Think maybe China's bit off more than they can chew with this "Let's do the Olympics it will be like TOTALLY good PR!!" bit?

A plastic bank from HK Disney. Looks like it might be a promo for Space Mountain.

( Zoom! )

Well, he seems to think so.

( evil grins )

Anyone notice something funny about this plushie snowman (other than the fact that it's from the Dizzney park in Hong Kong, where the only snowmen you're likely to see are amusement park souvenirs)?

( Snow problem )

Takara Tomy to Massively Cut Down the Production Quantities of Made in China Toys

Major toy maker Takara Tomy (Tomy Company Ltd) announced to have a massive reduction to its production line in China.

A newspaper article reported by the Sankei Newspaper on October 31, 2007, told Takara Tomy (Tomy Company Ltd) has announced to undergo a massive reduction to the production quantity of toys made in China. The decision was made taking many of the toys were found with excess amount of lead and other harmful substances above the inclusion criteria, thus caused distrust over the safety of toys produced in China.

Currently, Takara Tomy has 90 percent of its toy production (based on value) in China, but it aims to shift the number of toy productions outside China to increase up to 60 percent in other Asian countries such as Thailand and Vietnam in three years time. Another reason behind the shift of its production line to such countries is because of the rise of labor cost in Guangdong, China, due to lack of labor power.

We love the deal about "We want to protect the little children.....plus, er, it's getting kinda 'spensive."

Sirota gets a-rantin' about lead:

Halloween and the Lead Monster

...In recent years, our government has signed free trade pacts with many developing-world countries — countries with minimal product safety laws. Incredibly, the pacts do not include product safety standards, either. The result is that manufacturers relocate to these countries, make cheaper goods with less expensive, toxic compounds, and then, thanks to the trade pacts, dump these unsafe products into the U.S. market....

This might be less frightening if our government were expanding product safety enforcement at home. But a new report shows the budget of our Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) has been halved during the free trade era — all in the name of deregulation.

"We have been disarming our ability to protect ourselves, even as the need to do so has been soaring," says the report from my colleagues at the Campaign for America's Future.

The few recalls the resource-starved commission has mustered highlight how dire the situation is. This summer, 20 million Chinese-made toys were recalled because of lead paint and other hazards. The Ashland University study makes clear such recalls are too rare, and that lead-soaked foreign products remain on store shelves....

You can go ahead and read the whole thing....but it's scaaaaaarrrrry! Future generations of lead-brained zombie children!

Group finds China toy factory conditions "brutal"

HONG KONG (Reuters) - A U.S.-based workers' rights group said it found "brutal conditions" and labor violations at eight Chinese plants that make toys for big multinationals, and called on the companies to take steps for better standards.

China Labor Watch said in a report issued on Tuesday after several months of investigation that the manufacturers -- which served a handful of global players, including Disney, Bandai and Hasbro -- paid "little heed to the most basic standards of the country."

"Wages are low, benefits are non-existent, work environments are dangerous and living conditions are humiliating," it said.

We kinda figured this out back when we saw the video of the 12-year-old girls painting action figures.

Fave quote:

"Instead of concentrating on improving product safety and workers' lives, companies spend their energy creating beautiful pamphlets on social responsibility, disputing critical reports and shifting blame," it said.

They're learning from us! *proud*

Walt Disney Company International said that it and its affiliates take claims of unfair labor practices very seriously, investigate any such allegations thoroughly and take remedial action.

"We have a firm commitment to the safety and well-being of workers, and fair and just labor standards," spokeswoman Alannah Goss said in an e-mailed statement.

"We're so upset, we might have to make another colorful pamphlet!"

Like the rest of you, we've been reading stuff like this all week:

Mattel recalling more Chinese-made toys

WASHINGTON - Mattel announced recalls Tuesday for 9 million more Chinese-made toys, including popular Barbie, Polly Pocket and "Cars" movie items, and warned that more could be ordered off store shelves because of lead paint and tiny magnets that could be swallowed.

The recalls came nearly two weeks after Mattel Inc., the nation's largest toy-maker, recalled 1.5 million Fisher-Price infant toys worldwide, which were also made in China, because of possible lead-paint hazards for children....

...blah blah blah.

We just returned from China.

They don't use toilet paper. They can't keep their car driving on the correct side of the road.

The government doesn't allow you to babble about Sirius Snape in your Livejournal, because it's so threatening to the Revolution.

And, we expect them to select the correct paint for Barbie?

Some chatter on our anime list this morning reminded us of this image:



As you must know if you've been anywhere near China recently, Beijing is the site for the 2008 Olympics. Of course a big part of every Olympic game in modern times is relentless marketing, so everywhere you turn in Beijing there is a kiosk selling Olympic crap, and the little anime-style mascots are pretty much unescapable. We're posing next to an advertising display, but you can see that the larger plushies available for sale in the window behind are really not much smaller. We spotted them everywhere, including at the airport on our way to Shanghai. We wondered if you picked one up at an airport kiosk prior to your flight, how you would go about transporting them to your destination? Do you need to buy them a ticket?

Some random images from Beijing. Was just talking to a pal from China about some funny Engrish on Chinese signs. In sum, we are both PRO funny signs.

( don't spit )

Just extracted this item from the bottom of our luggage. A flea market find from Beijing, for which we spent lest than $10 (post-haggling) and which we expect to break within the week (the gal was unable to get another similar watch to work, so gave us her sample). We're comfortable with the former Soviet Union poking fun at their Commie past, but, as is sometimes difficult to remember when you're walking around its shopping malls, China is still very much a communist country, and Chairman Mao was never repudiated in the way, say, Stalin has been marginalized.

This wristwatch is pretty easy to find in China, and depicts the erstwhile leader of the Communist party happily waving his arm (which, yes, moves) at the Masses. It's not exactly disrespectful, but not exactly a very reverent item either. It's actually not any less silly than a Mickey Mao watch that would have the Great Leader pointing his arms at the time. Just makes one wonder, c'mon Commies, are you taking this seriously at all any more?

So, if you're an inveterate armchair traveler (and tiki definitely is--believe us, it's much easier to kick back with a glass of Shiraz and watch Tony Bourdain nosh at a food stand in Nairobi than it is to sample some satai from a street vendor in Beijing and end up with 5 days of explosive diahrrea--as Transformer Andy remarked, "Bourdain travels with a doctor!"), you've perhaps seen some mention of Shanghai dumplings. Typically, the well groomed host will wheel up to the vendor window, snatch a snack, and then declare the superiority of this region's greasy snack food.

So, are you ready for some truth?

( you can't handle the truth! )

BTW, seems that, even with the supposed loosening of the economic system, China currently blocks Livejournal. At least, we were basically unable to update this blog for the duration of our stay.

Also, Chinese drivers truly want to kill you. It's a fact.

The coda of our trip. Wombat Mark, Transformer Andy and Cookie having absconded to Singapore and/or London, Mr. Tiki and I found ourselves with a few hours alone in Shanghai prior to our flight time. We had two alternatives: some cultural enrichment, or the mall.

So of course, WE SHOPPED FOR STITCHES!

( Shanghaied )

Managed to get to Beijing and, guess what, THERE IS STITCH HERE!!!!!

The last two days have been a blur of running for trains, inhaling smoke and passport checks. tiki had what was probably THE worst experience of her life on the bus into Beijing from the Mongolia-Chinese border. If you have the opportunity to take what's called a "sleeping bus," one word, DON'T!

The driver hit me.

Yeah, rilly.

( travels with tiki )