Date: Thu, 1 Jun 2000 21:23:09 -0500
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Comments: Originally-From: Patrick Douglas Crispen
From: Patrick Douglas Crispen
Subject: TOURBUS -- 1 JUNE 00 -- ASBESTOS IN CRAYONS? / CORNCAM
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TOURBUS -- 1 June 2000
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FIVE YEARS of Searchable Archives at http://www.TOURBUS.com !!
TODAY'S TOURBUS STOP(S):
Asbestos in Crayons? / CornCam
TODAY'S TOURBUS ADDRESS(ES):
http://www.seattle-pi.com/crayons/
http://www.crayola.com/safety/index.cfm
http://www.seattle-pi.com/national/fisc30.shtml
http://www.iowafarmer.com/corncam/corn.html
Howdy, y'all, and greetings from sultry Tuscaloosa, Alabama. :)
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On with the show ...
--------------------
Asbestos in Crayons?
--------------------
I have a story for you that, unfortunately, is not an urban legend ...
although it sure does sound like one. The Seattle Post-Intelligencer
is reporting, and independent labs have confirmed, the existence of
asbestos fibers in tests of three brands of crayons: Crayola, Prang,
and Rose Art. In testing those brands, labs hired by the Post-
Intelligencer found asbestos in 32 of the 40 crayons they tested.
Prolonged inhalation of asbestos fibers can result in a lung condition
known as asbestosis or in mesothelioma, a rapidly fatal form of lung
cancer.
It is important to note that asbestos was only found in Crayola,
Prang, and Rose Art crayons. No other brands of crayons were found to
contain asbestos.
The asbestos apparently comes from the talc added to crayons to make
them more durable. According to our friends at the Encyclopedia
Britannica [ http://www.britannica.com/ ],
Talc is also used in lubricants, leather dressings, toilet and
dusting powders, and certain marking pencils. It is used as a
filler in ceramics, paint, paper, roofing materials, plastic, and
rubber; as a carrier in insecticides; and as a mild abrasive in
the polishing of cereal grains such as rice and corn.
The Post-Intelligencer does not mention whether any other consumer
products that use talc also contain asbestos.
You can find all of the Post-Intelligencer's recent crayon reports on
the Web at
http://www.seattle-pi.com/crayons/ .
Binney & Smith, makers of Crayola Crayons, recently conducted their
own independent laboratory investigation and concluded that "Crayola
Crayons do not contain asbestos and are safe for children." You can
read Binney & Smith's full response to the Post-Intelligencer's
reports at
http://www.crayola.com/safety/index.cfm .
The Post-Intelligencer counters with a story claiming that
The "independent" expert that Crayola hired to check its crayons
for asbestos has been paid millions of dollars by the asbestos
industry for testimony on its behalf in personal-injury suits.
You can read that entire story at
http://www.seattle-pi.com/national/fisc30.shtml .
Of course, the million-dollar question is "are crayons dangerous?"
The honest answer is that no one seems to know. The US Consumer
Product Safety Commission (CPSC) is currently conducting tests to
determine the safety of crayons. When the CPSC releases its results,
I'll let you know. In the meantime, a few experts are employing
"Pascal's Wager," asking that parents not let their children play with
Crayola, Prang, or Rose Art crayons until independent labs can confirm
that there is no risk. For example, Russ Rader, CPSC's director of
Public Affairs, is recently quoted as saying
At this point, the facts aren't in and we don't want to alarm
people, but if a parent wants to be cautious, they may not want
to let their young kids play with crayons until we have some more
definitive answer to give.
[Quote from: http://www.seattle-pi.com/national/cray24.shtml ]
Other experts are taking a wait-and-see approach. Robert Goetz of the
Cincinnati Drug and Poison Information Center recently told the he
Akron Beacon Journal that
We're not particularly concerned from the point of view of a
health risk to children ... We're not going to recommend that
parents make their kids stop using crayons until this is all
settled out.
[Quote from: http://www.ohio.com/aol/aolns/018299.htm ]
The final decision, however, lies with you. I'll let you know if
anything else happens with this story in the weeks and months to come.
-------
CornCam
-------
Have you ever been to an event so utterly boring that it was like
watching grass grow? Have you longed to relive that experience?
Well, thanks to the wonders of the Internet, you can!
Fellow TOURBUS rider (and member of that Purdue wedding party we
talked about two weeks ago) Nabeel Ibrahim recently introduced me to
the Iowa CornCam at
http://www.iowafarmer.com/corncam/corn.html .
The CornCam is, quite simply, a Web cam in the middle of an Iowa corn
field that lets you:
- Watch corn grow;
- Count the ears in this Iowa cornfield;
- See it tassel; and
- Cheer as the mighty cornstalks battle wind, hail and
rainstorms.
As Nabeel so astutely observed, "the nighttime shots are especially
elucidating." I couldn't agree more.
[By the way, in my reply to Nabeel, I wrote that "[a]ll that fancy
book-learnin' has caused you to put on airs, boy. Elucidating? Are
"enlightening" and "illuminating" too good for you?" His response?
"Well, when you've been in school as long as I have ... oh wait, you
*HAVE* been in school as long as I have."] :)
That's it for this week. Have a safe and happy weekend, and we'll
talk again next week.
TODAY'S TOURBUS STOP(S):
Asbestos in Crayons? / CornCam
TODAY'S TOURBUS ADDRESS(ES):
http://www.seattle-pi.com/crayons/
http://www.crayola.com/safety/index.cfm
http://www.seattle-pi.com/national/fisc30.shtml
http://www.iowafarmer.com/corncam/corn.html
---------------------------------
TODAY'S SOUTHERN WORD OF THE WEEK
---------------------------------
MAY-UTH (noun). The science of numbers.
Usage: "2 plus 2 is 4 ... that's may-uth"
[Special thanks go to Rachel Wolfe for today's word]
You can find all of the old Southern Words of the day at
http://netsquirrel.com/crispen/word.html
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