I was munching on my Cheerios the other morning when the Today show announced a massive recall of wooden Thomas the Tank toys from RC2. It seems the factories in China used a little too much lead when painting the toys. The ending of the short piece, however, revealed that one has been affected at the time of the recall. (But I’m sure someone is trying to get money now.)

Now I realize that lead-tainted toys is not the best thing in the world, but it seems as if today’s ultra-protective social watchers go a tad overboard with some of the toys being produced. What happened before all of these restrictions took place? Were kids developing massive ailments left and right in the 1930s, ’40s and ’50s? Funny, my parents never mentioned anything of that sort. Heck, their homes and schools were supposedly death traps, too, but they seem to have survived.

I’m surprised that many of the plastic pieces found in play sets and as accessories for action figures haven’t had to be attached to large objects to alleviate swallowing concerns. And, boy, you sure can have any more toys featuring animals that “chew” their food.

I’m glad the world is a safer place, but sometimes I feel the powers that be are a little too controlling. In the meantime, I’ll keep playing with my blaze orange-tipped cap pistol so the neighbors don’t think I’m going hunting.