|
April 14, 2004--Blue Bell, PA--My sister in law had a party for my 13 year old nephew and
gave these out (the dinosaur type) as party favors---my daughter was 2 at the time and I had a nephew who was 4-1/2. These
toys were to hazardous for this age group to have-I had to take it from my daughter--and once she saw everyone with this toy
she cried for hers. It would literally wrap up around her---this toy is much to dangerous for anyone under 13 years of age.
Who thinks of these ideas for these toys--and how do they get approved to be on the market???
April 30, 2004--Tacoma, WA--Wow! I did not realize this toy is dangerous. I just
bought one for my 8 year old grandson and was going to give it to him for his birthday in a couple of days. Now I am
going to throw it away.
Thank-you for the information. I plan to contact my legislators.
May 8, 2004--Evanston, IL--Just because your child is too stupid to use a toy properly, do
not take that right away from other kids. If you feel uncomfortable, but your kid in a hockey helmet so that it does not ever
get hurt. Sounds like it needs one anyway. It is overprotective parents like you that have let to the banning of toys that
didn't seem to be a problem in years past. Instead of rearing your child with common sense and using some of your own as to
whether or not your child can handle a toy, you want the government to step in. How about taking some responsibility.
May 9, 2004--New Jersey--I find the letter of 5/8/04 from Ill. horrific. To discount
the injuries of hundreds of children properly utilizing the toy under adult supervision is inhuman. I suggest before
you send a nasty and insulting comment, do your research and please send it grammatically correct. "Stupid" is an inappropriate
slang term. A child is never an "it". Please check your pronouns. It is not "let" to banning but "led" and not
"but" but "put". This is not an "old toy". The forerunner was Klick Klacks and proven dangerous and banned. This
toy is a combination of Klick Klacks and traditional yoyo's. You still cannot discount that the toy is filled with a
toxic chemical and the water has a bacterial count. The breakage or leakage of the toy is a health concern. Statistically
injuries and death related toy incidents have been drastically reduced over the decades by concerned parents. Why not
send your email address if you are so passionate about your stand? To this website, I admire you printing this
grammatically incorrect, uneducated and insulting letter. Thank you for your hard work on this issue.
May 10, 2004--Mullica Hill, NJ--I am not a parent, but am exceedingly happy to see that somemone
is taking some initiative to remove a potentially dangerous toy from the market. I also, after reading a comment by
someone in Evanston, Il, am compelled to comment that everyone is entitled to their own opinion, yet should themselves be
responsible and present that opinion in a manner that is respectful and well articulated, rather than insulting a small child.
June 29, 2004--Denver, CO--I think your kids are retarded and that you parent poorly.
there are lots of thing in life that may injure you or your children. Stop blaming others for your ineptitude and inbreeding.
You waste the governments money with your trivial matters. If you childe strangles itself that is what we call natural selection.
It prevents the week and stupid from breeding and weakening the human race.
Have a fine day and please stop having sex...just
in case
November 14, 2004--Joplin, MO--So many people are ready to blame everyone else for their mistakes.
No one will take responsibility. Instead of the water yo yo makers being to blame, shouldn't your child be to blame for wrongful
use? It's a yo yo - not a stretchy toy. People claim all these things are dangerous -atv's, go karts, a kitchen knife, ect.
etc. all are dangerous - IF USED IMPROPERLY. everyone is sueing and blaming people for their own / childrens actions/mistakes.
Lets be realistic and start taking a little blame for something. We aren't nor are our children perfect by all means. So maybe
as a parent you should inspect the toys that your child gets or maybe give him/her instructions on using it. We are parents
- Our job is to teach our children. Think about it - They learn everyday at School - why? BECAUSE THEY HAVE A TEACHER!
start being your childs teacher and Quit blaming others when your child behaves like a heathen!! If more people would mind
their own business our prices wouldn't be so much. while many UNEDUCATED PEOPLE may think that all these lawsuits are being
paid out by the companies - It is a known fact that it is costing the consumer more because they charge more for their product
to make up for losses. MAYBE YOU ARE VOICING YOUR OPINION IN THE WRONG DIRECTION - NEXT TIME YOU WANT TO VOICE YOUR OPINION
- VOICE IT AT THE HEART OF THE CAUSE OF THE PROBLEM - IN THIS CASE YOUR SON - NOT SOME TOY MAKER. If you cut yourself peeling
a potato you shouldn't blame the knife company - Getting my point? On the other side - I'm sorry to hear of your sons injury.
Tell him TO PLAY MORE CAREFUL. ;)
November 23, 2004--Morgantown, WV--To the author of the comment listed as "November 14, 2004--Joplin,
MO," I cannot allow your gibberish to go unanswered.
The goal is to eliminate the sale of this toy before a child is
killed. The problem with this toy in particular, is it looks absolutely harmless; however, it is not. It is a
danger to our children and should be banned.
No one on this board needs to be lectured by the likes of, "[Lets] be
realistic and start taking a little blame for something." I would consider the actions of Lisa and others involved in
having this toy banned to be quite the opposite of what you propose. In fact, their commitment to ensuring the safety
of children they do not even know deserves praise rather than some clumsy lecture.
Likewise, you are aware of neither
the educational level nor the parenting skills of these folks. To generally criticize them as inept or bad parents is
completely unfair.
Also, you should consider taking an economics course.
November 23, 2004--Morgantown, WV--If the authors of the two comments listed below would like
to meet and discuss their comments with me in person, please email me at the email address below. Thank you.
pubrela@aol.com
May 8, 2004--Evanston, IL
June 29, 2004--Denver, CO
(I will be more than happy to discuss the concept of "natural
selection" with you.)
November 29, 2004--Joplin, MO--I just wanted to comment to the person that responded to my
comment. #1 I never said anyone was a bad parent. I just said maybe some parents need to keep a closer eye on our children.
I do feel for the parents and children that have been injured by any toy or other item for that matter, but these are yoyo's.
remember when we was kids and had the old Wammo yoyos? well did you ever knock yourself in the noggin with one of them? well
if you did you know it left one heck of a bump. These are water filled. With proper use I see no harm in them. I'm sorry if
I offended anyone with my first comment (or did I point a finger at you? Does the truth hurt?) I am a true blue American (Thank
God!) where I am allowed to VOICE MY OPINION!!! GOD BLESS AMERICA!!!
December 6, 2004--Morgantown, WV--In reference to November 29, 2004--Joplin, MO; There
is a substantial difference between a standard yo-yo and the water filled
version. In fact, when standard yo-yos
were introduced to the market place, the
water filled types were unimaginable.
I find it humorous someone makes
absurd claims, backs down from them, and then
resorts to statements such as I am a true blue American (Thank God!) where
I am
allowed to VOICE MY OPINION!!! GOD BLESS AMERICA!!! This is especially true
given that what Lisa is doing
defines the very essence of being an American.
Here is an average citizen bringing a life-threatening issue to the forefront
in
hopes of preventing tragedy. In fact, Lisa is an average citizen fighting
against the ineptness of a government
bureaucracy, encouraging them to do the
right thing.
It would be easy for many of these folks to sit back and be
thankful their child
was not injured. Instead, they are attempting to save the lives of kids across
the country.
Thats what makes this country great and is what being an American
is all about.
May 19, 2005--Wilmette, IL--Thank you for all of your hard work. You have helped many
children. blm
June 7, 2005--Schiller Park, IL--I didn't know people still baught those. I'll provide
a link to your site on mine to spread the word!
June 8, 2005--Bensenville, IL--More than promoting toy safety for children, I want to
thank you for advancing the course of the Litigious Society. Americans need more laws: we must be protected from ourselves
at all costs. Since individual responsibility and parenting have taken a secondary role to finger-pointing and Victimization,
lets bumper our world with needless restraint and excessive government interference. What a wonderful, sterile utopia awaits
us! Perhaps, with time, you can reign in your anal expulsive tendencies and become an introverted retentive, sparing the rest
of us the drama of your ways. Whenever the banner of But for the children! is waved, there follows the collapse of democracy.
God Bless You.
(Perhaps now you will print comments containing correct spelling?)
June 8, 2005--Palatine, IL--I'm afraid that I have to concur with those who feel that this
should be an issue of personal responsibility, not legislative action. When the product is used as intended, i.e. a yo-yo,
it's safe. Only when the child misuses it by circling it over their head does the potential for injury exist. Should the product
be kept out of the hands of children not capable of using it properly? Without a doubt. Should the product be banned for everyone
irrespective of their ability to use it as intended? I'm hard pressed to think of a line of reasoning to support such a premise.
June 8, 2005--(Did not give town or state)--I just have simple question that doesnt need a
direct answer from you. The question going through my head among many other people's heads is why are you doing this?
Any toy can be deemed as dangerous and if your child is 5 years old isnt it your responsibility to be watching your child
to ensure that they dont injure themselves? People like you who overreact and fail to take responsibility themselves
are the reason that the rest of us are going to have to watch good toys taken off the market. Where is it going to stop?
Are you going to push for the government to take regular yo yo's off the shelf? They have just as much of a chance of
choking a child as well as having a hard object on the end that could injure children. Maybe we should ban the use of
water in homes because it presents a drowning danger. Maybe the best idea of them all is to just take children away
from parents who refuse to watch their children and then spend hundreds of hours chasing rediculous legislature instead of
just admitting they were wrong and watching their children. I congratulate you today, the wrecker of the american childhood.
With more work by people like you, we'll all be ok to sit down and watch tv while our children play with safety sponges soon
because it will be the only thing that's deemed "safe"...that is of course as long as theyre oversized so they cant choke.
Come to think of it, maybe we should just ban those too. Im on my way to start legislation against that.
June 8, 2005--(Did not give Town or State)--If you buy something like that, what do you expect...
seriously if you're going to give a small child something like this then your an idiot. If they put them near their mouths,
then its pretty stupid and needed raising better. The only way they could have logically done this is if they had had their
mouth open while playing with it, which is once again damn stupid. In Europe you dont get this, i wonder why...
June 8, 2005--Newmanstown, PA--A friend told me about this site, and about the travisty your
commiting. I was browsing the forum that I regularly visit. One of my friends on the site told us all about this little trauma
induced crusade that you are on. I, for one, think it is very stupid and just a way for people like you to think they are
helping out the world. All your doing is pissing people off. Like me for one.
They recently let
a man into america holding brass knuckles, a knife, and a bloody chainsaw. Why did they let him in? Because America doesn't
give a shit about our safety, thats why. Your not helping anyone by stopping little rubber balls filled with water from being
made. The only reason your making this stupid page, and these stupid accusations on wham-o or whoever is making these toys,
is because your just another soccer mom who has made her child into a cult OBJECT and thinks he is special because he can
count to five and paint a cat with fingerpaints.
Get a new hobby. And midol because your obviously PMSing.
June 10, 2005--Sterling, IL--In my humble opinion, you people need to take responsiblity for
your own actions. Any toy that you let your children play with can be a hazard to their health. The wheels can fall off of
"Hot Wheels" toys and can be a choking hazard. Your child could even end up strangling themselves with a regular yoyo. If
your worried about these yoyo's in general then why not worry about the other toys.
Thank You for ruining it for the
rest of us
June 11, 2005--Hamburg, PA--I think there needs to be a sense of responsibility RE-instilled
in the American people, and the people of the world-at-large. There was a day when a hair dryer did not need the warning "Do
not use in Shower" on it. There was a time when cardboard window shades for cars did not NEED the warning "Do not drive with
shade in place." The toy itself is benign. It's the parents who are dangerous. Our society has become one of loving neglect
when it comes to our children. We set them in front of the TV with some toys and hope they raise themselves appropriately.
So now we need warning labels on everything. For some strange reason parents can not be bothered to stop and pontificate on
the imminent peril a toy might place their offspring in. Very soon we will need warnings on pencils "WARNING: pencil may become
lodged in eye or throat. Please supervise any pencil related activities." Soon to be seen on bags of marshmallows. "WARNING:
Marshmallows may cause diabetic shock in certain people. Also, Marshmallows contain ingredients proven in clinical trials
to cause hyperactivity." Why do we, as a society, feel the desire to litigate any time our parental skills fail? Because you
may be called in to be responsible for the welfare of your child. We have become co coddled by our government and the liberal
abuse and misuse of the judicial process that we see dollar signs any time our child is endangered. STOP IT. Stop whining
about the fact that this toy is dangerous, and so many others as well. Of course it is. Any toy is dangerous. Many toys do
not list every possible danger, and should not be required to. I say remove all the warning labels and make it so companies
can't be hit with such frivolous lawsuits over the misuse of their products. The only responsibility for the death or injury
of any child in the course of the use of this product falls squarely on the parent; who can't be bothered to monitor the child's
activities; who can't be held accountable for the actions of her child when she was off doing anything except paying attention
to their child; who finds it necessary to make money off the pain caused to their child because they couldn't be bothered
to have the child near them while they folded the laundry; who thinks the government must control their lives so deeply that
the care and feeding of their progeny must be left to Law. The rest of us have had enough. There must be a line in the sand,
and those who find the litigousness of society appalling must stand on one side, and those who want the government to raise
their child for them on the other. Stand up, be a parent and take proper responsibility for your child, and he or she will
be raised happy and healthy. As a final thought: If there was no warning label on Hot Wheels that said "choking hazard," would
you truely not expect your small child to not stick it in their mouth, as all small children do, simply because "there was
no warning label!" For shame.
June 13, 2005--Lakeville, MI--i just really think that you need to take all your efforts and
really rethink what you are doing. Because all you are doing is wasting time and energy. By kicking and screaming
like you are, all you are doing is taking up time away from every tax payer and wasting time of congress. They should
be concerned about not only childrens safety, but what about my safety? shouldn't they be working to find better road
systems, find homes for the homeless? what about feed the hungry? all this time you are doing to save one child,
why don't you take that time and energy and save some other people who really need the help. you know the ones that
live in the street, eat nothing, ask for nothing and still go about their business. You are taking this way too far
and it is really disrespectful to alot of people because you were not responsible to watch your child or make sure that they
were playing with an appropriate toy. stop wasting the tax payers money! i have heard that your husband or somone was
right next to a child who was strangled... well i am pretty sure i would have found a way if i was right there to get it off
of the child. I would have been paying more close attention. Get some responsibility!
June 15, 2005--Morgantown, WV--This is in response to those comments made since Illinois passed
the ban on yo-yo balls on June 8th, 2005. I believe that the persons making these comments fail to see the greater implications
of this issue. According to your philosophies of a "hands off" government policy and that we should all take responsibility
for our own safety individually, then there should not have been any labor unions to improve the conditions of mines or factories
or any industry for that matter. Workers should have had the common sense and responsibility to fend for their own safety,
even though their employers created the unsafe environment. Apply this to our situation here: The US Government
has been doing a poor job in this instance of regulating the importation of toys that are being manufactured outside our country.
They have established an unsafe enviroment in which our children are playing. The gov't has not set a standard
for the use of, sale of, or manufacture of these yo-yo water balls. Because we CAN take initiative on a state level, we are
taking the initiative. I would prefer to have the US Gov't negotiate the standards directly with China and Korea and
Indonesia, and any other manufacturers, but since the CPSC has failed to take action and protect us, our only recourse is
to legislate the toys off the shelves. One of the previous comments was how this would never happen in Europe.
Wrong! This has already happened in France, England, Australia, Canada and elsewhere. They have had enough sense
to see the potential hazards and get this toy off their store shelves. And, in reference to how bad a parent I am or
Lisa is, or anyone else who lets their kids play unobserved for even one minute: You are either driving your children
crazy with your constant oversight or you are deluding yourself so you can point a finger at everyone else. NO ONE can
monitor their child for 24 hours a day. No child wants or needs to be monitored minute by minute. You can warn
them of hazards all you like, but you can't put an old head on young shoulders. I love my kids and want the best for
them. I believe that Lisa loves hers and wants the best for them as well. Lucky for you, and for your neighbor,
and for the kids down the street and in the next state that we love your children as well and that we are taking action to
protect them. If you feel so strongly that this law is a bad one, take action to have it repealed or to prevent it from
being passed in your state. That's your right and prerogative. Just expect to see me or Lisa or some other concerned
parent across the table. My guess is though, that your participation is limited to submitting a comment on a message
board...
August 9, 2005--Chicago, IL--Thank you for your hard work and advocacy. It is a shame that
you are receiving abuse for your efforts. It is easy to believe that the government is always the problem, common sense and
the markets always the answer. If it weren't for a few stupid parents (and stupid children, as stupidity is presumably genetic)
then we wouldn't have these problems, the theory seems to go. I find it especially admirable that you have been able to avoid
such vapid beliefs and "theories" and instead decided to focus on reality. After all, in the end, it does not matter what
one thinks about the government, its role in society or how much regulation is too much. At the heart of the matter is the
simple fact that people are selling dangerous elastic balls full of gasoline to children and parents, and that these products
represent an unnecessary risk. Is this the biggest risk facing parents in America today? Of course not, but it is a problem
nonetheless. It is indicative of the consumer product system which does not require product testing or any sort of safety
standards. This is a system that causes the death of 50 children a year due to unsafe products (rest easy, dear critics, I'm
sure the children were all idiots and died in a burst of Darwinian logic) and over 60,000 to the emergency room annually.
Instead of some of your critics, who will surely look such statistics in the eye and scoff about government regulation, you
worry about the safety and welfare of children, which I venture to say is more important. Good luck with your advocacy, have
strength in putting up with angry diatribes, and let us all hope that we will sometime realize a day in which our blind distrust
of government and regulation yields a society that is still free and democratic, and yet also safe.
May 31, 2006--Canada--i was in new york on a missions trip with my church, and this man in
a
park gave our whole group of these for free. i thought it was aweosme. i played
with it for hours for 6 days, and
then it broke. i was in my school library when
it broke, and my friend felt bad, so she went on the internet to find me
another
one to buy, she came across this website! and i was scared, i didnt know how
dangerous these things were. i
was playing with mine responsibly, and i though
that common sense would prevent people from swinging it around, but i was
wrong.
this site is an excellent site and i do recommend this site to people who have
seen or played with the yoyo water
ball.
|
