Since it’s Halloween it’s worth pointing out that the old stories about poisoned Halloween candy or razor blades in apples were nothing more than urban legends. When I was a kid the poison candy scare was a big deal. A police woman came to my elementary school to talk to us about it. It was on the news every year. We heard stories about people putting razor blades in apples - this was seen in Halloween part II. The news media never bothered to research their stories (ie do their jobs), and nobody ever bothered to retract their stories (ie be resonsible). I guess that's why I'm posting this diary - to get the word out that this was all a big scam. Of course the evangelicals would love to have you believe this stuff happens all the time, because they actually do have a war on Halloween. Unlike the mythical war in Christmas, this one is real. Please recommend this and spread the word, not for me, but for Halloween. Thank you.
http://en.wikipedia.org/...
http://www.snopes.com/...
The poisoned candy scare was a moral panic in the United States during the 1970s and 1980s regarding the threat that children could be in danger of ingesting razor blades, needles, or poison introduced to candy by tampering, especially during traditional Halloween trick-or-treating. Apart from one incident—actually an act of premeditated murder by a trick-or-treater's father—there have been no recorded incidents of deliberately poisoned candy during Halloween or any similar occasion.
Origins of candy tampering
Although the origin of the candy tampering myth is uncertain, there are two events in particular that no doubt played a large role in how the crisis was shaped within the public's mind.
The first event took place in 1964, where an annoyed 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 ant buttons (which were clearly labeled with the word "poison"). Though nobody was injured, she was prosecuted and pleaded guilty to endangering children.
The second milestone in the spread of the candy tampering myths was an article published in the New York Times in 1970. This article claimed that "Those Halloween goodies that children collect this weekend on their rounds of ‘trick or treating’ may bring them more horror than happiness." (28 Oct 1970, p. 56). The article then went on to give specific examples of potential tamperings.
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 both a mother reported a blade in her child's lollipop and several more lollipops with metal shavings in them were confiscated from a local elementary school.[2]
[edit] Canada
In 2008, some cold medicine was discovered in cases of Smarties where the candies are handed out to the children.[3]
[edit] Contemporary legends and reality
Over the years various experts have tried to debunk the various candy tampering stories. Among this group is Joel Best, a University of Delaware sociologist who specializes in candy tampering. In his studies he researched newspapers from 1958 on in search of candy tampering. Of these stories fewer than 90 instances might have qualified.
Upon closer examination nearly all of these claims were false or hoaxes created by the child. Within the reports of candy tampering Best has only found five child deaths that were initially thought to be caused by homicidal strangers.
In 1970, a 5-year-old boy, Kevin Tosten, from the Detroit area, died after eating his uncle's hidden heroin stash. The family tried to protect the uncle by creating a story about drugs being found in the child's Halloween candy.
In a 1974 case, 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, 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.[4]
[edit] Media and the myth
Despite the falseness of these claims the news media promoted the story continuously throughout the 1980s, with local news stations featuring frequent coverage. During this time cases of poisoning were repeatedly reported based on unsubstantiated claims or before a full investigation could be completed and often never followed up on. This one sided coverage contributed to the overall panic and caused rival media outlets to issue reports of candy tampering as well.
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 and Dear 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[citation needed]
"Somebody's child will become violently ill or die after eating poisoned candy or an apple containing a razor blade." –Dear Abby[citation needed]
This collective fear also served as the impetus for the "safe" trick-or-treating offered by many local malls.
There’s a great idea! Let’s celebrate Halloween in the fucking mall! Why don’t we start celebrating Christmas and Thanksgiving in the mall too! There is no war on Christmas, but there is a war on Halloween.
I suppose I conflated two different problems, incompetent media and evangelicals, but they both serve to undermine one of our greatest holidays. I also didn't point out some of the evangelical attacks on Halloween because I wanted to focus on the poison candy myth. For some examples of evangelicals attacking Halloween check out the Chick Tracks below. Unfortunately I couldn't find the one where they claim witches cast spells on Halloween candy.
http://www.chick.com/...
http://www.chick.com/...
http://www.chick.com/...