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Buckyballs Throws In the Towel

Posted by timothy on from the collectors-items-now dept.

RenderSeven writes "As previously reported the immensely popular Buckyballs office toys have been targeted by the Consumer Product Safety Commission. Last week Maxfield and Oberton, the maker of Buckyballs gave up the battle and announced they would discontinue sales and close. However, being driven out of business is not enough for R Buckminster Fuller's estate, who has filed yet another lawsuit that they own all rights to the name "buckyballs" despite widespread use of the term. If you still haven't bought your own yet, a few thousand sets in stock are still available."

8 of 383 comments (clear)

  1. State gone Mad by bill_mcgonigle · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Oh, look, the State destroying a business and free choice in the first part of the summary and then the State enabling people to harass other people over imaginary property in the second. Thank goodness they're around to keep things civil.

    --
    My God, it's Full of Source!
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    1. Re:State gone Mad by Millennium · · Score: 4, Insightful

      The problem here is how they sell this product. The market this product as a toy for children.

      Actually, they don't.

      If they wrote on the package "MAY CAUSE DEATH" or listed a number of lives and surgeries the product has caused, I don't think anyone would care. Of course they'd go out of business.

      Actually, they do write this, and nobody cares. Unfortunately, rather than treating these injuries as the evidence of child neglect that they are, the feds have taken the approach of banning something that, when used appropriately, is perfectly safe.

    2. Re:State gone Mad by Waffle+Iron · · Score: 4, Insightful

      Where are these rules, and lawsuits, for Legos? Just as small. More prevelant. more pieces to "kill" the poor children.

      Your apparent (and probably typical) ignorance of the difference between a piece of plastic and a high-powered magnet demonstrates the exact reason that the government felt compelled to act in this case.

  2. Protecting the children. by EasyTarget · · Score: 4, Insightful

    magnets.. bad.

    Guns, assault rifles, knives, mace spray, tazers, baseball bats, and realistic 3rd person shooters... good.

    Glad you guys have got your retail priorities straight and are protecting your kids so well.

    --
    "Oops, I always forget the purpose of competition is to divide people into winners and losers." - Hobbes
  3. Your Freedom and Rights don't matter when... by SirAstral · · Score: 4, Insightful

    we have to protect another child on behalf of the parents not capable of using good common sense.

    We need to stop making scissors of all kinds, stop the production of any toys that a small child might play with but not marketed to them, and even take kids balls away because someone might get hurt.

    Stupid people doing stupid things... being going on for millenia, and every effort to stop them has failed.

  4. Re:Zenmagnets has cheaper, better magnets... by RenderSeven · · Score: 5, Insightful

    they're not jerks like the buckyballs guys are.

    In what way are they jerks? They seem a little peeved at the CPSC but I would be too. Also note that the CPSC has targeted Zen Magnets as well: Zen Magnets was the first company to receive an administrative complaint from the Consumer Product Safety Commission without a record of injuries.

  5. Re:Search for spherical neodymium magnets... by cayenne8 · · Score: 5, Insightful

    When you have a product that actually kills kids, it's not mindless regulation to ban it.

    What's next? Kitchen knives have killed enough kids over the years...guess we need to ban those.

    Seriously, a few accidents happen....parents that don't keep things dangerous out of the reach of kids, or stupid kids putting anything in their mouth and swallowing it?

    I think that is more Darwin's Law at work....should ban things like that that MOST adults can safely enjoy....

    --
    Light travels faster than sound. This is why some people appear bright until you hear them speak.........
  6. Re:Search for spherical neodymium magnets... by triffid_98 · · Score: 5, Insightful

    When you have a product that actually kills kids, it's not mindless regulation to ban it

    Um...yes it freaking is. I can think of a great many things it could be fatal to swallow. Even dihydrogen monoxide is fatal in sufficient quantities.

    "Think of the children" has caused so much stupid regulation it should be an automatic fail ala Godwin's law.