#OccupyHALLOWEEN?

This is the sign we left on our door last night, while out Trick or Treating for UNICEF:

I left a ridiculously long comment on the last post, trying to fill in the background on the cancellation of Halloween here in our village, which probably deserves to be in a post, so I'm going to copy it here:

We got snow on Saturday, that is largely melted away. Because the trees are still in leaf here, and it was heavy wet snow, we had a lot of limbs, and some whole trees, down from the weight of the accumulated snow. There were still some blocks with trees down that had not been cleared away, or low hanging wires, and one closed off street with an electrical line down. Some homes are still without power, and a few streets do not have street lights.

But they gave us all a comprehensive list of the problem spots. And they *didn't close the roads*. Apparently, we were free to drive or walk around on these horribly dangerous byways for any purpose, so long as it *wasn't* trick or treating. All the stores are open, and people were otherwise out and about. It's hypocritical of them to cancel just the holiday but not tell people to simply stay off the streets. If they are dangerous, they are dangerous for all purposes.

They managed to put a damper on things, but they didn't succeed in killing the celebration entirely. Families did go out, but not as many as usual, and there were folks handing out candy even at some of the blacked out houses. People carried lanterns and flashlights, and kept their kids close, and carried on. So far as I know, nobody had any problems due to the "unsafe conditions of the roads". Most people were on the sidewalks, not driving around.

There are comments on the news outlet about how this was "the only thing the village could do", but that is belied by the fact that other local communities just warned people of the dangers and let them do their thing, without announcing that the holiday was canceled (and would be rescheduled by government fiat!).

And of course, there are the typical comments about how we should care more about those with no power than not being able to dress up and party, as if the two are mutually exclusive. We had no power for a while. There have been past instances when we were out for 4 days in the dead of winter, and it is miserable to go through, but I didn't expect the village to cancel Christmas or any other holiday because *I* couldn't participate. I am sure the people whose houses are dark didn't expect to become the justification for the Grinches Who Stole Halloween either. Life goes on, and IMHO, when you have nothing to do but sit in the dark, distractions are welcome!

I hate the "people are starving in [insert third world country here], shut up and eat your peas" type attempts at silencing people, and being *told* what I should care about.

BOO to the government and the baa-ing sheep who blindly support its edicts, no matter how ill considered. Hurray for happy rebels who know how to protest government stupidity, in all its manifold forms, from the petty to the tryannical.