Hot on the heels of one of the Chinese executives in charge of the lead paint debacle killing himself, Mattel has announced even more toy recalls. This time it's not just for lead paint, but also for some magnetized toys. According to the Wall Street Journal, Mattel could be seriously damaged over this, and I for one am glad.
Check out the video message from Mattel's CEO Robert Eckert on their "Voluntary Safety Recall Facts" page (by the way, "Voluntary"? I hate these euphemisms. Some marketing d-bag must have decided "Mandatory" sounded too negative). It's a video of a guy doing everything he can to save his (and his company's) ass. Oh, and he's got kids himself, which is supposed to make me feel like he really knows what it's like when you have to explain to a two year old why he can't play with the favorite toy he got for his birthday last month.
As a parent of four children myself, I know that absolutely nothing is more important than the safety and well being of children.
(Well, that is not if you count cutting corners in China to help the profit margin of the company I run. But besides that nothing is more important. Seriously.)
See the video for yourself here. "Voluntary Safety Recall Facts: because your children are our children too" (Thank god that's not true.) [Mattel.com]
Mattel CEO Announces He's A Dad! Also, That They're Recalling 10 Million More Unsafe Toys [daddytypes.com]
I just stumbled across this blog. I dig. I'm a stay-at-home too. Two daughters.
I tossed the Thomas the Train toy in May. Yesterday we got rid of Dora. Today we read that the bibs we got from Toys R Us may have lead. Perhaps I should just staple my toddlers mouth closed? And then that "d-bag", as you call him, tells me he's just as disappointed as I am. Right.
I wrote something about the pr side of this yesterday. The word you italicize is a popular one in these press releases. "Nothing is more important". Do a Google search for that phrase and recall. It's like a greatest hits of recalls past. Do these words even mean anything anymore?
Check out the post if you like... It's in the URL box.
By the way, I feel your "stay at home dad" rant. Except the moms all are cool with me. It's the dads that give me the stink eye. Like I'm not part of their little club. Or like I'm trying to bed their wives. It's hard to tell which.
Posted by: Kevin | August 15, 2007 at 12:33 PM
It's not just toys. Everything (almost) in North America is made in China. We're all in deep shit. And we're all to blame.
Posted by: Seminalson | September 09, 2007 at 12:33 AM
Toys have always had small parts.Are they going to recall all of the monopoly board games because they have ’small parts’?
Posted by: x-ray fluorescence | January 19, 2009 at 01:55 AM