The Strangest Reason for a Sale We've Ever Heard

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After last year's child safety disasters—some 45 million toys were eventually recalled on suspicion of lead poisoning—American lawmakers came up with the world's most strict anti-lead law, the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act. It requires stores to test their own products for harmful substances, a rule that's great for babies and their lead-sensitive brains but not so wonderful for small businesses coping with the added expense in a down economy.

We're telling you this so that you can approach with utmost compassion the sad case of the All'Aboard! Boutique in Glendale, who recently emailed us to say that they can't afford the testing, so they're having a big sale. On the one hand, they're in a tough spot and we genuinely feel for them. On the other hand, they're having an "Our baby clothes might have lead in them!" sale. 2009 is going to be a truly bizarre year, folks.
· Some Worry New Child Product Safety Law Will Harm Stores [MSNBC]