Will China Continue to Export It's Problems onto the Global Community?

It was just a few short weeks ago, Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson said that the tainted products we have been getting from China, creates fear and distrust in the U. S. consumers.

Recently, we have seen a wave of tainted products, arrive on our shores from China. Pet food, toothpaste, toys for our children; the violations just keep on coming.

With the holiday season just around the corner, many consumers have become very gun shy, over what and how to buy gifts for our loved ones this season. Even if we shop around for products that have, "Made in the U.S.A" stamped on the product, can we trust this?

So often times it happens, our trusted U.S. manufacturers are importing their materials from other countries, to be assembled in our country. "Made in the U.S.A", does not ensure a toy your child may be chewing on, is nontoxic.

From tainted pet food, to people food, lead based paint and other tainted materials we have been exposed to; it would seems there is a "toxic" misunderstanding and lack of communication with our marketing pal, China.

Just yesterday, we tune into the world news and hear about a 20 month old boy, getting sick from another toy made in China. A toy named "Aqua Dots", put two children in comas,and caused several other children to get sick, by putting these tainted beads, that are a part of the toy, into their mouths.

About 4 million of this hot, holiday toy, Aqua Dots, have been pulled off the shelves of retail stores, world wide and recalled.

The Chinese factory that made the beads, used a glue that contained a chemical that is a close relative to GHB, the "date rape" drug. Hazardous to adults, this chemical is even more toxic to young children.

Do you remember the toothpaste recall, with an anti-freeze substance in it? Maybe they should switch out the toothpaste label and re-market the product, to plug holes in car radiators.

Is this some new form of unintentional, terrorism we need to experience, every time we go out shopping?

Mattel, the world's largest toy company is still reeling in shock over their biggest recall in history, last August. Lead based paint from China, caused the toy company to recall almost a half million of it's die-cast toy cars.

They also recalled 18.2 million other toys, when Mattel discovered the magnets in these toys were not up to spec; too small, they could be swallowed by children. These magnets were also from China.

The F.D.A. and other agencies have been telling China recently, they need to tighten up, regulate and safeguard their exports to us better than they have recently.

If we were to put a halt to the U.S., China trade agreements that are now in place, this could have serious consequences on China's failing economy; crippling it even more.

It is no secret, these problems are a result of globalization. Our dependency on products from other countries has grown considerable over the last decade. Experts predict that product recalls will only increase with time, unless all countries can get on the same page to safeguard against tainted products, before they are shipped.

As consumers, we should not be expected to buy our own lead testing kits, to test each toy we buy for our children. On the other hand, should we trust the F.D.A. to keep plugging holes in China's export problem, before it bursts wide open?

Many of us believe the export problems we are facing with China's tainted products have already reached a level, where immediate, drastic measures should be taken. We can no longer hide our heads in the sand, believing the issue will simply vanish.

It is obvious, we need to establish better F.D.A regulations and adhere to them, with everything we import.

The future of globalized trade agreements will always need to be monitored and modified as certain problems arise. The risk to consumers cannot be denied, yet is denied too often, when everything rests on maintaining the economic, status quo.