The DISH
Unbossed and unbought news and information you can use
Volume 10 Issue 43…Dedicated to the Dialogue on Race…October 26, 2007
Lead Poisoning
Humans
have mined and used lead for thousands of years. The dangers of lead poisoning,
also known as saturnism, plumbism
or painter's colic, have also been long known. The symptoms of lead poisoning
include neurological problems, nausea, abdominal pain, irritability, insomnia,
lethargy or hyperactivity, headaches, seizure, coma and death.
Lead was first mined in Asia Minor (Turkey) about 6500 BC. A 6000- to
8000-year-old lead necklace was found in ancient Anatolia. Lead was first
recognized as a toxin as early as 2000 BC. Nicander
of Colophon wrote of lead-induced anemia and colic in 250 BC. Prevalent in
Rome, gout is believed to be the result of lead. Sugar of lead was used to
sweeten wine and much of Rome's affluent class suffered from this lead-induced
gout.
Aulus Cornelius Celsus (30
AD) listed white lead on a list of poisons. Julius Caesar's engineer, Vitruvius reported, "Water is much more wholesome from
earthenware pipes than from lead pipes. For it seems to be made injurious by
lead, because white lead paint is produced from it; and this is said to be
harmful to the human body."
In 17th-century Germany, an Ulm physician noticed
that monks who did not drink wine were healthy, while wine drinkers developed
colic. The culprit was sugar of lead. In 1845, a crew of 128 gathering magnetic
data in the Canadian Arctic is believed to have died from lead poisoning among
other things. The canned food on board was sealed in tin cans with lead solder.
The lead is thought to have leaked into the food and driven the men mad.
Ludwig van Beethoven suffered many years and died due to lead poisoning, though
the cause has not been traced to sweetened wine. Francisco Goya was considered
skilled but unremarkable until he contracted lead poisoning in his late forties
and painted a series of disturbing paintings called "the Caprices."
George Frideric Handel is believed to have acquired
gout through port wine.
Today, most lead exposure in developed countries is the result of occupational
hazards, leaded paint and gasoline. Outside of occupational hazards, most lead
poisoning occurs in children under age twelve. The main sources of poisoning
are from ingestion of lead dust or chips from deteriorating lead-based paints.
Recent alerts on the danger of lead from imported products have included
calcium supplements, hair dye and other cosmetics, candy, vinyl mini-blinds,
necklaces, playground equipment, toys, ceramic ware and crystal glassware.
(Sources: http://en.wikipedia.org, www.mayoclinic.com and www.nsc.org)
Blackout and March for Justice
Radio personality Warren Ballentine and others are
urging Americans not to spend money on November 2 to protest the federal
government's handling of hate crimes, as well as its handling of other issues
like health care, immigration, the mortgage crisis and the war in Iraq.
Ballentine's idea for the national boycott grew out
of frustration over the Justice Department's handling of the "Jena 6"
case in Louisiana. While it is generally assumed a one-day boycott will have
little economic impact, the idea is to send a message. According to Ballentine, his listeners have embraced the idea, which is
also supported by civil rights advocate Rev. Al Sharpton
and other organizations.
Two weeks after the blackout, Rev. Sharpton is
leading a march in front of the Department of Justice in Washington. In
announcing the November 16 march on Washington at a news conference outside the
federal courthouse in Atlanta on Tuesday, Rev. Sharpton
said, "Since the federal government won't come to the people, we're going
to bring the people to the federal government."
Toxic Toys: A Family Dilemma
By John Burl Smith
Recently, Mattel, Inc. recalled 9.3 million Chinese-made toys, which included
Barbie, Polly Pocket, Tanner play sets, Batman, One Piece Triple Slash Zolo Roronoa action figures,
Doggie Day Care and "Cars" movie items. This recall followed one two
weeks earlier of 1.5 million Fisher-Price infant toys worldwide; all were made
in China.
The nation's largest toy-maker's recall was due to lead-paint and tiny magnets
that could be swallowed, as well as other hazards to children. It warned that
more toys could be ordered off store shelves because of lead paint. Many of the
magnetic toys were purchased as early as 2003. Included in the lead paint
recall were popular characters such as Dora the Explorer, Big Bird, Elmo and
other Sesame Street characters; these toys reached stores this spring and
summer.
Mattel chief executive Bob Eckert apologized to the Chinese that made the toys
but did not address American parents and children who may be victims of lead
tainted toxic toys. To Americans he only said, "We test our toys at a very
high level. But there is no guarantee that we will not be here again and have
more recalls."
The series of recalls so far this year has involved not just Mattel, but
millions of pieces of children's jewelry, and Thomas & Friends trains made
by RC2 Corp. This June, RC2 recalled about 1.5 million Thomas & Friends
wooden railway toys sold in the United States from January 2005 to June 2007.
All were imported from China and were recalled because of toxic lead levels.
Earlier in March 2006 Mega Brands Inc. recalled 3.8 million Magnetix
magnetic building sets that contained tiny magnets. One child died and four
others were seriously injured after swallowing the magnets.
Also back in 2003, Toys "R" Us Inc. voluntarily recalled 50,000
lead-laden sticks of sidewalk chalk. However again in March of 2007, Toys
"R" Us voluntarily recalled about 128,700 military toys produced by
Toy Century Industrial Company Ltd. of Hong Kong that were found to contain
toxic levels of lead paint.
Wal-Mart's recent toy recall could be a real challenge for parents, because the
retailer isn't giving very much information about the defective toys. Wal-Mart
will only describe the toys as "sets of realistic-looking farm animals,
jungle animals and dinosaurs." The recalled toys were sold loose in
cellophane bags with no brand name. The toy sets have a cardboard hanger that
includes the price of 88 cents and reads "Dinosaurs," "Farm
Animals" or "Jungle Animals." Wal-Mart won't say how many such
toys were sold, nor will it reveal the name of the manufacturer.
Dunkin Donuts recalled a toy that could become a choking hazard. Dunkin Donuts
gave away one million "pink and orange glow sticks" from September
thru mid-October. The toy's cap and lanyard can come off and choke a young
child. The lanyard also poses a strangulation hazard. The glow sticks were
manufactured in China.
This
list provides only some of the toys recalled that are toxic or hazardous. There
is no one list parents can consult to be sure they know all toys that have been
recalled. Buying toys this holiday season will be like crossing a mine field
with a rambunctious, tantrum prone child in tow. (For more see www.msnbcmedia.msn.com. and www.rawstory.com/news/afp/US_recalls)
Disgruntled
feels: Provocative! Much like the decision
made by Saddam Hussein to demand payment for Iraqi oil in euros rather than
dollars in the UN oil for food program, Iran's decision to demand payment for
its oil in currencies other than the dollar means those countries buying
Iranian oil will need fewer dollars. Iran's decision threatens the dollar's
global standing as the world's reserve currency. This move by Iran is certainly
cause for alarm, if one considers what the US loses with a decreased demand for
the greenback. No longer will it receive the benefit of printing worthless
paper to support its bludgeoning military, ballooning national debt and
untenable balance of payments. While Iran's decision to move away from the
dollar and require others to do likewise in trade agreements for its oil is
certainly provocative, the new regime of US sanctions against that country are
even more provocative. Declaring a sovereign nation's military is a terrorist
organization is tantamount to a declaration of war..
Disgruntled says: Freelance journalist and Pulitzer
Prize winner Loretta Tofani spent a year visiting
Chinese plants, reviewing medical records and other documentation and
interviewing Chinese workers and others. This week her four-part series on the
human cost of doing business in China was published in the Salt Lake Tribune.
On Friday, Tofani appeared on C-Span's Washington
Journal to discuss her work, which basically highlights the human cost of
producing cheap consumer products for export to the US and other countries.
Millions of Chinese workers laboring in unsafe conditions have been injured and
suffer from occupational illnesses from exposure to dangerous chemicals. Tofani's work should be required reading from all consumers
of goods made in China. Her series tell the other side of the story that
mainstream media ignore in touting free trade and globalization.
Disgruntled wants to know: Under the political mastery of Karl
Rove, the brain, the Bush machine claimed to epitomize the Republican Party's
base, which was supposed to be all about conservative social values. Since gaming the system and gaining control of the US government,
the Bush machine has only sincerely espoused greed and the need for power.
According to a recent Raw Story email on Washington Post diplomatic
correspondent Glenn Kessler's new book, The Confidante: Condoleezza Rice and
the Creation of the Bush Legacy, Rice co-owns a home and shares a line of
credit with another woman. Apparently, there have been rumors about Rice's
sexual orientation, much like those that swirl around Republican Senators Larry
Craig and Lindsey Graham. Given her prominent role in enabling the Bush agenda,
the GOP's right wing base may rightly wonder, how does Condi's personal
lifestyle reflects its "family" values?
By John
Burl Smith
Greed motivated Mattel two decades ago to become one of the first US companies
to move its manufacturing to China. During this period, the toy industry and
other greedy US businesses have moved manufacturing to China in order to cut
costs. Public-health experts say Chinese manufacturers repeatedly revert to
lead paint regardless of the rules because it is cheap and readily available,
and it helps factories meet cost cutting goals.
Emphasizing Chinese greed, lead exposure is a major public-health problem in
China. Millions of children there have unsafe levels of lead circulating in
their blood. One 2004 study by researchers at Peking University found 34% of
young children in China had toxic lead blood levels that exceed the safety
limit set by the World Health Organization. Scott Clark, an environmental
health professor at the University of Cincinnati, found not only are kids in
China exposed to toxic levels of lead, but children in India, Indonesia,
Ecuador and Nigeria are routinely exposed to toxic levels of lead as well.
A crucial indicator that Chinese companies are button hooking safety
inspections is that toys which have passed inspection more than once are later
found to contain toxic levels of lead paint. In Mattel's case, its own
inspection process -- praised for being an industry standard -- failed to catch
toxic toys before they reached US store shelves. The loop hole was Mattel
allowed manufacturers to perform their own tests. Trying to cover up the
gaming, Mattel said "We performed monthly audits of manufacturers'
toys," which sometimes involved testing samples or reviewing the
manufacturer's own testing records, but toxic toys made their way into US
homes.
Chinese
regulators are a part of the gaming system. China has laws banning lead paint
from consumer products. Lax enforcement of regulatory standards and laws is
routine in the dirty business of toy making. Researcher Clark has tested 38
paint samples from China, representing 11 brands over the past three years. He
found upwards of 25% exceeded the US safety limit of 0.06% for paint.
The US banned the toxin from toys nearly 30 years ago. Concerned with only
their bottom line, more and more greedy toy manufacturers moved their
operations to China to take advantage of lax enforcement of safety standards.
These factories are not subject to the same levels of inspection US operations
would have to undergo. As a result of their greed, millions of lead-tainted
toxic toys have made their way into the hands of US children.
So,
despite exposing an unknown number of children to toxic lead time bombs, it is
business as usual in the toy industry. Joining Mickey Mouse, Teletubbies and Thomas the Tank Engine, a turnout at
China's Toyland's recent international trade fair left no doubt that it remains
the toyshop of the world. China's dominance was on display at its biggest toy
show, drawing a record 400-plus exhibitors and more
than 3,000 registered buyers. Toy exports rose 18% the first nine months of
this year. The first mainland exhibition since Mattel recalled 21m hazardous
items, buyers and exhibitors said, more children than ever are likely to get
Christmas presents produced in China's toxic toyland.
Sean Charlesworth of Whitehouse Leisure, an
Essex-based company that supplies plush toys to several big British, retailers
reflected toy retailers greed, "It is all about
price. Tighter checks introduced since the scandal mean shipments are being
delayed, more goods are being rejected and costs are likely to rise. In the
past year, the yuan appreciated 7% against the
dollar, migrant labor wages rose 17% and tighter environmental controls helped
to increase the price of Chinese-made teddy bears by 10-25%." Mattel made
$5.65 billion in 2006, and said it expects to take a charge of $30 million for
the second quarter because of recalls. Only a drop in the toy bucket!
What Do We Value: Tradition or Our
Children?
By John Burl Smith
It seems toy recalls are simply a part of doing business. A nuisance at best,
recalls interfere with the important business of victimizing children. But, one
must ask what happens to recalled toys? Is there anyone in charge of making
sure once defective items or lead tainted toys, food, toothpaste, pet food,
cosmetics, electronics and automotive parts are identified they are actually
destroyed? Many believe such items are simply "down streamed," like
sub-prime loans, to discount outlets (Family Dollar), flea markets, street
vendors and thrift stores in minority communities and third world countries.
With the sheer volume of recalled toys (21 million from Mattel alone), this
holiday season in the US black children and their families face a very grave
risk that toxic lead tainted toys will show up as cheap bargains. During the
late summer, horrified parents stood helpless as toy after toy recall came
across television screens. News reports gave ticker tape type accounts of
million of toys made in China which were being taken off store selves because
of lead paint and other hazards.
Then as quickly as it began, news coverage stopped. Toy makers and retailers
began telling consumers that toys on shelves were safe, even though the system
that produced the toxic lead tainted toys is the same one that produced the
toys on selves today. Toxic lead tainted toys are ticking time bombs that will
explode in children's brains like IEDs (improvised
explosive devices) 5 or 10 years down the road. Will anyone relate little
Johnny's poor performance in school or his inability to focus to the toxic toy
he got from Toys for Tots provided by the City of Atlanta?
Think about it! When there is a big drug bust, officials are quick to show the
public bonfires of burning marijuana plants or cocaine being destroyed as a
means of reassuring the public that they are being protected from these
dangerous substances. However, no such displays have been seen of toxic toys.
It's as if these deadly toys were sucked up into a black hole and the public
has to trust the same culprits that caused the problem to have done "the
right thing." That is tantamount to trusting a fox to guard the henhouse.
This year it seems, parents just don't get it. Toy
recalls should have been a wake up call! The things parents buy their children
are not about fun, they are about making money. Toy manufacturers have parents
addicted in the same way as their children. Toys are about making a profit,
which means these gadgets are produced as cheaply as possible. That is why toy
makers move their plants to China in the first place. It is called
"plausible deniability." Toy retailers can blame manufacturers in a country,
like China, that doesn't care about American children or their own, while both
laugh all the way to the bank.
Loving parents who care more about their children than they do about tantrums
and tradition have only one option this holiday season. They must find
alternative gifts to popularized toxic toys for their children. This will not
be an end to celebrating the holiday season. Families may actually get back to
why the celebration began in the first place. There are plenty of gifts one can
give other than toxic toys made in China.
My favorite gift is a book. Books are gifts that can be shared. Reading to
children and children reading to parents may bring them closer together.
Families can spend time doing things together. Games are great gifts that provide
families ways to share time together. Such a Christmas season will allow
parents to explain to their children why they are afraid to buy toys. Remember,
gifts are given because one loves the recipient. Not giving toxic toys will be
a show of love this season!
Mailbox:
E-Mails, Faxes and Phone Calls
Email DrockSOULJah@aol.com DeKalb County, Georgia police have arrested one individual
and are investigating a series of racial attacks at the Tupac
Amaru Shakur Center for the
Arts. According to representatives for the Tupac Amaru Shakur Foundation (TASF),
the first incident occurred October 20 when vandals defaced the building and
tied a noose around the neck of a bronze statue of the slain rapper, Tupac Shakur, which is located in
the center's Peace Garden. In a second attack, vandals drew crosses and wrote
rants about 9-11, Hurricane Katrina and various record labels on the statue.
The attacks are being investigated as hate crimes by the De Kalb County Sheriff's
Office.
Email vikingjohn@juno.com...The
richest one percent of Americans earned a postwar record of 21.2 percent of all
income in 2005, up from 19 percent a year earlier, reflecting a widening income
disparity among different classes in the nation, the Wall Street Journal
reported, citing new Internal Revenue Service data. The data showed that the
fortunes of the bottom 50 percent of Americans are worsening, with that group
earning 12.8 percent of all income in 2005, down from 13.4 percent the year
before. While the IRS data goes back only to 1986, academic research suggests
the last time wealthy Americans had such a high percentage of the national
income pie was in the 1920s. The article cited an interview with Bush, who
attributed income inequality to "skills gaps" among various classes.
Email www.conagrafoods.com...ConAgra asks
stores to quit selling pies...By Josh Funk - ConAgra Foods Inc. has asked
stores to stop selling pot pies linked to a salmonella outbreak and is offering
refunds for the turkey and chicken-filled meals. ConAgra asked stores
nationwide to pull the Banquet and generic brand pot pies after two East Coast
grocery chains removed the product from their shelves. The pies have been
linked to at least 152 cases of salmonella in 31 states. The Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention said at least 20 people have been hospitalized
as part of the ongoing outbreak; no deaths have been linked to the pies.
Email www.chron.com....J.C. Penney recalls more
than 90,000 toys for lead...By Natasha T. Metzler..More than 90,000 children's products, most imported
by J.C. Penney Co. were recalled for containing dangerous levels of lead. J.C.
Penney recalled Chinese-made Winnie the Pooh play sets and decorative ornaments
with a horse-theme, as well as art kits made in Taiwan and Vietnam. Totaling
70,400, the toys all had excessive levels of lead in their surface paint. Other
recalled items included: collectible Jeff Gordon mini-helmets,
imported by Riddell Inc. and sold at stores around the country and on www.nascar.com. About 10,000
bendable dinosaur toys, distributed by Kipp Brothers.
Consumers may have received these toys as a promotional items
from schools, libraries, churches and community groups. About
7,800 Princess Magnetic Travel Art Set Lap Desks. The art kits were sold
at Cracker Barrel Old Country Stores around the country.
Email www.msnbc.msn.com ...The Boy Scouts of
America said a plastic badge is being recalled after a test revealed high
levels of lead in the paint. As many as 1.6 million of the badges, which are
made in China, may be affected. Given to Cub Scouts, who are usually between
the ages of 7 and 8, the badge has a yellow and blue border, includes a picture
of a bear and wolf. The badges are supplied by Kahoot
Products Inc., based in Roswell, Ga. Kahoot has
supplied the badge to the Boy Scouts, based in Irving, Texas, for about eight
years. About 20,000 kits containing the badges have been sold each year since.
Email
www.ajc.com. ..Justices deem 10-year term cruel and
unusual...By Daniel Yee ...A former high school football star given 10 years in
prison for having consensual oral sex with another teen was freed Friday by
Georgia's highest court, which ruled his sentence amounted to cruel and unusual
punishment. Genarlow Wilson's case led to widespread
protests of racism and heavy handed justice. In its 4-3 decision, the Georgia
Supreme Court noted that state lawmakers later scrapped the law that required a
minimum 10-year prison term. The justices said Wilson's sentence made ''no
measurable contribution to acceptable goals of punishment,'' and his crime did
not rise to the ''level of adults who prey on children.''