That isn’t a complete liberal hoax...like most things, a drop isn’t going to kill you immediately, and you can’t freely ingest it in unlimited quantities with no effect.
I have a degree in Chemistry, so I know that the vapor pressure of mercury is reasonably low, and mercury that has vaporized into a contained equilibrium can exceed toxic levels.
You re correct, though...in normal contact, in a room with even minimal ventilation or a breeze, the amount of mercury liberals would make people put on environmental suits for is just nutty. However, in a space where even someone walking by would create enough of a breeze to prevent achieving equilibrium and resulting toxicity.
Your point is well taken, though. You want to laugh when you read about the liberal (bureaucratic) approach to this, if someone breaks a thermometer and such...
Well, in this state, the RATs virtually banned incandescent bulbs and replaced them with the highly toxic mercury-vapor gas-discharge bulb, which when burned out, is considered a hazardous waste.
Remember! Dispose of properly. (mail them to a RAT legislator)