew_grobmyer@pryor.senate.gov; james_reid@rockefeller.senate.gov

Cc: 'brian.mccullough@mail.house.gov'; 'shannon.weinberg@mail.house.gov'; 'william.carty@mail.house.gov'; 'mjg@brown-gidding.com'; Etienne Veber; 'challengeandfun@gmail.com'; 'kathleen@fashion-incubator.com'; 'Stephen Lamar (slamar@apparelandfootwear.org)'; 'Nancy Nord (nnord@cpsc.gov)'; 'Joe Martyak (jmartyak@cpsc.gov)'; 'Mary Toro (MToro@cpsc.gov)'; 'tmoore@cpsc.gov'; 'Patrick Magnuson (patrick.magnuson@mail.house.gov)'; 'Carter Keithley (ckeithley@toy-tia.org)'; 'Rick Locker (fblocker@LockerLaw.com)'; 'Desmond, Edward'; 'David Callet (calletd@gtlaw.com)'; 'ravitz.georgia@arentfox.com'; 'Pamela Gilbert (pamelag@cuneolaw.com)'; 'Robert Adler'; 'Dan Marshall (dan@peapods.com)'; 'erik.lieberman@mail.house.gov'; 'cfalvey@cpsc.gov'; Judy Bailey (judith.bailey@mail.house.gov); adele@narts.org; kmchugh@astratoy.org; richard.goldberg@mail.house.gov; matthew.abbott@mail.house.gov; 'Brian_hendricks@hutchison.senate.gov'; 'david@commerce.senate.gov'; 'Cathy.hurwit@mail.house.gov'; pweller@cpsc.gov; mgougisha@cpsc.gov; bridget_petruczok@boxer.senate.gov; michael_daum@cantwell.senate.gov; bill_ghent@carper.senate.gov; hap_rigby@demint.senate.gov; frannie_wellings@dorgan.senate.gov; david_quinalty@ensign.senate.gov; james_chang@inouye.senate.gov; jonathan_becker@klobuchar.senate.gov; michelle_schwartz@lautenberg.senate.gov; lee_dunn@mccain.senate.gov; sonya_wendell@mccaskill.senate.gov; matthew_hussey@snowe.senate.gov; brendan_plack@thune.senate.gov; hugh_carroll@wicker.senate.gov; elissa.levin@mail.house.gov; christopher.schepis@mail.house.gov; theresa.lavery@mail.house.gov; greg.louer@mail.house.gov; brian.diffell@mail.house.gov; amy.ingham@mail.house.gov; laura.vaught@mail.house.gov; matt.johnson@mail.house.gov; saul.hernandez@mail.house.gov; aaron.shapiro@mail.house.gov; rick.axthelm@mail.house.gov; steve.plevniak@mail.house.gov; scott.cleveland@mail.house.gov; jonathan.smith@mail.house.gov; pat.cavanagh@mail.house.gov; rachelle.wood@mail.house.gov; michael.gaffin@mail.house.gov; angela.manso@mail.house.gov; dana.lichtenberg@mail.house.gov; derrick.ramos@mail.house.gov; elizabeth.stack@mail.house.gov; lori.pepper@mail.house.gov; david.bahar@mail.house.gov; mark.bayer@mail.house.gov; Neeta.Bidwai@mail.house.gov; kyle.victor@mail.house.gov; chris.debosier@mail.house.gov; morgan.jones@mail.house.gov; matthew.dockham@mail.house.gov; tuley.wright@mail.house.gov; cade.king@mail.house.gov; betsy.christian@mail.house.gov; chris.herndon@mail.house.gov; Mike.Ward@mail.house.gov; laura.abshire@mail.house.gov; randi.meyers@mail.house.gov; Greta.Hanson@mail.house.gov; liz.muro@mail.house.gov; jamie.euken@mail.house.gov; jon.oehmen@mail.house.gov; brad.schweer@mail.house.gov; michael.beckerman@mail.house.gov; valerie.henry@mail.house.gov; Becky.Claster@mail.house.gov; tiffany.guarascio@mail.house.gov; jeff.mortier@mail.house.gov; Christopher_day@billnelson.senate.gov; john_phillips@kerry.senate.gov; Kerrie Campbell (kcampbell@manatt.com); bryan_hickman@hatch.senate.gov; Ben.Kershaw@mail.house.gov; tom_jones@commerce.senate.gov; Lisa Brown (lbrown@who.eop.gov); csunstein@who.eop.gov; stacy_ettinger@jec.senate.gov; csunstei@uchicago.edu; rpalmieri@nam.org; dbrown@muchshelist.com; Lyndsay Austin (Lindsay.Austin@mail.house.gov)

Subject: CPSIA - The Chicago Tribune is Making Fun of You (How'd You Manage to Lose THEIR Support?)

Here's another great article for you to read. I love the way it starts: "Hunter Budd recently made his mom a promise never to lick his dirt bike. Sounds crazy, but not to the 10-year-old and his peers who ride dirt bikes and other recreational vehicles tailored for kids. Such vehicles fall under a new federal rule intended to keep toys containing lead out of children's hands and mouths." Won't lick his dirt bike! I swear I did not write this myself.

Gotta love that CPSIA. Good for laughs every time you open a newspaper. Or tears.

Richard Woldenberg
ChairmanLearning Resources, Inc.
rwoldenberg@learningresources.com
Follow my blog at http://www.learningresourcesinc.blogspot.com/ or at www.twitter.com/rwoldenberg

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-tainted-toys-t6mar01,0,3693418.story

Lead-toy law curbs kids' cycles

By Anna M. Tinsley

McClatchy/Tribune Newspapers

March 1, 2009

FT. WORTH

— Hunter Budd recently made his mom a promise never to lick his dirt bike. Sounds crazy, but not to the 10-year-old and his peers who ride dirt bikes and other recreational vehicles tailored for kids. Such vehicles fall under a new federal rule intended to keep toys containing lead out of children's hands and mouths.

No sales until tests are in The rule has required dealers to stop selling all-terrain vehicles such as dirt bikes and four-wheelers for youths 12 and younger while the Consumer Product Safety Commission reviews the products. "It's kind of crazy," said Scotty Rice, sales manager at Yamaha Suzuki of Texas in Hurst, who pulled nearly a dozen youth vehicles from the showroom floor recently.

In nearby Ft. Worth, Terry Cordray, who owns the Village Creek Motocross Park, which features a special track for children between 4 and 8, said: "If I lose my under-12-years-old categories, that will pretty much put us out of business."

Lead outcry The outcry over lead erupted in 2007, after millions of toys made in China and elsewhere were recalled. Concerns prompted Congress last year to pass the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act, setting a limit on the amount of lead — now to be no greater than levels of 600 parts per million — allowed in a toy or product for youths. Items can't be sold or put on display until they are tested for lead levels and deemed safe.

Unanticipated consequences "I don't think anyone anticipated this ... that we were putting products that would never create a hazard out of the hands of people," Rep. Michael Burgess, D-Texas, said. Burgess wrote a letter to the Consumer Product Safety Commission urging an exemption for such vehicles.

A mom with a plan Wendy Davis said her son Hunter rides Cobra bikes, which are U.S.-made and have passed lead tests. But she says she knows the entire industry will be hurt by this. To make a statement, Davis said she's making a sign to put on her son's chest protector. It says: "Look Mom, no lead."