[greggsy]

With that thinking, people would still be buying unlabelled arsenic wallpaper.

Consumer standards are a net benefit to society.

> and people are (incorrectly and dangerously) expecting to be protected now.

The general public hasn’t the faintest idea how to differentiate between a safe product and an unsafe one, and they shouldn’t have to

[AnthonyMouse]

> The general public hasn’t the faintest idea how to differentiate between a safe product and an unsafe one, and they shouldn’t have to

The problem being that a marketplace platform with millions of small sellers has no reasonable way to do this either.

[kergonath]

Then, that marketplace has no viable business. Society does not owe them anything. Seriously, if your business model requires you to sell illegal stuff, then your company does not deserve to survive. That’s the basics of regulation.

[AnthonyMouse]

You're assuming the conclusion. Why is it the marketplace platform who should be the police? Should banks have to audit your life before you can open a bank account? Should you be unable to transact with anyone if you're not rich enough for them to justify that expense?

It's not Walmart you're proposing to unperson here.

[croon]

The sellers are in practice anonymous, and the consumer facing Temu (or Shein, or Aliexpress, etc) very much markets to consumers, yet shirk any responsibility. They are Walmart but ignore the little accountability Walmart faces.

Of course Temu is responsible for things I buy in the Temu app, and pay Temu for, which then Temu ships to me.

[AnthonyMouse]

> The sellers are in practice anonymous, and the consumer facing Temu (or Shein, or Aliexpress, etc) very much markets to consumers, yet shirk any responsibility. They are Walmart but ignore the little accountability Walmart faces.

They are not Walmart.

> Of course Temu is responsible for things I buy in the Temu app, and pay Temu for, which then Temu ships to me.

If you send money to someone in the PayPal app, are they responsible for what you bought? Not just for giving you a refund; for having liability if your house burns down. If the seller keeps their inventory in a rented space, should you be able to sue their landlord? If FedEx delivers a package to you, are they responsible for the regulatory compliance of what's inside?

Consider what would happen if you did that. Could a normal person buy or sell something or rent space or send packages, if the intermediary had to take on liability for anything you do with it?

[croon]

Paypal is not fronting products or shipping them.

[DANmode]

And yet you still have children chewing toxic chunks of gypsum drywall,

because people now assume if you can buy it, it’s safe,

because their responsibility has been relieved of them.

[BenjiWiebe]

I'm not understanding your example; as far as I know gypsum/gypsum drywall isn't toxic.

[DANmode]

If you let your kid eat drywall compounds, and inhale drywall dust in the process, you’re not only missing my point, you’re proving it.

[BenjiWiebe]

Just because it isn't toxic doesn't mean it is edible...? I would not allow my child to eat drywall, but neither do I consider drywall toxic. i.e. if they started chewing on some drywall, I wouldn't haul them to the E.R. in a panic.