Cancelling Halloween

[Amora]

I received a letter from the principle of my daughters school saying that there will be no Halloween activities as there were last year. No one is to wear a costume and there will be no parade. Luckily my childs teacher is allowing everyone to decorate a pumpkin and bring in candy to share. The reasons for the change were as follows... no parade to avoid the children all grouped together in fear of a terrorist attack. And no costumes as to not disrupt the religious beliefs of some.

Now I can understand not wanting to group the kids all together, but aren't they like that for say lunch and recess anyway? And it seems there are some religious fanatics who were not allowing their children to attend school on Halloween due to the "evil" of the holiday. That annoys me that my child can't celebrate in a public school due to these jerks...

[witchywench]

I understand the disappointment and the safety issuse but what's this intolerance all about?

Why can't people live and let live - fine keep them away from 'evil'
holiday but don't ruin it for others!!!!!


With regards to your children they must feels dissappointed, my school (I work in one!) don't do anything either, just give them more fun stuff at home (if you can possibly fit more in) they will thank you for it!!:thumbsup:

[Merrie]

That's so silly! I mean, rediculous. The children are grouped together in one place all the time, in the same building even....is it considered unsafe to be outside in groups now? Sheesh.
As for the evilness of the holiday, some people are just odd about it. I go to a tiny private catholic school...and we're having a halloween dance this saturday. See? Not evil. Now why do people have to go and take things the wrong way??? If my school is ok with it...

[Xander67]

wait a minute, I thought the President was trying to encourage us all to get back to normalcy, this type of action is just what they want us to do, what's next, cancelling Christmas and yule........I am appalled at this....I think you should forward the letter to the press, say CNN....... let them see how they are going on with thier lives.......

I agree with the gathering together part, but that is just an excuse...
they should be ashamed of themselves....

[talamh]

Well, frankly, i could do without the pictures of witches smashed into telephone poles and walls and chimneys and such..... but i don't suppose a school princople would see that as a hate crime or disrespectful of my spirituality...... No.. i think cancelling Hallowe'en fun for the kids is just fanatical Christians exploiting a national tragedy to throw their weight around wrapped up in the disguise of "security precautions"....

You know.. there are some who think all the extrodinary powers that are being given to the police and government right now are a similar cover up....... interesting that there is no time limit being put on the infringements and restrictions to so many rights and freedoms.

Does anyone remember that income tax was a temporary measure brought in during the First World War?? bb talamh

[Danustouch]

LOL..those witch things bother you? I find glee in them..for this reason, and this reason only:

When was the last time you met a witch with green skin, warts, and orange hair?? LOL...i don't associate them with my religion. Since all that is a myth cooked up by Religious Groups of the Day, to persecute women, witches, and any religions contrary to their own. Soooooooo...when I see those "smashed witches"...i think of it as smashing the false image of witches. So..I take a certain perverse delight in it..."smashing the false myths of witchcraft"..heheheh:)

Besides..those "smashed" witches, might have been drunk broom riders...heheheh.

[pinguino]

:ahhhh:
CANCEL HALLOWEEN!!!!!!
BLASTPHOMY!!!!!!!!!

[pinguino]

Originally posted by talamh anEiac
[...... No.. i think cancelling Hallowe'en fun for the kids is just fanatical Christians exploiting a national tragedy to throw their weight around wrapped up in the disguise of "security precautions"

Come on! :rolleyes: You honestly think that there's a group of fanatical Christians pulling strings around the country? Everyone that can think for themseves views these people the same as any other fundie extremeists........and take them about as seriously.

Halloween is fun. That's what people want it for...... kids love it. I see people of all religions having fun at Halloween-- So what if it has the most obvious pagan roots to it. The point is not to take it so seriously and enjoy. Just have the sense to be careful.

[Semele]

They may take away our costumes...but they'll never take away our freedom!!!

or caramel apples or popcorn balls or jackolantern fun.

;)

I actually like the lil witches....my mom has one and Trey loves her!

[Myst]

:rolleyes: To me Halloween is and has always been a fun holiday for candy getting, pumpkin carving, and costume wearing.

And I love the smashed witch toys and so on; they're so much fun.

People are scared in light of recent happenings. We can say "oh that's stupid, Halloween is not evil" but guess what, we know that. Other people aren't Pagan or even know that there are such things as Pagans out there. You say witch and they think hag or Satan worshipper. They're ignorant, but so what? Have 10x as much Halloween fun at home then. Explain to your kids that some people don't know that Halloween is a fun time, not a time to be scared, and that with what happened recently even adults have been scared to go back to normal ways.

They can take away celebrating it at school but they can never take away the fun of Halloween.

[Ball-Bhreac Ròn]

Yeh, I agree with Danustouch, I think that the witchy thingys and our religions are totally sperate things. Like Sabrina. I don't watch it, but I'm not aginst it, because to me it seems to be a complely diffjerent subject heh :)

Sorry about all the mistakes, i have a guitare under my arm and i can't be bothyered to move it heheeeee...hard to write!

[GoddessofWisdom]

Well your argument seems to be that it's stupid to not let the children have fun. OK have fun at home. What is stupid is to say to those children who's parents do not want them to celebrate "you have to sit in the room and watch all of the other kids have fun."

I don't think that a child should have to watch other children partake in the fun of a halloween party while they cannot. That is cruel.

[aquasapien]

That really bites. I'm glad it is not happening on a large scale

[Adrenaline Junkie]

CCCC'MMMMMOOOOOOOOOOOONNNNNNNNNNN.

Thats just idiotic. I bet when Christmas flies around there will be weeks of activities!

[pinguino]

Why didn't we cancel Columbus Day?!
.......come to think of it... why were the banks closed!! the filty rats! i DEMAND 24 HOUR TELLER SERVICE!!!!!!!:meanface:

[Laiste]

That's too bad. The children always have to suffer because of the adults!!! Just have double the fun at home!!

Oh Danu..."drunk broom riders" ROTF...LMAO...hey that's a great idea for a Halloween costume hehehehehe:p

[Xander67]

IM with Penguin.......24 hour tellers would get my vote...

Just like PURPLE DID!

Let em try to cancell halloween in my town LOL *grins

[kittiepoetrygod]

My moms not letting the youngens go out :( ... but i guess right now its for the best. However, I've dancing all night with my halloween party, my friends halloween parties, and the Samhain ritual later. Its our fave. holiday, after all, and that calls for cake. Lots of cake.

Just to be helpful, why don't you ask them if your kids could wear costumes anyway? I don't know how a group of kids dressed as power-rangers could be considered evil. ; )

[reanna]

Our school has pretty much the same guidlines(if you want to call them that) They don't want the children wearing their costumes to school because they might get wrecked and the school can not be held accountable, they don't like them having halloween parties either because the school says that thechildren get enough festivities on Hallow's eve itself. Most of the time the children don't even get to go to the pumpkin patch becuase there have been so many budget cutbacks that the funding isn't there for transport costs and we parents are not always allowed to drive. My personal opinion on all of thier reasons outlined above....
they are cop outs. However, I try to do as much as possible with my 2 own children and some of thier freinds that they don't generally get too bummed out about the school's lack of attention to this occassion.
I remember what it was like at Halloween when I was in school. We wore our costumes and none got wrecked, having a class party didn't freak us out on a sugar high for days, and we ALWAYS went to the pumpkin patch and that are the most memorable times from my childhood. In my opinion, if the school is so worried about dealing with the kids on a sugar high....why is it they never think to plan a Pro-D day for Nov the 1st? That is when I as a teacher feel the crunch of those highly active children from the night before of their merriment. :D:D:D

I will continue to make this holiday special for my children all the rest of their lives......I hope to pass on this tradition right down to my great-great grandchildren.....after all.......Halloween is the time of year when you can be who you want to be and even us adults can have loads of fun like when we were children.

I hope that our future generations will take Halloween back for their children. I encourage mine to do so. JMTC :):):):)

Happy Halloween to everyone!

[kittiepoetrygod]

:RuNew: Happy Halloween!

[Lavender]

Reanna, we'll see you at the pumpkin patch! Good for you!

Amoura, can your kids still go out trick-or-treating? I remember one year when the school had sent out notices "encouraging" parents not to let their kids go trick-or-treating because there was a child molestor loose. The kids still went out but I've never seen so many parents out there on halloween before! :) They may be able to ban school-sponsored activities but they can't stop trick-or-treating from happening. :D

[Earth Walker]

And unfortunately, there are sickos out there who give
doctored treats to kids....so please be careful!:)

[Myst]

Originally posted by Mystique
And unfortunately, there are sickos out there who give
doctored treats to kids....so please be careful!:)

That's what makes me laugh. Little kids who go trick or treating are participating in evil activities, but some people think it's ok to "smarten them up" by leaving razorblades in apples etc. :rolleyes:

[Twilight Garden]

When I was young, we got to wear our costumes to school, go trick or treating (in our neighborhood only) without mom and dad, eat the candy without taking it to the emergency room for x-rays, etc... Wow, to be a kid today...!

At School:
The parents who didn't want their kids to celebrate the holiday didn't let the kids dress up for school. Just like certain religious parents who don't want their child to say the pledge of allegiance: the school still says it, the child doesn't.

[Swanspirit]

Halloween ...... is one of the biggest holiday celebrations of the year ...... very close to easter and christmas.........and adults and children absolutely love it..............
Dressing UP and wearing masks and costumes is such a connection with our ancient past.......
that many many people participate for the underlying psychological reasons and arent even conscious of the real reasons which go beyond even the release aspect of celebrating to the deeper reasons that we pagans consciously celebrate........... honoring our ancestors......
feeling the thinning of the veil and the changing of the seasons........ and confronting our masks and inner beings .......
I dont think Halloween is going to go away anytime soon ............ there may be pockets of protest........ I live in one ........
In my "exclusive single family swamp devolpment" they have once again forbidden the kids from going trick or treating in the neighborhood ....for safety reasons ..... which I think is SO UNFAIR.. and it is probably unconstitutional as well........
The kids play in our neighborhood all year long ..... and then for one night all of a sudden it is unsafe???WHY dont they lower the speed limit or block off traffic instead..... inconvenience the ADULTS for a change......
they do provide a place to have a party ...... but to me it isnt the same as trick or treating ......Ahhwell at least they havent cancelled Halloween........and I dont think they can......
Trick or Treat
Swannie

[Amora]

The town I live in does not allow trick or treating either. The houses are pretty far apart so they think it's unsafe, and I can agree with that. But fortunately the town up the road does have trick or teating and some really cool haunted houses. So, we're lucky in that sense. But as far as school cancelling activities, that really annoys me. :razz:

[GoddessofWisdom]

Originally posted by pinguino
Why didn't we cancel Columbus Day?!
.......come to think of it... why were the banks closed!! the filty rats! i DEMAND 24 HOUR TELLER SERVICE!!!!!!!:meanface:

My bank was open and my daughter had school on Columbus day though all the other schools in my area were closed. :\

[stormyray]

One thing I havent heard disscused anywhere is the fear of all the anthrax cases how hard wold it be to put that on some candy rappers and passing out?not hard at all I mean we have sickos that like to put razor blades in stuff why not a virus. This is going to be a hard year for this and am scared for all of us.my kids are only going to the school for the carnivle they are going to have massive protection for the kids.
I belive the terroist are after the heart of america and that is our kids.

[Illuminatus]

Originally posted by Amora
I received a letter from the principle of my daughters school saying that there will be no Halloween activities as there were last year. No one is to wear a costume and there will be no parade. Luckily my childs teacher is allowing everyone to decorate a pumpkin and bring in candy to share. The reasons for the change were as follows... no parade to avoid the children all grouped together in fear of a terrorist attack. And no costumes as to not disrupt the religious beliefs of some.

Now I can understand not wanting to group the kids all together, but aren't they like that for say lunch and recess anyway? And it seems there are some religious fanatics who were not allowing their children to attend school on Halloween due to the "evil" of the holiday. That annoys me that my child can't celebrate in a public school due to these jerks...

I hate people like this.

It's all well and good if you want to cancell YOUR vacation and YOUR parades and go hide in YOUR basement. You can make yourself a victim all you want, it's fine with me.

It's when these people end up in authority positions, and decide it's their job to make EVERYONE victims.

- Ill

[Illuminatus]

On a side note, Halloween is definitely on in Long Branch NJ. Head up to the Avenel Av. Beach on the 27th and you just might see a cabal of worshippers performing a ritual of some sort above the crashing waves of mother ocean...

[Lilu]

Well I think that's pretty sad.

I'd just remember this and remind them of it when they want to celebrate Christmas, and Easter. And I would protest it, after all, if you're going to cancel one holiday, you may as well cancel them all.

BB
Lilu

[Swanspirit]

IN my "neighborhood" I am sure they wont cancel Christmas Caroling.....door to door........
although I might have to give them my leftover Halloween candy as a treat LOL
Just a thought........
and the other thing ........ BOY I wished I didnt work evenings sometimes so I could attend some of these meetings......( although the Goddess is probably protecting me for my own good LOL) the kids ARE allowed to canvas the neighborhoods with EVERY candy sale Christmas wrap benefit Scout Cookies etc etc so HOW is that different than allowing Trick or Treating ........ for a couple of nights.........
I wished I lived in a neighborhood that went all out like the one I grew up in.......... where the woman who had the house at the end of the street made a GIANT CAULDRON of hot chocolate to warm the tootsies of any chilled trick or treater .... where my brother used to change costumes and go out again to get the homemade caramel popcorn balls from the lady across the street...... awww we had SO much fun........... PARTY POOOOOOPERS even worse KIDS PARTY POOOOOOPERS
cheeesh
Swannie

[Mairwen]

Originally posted by Illuminatus
It's when these people end up in authority positions, and decide it's their job to make EVERYONE victims.- Ill

I can't believe I'm saying this, but ....



YOU GO, ILLUM!!

[Illuminatus]

Originally posted by Mairwen


I can't believe I'm saying this, but ....



YOU GO, ILLUM!!


WORD!

[pinguino]

Originally posted by GoddessofWisdom


My bank was open and my daughter had school on Columbus day though all the other schools in my area were closed. :\

As it should be. The heck with Columbus!, if he didn't get here (or near here as the case may be) someone else would have. It was just a matter of time.