How about jackhammers... that's heavy machinery. Pile drivers? Bull dozers? All fine for children to use?
I'm trying to figure this, so, pushing the button on the compactor is dangerous, but putting pizzas in an oven is not, nor is dropping fries in scorching hot oil, or running a grill, hmmm... Can anyone explain this? I did all those things in my youth, and I can say pushing the thrash compactor button never left me with the same burns those other 'safer' jobs did.
I'll give you that one. Except that it still means one less teenager and one more adult just to carry out the trash.
Now you are being ridiculous, but then, you knew that. Actually, teenagers use that kind of equipment all the time on their family farms, are you suggesting we stop that?
Any more dangerous than driving a vehicle 55 MPH with oncoming cars going the same rate of speed? Who doesn't know of a family who has lost a teenager to a head on collision?
In which case it becomes a story about how Obama shoved a child into a trash compactor, along with Pelosi and Reid.
Nick Miller was mentally disabled, wasn't being supervised and actually was crushed by the loading machine arm and not the compactor itself.
Another intellectually dishonest post. They're leaving because of all the stupid regulations. Problem is you knew this and are just stirring up the usual (*)(*)(*)(*).
Mark Steyn is right when he says that the liberals are no more than the Eloi from the Wells' Time Machine.
Like a car? I'll guarantee more kids are killed operating these dangerous machines than all the freak accidents. No, the problem isn't operating potentially dangerous machines. It's doing so in an unsupervised atmosphere. Because kids are morons.
Indeed. When was the last time you saw a paperboy? I've only seen one since the late 80s and he was servicing the small Idaho town of Deary.
Problem is we have way too many spurious age laws in this country. Old enough to die on a battlefield in Afghanistan, but still too young to have a beer with your old man when back on leave.
A blast from the past indeed. You know you won't see any paperboy's in California, what with loading their bike with all those heavy newspapers, especially Sundays, and then peddling for a few miles delivering them in the wee hours of the morning. Who knows what could happen, they might develop something like a work ethic. Liberals would just as soon they grow up to be fleabagger occu-poops sucking off the government and their parents.
I do remember, I was 19 when I went to Vietnam. At least we could have a beer there with little liberal intervention.
Not being ridiculous at all. This is exactly how rules are established. If we are going to say "No you can use this machine" we have to establish these rules for many other things within the same class. A trash compactor is considered heavy machinery as is a bulldozer. If we're going to draw a line, then either we are going to incredibly specific or we're going to have a basis for what children can or cannot do in your society and what they can or cannot do. The current rule is that specific piece of machinery is off limits to minors. I see no reason to change that just because Chuck e Cheese got fined for BREAKING THE RULES. BTW, kids at 13 and 14 years of age have driven cars. Should we now lower the age limit for that as well because some do it illegally? Your logic is flawed, but then, you knew that. This is all just a bunch faux outrage anyway and you all know it.
Child labor laws exist for 2 main reasons: 1) to protect children from dangerous jobs 2) to protect unskilled workers from wage depression Much like the effect that illegal labor has, child labor can depress the wages of a given job. Granted, if you're an adult so unskilled that you're having to compete with teenagers for work... you're probably screwed anyway. I wouldn't mind scaling back child labor laws for jobs that are safe, but certain dangerous ones should remain for adults only.
No, your position is to determine this topic to be faux outrage when a regulation is questioned and appearing unreasonable to those who oppose it. Why do you find a different opinion to be "faux", are we not suppose to question regulations, is that what you are saying? BTW, 13 and 14 year olds drive all the time on a farm, and no the laws at 16 seem reasonable
It's one thing to question regulations when it's necessary, it's another thing to be fighting the power just because...
What don't you get? I'm pretty sure it's a safe bet to say that more teenagers are killed by driving than dough mixers and trash compactors. So it's pretty easy to point out the rediculaness of these certain labor laws. If you're going to make laws banning sixteen year olds from operating certain machinery, why let them drive?
