Sunday, May 1, 2011

Clutch purse carcinogens

It's Mothers Day in a few days and I purchased a gift for my mom off the internet today. I got her a smallish purse, often called a clutch purse. Her bags are always so big and bulky. I follow fashion trends, not full time, it's a some-of-the-time thing - I notice these things. A clutch purse seems like a good alternative for her.

My sister and I are going in on this purse together. The part of the clutch purse buying I want to focus on here is the little phrase "California Residents: Proposition 65 Warning" found under the product specifications section of the purse descriptions. It's found in every description I looked at! Here's (part of) what it says:


California Proposition 65

Attention California Residents:

California's Proposition 65 entitles California consumers to special warnings for products that contain chemicals known to the state of California to cause cancer and birth defects or other reproductive harm if those products expose consumers to such chemicals above certain threshold levels.
We hope that the information below helps with your purchasing decisions.

The general Proposition 65 notice is as follows:

WARNING: Products in the categories below may contain chemicals known to the State of California to cause cancer and birth defects or other reproductive harm.

* Products made with Fabric, Leather, Vinyl, Foam, Synthetic and Non-woven Material
* Batteries and/or Products that contain batteries
* Beauty Products (including first-aid kits and lotions)

In addition, there are specific warnings for products in the following categories:

Electrical Cords (may be found on some travel accessories)


Products made of fabric??? Vinyl, leather and foam? Why not instead state if a specific product contains this material? And possibly! Just how carcinogenic it is! Further the products listed seem to cover most categories of.. Stuff! that people tend to buy. Shouldn't first aid kits like not be carcinogenic?

Ok I'm not really hysterical, now anyway. If California is going to be clearly more awesome than many other states why not do something really specific and useful, instead of producing vague alarming propositions.

Mom I hope you don't read this! Before mothers day at least!

No comments: