Hello readers,
Being 10 hours ahead of the Pacific North West and seeing as the holiday falls on a weekday this year…..this posting may be late or moot. But continue forth I shall.
I remember Halloween as a child being a fun time to dress up and go out and collect candy and treats, or to play a trick on unsuspecting friend. Of course, as I grew, putting on costumes became no less fun although instead of collecting candy, I reversed the roll and handed out candies to youngsters.
One thing that put a damper on festivities was the worry that the candy may have been tampered with….or even poisoned. The following passages are culled from Wikipedia and are related to just that..
The first event took place in 1964, where an annoyed Long Island, New York housewife started giving out packages of inedible objects to children whom she believed were too old to be trick-or-treating. The packages contained items such as steel wool, dog biscuits, and antbuttons (which were clearly labeled with the word ”poison”). Though nobody was injured, she was prosecuted and pleaded guilty to endangering children. The same year saw reports of lye-filled bubble gum being handed out in Detroit and rat poison being given in Philadelphia.[2]
In 2008, candy was found with metal shavings and metal blades embedded in it. The candy was Pokémon Valentine's Day lollipops purchased from a Dollar General store in Polk County, Florida. The candy was determined to have been manufactured in China and not tampered with within the United States. The lollipops were pulled from the shelves after a mother reported a blade in her child's lollipop and after several more lollipops with metal shavings in them were confiscated from a local elementary school.[4]
In 1970, a 5-year-old boy from the Detroit area found and ate heroin his uncle had stashed. The boy died following a four day coma. The family attempted to protect the uncle by claiming the drug had been sprinkled in the child's Halloween candy.
In a 1974 case, Timothy O'Bryan, an 8-year-old boy from Pasadena, Texas, died after eating a cyanide-laced package of Pixy Stix. A subsequent police investigation eventually determined that the poisoned candy had been planted in his trick-or-treat pile by the boy's father, Ronald Clark O'Bryan, who also gave out poisoned candy to other children in an attempt to cover up the murder. The murderer, who had wanted to claim life insurance money, was executed in 1984.[7]
By 1985, the media had driven the hysteria about candy poisonings to such a point that an ABC News/Washington Post poll that found 60% of parents feared that their children would be injured or killed because of Halloween candy sabotage.
Advice columnists entered the fray during the 1980s and 1990s with both Ann Landers andDear Abby warning parents of the horrors of candy tampering.
"In recent years, there have been reports of people with twisted minds putting razor blades and poison in taffy apples and Halloween candy. It is no longer safe to let your child eat treats that come from strangers." –Ann Landers[8]
"Somebody's child will become violently ill or die after eating poisoned candy or an apple containing a razor blade." –Dear Abby[9]
This collective fear also served as the impetus for the "safe" trick-or-treating offered by many local malls.[citation needed]
I suppose the main point of this posting today is not to scare, but to let parents and kids know that they should be vigilant. I remember having my parents check my horde of goodies as I ensure the candies I hand out are purchased from a reputable company ( not from street vendors….if there is such a thing ). Especially during tough times. We have already seen events unfold in the U.S. and other countries, as folks buckle under the pressure of some form of worry. So….with that, be careful, have fun and enjoy a spooky yet safe Halloween!!
Trevor M Dodge
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