what you think of halloween?

[adam7485]

. ok. halloween can be a fantastic time for all people kids and everyone, but am i the only person to think it brings the worst out of people? 2019 before covid i got a taxi to a local pub who were having a halloween party and we almost had a nasty accident as some kids threw something in front of the car. how we didn't have an accident was probably more luck than judgement. to think that a good celebration and fun has become tainted by the actions of a certain group of people?

@shouldistop

You can’t see how it would be intimidating for someone vulnerable living home alone getting their door chapped every few minutes ? As I said my own elderly neighbour sits in the dark so people don’t think she is in. If everyone only visited houses that were decorated it wouldn’t be a problem. I don’t decorate and always have kids at my door . I wouldn’t not answer and my kids love giving out sweets to them. But it’s not fair for those who don’t want to take part.

People obviously aren't doing Halloween 'right' in your area then.
Children and teenagers here only knock on decorated homes. They have their costume admired, tell a joke or a poem, get their handful of sweets and off they go.
As someone else said, not the fault of Halloween.
Anyway I was laughing at someone calling the words 'trick or treat' intimidating, seems an overreach.

This is exactly the point. On Halloween society has made it acceptable to threaten others with tricks.
People may adhere to unwritten Halloween dos & don'ts but that is not universal.

I've never once had an intimidating bunch at the door. Ever. Sometimes I have had teens at the door and you wonder how they can get away with it without their mates taking the mick but they've always been very sweet and and, unlike the little ones, you have to keep telling them to take a proper handful of sweets and not just one or two mini mars bars from the top.

I’m not saying people are intimidating when you answer . I’m saying that groups of people chapping your door in the pitch black every few minutes is intimidating to some.

Then the community needs to step up and organize it more themselves, not just rely on tweets from the police.
Set some guidelines, and get some volunteers to get them adhered to.

I am surprised that older people in Scotland are scared by Halloween, when I was growing up they were chief among the group dishing out stuff to kids and joining in.

@ducksalive

Then the community needs to step up and organize it more themselves, not just rely on tweets from the police. Set some guidelines, and get some volunteers to get them adhered to.

I am surprised that older people in Scotland are scared by Halloween, when I was growing up they were chief among the group dishing out stuff to kids and joining in.

I don’t think the community needs to do anything. Why should others without kids have to patrol the streets to stop people going to others doors. That’s down to the parents to supervise.

I also never said anyone was scared of Halloween. I said intimidated by groups chapping on their door all night in the pitch black while they are home alone .

This thread has inspired me to get out all my plastic tat decorations and Halloween-up the house!

It is usually people with kids who supervise kid related activities in my experience.
My point is that Halloween has been going for decades in Scotland, longer than that even. I am therefore surprised that anyone is intimidated by it. However if it has changed in its nature and become a problem then I don't see why the community can't address that rather than expecting the police or someone else to do so.
The community includes plenty of parents.
Just moaning about it won't change anything.

Same as Christmas and Easter. Completely Americanised, devoid of all original meaning and just full of plastic toys and too many sweets that parents feel obliged to buy their demanding children.

Same as Christmas and Easter. Completely Americanised, devoid of all original meaning and just full of plastic toys and too many sweets that parents feel obliged to buy their demanding children.

😂

Bingo players, I think we have a winner.

Not totally perfect, because they could have shoe horned in a mention of 'food waste', but a very decent effort. Congratulations.

We love it on our house. Kids are 13 and 11 now but we've got all the decorations up, carved the pumpkins and planning some activities/trips.

I’m not saying people are intimidating when you answer . I’m saying that groups of people chapping your door in the pitch black every few minutes is intimidating to some.
In our village it's not on to knock at a door without a lit pumpkin.

This is exactly the point. On Halloween society has made it acceptable to threaten others with tricks.

I've never heard anyone threaten anyone with a trick. Maybe it's a English thing.

On Halloween society has made it acceptable to threaten others with tricks.

How do you cope on April Fool's Day?

@bettyfloormop

This thread has inspired me to get out all my plastic tat decorations and Halloween-up the house!

My Halloween lights went up last weekend and tomorrow night we are putting all the garden decorations out.

@FourTeaFallOut

On Halloween society has made it acceptable to threaten others with tricks.

How do you cope on April Fool's Day?

Fine thanks (April fools day has never resulted in my windows being pelted with eggs).

@shouldistop

This is exactly the point. On Halloween society has made it acceptable to threaten others with tricks.

I've never heard anyone threaten anyone with a trick. Maybe it's a English thing.

No one's ever knocked on your door saying "trick or treat?"

No one's ever knocked on your door saying "trick or treat?"

Did this happen to you? Did someone say "trick or treat", walk away empty handed and then egg your house?

@FourTeaFallOut

No one's ever knocked on your door saying "trick or treat?"

Did this happen to you? Did someone say "trick or treat", walk away empty handed and then egg your house?

Not me but a close relative (who did not answer the door) yes. But that's ok on Halloween right, as no treat = a trick...

No, it's not alright. Only shits egg houses, usually on mischief night. Nobody who likes Halloween, who decorates their house, who takes children guising, who hands out sweets, thinks egging houses is ok.

As a pagan, it’s a genuine religious festival rather than the commercial, capitalist fest it’s become….but we still partake in that side of things as well as having a traditional Samhain bonfire and welcome the dead. I decorate my house both inside and out - I do go a bit nuts with it
This year, we’ll be having a child-friendly Halloween party with Apple bobbing, costumes, party games etc in the afternoon, then lighting our Samhain fire and opening our circle in the evening once the DCs have gone to bed.
It’s the same as everything: there’s always the small few who have to act like dickheads and ruin it for others.

@FourTeaFallOut

No, it's not alright. Only shits egg houses, usually on mischief night. Nobody who likes Halloween, who decorates their house, who takes children guising, who hands out sweets, thinks egging houses is ok.

My point is that normalising "trick or treat" may be fine for supervised young kids who don't know what it means and can't act on the trick part, but some kids (not all) can grow into hormone fuelled teenagers who take that normalised concept to its natural conclusion. I have no objection to Halloween at all, or for kids asking willing donors for sweets, other than the veiled threat contained in the "trick or treat" concept.

Well, I think this is a bit earnest. I've never seen, in 42 years, anyone Halloweening and then egg someone for not having sweets. I'm sure it has happened somewhere to someone but this idea that children are being led to egging houses as teens because they used the phrase trick or treat literally is pure fantasy.

Well, I think this is a bit earnest. I've never seen, in 42 years, anyone Halloweening and then egg someone for not having sweets. I'm sure it has happened somewhere to someone but this idea that children are being led to egging houses as teens because they used the phrase trick or treat literally is pure fantasy.

Exactly

I hate how it's grown and grown - houses decked out with masses of stuff from 1st October until into November, tonnes of plastic shite bought and then shunted into landfill, mountains of sugar bought and consumed, parents feeling obliged to spend - every year - money on new outfits, etc. This bothers me more than kids roaming the streets begging for sweets and in some cases, cash.