Each year in the paper, there is an article about the dentist who gives children money in trade for the Halloween candy that they have collected.
I have worked in retail for years, and have seen the elderly - as well as others having a hard time financially - count out what money they do have available to buy candy so as not to disappoint the children when they come to trick or treat.
How would they feel if they knew that the candy they work so hard to buy is thrown away?
What kind of parent would encourage their children to go out and get as much candy as they can so that they can turn it in for cash?
Why don't the parents and the dentist just offer children cash instead of going trick-or-treating? At least then, those nice folks who hand out the treats wouldn't be throwing away their hard-earned money by giving treats to children who don't appreciate it.
Cathie Beard, Philomath
I find the comments on this thread to be very bizarre. You could psychoanalyze people based on them. Jules and Willpower think that the tricks of trick-or-treating are all vandalism?
ReplyDeleteI remember one year that we were regaled by a group of pre-teens playing a song on their band instruments in exchange for their treats. My husband and I were impressed with this and it left a smile on our faces for a long time. We still reminisce about it!
And I agree with the letter-writer. Dentists need to get a life if they are buying kids' Halloween candy. What we do is ration the candy (there is always some that gets tossed because it gets old). Oh, and one other thing: have them brush their teeth.
Well, to be fair, I guess, the trick was traditionally an act of vandalism. But does that follow anymore? I never knew when I was a kid that it was a threat to do mischief. We just thought trick-or-treat was asking for candy and never knew the trick part. My bad, I guess.
ReplyDeleteI wonder what the rate is, could the kid buy a greater amount of candy with it?
ReplyDeleteI have a solution... I say don't buy the candy if you can't afford it. Add to that if you can't afford it and cannot hand it out then turn off your porch light and hope for next year!
ReplyDeleteMy dental hygenist friend said the rate is $2.50 a pound. This would change the whole trick-or-treat game...instead of wanting the tastiest treats, the kids will want the heaviest! I think the candy bars packed with peanuts would probably win out.
ReplyDeleteThat doesn't sound very cost effective.
ReplyDeleteTo most kids the prospect of visiting the dentist is far more frightening than Halloween. And if you think that's scary, wait'll you see their bill! (Ba dum bum)
He, he, he!
ReplyDeleteHow was the zombie maze, anyway?
It was great. It's a lot of fun to scare people.
ReplyDelete