Is Halloween dying?

[LCCajun]

I have to say imho America is losing tradition. I cannot for the life of my figure out why. Maybe it is just b/c ppl aren't as trust worthy as it use to be back in the day. I dunno know but it just feels like this is happening. To many ppl afraid to offend someone else's belief or to afraid of being sued.

[EskimoJoe]

I went out trick-or-treating, from what I saw there was a plethora of other kids in the neighborhood my little group 'hit'. I wore a 2005 Air Warrior flak vest with SAPI plates. The UH-60 Blackhawk Crewchiefs wore those. I got a lot of crap from people handing out candy.

'Aren't you too old for this?' My birthday was yesterday (the 30th), this is more than likely my last time for a few years.

'Where's your bag?'
'you don't have a BAG!?' I have cargo pockets, ma'am/sir

Those that did give some candy, I always replied "thank you sir/ma'am, happy halloween". They gave me funny looks. I ended up giving my (one) full cargo pocket of candy to one of my (girl)friends. I wouldn't particularly say Halloween is dying, though I have noticed less people seem to be willing to celebrate it (at least 40% of the houses were dark), and there seems to be as many 17+ year olds as there are younger kids.

Also, a note to myself, winter gloves don't work as well as holding my hands in between my flak and chest. Brrr

[stealth]

 Three years ago 576 kids, two years ago 23 kids and this year 254. Never ran out of candy once. These are accurate, just between 3 and 2 years ago I moved.

[Perrine]

Is Halloween dying?

actually... it's thriving!
it's thriving outside the western world

in some countries Halloween is actually displacing Dia del muerto (and pray to Jeesus) as the most important event.

I don't know it is in other western countries but Halloween is commercialized to death in US

[cpxxx]

Well Halloween originated here. It's a very old tradition so won't die out soon but it has changed. We imported a lot of the American style Halloween ideas. Trick or treat and pumpkins. We didn't have pumpkins when I was a kid. We had turnips. No, I'm not joking! Same idea, hollow it out and put in a candle. We kids didn't say 'Trick or treat' either. But 'Help the Halloween party' and we visited every house on the street collecting nuts and fruit. Rarely did we get sweets.

Some areas still have a lot of kids wandering around but where I live not there are quite few rented houses with no kids. The only visitors we had were my boys cousins. Their Father and I reminisced about when we were kids. He commented that we didn't have to be driven around from house to house.

Our other tradition of lighting bonfires and fireworks continued. Both are illegal without a permit. But that never stopped anyone. The fireworks are smuggled in from across the border where they are legal and the bonfires are build with military precison and timing usually by ten and twelve year old kids and lit very quickly before the authorities can react. Our other great tradition is the mini riots generated after the kids go home and are replaced by drunken teenagers and older. I remember watching once from my bedroom window  as the police arrived at a bonfire and baton charged without warning. It was quite a battle.

[katanaso]

The wife and I didn't have one knock at the door, and we live in a family neighborhood.  We also didn't see kids walking around.

Two friends, also in family neighborhoods, both said they had only 4 or 5 groups of kids come by throughout the evening.

We were trying to figure out why it dropped off so much in the last year for our areas, as we don't live in neighborhoods with foreclosures or many properties for sale.

This is in Broward County, Florida.

[Treize69]

This is in Broward County, Florida.

maybe because 70% of your fellow Floridians are already the walking dead?

[katanaso]

maybe because 70% of your fellow Floridians are already the walking dead?

That's towards the beaches and in the condos and retirement homes.

[Sonicblu]

Nasty tradition anyway. Who in there right mind would celebrate it.   Bone fires, Jack o lanterns used to be made out of ........fat to keep the evil spirits away.  I could go on and on....  82 world wide flood myths from different cultures around the world 62 mention this is the day when the spirits that died in the great flood come back to walk the earth.   Sounds like a load of manure to me.  But the things this cultures did to their kids and other humans is not worth celebrating.

[Simaril]

Depends...parents take their kids to places they think are safe....

This alone would explain why no child came to Dicho's house

[Dichotomy]

Just because a neighbor posted a video of my in my Halloween costume you have to throw me under the bus.  I mean, seriously, was it THAT bad?

[CAP1]

I didn't see any kids out and about trick or treating last night.  Is this tradition going by the wayside?

i see less and less every year. i also see less and less creativity in costumes every year.

 i think the closest to creativity i saw was 3 teenage girls dressed in such a manner as they would never have been allowed out of the house, had they been my daughters.

[321BAR]

Had plenty of six foot tall trick or treaters.

Teenagers shouldn't be trick or treating

with what the girls in my area wore to the party i was at and most likely all across the country? yes they should

P.S. unless theyre under 16-18...then god no. dont let them wear that...

[Simaril]

Remember reading somewhere that Halloween was one of the most celebrated holidays of all - but now mostly by adults. As in going to parties rather than trick or treating.