Friday, July 20, 2012
SawStop All But Mandated in California
Professional tool reviews for the average Joe: By now, it's doubtful anyone has missed our position on the SawStop legal process. Now, however, the process seems to be almost inevitable as California once again steps in and takes the lead in telling the rest of the country what's good for it. Recent legislation (bill AB 2218) on mandating SawStop survived a 3-2 Democrat-controlled party-line vote in a California state Senate committee.
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6 comments:
This bill seems slightly outrageous to me. I understand that the government is simply trying to protect the lives and limbs of many, it seems as though the government is also supporting a monopolization. The bill is also asking a lot from businesses in California since there would be a large amount of money that would need to be spent on updating equipment to new standards. It'd make more sense, assuming this is for the protection of union members who are supporting this bill, if unions would just add saw stops or protective saws to the list of requirements of a workspace.
There is no doubt that SawStop is an ingenious idea. It has the potential to protect careless or unexperienced workers. However, how can an unexperienced or careless worker learn and become better with their tools if they are only allowed to use SawStop? It's nice to have on the market much like Ford's Active Park Assists is nice to have but how can new drivers become good drivers if they always drive a car that parks itself? What will happen when they try to park in a car that doesnt do that itself? People have been using saws without SawStop for years and most have been successful with their tools. I agree with author Everett Snyder when he stated "I'd rather just have a big sticker that says "Follow the instructions, moron, or you're likely to lose some fingers!"
The idea of saving lives and limbs is very appealing to me. The SawStop is a tool of the future and in time I expect to see it in every shop. This does not mean however, that there should be a bill forcing a single company's product down our throats. This bill clearly favors this one company's product because the SawStop doesn't really have competition. I am interested to see how this goes, and I hope that another company begins to make a product like the SawStop. This would stop the monopoly that is going to form because of this bill, which would then keep us out of more trouble.
This bill is completely ridiculous. Californian legislature is once again leading the way in telling people what is good for them. This bill will not only create a monopoly on table saws, but will drive up the price of table saws, hurt businesses and consumers, and further compound California's debt and terrible unemployment. Further, it will eliminate entry level table saws. It's measures just like this that are sending businesses out of California to more commercial friendly states.
Where does government regulation end? California is making decisions for people that it really should have no claim to. Buying safer shop equipment should be a decision made by the consumer. Only they know what is appropriate, cost effective, and safe for their situation.
Lets not forget that SawStop does nothing to prevent table saw kickback, another potentially fatal possibility. Why are we not legislating mandatory kickback guards on all table saws? Why are we not banning miter saws and skilsaws because there is no SawStop for them?? Maybe because the Californian legislature has never seen a table saw, let alone used one safely..
I think this is a good law. I personally believe that all saws should be equipped with any and all safety mechanisms possible. I think their argument is a little ridiculous also. They are making extreme generalizations and talking about absurd hypothetical situations. I do however think that if this technology is being required, it should be available in some acceptable form for implementation in saws made by all companies, so that sawstop cannot have a monopoly on the market. That being said, the author also makes mention of the possible “future of saws” with sawstop like features on miter saws and band saws, and I think this is a wonderful idea. I don’t know why anyone would turn down the option to make their shop safer.
Having the government mandate a safety precaution on a shop tool has positive and negative connotations. It means that that the government is actually concerned with the safety in shops, however it also feels like it is babying us. There should be no reason that a shop doesn't have a SawStop, however, forcing a shop to have one can affect a shop's building methods and can also be seen as a monopoly over the market.
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