Chester Bowles and his OPA were under fire last week. Retail merchants, after scanning the list of 1000-odd consumer luxury items released from price controls, decided that OPA’s mountainous labors had brought forth a mouse or two.
Sporting-goods dealers discovered that: 1) “all baseball equipment” was removed from price controls, except balls, mitts, gloves, bats, apparel and shoes; 2) “all tennis equipment” except rackets, balls, apparel and shoes; 3) “all football equipment” except apparel, shoes, helmets, pads and footballs.
Nor were furniture retailers impressed by the OPA list which lifted the ceilings on “rugs, the weaving surface of which is made wholly from animal skins”; “furniture made entirely of glass”; “spinning wheels.”
More Must-Reads from TIME
- The New Face of Doctor Who
- Putin’s Enemies Are Struggling to Unite
- Women Say They Were Pressured Into Long-Term Birth Control
- Scientists Are Finding Out Just How Toxic Your Stuff Is
- Boredom Makes Us Human
- John Mulaney Has What Late Night Needs
- The 100 Most Influential People of 2024
- Want Weekly Recs on What to Watch, Read, and More? Sign Up for Worth Your Time
Contact us at letters@time.com