Maine bans sale of novelty lighters

[stephanie]

I guess expecting the parents to keep an eye on their kid would of been too much to ask for...:poke:

By Associated Press
Monday, March 24, 2008 - Added 1d 9h ago


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AUGUSTA, Maine - While in a small southern Maine grocery store with his mother last June 12 to buy sandwiches, Shane St. Pierre picked up a miniature baseball bat and flicked the switch to see what would happen.

A flame shot out, singeing the 6-year-old’s eyebrow and burning part of his face. His parents called the state fire marshal’s office and were surprised to learn that Maine had no law banning so-called novelty lighters.
That’s no longer the case.

Today, Shane stood next to Gov. John Baldacci as he signed legislation that makes Maine the first state to outlaw the sale of cigarette lighters that are particularly attractive to children because they come in the shapes of cartoon characters, toys and animals.

"It’s not often I get to sign a bill that’s the nation’s first," said Baldacci, whose desk was covered with an array of novelty lighters including a race car, a sandal, a cow, and two bright red items that ironically were in the shapes of a fire hydrant and fire extinguisher.

http://www.bostonherald.com/news/national/northeast/view.bg?articleid=1082583

[DragonStryk72]

oh god, this is completely idiotic. Maybe, just maybe, she should teach her kid not to go grabbing stuff off the shelves while in the store. Or, I don't know, maybe accepted the event as an accident, or a learning experience, and moved on. No permanent harm was done, and I'm willing to bet the kid wouldn't be likely to do it again.

[DragonStryk72]

another point here, how the hell long was the flame? no lighter I've has a flame bigger than an inch long. That means the kid had to have been holding the thing just about against his eye when he lighted it.

[Abbey Marie]

Very stupid of the store to put these lighters at kid-level. I'm sure they will pay for it, too.

Btw, where was mom while the child was experimenting? I watched our daughter like a hawk wherever we went (still do to an extent!). She simply would not have had a chance to do this, no matter how quickly it happened.

[Hagbard Celine]

This always happens when some idiot parent ignores their kids so of course they do something dangerous. The kid gets hurt and then the irate parents frantically try to blame something else for the the repurcussions of their neglect so of course they annoy whatever government official who'll listen to them to make a new "law" that will supposedly ensure that whatever happened to their stupid kid won't happen to someone else's stupid kid. Natural selection is subverted, alarmism gets rewarded and the overall intelligence of the population goes down yet another notch.

[MtnBiker]

Legislating stupidity, we all have to be brought down to the lowest common denominator.

[JohnDoe]

Hello? The 6 year old thought it was a baseball bat flashlight and so did the mother.

5000 fires a year are started by children under the age of 5 yrs old.

We have firechiefs come to grade schools to teach children not to play with matches and lighters and how to survive a fire by crawling out of it each year.

This toy like lighter DID NOT even have child safety, to prevent the lighting of it haphazzardly. Even alot of plain bic lighters have the child safty button on them preventing the lighting of these objects and they are not even made to model a child's toy?

I am sorry, but this is where capitalism has gone amuck and regulation has to reign them in....BECAUSE the manufacturer of this product is NOT being responsible, especially without the child lighting safety locks NOT being on these toys imo.

Serveral states have banned or regulated these lighters before this accident in maine. I suppose it could have been easily solved if the manufacturer would have put child safety locks and the stores agreed to keep the lighters out of the reach of 6 year olds instead of banning, regardless...either sollution would have taken regulation to ensure safety measures were put in to place.

jd

[Yurt]

Hello? The 6 year old thought it was a baseball bat flashlight and so did the mother.

5000 fires a year are started by children under the age of 5 yrs old.

We have firechiefs come to grade schools to teach children not to play with matches and lighters and how to survive a fire by crawling out of it each year.

This toy like lighter DID NOT even have child safety, to prevent the lighting of it haphazzardly. Even alot of plain bic lighters have the child safty button on them preventing the lighting of these objects and they are not even made to model a child's toy?

I am sorry, but this is where capitalism has gone amuck and regulation has to reign them in....BECAUSE the manufacturer of this product is NOT being responsible, especially without the child lighting safety locks NOT being on these toys imo.

Serveral states have banned or regulated these lighters before this accident in maine. I suppose it could have been easily solved if the manufacturer would have put child safety locks and the stores agreed to keep the lighters out of the reach of 6 year olds instead of banning, regardless...either sollution would have taken regulation to ensure safety measures were put in to place.

jd


how many kids die in car accidents? want to outlaw cars?

[Hagbard Celine]

Hello? The 6 year old thought it was a baseball bat flashlight and so did the mother.

5000 fires a year are started by children under the age of 5 yrs old.

We have firechiefs come to grade schools to teach children not to play with matches and lighters and how to survive a fire by crawling out of it each year.

This toy like lighter DID NOT even have child safety, to prevent the lighting of it haphazzardly. Even alot of plain bic lighters have the child safty button on them preventing the lighting of these objects and they are not even made to model a child's toy?

I am sorry, but this is where capitalism has gone amuck and regulation has to reign them in....BECAUSE the manufacturer of this product is NOT being responsible, especially without the child lighting safety locks NOT being on these toys imo.

Serveral states have banned or regulated these lighters before this accident in maine. I suppose it could have been easily solved if the manufacturer would have put child safety locks and the stores agreed to keep the lighters out of the reach of 6 year olds instead of banning, regardless...either sollution would have taken regulation to ensure safty measures were put in to place.

jd

I agree. Plus there's no need for any kind of lighter other than a bic. They're by far the best.

[JohnDoe]

how many kids die in car accidents? want to outlaw cars?

That's been taken care of...child safety seat requirements reduced GREATLY deaths to children in cars.... ;)

jd

[retiredman]

Hello? The 6 year old thought it was a baseball bat flashlight and so did the mother.

5000 fires a year are started by children under the age of 5 yrs old.

We have firechiefs come to grade schools to teach children not to play with matches and lighters and how to survive a fire by crawling out of it each year.

This toy like lighter DID NOT even have child safety, to prevent the lighting of it haphazzardly. Even alot of plain bic lighters have the child safty button on them preventing the lighting of these objects and they are not even made to model a child's toy?

I am sorry, but this is where capitalism has gone amuck and regulation has to reign them in....BECAUSE the manufacturer of this product is NOT being responsible, especially without the child lighting safety locks NOT being on these toys imo.

Serveral states have banned or regulated these lighters before this accident in maine. I suppose it could have been easily solved if the manufacturer would have put child safety locks and the stores agreed to keep the lighters out of the reach of 6 year olds instead of banning, regardless...either sollution would have taken regulation to ensure safety measures were put in to place.

jd

JD.... you'll get to like our Governor.... you are close to Bangor, you should go into his family restaurant - Mama Baldacci's - they have very good family style italian food and wonderful homemade breadsticks! When John was a state senator, he'd bring a big bag of freshly baked breadsticks down the the senate democratic office every day the senate was in session! It is unpretentious, but yummy!

[JohnDoe]

how many kids die in car accidents? want to outlaw cars?

You want to produce lighters that model and look like toys of toddlers, then you should make certain they have child safety locks so to say, to prevent the children from lighting them....

How many deaths have occurred from these lighters manufactured by one man in your state before he GETS THE DAMN MESSAGE and makes these lighters with safety locks? From what I have read, HE did NOT do this and the accidents have continued to happen....

Well, F him...is what I say...yes, F- him.... he could have done something to prevent this and still can, a number of things including packaging or warnings to store owners to display them up high and not at a child's level, but he is running out of time as states continue to ban his product.

jd

[Hagbard Celine]

That's been taken care of...child safety seat requirements reduced GREATLY deaths to children in cars.... ;)

jd

And you can thank lawyers for that and all the other liability suits that have resulted in higher safety standards meant to keep idiots alive long enough to procreate. ;) BTW, this is me giving an endorsement for lawyers. Nevermind the fact that it's a double-edged sword.

[JohnDoe]

And you can thank lawyers for that and all the other liability suits that have resulted in higher safety standards meant to keep idiots alive long enough to procreate. ;) BTW, this is me giving an endorsement for lawyers. Nevermind the fact that it's a double-edged sword.


An unbridled capitalistic system should take care of these things without having the gvt having to force them down people's throats though...

Thru law suits forcing businesses hands and other measures like self regulation in the industry.

The Lighter association of America, i think it was called, banned the making of these toy like lighters...not banned, but had them as unacceptable lighters in the industry... it did NOT stop this manufacturer from continuing to make them.... so self regulation within the industry does not always work either...

jd

[Hagbard Celine]

An unbridled capitalistic system should take care of these things without having the gvt having to force them down people's throats though...

Thru law suits forcing businesses hands and other measures like self regulation in the industry.

The Lighter association of America, i think it was called, banned the making of these toy like lighters...not banned, but had them as unacceptable lighters in the industry... it did NOT stop this manufacturer from continuing to make them.... so self regulation within the industry does not always work either...

jd

In an idealic world, you'd be right about "unbridled Capitalism," but the market doesn't necessarily behave in the "survival of the fittest" way that you'd think it would. If the market operated under the "unbridled Capitalism" way, free from regulation or lawsuits, these lighters and other dangerous products would still be produced and they would take a lot longer to be phased-out by "natural selection." In taking longer to phase-out and not being nipped in the bud quickly by liability law or government safety regulation, there would be many more deaths and maimings than there are now.
By my understanding, the market operates by trial and error sort of like a small child finding his way in the world. The government and law then acts as the parent, which offers a swift slap on the wrist to correct dangerous or unproductive behavior. Without regulation and liability law, the market would act like a neglected child star. It would go down a road of dangerous and abusive behavior (making bad and dangerous products), get addicted to drugs and die in a horrendous car accident (market collapse/depression.) :cheers2:

[Mr. P]

Nanny, nanny.........NINNY State!

[stephanie]

Nanny, nanny.........NINNY State!

NO KIDDING..I just sit here and shake my head..:poke:

[Hagbard Celine]

Nanny, nanny.........NINNY State!

You've only been conditioned to think this way by feeding off of too many radically Conservative media outlets.
You will stop listening to Rush Limbaugh. You will turn-off Fox News Channel. And these are not the droids you are looking for.
http://www.capitalstool.com/forums/uploads/post-4662-1189804894.jpg

[stephanie]

You've only been conditioned to think this way by feeding off of too many radically Conservative media outlets.
You will stop listening to Rush Limbaugh. You will turn-off Fox News Channel. And these are not the droids you are looking for.
http://www.capitalstool.com/forums/uploads/post-4662-1189804894.jpg

You need to venture out into the REAL world..:poke:

[Mr. P]

You've only been conditioned to think this way by feeding off of too many radically Conservative media outlets.
You will stop listening to Rush Limbaugh. You will turn-off Fox News Channel. And these are not the droids you are looking for.
http://www.capitalstool.com/forums/uploads/post-4662-1189804894.jpg

:laugh2: Don't have cable so no Fox and Rush bores me to death, I haven't listened to him in over 12 years.

[JohnDoe]

Is a State putting a stop sign or a traffic light on a corner a Nanny State?

Is printing $270 Billion Dollars and putting it in to the market by our Fed to help out the sub prime financial businesses in trouble a Nanny State?

just curious?:slap:

jd

[Yurt]

You want to produce lighters that model and look like toys of toddlers, then you should make certain they have child safety locks so to say, to prevent the children from lighting them....

How many deaths have occurred from these lighters manufactured by one man in your state before he GETS THE DAMN MESSAGE and makes these lighters with safety locks? From what I have read, HE did NOT do this and the accidents have continued to happen....

Well, F him...is what I say...yes, F- him.... he could have done something to prevent this and still can, a number of things including packaging or warnings to store owners to display them up high and not at a child's level, but he is running out of time as states continue to ban his product.

jd

even as a child i thought cars were cool, way cooler than lighters, even those that looked like guns.... should we put a warning on cars so kids know cars are dangerous?

you're overreacting way too much. there are many things in life that are dangerous/harmful to kids. an reality is, that the percentage of kids that get hurt (this one really didn't) seriously from those lighters is nothing compared to kids and cars....

maybe you should introduce legislation that will force parents to bubblewrap around their children before getting out of bed in the morning....kids die in showers, baths, get burned on the stove.....

[JohnDoe]

even as a child i thought cars were cool, way cooler than lighters, even those that looked like guns.... should we put a warning on cars so kids know cars are dangerous? Don't be silly, the warning should be for the parents :poke:

you're overreacting way too much. there are many things in life that are dangerous/harmful to kids. an reality is, that the percentage of kids that get hurt (this one really didn't) seriously from those lighters is nothing compared to kids and cars.... Did you get to see the kid's burns on tv? Did you read the article about the people that died from kid's using this toy lighter?

maybe you should introduce legislation that will force parents to bubblewrap around their children before getting out of bed in the morning....kids die in showers, baths, get burned on the stove.....

Again Yurt, you are being infantile, maybe we should bubble wrap you?:poke: j/k u

Yes, children die all the time, why should you care....? Even when they are aborted, why should YOU care, they are not your children? Every man/woman for himself right?

I think you all are nuts making an issue about this and NOT seeing how making lighters that look like TODDLER'S TOYS without any child safety lock on them is dangerous.

THE MOTHER did NOT know it was a lighter, she could not have even KNOWN the danger of what was going to happen to her son.

The maker of these lighters has been warned by his own industry. People have died because of the way he makes these lighters WITHOUT A CHILD SAFETY lighting mechanism....

IF this company was responsible, they would change the method in which they make these toy looking lighters and put safety measures in to them.

HE DIDN'T AND HASN'T from what I have read, thus the State legislation.

I have NO PROBLEMS with this decision because the manufacturer was and is negligent imo.

Of course I would have rather seen him be sued to high heaven and his business shut down....but the maine mother did not sue him from what I have read, and nor did the members living from the family that died in the house fire started by their children playing with this lighter that looked like a toddler's toy....

I tell ya what....let's just have naked blow up dolls set up in the convenient stores and naked pics of women and men plastered on their walls, because GOD FORBID we might become a NANNY STATE if we regulate such!!!!!!!!!! :laugh2:

Right?

jd

[shattered]

Hello? The 6 year old thought it was a baseball bat flashlight and so did the mother.

5000 fires a year are started by children under the age of 5 yrs old.

We have firechiefs come to grade schools to teach children not to play with matches and lighters and how to survive a fire by crawling out of it each year.

This toy like lighter DID NOT even have child safety, to prevent the lighting of it haphazzardly. Even alot of plain bic lighters have the child safty button on them preventing the lighting of these objects and they are not even made to model a child's toy?

I am sorry, but this is where capitalism has gone amuck and regulation has to reign them in....BECAUSE the manufacturer of this product is NOT being responsible, especially without the child lighting safety locks NOT being on these toys imo.

Serveral states have banned or regulated these lighters before this accident in maine. I suppose it could have been easily solved if the manufacturer would have put child safety locks and the stores agreed to keep the lighters out of the reach of 6 year olds instead of banning, regardless...either sollution would have taken regulation to ensure safety measures were put in to place.

jd


You're one of those parents that wanders into a store with your kids, and lets them run everywhere, while you have your nose stuck in to what YOU'RE looking for, thereby making your children the responsibility of the clerks working in the store, aren't you?

How about the big, bright packaging that identifies these items as lighters?

It's not a stores responsibility to keep ANYTHING out of the reach of children. It's the responsibility of the parent to keep track of their children.

[JohnDoe]

You're one of those parents that wanders into a store with your kids, and lets them run everywhere, while you have your nose stuck in to what YOU'RE looking for, thereby making your children the responsibility of the clerks working in the store, aren't you?

How about the big, bright packaging that identifies these items as lighters?

It's not a stores responsibility to keep ANYTHING out of the reach of children. It's the responsibility of the parent to keep track of their children.


you're so smart for your britches Shattered! :poke:

I have no children and am not a parent! try again on your insults... maybe the second time will stick? :D

jd

[shattered]

you're so smart for your britches Shattered! :poke:

I have no children and am not a parent! try again on your insults... maybe the second time will stick? :D

jd

Rather than fixating on something so mundane, why not try addressing the actual point?

[Kathianne]

Again Yurt, you are being infantile, maybe we should bubble wrap you?:poke: j/k u

Yes, children die all the time, why should you care....? Even when they are aborted, why should YOU care, they are not your children? Every man/woman for himself right?

I think you all are nuts making an issue about this and NOT seeing how making lighters that look like TODDLER'S TOYS without any child safety lock on them is dangerous.

THE MOTHER did NOT know it was a lighter, she could not have even KNOWN the danger of what was going to happen to her son.

The maker of these lighters has been warned by his own industry. People have died because of the way he makes these lighters WITHOUT A CHILD SAFETY lighting mechanism....

IF this company was responsible, they would change the method in which they make these toy looking lighters and put safety measures in to them.

HE DIDN'T AND HASN'T from what I have read, thus the State legislation.

I have NO PROBLEMS with this decision because the manufacturer was and is negligent imo.

Of course I would have rather seen him be sued to high heaven and his business shut down....but the maine mother did not sue him from what I have read, and nor did the members living from the family that died in the house fire started by their children playing with this lighter that looked like a toddler's toy....

I tell ya what....let's just have naked blow up dolls set up in the convenient stores and naked pics of women and men plastered on their walls, because GOD FORBID we might become a NANNY STATE if we regulate such!!!!!!!!!! :laugh2:

Right?

jd

Seriously, you are writing as if this 'toy lighter' was in a toy aisle, though I'll agree with Abbey that if at 'kid site level' that was wrong. I'll bet apples to oranges that there were Bics or other lighters real close to the 'toy lighter.' My conclusion is the mother wasn't paying attention or was a true idiot, most likely the latter.

If we are going to outlaw all that is dangerous for idiots, better start with the house keys, as this mother is likely to poke her eye out with them. Sheesh!

[Yurt]

Again Yurt, you are being infantile, maybe we should bubble wrap you?:poke: j/k u


jd

:dance: i never wanna grow old

[JohnDoe]

Seriously, you are writing as if this 'toy lighter' was in a toy aisle, though I'll agree with Abbey that if at 'kid site level' that was wrong. I'll bet apples to oranges that there were Bics or other lighters real close to the 'toy lighter.' My conclusion is the mother wasn't paying attention or was a true idiot, most likely the latter.

If we are going to outlaw all that is dangerous for idiots, better start with the house keys, as this mother is likely to poke her eye out with them. Sheesh!
Are there specific toy aisles in a convenient store?

I agree with Abbey also, putting these lighters out of the reach of small children would have been good.

I wouldn't nomally agree with legislation to babysit one's kids and would prefer for the negligent businesses get their pants sued off, leaving the government out of it.... but it doesn't seem like that has happened, though i would need to do further reading to know ALL of the details...

seems to me making them SAFER, without the torch like flame, would be an easy fix, and a little more complicated child safety latch or button or whatever would solve the problem...I don't think states can make a manufacturer change by just telling them, so I guess what they can do is ban them.

It ain't just maine...pursuing this.


Not a toy: Fire officials seek ban on cute lighters
Novelty lighters that look like adorable animals spark debate


updated 3:52 p.m. ET, Tues., Feb. 12, 2008
DES MOINES, Iowa - The cartoonish plastic frog with bulging eyes could be a children's toy — but for the torch-like flame that bursts from the novelty lighter's head.

"They look like something you would get in a McDonald's Happy Meal," said John Dean, president of the National Association of State Fire Marshals, who often shows off the device. "They're cute, they're little" — but they can be deadly.

[Kathianne]

Are there specific toy aisles in a convenient store?

I agree with Abbey also, putting these lighters out of the reach of small children would have been good.

I wouldn't nomally agree with legislation to babysit one's kids and would prefer for the negligent businesses get their pants sued off, leaving the government out of it.... but it doesn't seem like that has happened, though i would need to do further reading to know ALL of the details...

seems to me making them SAFER, without the torch like flame, would be an easy fix, and a little more complicated child safety latch or button or whatever would solve the problem...I don't think states can make a manufacturer change by just telling them, so I guess what they can do is ban them.

It ain't just maine...pursuing this.
Actually there are. Balloons, super balls, smoke snakes, etc. In any case, I doubt the lighters were there, more likely with other lighters, right by the check out.

If at eye level of a 6 year old, I'll grant it's wrong. On the other hand, if it's at the counter level, with other lighters, the mother should have been more alert-since that includes rolling papers and other paraphernalia.

[stephanie]

I guess asking the owner of that store to put the lighters out of reach of children would of been too much..

So...the easier thing I guess is to pass legislation just banning those pesky little things...and deprive EVERYBODY who might want to buy one...

People in Maine might want to start stocking up on MATCHES...in case.:uhoh:

[retiredman]

I guess asking the owner of that store to put the lighters out of reach of children would of been too much..

So...the easier thing I guess is to pass legislation just banning those pesky little things...and deprive EVERYBODY who might want to buy one...

People in Maine might want to start stocking up on MATCHES...in case.:uhoh:

or quit smoking.

and there are still plenty of choices for disposable lighters in every such store in Maine. matches are hardly necessary.

[JohnDoe]

Actually there are. Balloons, super balls, smoke snakes, etc. In any case, I doubt the lighters were there, more likely with other lighters, right by the check out.

If at eye level of a 6 year old, I'll grant it's wrong. On the other hand, if it's at the counter level, with other lighters, the mother should have been more alert-since that includes rolling papers and other paraphernalia.

The Mother and child are the wife and child of the region's Fire Chief, I think she probably would have been more aware of the imminent danger of her son if the toy was next to bic lighters but those details are not to be found so the both of us are only speculating on the mother's qualifications of being a good or BAD mother....ya know?

The hubby and father of this child being the Fire Chief is probably why she got so much traction in her movement to prevent other children from getting the scars her child got over his face....and the law to passed.

jd

[JohnDoe]

I guess asking the owner of that store to put the lighters out of reach of children would of been too much..

So...the easier thing I guess is to pass legislation just banning those pesky little things...and deprive EVERYBODY who might want to buy one...

People in Maine might want to start stocking up on MATCHES...in case.:uhoh:
The particular local convenient store chain removed the lighters from all of their stores after this happened, all by himself....i don't think that mattered to the Fire Chief and his wife....and his kid....though. They were on a mission!!!

[Kathianne]

The Mother and child are the wife and child of the region's Fire Chief, I think she probably would have been more aware of the imminent danger of her son if the toy was next to bic lighters but those details are not to be found so the both of us are only speculating on the mother's qualifications of being a good or BAD mother....ya know?

The hubby and father of this child being the Fire Chief is probably why she got so much traction in her movement to prevent other children from getting the scars her child got over his face....and the law to passed.

jd

Do you really believe what you are posting? Do you really think that this was an aware mother, of the Fire Chief, that was so utterly clueless? Or perhaps it's that the store was so negligent as to have put certain kid aimed lighters in the same vicinity as toys, not including other recognizable lighters, obviously with intent to maim?

[JohnDoe]

Do you really believe what you are posting? Do you really think that this was an aware mother, of the Fire Chief, that was so utterly clueless? Or perhaps it's that the store was so negligent as to have put certain kid aimed lighters in the same vicinity as toys, not including other recognizable lighters, obviously with intent to maim?

Yes, I do believe that this was a very aware mother. She has been all over the news and i believe her and totally understand her concerns.

And if the lighter WAS NOT in the sight and reach of a 6 year old, how did he pick it up to look at it???? Did he jump over the counter to get it, or did he climb up on something to get it? IT was obviously at a 6 year old child's level, even if you haven't heard all the details that I have heard because of it being a local story.... i believe the store owner was negligent to put it at this level, just as you do.

This is a local/state issue...you all don't have to worry one bit about having these lighters removed from your shelves in your states because of Maine's actions...it's a State's issue, and I would have rather seen other measures taken by the manufacturer (CHINA) or the distributor in California, they refused to do such and continued to mouth off that their product was safe...

And NOTE the CHINA as the creator and manufacturer of this product....they are out to kill and harm our kids, just like with the lead paint in toys Kathianne...!!!

The flame is a torch...not a normal high flame, but a TORCH built in to a toy...?

jd

[JohnDoe]

Also Kathianne...i just read that because the EU just banned these lighters everywhere there, CHINA is trying to dump them all dirt cheap, on to the USA!

just an fyi....

[Kathianne]

Ok, JD, mission served. No more matches, no more lighters, no more flints and stones.

Good enough?

[hjmick]

Ok, JD, mission served. No more matches, no more lighters, no more flints and stones.

Good enough?

Can we focus the sun's energy through a magnifying glass?

[Kathianne]

Can we focus the sun's energy through a magnifying glass?

Nope, someone may be burned. No fire.

[JohnDoe]

Ok, JD, mission served. No more matches, no more lighters, no more flints and stones.

Good enough?

NO! :)

matches do not have torches that shoot out.

bic lighters do not have torches that shoot out.

flints and stones do not have torches that shoot out.

And none of the above are made to look like toys that children under 6 would love to play with...

:salute:

jd

[hjmick]

Nope, someone may be burned. No fire.

Well hell. What about my stove and gas grill? My smoker? If Ican't use those, my wife will be very upset. She likes that I do the cooking and she's not overly fond of raw food.

[hjmick]

NO! :)

mathces do not have torches that shoot out.

bic lighters do not have torches that shoot out.

flints and stones do not have torches that shoot out.

And none of the above are made to look like toys that children under 6 would love to play with...

:salute:

jd

I don't know. When I was a kid, I had a flint and steel set. I loved playing with that. Though I never did get the hang of it, never could start a fire.

[Abbey Marie]

Also Kathianne...i just read that because the EU just banned these lighters everywhere there, CHINA is trying to dump them all dirt cheap, on to the USA!

just an fyi....

I guess that means they have lead all over them too. :coffee:

[Dilloduck]

Someone actually cares what happens in Maine other than those who live there ?

[hjmick]

Someone actually cares what happens in Maine other than those who live there ?

Yeah, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. :coffee:

[Dilloduck]

Yeah, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. :coffee:

Who are they ? :laugh2:

[retiredman]

so you guys really have a problem with banning lighters that look like toys and that don't have childproof mechanisms?

there are countless disposable lighters for sale in Maine in all those stores.... these are ones that look like toys and that can be easily operated by a child.... unlike BICs and every other type of disposable on the market.

your faux outrage at this law is really funny.

[Abbey Marie]

Someone actually cares what happens in Maine other than those who live there ?

I vacation there every summer. It's a beautiful state. I care.

[Mr. P]

Is a State putting a stop sign or a traffic light on a corner a Nanny State?

Is printing $270 Billion Dollars and putting it in to the market by our Fed to help out the sub prime financial businesses in trouble a Nanny State?

just curious?:slap:

jd

There ya go JD...perfect!

Put a STOP sign at the door! One that says "STOP we have lighters, if yer not 10 years old you can not come in". Perfect for a Ninny State.

[JohnDoe]

I guess that means they have lead all over them too. :coffee:

Honestly, I wouldn't be surprised if they did have lead in their paint. Because they are not marketed as toys, this is probably not being checked! :D

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Found this on it too:


The European Union has moved to ban novelty lighters, which are...manufactured in China. Fire officials worry that manufacturers will try to unload the lighters in the U.S.

"What I think is happening now is we're really getting dumped on, we're seeing more," said Judith Okulitch with the Oregon State Fire Marshal's Office.

Okulitch's agency was among the first to raise concern about the novelty lighters.


and this too:


Dean, who also serves as Maine's state fire marshal, suggested that fire officials show the novelty lighters to lawmakers and regulators, then they can really see what happens with the devices.

"Every time I give these to a group of adults somebody gets burned, because it's not always obvious where the flame is going to come out or how they work," he said, adding that at a recent news conference one legislator burned some hair off of another's hand. "The point is, if adults can't figure it out, children sure can't."


And also the Industry itself would like to see them banned....the capitalistic force itself would like to see them banned or see no need to market the ones to kids...the ones like toys.


...fire officials praised an announcement this week by the Lighter Association, a national trade group, which said its members now support laws to ban the lighters.

"We see no justification for a novelty lighter," said David H. Baker, the organization's general counsel. However, he said his members would like to review some of the proposed measures to make sure they won't affect other kinds of lighters marketed to adults.


I guess the lawmakers themselves are dufuss! Even they got burned by the torches!

jd

[stephanie]

Hey...we all should know by now, that them thar gumerent peoples nos whats best for us stooooooped humans peoples..:cheers2:

[retiredman]

Hey...we all should know by now, that them thar gumerent peoples nos whats best for us stooooooped humans peoples..:cheers2:


reply to #48 if you would be so kind.

[hjmick]

so you guys really have a problem with banning lighters that look like toys and that don't have childproof mechanisms?

Personally, I don't. I'm a Zippo man myself. The only reason I keep a Bic around is, well, they're just better for lighting certain things. Naturally, I disable the child proof apparatus on all my Bic lighters, they're a pain in the ass. Then again I do not have any young children in the house. My wife recently bought me one of those butane torches for my cigars, puts out a cool green flame. I am also fond of Ohio Blue Tip Matches. Those suckers light anywhere you strike them...just about.

[stephanie]

Who the hell has ever heard of THE LIGHTER ASSOCIATION..

good grief..:poke:

[hjmick]

I just did a Google search on Ohio Blue Tip Matches. Did you know that they no longer make those? Goes to show you when I last bought a box. Apparently, the reason they would "light anywhere" was because they were made with phosphorus and nowadays the government has outlawed this process.

First Wonder Bread, now Ohio Blue Tips. What's next?

[Mr. P]

so you guys really have a problem with banning lighters that look like toys and that don't have childproof mechanisms?

there are countless disposable lighters for sale in Maine in all those stores.... these are ones that look like toys and that can be easily operated by a child.... unlike BICs and every other type of disposable on the market.

your faux outrage at this law is really funny.

Yes, I do. I have a problem with any government involvement in any private business just because some idiot is and IDIOT.

IF this item was placed so that a kid could reach it why not just deal with that? Why ban the entire product?

Why not ban things that kill kids, not scar, but KILL, like peanut butter?

Edit: The IDIOT IS THE PARENT.

[JohnDoe]

Who the hell has ever heard of THE LIGHTER ASSOCIATION..

good grief..:poke:



The Lighter Association is a non-profit trade association formed by the U.S. lighter industry in 1986. The Association represents the industry's interests before federal and state regulatory bodies and the U.S. Congress. It is also integrally involved with domestic, foreign and international standards involving lighters. The Association also partners with other non-profit and charitable organizations to produce public service announcements, news articles and other media promoting the safe usage of lighters.

The Lighter Association files a petition with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission requesting a mandatory lighter safety standard under the Consumer Product Safety Act.

http://www.lighterassociation.org/

:)

[stephanie]

The Lighter Association is a non-profit trade association formed by the U.S. lighter industry in 1986. The Association represents the industry's interests before federal and state regulatory bodies and the U.S. Congress. It is also integrally involved with domestic, foreign and international standards involving lighters. The Association also partners with other non-profit and charitable organizations to produce public service announcements, news articles and other media promoting the safe usage of lighters.

The Lighter Association files a petition with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission requesting a mandatory lighter safety standard under the Consumer Product Safety Act.

http://www.lighterassociation.org/

:)

:rolleyes:
as I said...Who the hell has ever heard of the Lighter association?

[JohnDoe]

Yes, I do. I have a problem with any government involvement in any private business just because some idiot is and IDIOT.

IF this item was placed so that a kid could reach it why not just deal with that? Why ban the entire product?

Why not ban things that kill kids, not scar, but KILL, like peanut butter?

Edit: The IDIOT IS THE PARENT.

the mother was the Fire Chiefs wife, she wasn't a dummy....?

the lawmakers in the quote i posted that got burned by these same lighters were not dummies...?

are you saying apples with razor blades should be allowed to be sold on the free market for the sake of keeping the market free? toys with lead in them?

i can understand what a nanny state is and the fear of it, but SOMETIMES regulation or standards are needed, even in a free capitalistic market...

jd

[stephanie]

the mother was the Fire Chiefs wife, she wasn't a dummy....?

the lawmakers in the quote i posted that got burned by these same lighters were not dummies...?

are you saying apples with razor blades should be allowed to be sold on the free market for the sake of keeping the market free? toys with lead in them?

i can understand what a nanny state is and the fear of it, but SOMETIMES regulation or standards are needed, even in a free capitalistic market...

jd

this wasn't some regulation or standard set..
this was a total banning of them being sold..
a few people using THE GOVERMENT has now decided for everyone who lives there what they can't have, even if they wanted it..

[JohnDoe]

this wasn't some regulation or standard set..
this was a total banning of them being sold..
a few people using THE GOVERMENT has now decided for everyone who lives there what they can't have, even if they wanted it..


yes, i understand that steph, and i would have prefered it being the federal gvt in this case, just setting some sort of child safety standard for the toy like lighters or some simple rule of them being displayed at a higher, out of child's reach level...

but in this particular case, there is more to it with these lighters made in China....their flames are torches and in many cases you do not know where the torch flame is going to come out of..... adults in their test studies got burned and seared by these particular lighters.... like a razor blade in an apple....they did not know what they were biting in to.

so, yes, i honestly do see your point stephanie, the banning seems extreme.

but i do note, that if the usa regulators that govern these type of things and import safety had done their job, maine wouldn't have even had the issue with this.... in the first place, imho.

jd