Foreign Products

When the going gets tough, the tough buy local. That's the crux of the more than $800-billion economic stimulus bill under consideration in the Senate. It contains a "buy American" provision requiring that most stimulus-funded projects use only American-made gear and goods. The House passed its own version of the legislation last week. It stipulates that we not buy any iron and steel from pesky foreigners seeking a slice of stimulus pie.

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission says it doesn't have the authority to prevent foreign radioactive waste from being imported into the United States. The NRC wrote in an April 9 letter to Reps. Jim Matheson (D-Utah) and Bart Gordon (D-Tenn.) that the Atomic Energy Act doesn't distinguish between domestic and foreign waste. The NRC says that as long as the material can be imported safely and someone is willing to accept it, the commission can't keep it waste out.

There's been much hand-wringing over the federal government's relationship with General Motors now that Uncle Sam owns 60% of the company. But the situation is no less troublesome for consumers, who, as taxpayers, will share in GM's fate. As owners of the company, are we obliged to buy its products to maximize the value of our investment? Put another way, are we now hurting ourselves any time we buy non-GM vehicles?

It was an irresistible aroma that drew Ed Lee to a crowded kiosk in Hong Kong's Mongkok subway station in 2004. One bite of Beard Papa's crunchy choux pastry shell and creamy vanilla filling and the Southern California entrepreneur was smitten. The next year Lee, 47, and his partner, Joe Lung, 41, both immigrants from Hong Kong, opened their own Beard Papa Sweets Cafe at the Hollywood & Highland center in Hollywood.

When Fox Searchlight unveils a movie at a film festival, savvy American filmgoers have come to expect the production to make a big impression at their local theaters -- "Little Miss Sunshine," "Napoleon Dynamite," "Garden State," to name just a few recent examples. Yet U.S. moviegoers are unlikely to see Catherine Deneuve's "Apres Lui," a Searchlight movie premiering at this year's Cannes Film Festival. That's because the studio made the movie in French for the French.

The U.S. is seeking consultations with China over rules on music downloading and cinema rights that appear to discriminate against foreign sound recordings and films, a U.S. trade official said Wednesday. Hollywood studios and U.S. Internet music providers such as Apple Inc.'s iTunes store could be among the groups that suffer from "less favorable distribution opportunities" for imported films and foreign suppliers of music recordings in China, which the U.S.

Donnamax Inc., a supplier of cosmetics and beauty and household products, issued a voluntary recall of DentaPro and Bright Max brands of toothpaste made in China because they may contain a harmful chemical. Diethylene glycol, also known as diglycol or DEG, has not caused any poisoning that the Food and Drug Administration is aware of, the New York company said. It can harm children and people with kidney or liver disease, the statement said.

The Chinese government went on the defense -- and offense -- Wednesday in response to the latest recall of goods made in that country, outlining Beijing's new safety provisions while reiterating charges that the U.S. has its own problems with unsafe exports. During a rare briefing at the Chinese Embassy in Washington, government official Zhao Baoqing said Beijing would send two high-level delegations to the U.S., one this month and another in September, for talks about food and product safety.

A government-wide task force on the safety of imported products recommended Monday that "smarter" precautions be taken to keep unsafe goods out of the U.S. marketplace. Government agencies that regulate imports should collaborate to monitor products, develop new technology, and use additional preventive methods in stopping unsafe products from getting to store shelves, the task force said in a report.

Three-quarters of U.S. shoppers plan to shun toys made in China this holiday season, according to a Reuters/Zogby poll. Of almost 1,000 people polled, 75.8% said they would not buy Chinese-made toys. The results come in the wake of several high-profile recalls this year of toys made in China that contained lead or small magnets.