And at Halloween, nobody excesses like we Americans.
It’s an opportunity for adults to don costumes and extreme makeup, and pretend to be someone else for a night.
It’s an opportunity for kids to don costumes and maybe makeup, and pretend they won’t gorge themselves on candy throughout the night.
It’s an opportunity for Americans to spend almost $9 billion and make retailers very, very happy.
It’s Halloween.
At the risk of being a party pooper…
I think we could rethink the whole Halloween thing.
Not do away with it – I know Halloween is fun for a lot of people, and fun is a good thing.
But when I learned what Americans just spent on Halloween, it was so over-the-top, it stunned me:
Almost $9 billion.
For this:
And this:
And this:
And that $9 billion?
That’s more than twice what we gave to charities in 2018:
And the number of charities that are closing is increasing – from 2017 to 2018, charity closures increased by 27%.
Yes, there are a number of reasons why charities close – perhaps their mission was accomplished, or they became outdated, or they did something illegal.
But when a homeless shelter, or a battered women’s shelter, or an animal shelter closes due to lack of funding…
I find that very sad.
No, I’m not suggesting we cancel Halloween, take that $9 billion and give it all to charity.
But maybe next year, just maybe, we could do just one thing differently.
Just one.
Maybe next year, instead of spending that entire $2.6 billion on candy, what if we did something good for our communities, and then handed out these cards to the trick-or-treaters?
Before you thumbs-down the idea, stop and think:
Are parents going to get angry because you didn’t:
- Contribute to their kids’ sugar rush?
- Contribute to their kids’ potential dental problems?
- Contribute to their kids’ potential weight issues?
I think not.
And if the trick-or-treaters get mad because you gave to a charity on their behalf…
Perhaps the parents will have the “Priorities” talk with their kids.
While we’re at it, why not one of these as a stocking stuffer?
Why not?
And who knows?
Maybe you’ll start something that spreads.
Maybe you’ll be a trend setter.
I Hate Houseguests 