Why isn't Yahoo reporting that Mattel apologized to China?

It was such a HUGE deal when Mattel and the entire USA condemned China for all of the defects, recalls, faulty toys, etc., when Mattel reported it. Now, today, Mattel formally apologized to China for falsely accusing them of wrongdoing. as it turns out, there was a very small quantity of a toy with lead paint (which is legal in China) found, and all of the other problems were MATTEL DESIGN FLAWS!!!

So where are the huge headlines condemning Mattel, to match the ones that condemned China initially?

The reality is, Mattel makes HUGE profits by manufacturing in China, and most of us could not afford to buy our kids toys if they were not made there.

I don't feel sorry for Mattel at all. Too many products are made overseas because of cheap labor.

Do you people really want to blame someone for this?
So far you have blamed China and big business in both ours and their country.

How do you think China came to being a world class economic power?
By dumb luck, or a few totalitarian dictatorial communist monsters who got 1.3 billion people to walk lock step like a bunch of Nazi's under the shadow of Mao?

Hardly.
By a series of five year plans, opening up their country to a free market system and undercutting wages throughout the world, while at the same time helping the people to realize a middle class dream. And doing all of this by being efficient, while having a stable government and society.

Our biggest problem is not China; it is our arrogance and lack of planning. Our arrogance because we think we know better then everyone else, and our lack of planning because there is no American who has a clue as to what our future plans are. The only plans that I know of is Cheney's energy plan, and that was held in secret.

On the other hand, China's plans are transparent; even you can see them on the web. http://www.china.org.cn

We could learn by China, but all most of us can do is complain and bash her.

While we complain about lead in our children's toys, we are doing nothing for their future.

Listen up people, instant gratification no longer is going to cut it. Itâ€™s going to take long term planning to help secure our countries and children's future. Right now we suck at that. Because we suck so bad at it, it leaves us with few options other then going to war and controlling other countries to get what we want. Makes ya proud to be an American, doesnâ€™t it.

===============
Hank S

Did you twist that into a pretzel or what? You brought up so much of the past and tried to make it the present. I have said that China learns from its mistakes. And you also call their news propaganda.........then what in the hell is ours? I worked in the business of news for ten years and the USA news if full of propaganda. At least China publishes its yearly and five year plans, all we do is ours in secret. So tell me, what are our plans for the future?

Then you lambaste me as if I don't know that China censors and doesn't like people criticizing its leadership. Apparently you don't know of China blogs. Apparently you don't know that in the past people did get shot on sight for that and nothing like that exists today. Apparently you don't seem to understand that China has gone from 5,000 years of repressive rule to coming out of that remarkably fast and yet you, and so many other Americans seem to want instant change. Look at what instant change has done to two countries that have never experienced democracy before in their long histories or complete freedom of speech.

And then you talk of Chinese corrupt officials as if its a new thing. That has gone on since china began and China is trying to stop it. You should know damned good and well that is impossible. Yes I am very well aware of illegal land grabs by corrupt officials and I have reported on that here.

Yes, China is very well aware of their pollution and it is a top item with the government, in the news, in the class rooms and yet you want instant change. Then you ignore how long it took us to fix our environment and yet we are still the largest carbon emitter in the world. Its going to take billions to fix China's problems and they are smart enough to go outside the country for help.

Stability exists from authoritarian rule? WTF? Stability exists because the people are damned happy to be where they are now and where they are heading. They have a very promising future and most of them are grateful for that. I sure as hell would be if I had lived in a country that, for all intent and purpose, had gone from a major depression to double digit growth. Yes rural area's will be left behind, just like they were in the USA or any country that is emerging from economic catastrophe.

Yes, China has monumental problems, yet they have enough sense to learn from others and their past mistakes. Remember, the Chinese banking system was near collapse only a few years ago and China went to the USA, hired people from major banks and today the banking system is healthy. Also as China's standard of living increases, that imbalance that you talked about relying on exports balances itself out. You seem to think China is going to stay static.

Yes I do know what I am talking about -- the reason is, I seek out answers, I talk to people and I keep my eyes and ears open-------plus I live here.
================

Peace

Jim

.

Yahoo doesn't decide what news makes their "top 30 or 50" stories you see on the main news page. Top stories are defined by how many people click on the stories outside Yahoo News.

Roger!

Man I totally agree with you why isnt Yahoo reporting this information?

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070921/us_nm/china_safety_mattel_dc_8

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20070921/ts_alt_afp/uschinaconsumersafetytoysmattel_070921115118

Oh crap.... maybe they are.

most Americans Can afford toys made in Mexico.

very few Americans are so damn poor that they couldn't buy a toy made in Mexico or South America.
--------------------------------------
as for the "apology" story - I just saw it, it would be very funny if it wasn't so scary.
China forced Mattel to give the apology. Mattel dropped to its knees and gave the best damn apology it could because China let them know that "you can't Ever screw with China".
China made it clear that they don't want any more recalls No-matter how many babies they kill with their defective toys.

"Just Plain Jim" is just plain wrong.

As an American that lived in China for ten years, I think I am qualified to set the record straight. Jim's position that "everything's coming up roses and daphodils in China" and "America sucks and can learn from China" is not only wrong, it's insulting. Worse, it's based on the naive assumption that China is "transparent" about its plans. Are you kidding? In China there is no free speech, no free press, and there are more imprisoned journalists and rights activists than anywhere else in the world. Remember the SARS coverup? Or the toxic spill in the Song Hua river that China successfully covered up until it finally reached Russia and became an international incident? Need I go on? Transparent my a**!

America is transparent. We have rule of law and free speech. Jim can criticize the vice president on the Internet. Try doing that in China and see what happens. In America politicians are accountable to voters, whether Jim believes it or not. If China is so great why don't you go live there? I did. Guess what I saw? A one-party system in which corrupt local officials get rich siezing land from poor locals and selling it to real estate developers. I guess they're just "realizing their middle class dream" according to Jim.

China's environment is poisoned, clean drinking water is alarmingly and increasingly scarce, the one-child policy is resulting in an impending demographic catastrophe, there are no checks and balances on the one-party government, corruption is rife, incidents of unrest are on the rise (87,000 "official" incidences in 2005, the last time they released the statistic), there's practically no social safety net, and practically no health insurance. THAT'S why Chinese people save so much - because of fear and uncertainty about the future. Americans, on the contrary, spend beyond their means because of CONFIDENCE in the future.

Jim made a bunch of stupid comments based on ignorance. Mind you, when a China basher says something stupid I will similarly lambaste him, defending China's accomplishments and progress. I can argue both ways because I know the FACTS. Jim attributes Chinese people's ability "to realize a middle class dream" to efficiency and to political and social stability. Fact is, although productivity is on the rise in China, efficiency is elusive and stability stems from authoritarian rule.

Jim argues that America is directionless and secretive while China is transparent and focused on the future. His proof is some web site maintained by the propaganda bureau of the People's Republic of China. So what? There are countless .gov web sites that discuss the long-term goals of America's federal, state and local governments. Why assume these are any less credible than China's? Jim says we can learn from China, meanwhile it is China that's stealing our technology, stealing our intellectual property, and sending its students in droves to American learning institutions to learn from us. Tell me, what exactly can we learn from China? I can tell you, can you tell me?

Chinese people understand hard work and sacrifice. They are industrious, diligent, and modest. China's government faces monumental challenges: governing one-fifth of humanity, balancing economic development with social stability, raising the living standards for hundreds of millions of impoverished Chinese, coping with the negative consequences of necessary breakneck economic and industrial development, to name a few. China's government has made respectible progress increasing literacy rates and raising the status of women. China has been willing to open its economy to foreign investment to the point that foreign corporations own 50% of China's exports (90% of hi-tech exports). 25% of China's GDP comes from exports, and a disproportionate number of workers are employed in the export sector. This means excessive dependency on the rest of the world for economic growth. China faces huge challenges on the road to modernization. As Americans we should recognize China's challenges, be proud of our own accomplishments, exercise our rights and hold our leaders accountable.

Here's something Jim needs to learn from the Chinese: be SELECTIVE in what you learn from other cultures. There are things we as Americans can learn from China. But Jim has no clue what they are.

***

Jim:

Talk about twisting words... twice you say I want "instant change". Yet if you read my post you will see I never mention how fast China should change, nor do I criticize China for changing too slowly.

I described a snapshot of the true situation in China today, right now. The fact that China is better now than it was last year, or 50 years ago, or 1000 years ago is not the point. The fact that China is making great progress in many areas is not the point.

You say you know about censorship in China, and that China "doesn't like people criticizing its leadership". That's putting it mildly. People go to jail in China for criticizing the leadership. You say "Apparently you don't know that in the past people did get shot on sight for that and nothing like that exists today". So, censorship and imprisonment is ok as long as it is used in place of execution? And repressive rule is ok as long as it's less repressive than it was a few years ago, or even 1000 years ago?

You judge China with such leniency and optimism, yet you crticize America with bile and disdain.

You say U.S. news is full of propaganda, and "At least China publishes its yearly and five year plans, all we do is ours in secret". The fact that China even HAS a "Five-Year Plan" shows that China is still trying to pass itself off as a planned economy. This is the height of propaganda! And, if you actually READ the plan you will see that it is, as the World Socialist Web Site says, "a mixture of futile hopes and false promises".

You argue that economic growth, not one-party rule, is the reason for stability in China. Really? And I suppose economic growth, not authoritarian rule, is also the reason for stability in North Korea? Again you miss the point: economic growth promotes stability, one-party authoritarian rule ensures it.

Wake up and smell the rice porrige. You're not the first lao wai to get swept away in a fanciful romance with China. Just remember, "love is blind". You're in love with China, and you're blind to its ugly side. Let's resume this discussion after you've been there a few more years. Better yet, let's have this discussion in Chinese when you're up to the task.

Enter Your Message or Comment

User Name:
User Email:
Post a comment:

Archive: Forum -Forum -Finance - Links - 1 - 2 - RSS - All RSS Feeds
The Causes and the Results. 0.024
Copyright (c) 2011 Financial Crisis Sunday, May 27, 2012 - Terms of use - Privacy Policy