US Energy and Commerce Committee to US Artisans: Drop Dead

[Guest guest]

Got your attention? Too bad we all weren't paying attention to the US

Energy and Commerce Committee.

 

This Special Notice is being sent to you by me, Anya, group moderator

and President of the Natural Perfumers Guild, because it is very

disturbing how one Committee in the US Government is aiming to shut

down the independent American Artisan and I need to get the word out.

Please pass this on to any artisan associations you know and have them

contact me. Read on to find out why:

 

 

Sell handmade toys, children's clothing or any child-oriented item in

your shop?

Have some handmade children's toys, clothing or bath or body product

you want to donate to a shelter?

Perhaps you want to give some handmade cradle or bassinet away to your

best friend.

 

Forget it.

 

Come February 10th, you have to:

 

Empty your shop of the toys, forget about donations, and don't give

them away - you might as well send them to the dump. The landfills

across America should be full of handmade children's products in the

coming months.

 

Why?

 

The U.S. Energy and Commerce Committee, the same group that attempted

to pass the small-business-killing FDA Globalization Act last year,

passed the Consumer Products Safety Improvement Act in August.

Quietly, sneakily, this bill was passed into law and is just now

becoming evident for what it is - the death knell for any handmade

artisan product for children.

 

We're in the early stages of launching a website that will be the home

of artisan associations united to fight this Draconian Consumer

Products Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA) and the coming revival of the

FDA Globalization Act. Membership will be free, and open to all

American artisan associations, bringing under our umbrella those who

craft bread, chocolate, beer, toys, clothing, wine, bath and body

products, cheese - well, you get the idea. I believe we have some

innovative and powerful campaigns planned, and I will post more here

when we move forward.

 

We have both a PR and legislative contact campaign planned for both

the short term and long term goals - to fight this committee, and any

other that attempts to put small businesses into bankruptcy. The CPSIA

will be a hard battle, since it's already law. Just think about it -

no more crocheted hats from the local store for your baby, no more

wooden toys from the woodmaker on that country road. They'll be

outlawed February 10, 2009, and any business selling them will be

closed down.

 

It's a horrifying state of Big Brother and we have to take this into

our own hands at a grassroots level and organize and fight.

 

Here's some more information, originally published by Forbes magazine.

 

 

January 16 -- " Consumer Products Safety Improvement Act is now shaping

up as a calamity for businesses and an epic failure of regulation "

 

" Congress passed CPSIA in a frenzy of self-congratulation following

last year's overblown panic over Chinese toys with lead paint.

Washington's consumer and environmentalist lobbies used the occasion

to tack on some other long-sought legislative goals, including a ban

on phthalates used to soften plastic.

 

" A group called Handmade Toy Alliance is calling attention to the

law's burdens in that area. Booksellers are mobilizing. Yet prominent

consumer groups have continued to defend even the law's more extreme

applications, and their spokespersons are dismissive of public

outrage. 'I haven't heard a single legitimate concern yet,' Public

Citizen's David Arkush wrote last month.

 

" Instead they must put a sample item from each lot of goods through

testing after complete assembly, and the testing must be applied to

each component. For a given hand-knitted sweater, for example, one

might have to pay not just, say, $150 for the first test, but added-on

charges for each component beyond the first: a button or snap, yarn of

a second color, a care label, maybe a ribbon or stitching--with each

color of stitching thread having to be tested separately.

 

" Suddenly the bill is more like $1,000--and that's just to test the

one style and size. The same sweater in a larger size, or with a

different button or clasp, would need a new round of tests--not just

on the button or clasp, but on the whole garment. The maker of a kids'

telescope (with no suspected problems) was quoted a $24,000 testing

estimate, on a product with only $32,000 in annual sales. "

 

-----------

 

End of the Forbes excerpt. Any members of artisan associations reading

this, please contact me via the form on my website.

 

I've written extensively in the past about the business-killing

measures that IFRA, the EU and Global Harmonization pose to the

Natural Perfumers Guild and small businesses that produce bath and

body products. The new organization will work to push back the rising

tide of government regulations that threaten to destroy our small,

independent businesses.

 

Perfumes

http://anyasagarden.com

Online perfume course starts March 6, 2009

http://anyasgarden.com/classes.htm

[Guest guest]

If this is the intent of the legislation, to put artisans and other

small manufacturers out of business, then this legislation and its

perpetrators need to be outed and roundly jeered at publicly. This law

is ridiculous. I wonder to whom the following made sense: China poisons

children with lead and melamine, so while we're making that even MORE

illegal here than it already is, let's also get rid of American

artisans. More money for giant corporations I guess.

 

It's upsetting. I'm one of many Americans whose job was sent overseas in

the beginning of the decade. So many American jobs have been eliminated

in this fashion, and now they're trying to get rid of small local

manufacturing/crafting? This would appear to be an assault onsmall

businesses now, so you can't even recession/outsource-proofyourself by

selling what you make! Well, perhaps that's an overstatement, but it

does makes you wonder what is going on, doesn't it?

 

This bill caused a big furor on a couple of quilters' lists I'm on, but

the upshot of that SEEMS to be in the wording of the bill, which

apparently pertains to " durable goods. " As far as I know, handmade

quilts are NOT durable goods. I suspect clothing might not be durable

goods either, but we definitely need clarification here. I know this is

causing an uproar in just about every artisan/craft list I belong to.

 

Anyway, I'll write letters.

 

best regards,

Rachel in Arizona

[Guest guest]

Good rant, Rachel, and we'll be papering Farmers Markets and Festivals

within a few months, exposing this Machiavellian plan. Thanks for

volunteering for our group, hope you're getting the emails from

acta-us on .

 

To others who want to follow my updates, see if this link to my

profile on Facebook works.

http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/profile.php?id=614253340 & ref=profile

If you're not on FB, you can join - it is a great way to hook up with

like-minded folks and your family, etc.

 

Perfumes

Glorious and Rare Organic White Rose Hydrosol

http://anyasagarden.com/store.htm

Online perfume course starts March 6, 2009

http://anyasgarden.com/classes.htm

 

-- In , Rachel Lindstrom <baubo wrote:

>

> If this is the intent of the legislation, to put artisans and other

> small manufacturers out of business, then this legislation and its

> perpetrators need to be outed and roundly jeered at publicly. This law

> is ridiculous. I wonder to whom the following made sense: China poisons

> children with lead and melamine, so while we're making that even MORE

> illegal here than it already is, let's also get rid of American

> artisans. More money for giant corporations I guess.

>

> It's upsetting. I'm one of many Americans whose job was sent

overseas in

> the beginning of the decade. So many American jobs have been eliminated

> in this fashion, and now they're trying to get rid of small local

> manufacturing/crafting? This would appear to be an assault onsmall

> businesses now, so you can't even recession/outsource-proofyourself by

> selling what you make! Well, perhaps that's an overstatement, but it

> does makes you wonder what is going on, doesn't it?

>

> This bill caused a big furor on a couple of quilters' lists I'm on, but

> the upshot of that SEEMS to be in the wording of the bill, which

> apparently pertains to " durable goods. " As far as I know, handmade

> quilts are NOT durable goods. I suspect clothing might not be durable

> goods either, but we definitely need clarification here. I know this is

> causing an uproar in just about every artisan/craft list I belong to.

>

> Anyway, I'll write letters.

>

> best regards,

> Rachel in Arizona

>

[Guest guest]

Different. And when babies in baby carriers in the front seat of cars were

getting their

heads whapped off by air bags - it went to a judge who said " Too bad. "  

--- On Tue, 1/20/09, anyaperfumer <anya wrote:

anyaperfumer <anya

US Energy and Commerce Committee to US Artisans: Drop

Dead

 

Tuesday, January 20, 2009, 5:01 PM

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Got your attention? Too bad we all weren't paying attention to the

US

 

Energy and Commerce Committee.

 

 

 

This Special Notice is being sent to you by me, Anya, group moderator

 

and President of the Natural Perfumers Guild, because it is very

 

disturbing how one Committee in the US Government is aiming to shut

 

down the independent American Artisan and I need to get the word out.

 

Please pass this on to any artisan associations you know and have them

 

contact me. Read on to find out why:

 

 

 

Sell handmade toys, children's clothing or any child-oriented item in

 

your shop?

 

Have some handmade children's toys, clothing or bath or body product

 

you want to donate to a shelter?

 

Perhaps you want to give some handmade cradle or bassinet away to your

 

best friend.

 

 

 

Forget it.

 

 

 

Come February 10th, you have to:

 

 

 

Empty your shop of the toys, forget about donations, and don't give

 

them away - you might as well send them to the dump. The landfills

 

across America should be full of handmade children's products in the

 

coming months.

 

 

 

Why?

 

 

 

The U.S. Energy and Commerce Committee, the same group that attempted

 

to pass the small-business- killing FDA Globalization Act last year,

 

passed the Consumer Products Safety Improvement Act in August.

 

Quietly, sneakily, this bill was passed into law and is just now

 

becoming evident for what it is - the death knell for any handmade

 

artisan product for children.

 

 

 

We're in the early stages of launching a website that will be the home

 

of artisan associations united to fight this Draconian Consumer

 

Products Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA) and the coming revival of the

 

FDA Globalization Act. Membership will be free, and open to all

 

American artisan associations, bringing under our umbrella those who

 

craft bread, chocolate, beer, toys, clothing, wine, bath and body

 

products, cheese - well, you get the idea. I believe we have some

 

innovative and powerful campaigns planned, and I will post more here

 

when we move forward.

 

 

 

We have both a PR and legislative contact campaign planned for both

 

the short term and long term goals - to fight this committee, and any

 

other that attempts to put small businesses into bankruptcy. The CPSIA

 

will be a hard battle, since it's already law. Just think about it -

 

no more crocheted hats from the local store for your baby, no more

 

wooden toys from the woodmaker on that country road. They'll be

 

outlawed February 10, 2009, and any business selling them will be

 

closed down.

 

 

 

It's a horrifying state of Big Brother and we have to take this into

 

our own hands at a grassroots level and organize and fight.

 

 

 

Here's some more information, originally published by Forbes magazine.

 

 

 

January 16 -- " Consumer Products Safety Improvement Act is now shaping

 

up as a calamity for businesses and an epic failure of regulation "

 

 

 

" Congress passed CPSIA in a frenzy of self-congratulation following

 

last year's overblown panic over Chinese toys with lead paint.

 

Washington's consumer and environmentalist lobbies used the occasion

 

to tack on some other long-sought legislative goals, including a ban

 

on phthalates used to soften plastic.

 

 

 

" A group called Handmade Toy Alliance is calling attention to the

 

law's burdens in that area. Booksellers are mobilizing. Yet prominent

 

consumer groups have continued to defend even the law's more extreme

 

applications, and their spokespersons are dismissive of public

 

outrage. 'I haven't heard a single legitimate concern yet,' Public

 

Citizen's David Arkush wrote last month.

 

 

 

" Instead they must put a sample item from each lot of goods through

 

testing after complete assembly, and the testing must be applied to

 

each component. For a given hand-knitted sweater, for example, one

 

might have to pay not just, say, $150 for the first test, but added-on

 

charges for each component beyond the first: a button or snap, yarn of

 

a second color, a care label, maybe a ribbon or stitching--with each

 

color of stitching thread having to be tested separately.

 

 

 

" Suddenly the bill is more like $1,000--and that's just to test the

 

one style and size. The same sweater in a larger size, or with a

 

different button or clasp, would need a new round of tests--not just

 

on the button or clasp, but on the whole garment. The maker of a kids'

 

telescope (with no suspected problems) was quoted a $24,000 testing

 

estimate, on a product with only $32,000 in annual sales. "

 

 

 

-----------

 

 

 

End of the Forbes excerpt. Any members of artisan associations reading

 

this, please contact me via the form on my website.

 

 

 

I've written extensively in the past about the business-killing

 

measures that IFRA, the EU and Global Harmonization pose to the

 

Natural Perfumers Guild and small businesses that produce bath and

 

body products. The new organization will work to push back the rising

 

tide of government regulations that threaten to destroy our small,

 

independent businesses.

 

 

 

Perfumes

 

http://anyasagarden .com

 

Online perfume course starts March 6, 2009

 

http://anyasgarden. com/classes. htm

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

This whole nonsense reminds me of the insane regulations that the BC

government put in place regarding small scale livestock processing.

 

They have put some good families out of business, just when the

public is waking up to the advantages of grass-fed beef etc. It makes

me HOWL with frustration.

 

It has nothing to do with protecting the public. I wonder who is

behind these regulations? Is protest from people outside the USA

helpful or not?

 

Are we talking " conspiracy " , or is mere stupidity enough to explain

this? Perhaps (answering own question) politicians' stupidity backed

by vested corporate interest who see the writing on the wall.

 

The GOOD news: consumers everywhere are waking up. The organic local

beef business is simply going underground.

 

We are a society in transition. Interesting times, indeed.

 

Ien in the Kootenays, your local anti-YLEO activist

http://freegreenliving.com (blog)