(CNN) -- Officials are looking into claims that Chinese-made drywall installed in some Florida homes is emitting smelly, corrosive gases and ruining household systems such as air conditioners, the Consumer Product Safety Commission says.Apparently they aren't going learn any time soon that producing deadly products kills people and pisses off the ones that live. I put back on the shelf almost everything I can that has 'Made in China' stamped on it.
The Florida Health Department, which is investigating whether the drywall poses any health risks, said it has received more than 140 homeowner complaints. And class-action lawsuits allege defective drywall has caused problems in at least three states -- Florida, Louisiana and Alabama -- while some attorneys involved claim such drywall may have been used in tens of thousands of U.S. homes.Homeowners' lawsuits contend the drywall has caused them to suffer health problems such as headaches and sore throats and face huge repair expenses.
The drywall is alleged to have high levels of sulfur and, according to homeowners' complaints, the sulfur-based gases smell of rotten eggs and corrode piping and wiring, causing electronics and appliances to fail.
"It's economically devastating, and it's emotionally devastating," said Florida attorney Ervin A. Gonzalez, who filed one of the lawsuits. It would cost a third of an affected home's value to fix the dwelling, Gonzalez said.
"The interior has to be gutted, the homeowners have to continue paying mortgages, and they have to pay for a [temporary] place to live," Gonzalez said.
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
After all the bad press, the poisonous food and the deadly toys....
Here we go again... and again and again.... Now China is producing defective and smelly drywall:
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
5 comments:
I'm actually glad this happened, no one thinks about the American worker when they bought this Chinese made product, only now do they feel some of the same pain other Americans feel about made in China.
free market at its finest. What?
I feel more for the chinese workers than I do for anybody buying crappy products in the US.
China is still in its Wild West phase and thinks that it can get away with anything it wants to.
I am sorry for the Chinese workers and even sorrier for the American workers who have been royally screwed by our own corporations.
and what a shame as America shut down our manufacturing in favor of more cheap stuff from China only to find out the reason it can be cheaper is the treatment of the workers, lower quality even to the extent of dangerous (lead paint and melamine just recently)
the govt may not be able to implement Buy American, but the consumer can and should
I do not have a good overview of the global economy, but everything seems out of kilter. I am not an isolationist nor a fanatical 'Buy American Only' person, but also I believe buying local is important.
And as you point out, Anon, buying cheaper at this point just gets you really bad stuff from China.
But wanting less, buying less makes the global economy collapse. It's all been built on the theme of making Americans consume more, faster, cheaper, now.
The system needs to have a major overhaul and this depression just might be the time to do it. But how to fix it? .... I have no idea.
Post a Comment