Never underestimate the ability of an American consumer to overestimate risk: when it comes to food, toys and drugs, we Americans think we have a fundamental constitutional right to total safety.

A dab of lead paint here, a spot of e-coli there, the slightest whiff of risk (however infinitesimally small) spells doom in the market. Consumer hysteria feeds on itself, and soon the whole nation is throwing out its toys.