As a parent of a 4 year old boy, I have been sucked into the Thomas and Friends frenzy. My son has the Thomas table, with the wooden trains—more trains than i thought could be had. He also has the "Take Along Thomas" set... with even more trains. And God-forbid we have one train for the wooden set and not for the Take Along set.
Anyone who has a child who loves Thomas (and what child isn't attracted to his cheekiness?) knows that these trains don't come cheaply. They are so well marketed as classic, high-quality British toys, that we only grumble a little bit at the $20/train price tag. We know that only the finest craftsmen and women painstakingly create each little wooden train with tenderness and love for our children.
Not.
I learned today that the wonderfully crafted trains are not built in the U.S. or in Britain (do they actually manufacture anything there—or here for that matter?)—but that these EXPENSIVE trains are made in CHINA.
Now I know most of what we buy is made in China. And I get it. Labor's cheap there—so we can get cheap goods here. But if you're going to make something cheaply, then pass along the savings to me. I always assumed that the $20 train price tag carried with it the assurance that some child wasn't sweating away at slave wages to make this train. And who knows? Perhaps the people making these trains in China are getting top dollar there. But I'm pretty sure that there's a nice, hefty mark up on these trains.
There's another reason to be bugged. And this is the only reason I found out these pricey little tank engines were made in China—the recall on some engines that made with lead paint. LEAD PAINT. According to wikipedia, "lead is extremely toxic to living organisms…" and "It is especially dangerous to children under age six whose bodies are still developing. Lead causes nervous system damage, hearing loss, stunted growth, reduced IQ, and delayed development. It can cause kidney damage. Lead affects every organ system of the body."
When was the last time you saw a child put a Thomas Train in their mouth? The US banned lead paint in 1978 for residential use. Thirty years later China is making toys with it??? Toys that target young boys and girls ages 3 - ???
This is ridiculous. For $20 a train, I want these trains made somewhere with good working conditions, good pay, and civil rights. While that probably isn't the US right now, there are plenty of other countries with better track records. And we do have plenty of skilled people to craft these energetic engines, and government oversight to (generally speaking) make sure our toys aren't poisonous.
What to do? I am weak. He loves the trains. So we limit the purchases, and mostly buy when they're on sale—which they are every couple of weeks at AC Moore. The sales are usually 40% off—so we know there's plenty of mark up. I'm not certain a boycott would work... how do you explain a boycott to a 4 year old? If you have an answer, post it below. I'd love to hear about it.
