Years and years I hear people or groups make this claim when the facts that certain malefactors have changed the way society does things. Example, Halloween, when I was a kid, we would go out alone at a certain age without parents in tow and no one worried. Also I remember getting (but not liking them much at the time) candied apples, fudge, gooey peanut butter cookies, etc. things you would never consider eating these days because of how scoundrels of the past sabotage candy, fruit, etc. Some might be too young to remember the height of it when you were encourage to take your Halloween booty to the fire station for inspection to make sure it was safe. Christmas has changed, when I was a kid only the lowest of Scrooges would steal holiday displays from their neighbor and today if you have some fancy inflatable you best place a 24hr guard on them or secure them with anchor chain. You can’t leave presents visible in your vehicle or some idiot will break your glass and purloin your Christmas goodies. In some ways people are discourage from leaving their gifts under the tree neatly displayed in front of the large picture window (well, with many homes alarmed to the teeth, that might be easing). I knew people slightly older, who were teens in the hippie era of the 60s speak about hitchhiking all over the US, good luck with that today, the hitchhikers are as distrustful of the drivers as the drivers are of the hitchhikers, each one believing the other will leave their decaying carcass in some ravine hidden in the hills. Things that used to be done without much concern are not done now, or done with extreme prejudice, why? Because of what reprobates of the past have done, and they did change business as usual. Those who think they haven’t (providing they know what the changes are), are they in denial because they don’t want to admit the malefactors gained some points, or are they in a blissful naiveté?

Topics: Christmas, Halloween, past, denial, suspicion, criminal activity, shift in thinking, malefactors