To the Point
'Cheap' Imports from China: Who Pays the Real Cost?
Recalls of toys and other products have American consumers worried about imports from China. What about the workers who make them? Also, Iran responds to new US economic sanctions, and a UN report on the environment and human survival.
Recalls of toys and other products have American consumers worried about imports from China. What about the workers who make them? We hear how constant exposure to toxic chemicals wreaks havoc with health and safety. Who's paying the real cost of "cheap" merchandise? Would Congressional action do any good? Also, Iran responds to new economic sanctions, and the UN's latest Global Environment Outlook says the human population is outrunning the Earth's ability to sustain it.
Workers conduct quality-control checks on tires at the Hangzhou Zhongce Rubber Company factory, 25 July 2007. Foreign Tire Sales, an importer in the US, has been hit by a lawsuit over a fatal accident and has filed an $80 million suit against the company and called for a recall of 450,000 of its tires. The firm has denied there are any problems and China's top quality-control agency also claimed that its own tests have vindicated the company. Photo: Mark Ralston/AFP/Getty Images
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3 storiesIran Denounces Administration's New Sanctions
Yesterday, the US announced tough new economic sanctions against Iranian banks, key branches of the military, nine companies and five individual officials. Today, Iran's foreign minister denounced them as "worthless and ineffective." Farah Stockman reports for the Boston Globe .
Read the story6 minAre Chinese Workers Paying the Price for Cheap Goods?
Some 21 million toys made in China and imported by the United States have been recalled because of lead paint or other dangerous defects. With the holidays approaching, that has Americans worried and angry about possible health affects on their children.
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In 450 million years, there have been five mass extinctions of species around the world. The latest of was 65 million years ago. Now a sixth is underway, caused by human behavior. That's according to the fourth Global Environment Outlook , out today from the United Nations.
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