To Save A Buck (or two)

Before the holidays, there was a lot written about the safety of China's exports; namely, toys. Many shoppers were on high-alert, looking for toys that were not manufactured in China, or, at the very least, were not at the top of any recall lists.

And then today I read a story in the Wall Street Journal that began like this:

"Over the holidays, millions of American children received Chinese-made toys powered by cadmium batteries.

Cadmium batteries are safe to use. They are also cheap, saving American parents about $1.50 on the average toy, compared with pricier batteries."

The article then goes on to say that the cheap price of these batteries does not reveal the heavy price the Chinese workers making them must pay for inhaling the toxic red cadmium dust. Problems such as kidney failure, lung cancer and bone disease can be the result of breathing in this toxic metal.

You can read the entire article here. And note this: "In America, five years after Hasbro stopped using nickel-cadmium batteries, Mattel and Toys “R” Us are yet to follow suit, but say they are exploring alternatives. Wal-Mart no longer purchases cadmium batteries from GP but declined to comment on whether it still uses them in its products."

It is bone-chilling to think about how many people may be now suffering or even dead so that we can save $1.50 on the 'average toy'.