No Treats for Anyone!

I found myself confused by the news today that in many northeastern areas tonight trick-or-treating has been canceled. I’m not confused with regard to why they did it. There was some nasty winter weather in that area this past weekend and it would seem reasonable to encourage people to stay home. But, what exactly will it be like out there later today and what is the capacity of the citizens there to deal with inclement weather? It’s easy as a resident of a city with 350 or so days of sunshine a year to flinch but it’s doubtful that people in Connecticut are all that shocked and unprepared by snow in late October. The second question that comes to mind is, exactly how can trick-or-treating be canceled? Was candy ordered off the shelf of the local drugstore? Was it taken from non-procrastinators? Has it been deemed a misdemeanor to offer candy to random guests throughout the night? Is there effective manpower to ensure that no children are out soliciting treats? What about entirely contained apartment complexes? Are they disallowed for reasons of fairness even though the weather won’t affect anyone walking inside them? I know, this is silly but I can’t help myself. I just can’t help myself from imagining the machinations of such a ban. Given the recent stories of lemonade stands being taken out I don’t think we can limit ourselves imagining the overreactions of nanny-stators when it comes to an easy target. So long as they can claim their crusades being in the name of safety.