The Dangers of Fun; Deadly Toys of Childhood

When did we need a warning label on everything? I was reading through the 10 dangerous toys for 2012 via W.A.T.C.H.  and couldn't help but chuckle. Some of what made the list include:

• A foam dart gun (watch those little eyes children)
• Nerf sword (IMPACT WARNING)
• Water balloon launcher (heads up)
• Wooden xylophone (??)
• More Hulk hands (come on)

Sorry but I dont think any of the mentioned toys are going to outright maim, disable, or kill a child. I think these groups are warning what should be common knowledge. You can take out an eye with just about any toy if you try hard enough.

So beyond deadly nerf guns and murderous wood musical instruments what about back in the day, what was dangerous back then? Actually the real question is what wasn't? Lets go back, back to the 80's and early 90's when a kid could be a kid and a toy could kill you. Here are a few of my most dangerous toys of childhood:

Slip 'N Slide

Bare skin meet dry plastic. I believe it was originally created in the 70's but was ever popular in the 80's. I remember in vivid memory running, taking a dive, and landing on the sizzling, dry plastic.

Pogo Bal

Take a ball and wedge it in the center of a circular board then attempt to jump on it. Good luck!

Roll-Cap Gun

Little strips of gun powder sure is a lot of fun, especially close up! Been around for a long time in various iterations but has always been darn dangerous. And hey remove the orange gun tip and you're on your way to being a crooked ninja yourself!

Creepy Crawlers

I think I still have the burns. Take some liquid plastic, fill up a metal mold and stick it in a plastic "oven" to cook, what could go wrong? These things got scorching hot and if not careful can do a good amount of damage. The burns were worth it and my parents house never caught fire.

So what toys from your childhood would never get a pass today?