Biden, MPD, and Halloween

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Hey folks, 

Mateo here this morning. President Joe Biden came to visit rural Minnesota yesterday to kick off his “Investing in Rural America” tour, where he will be going around the country to discuss his investments of over $5 billion. A portion of that is supposed to go to “climate smart agriculture”. This visit comes shortly after Minnesota congressman Dean Phillips announced that he will run for president, though there is no correlation. This is Biden’s second visit to Minnesota this year as he prepares for next year’s presidential election. In 2020, he won by over 200,000 votes.

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In some local news, the city council seems to be split on Frey’s latest proposal for the location of the new MPD Third Precinct. Citing several concerns, the council voted 6-6 on the decision to go through with the purchase of the site at 2633 Minnehaha Ave. It will now be discussed in front of the full Minneapolis City Council later this week.

Ever since the main COVID-19 pandemic, I have heard rumblings about how Halloween doesn’t feel the same anymore, especially for homeowners who look forward to the fun interactions of trick or treating. Several points have been raised, and I think they all have contributed to this feeling. The first point that people expressed was the lack of neighborhood participation, especially since the pandemic. On Halloween, it is important that the neighborhood feels safe and welcoming for trick-or-treaters, and that can start with decorations. Some feel that residents are not putting in the effort and not getting in the spirit nearly as much in comparison to their own childhoods.

Obviously the pandemic took its toll on all social interaction, and for good reason. One of the phenomena that became more prominent as a result of the pandemic is “trunk-or-treat”. It involves a gathering of families in vehicles, sometimes in a parking lot of some sort, and the kids trick-or-treat from the various trunks of vehicles. While its origins date back to 1994, it became very popular during the pandemic and has been a tradition for some ever since. It is viewed as an alternative to regular trick-or-treating, and could be contributing to less trick-or-treaters in your neighborhood.

Another point that was brought up was cell phone usage among the new generation of kids. According to studies, phone activity causes the release of dopamine in our brains, leaving people, especially kids, at risk of cellphone addiction. This was obviously heightened during the pandemic where kids were at home for most of their days and doing classes virtually. I believe that the average age where most children stop trick-or-treating has gotten lower, and that could be for a variety of reasons.

All of these could be things that contribute to this general feeling that the Halloween spirit has decreased among children and teenagers. What did you experience this year? Did it feel like a “normal” amount of trick-or-treaters? Or has it felt like the amount of them has decreased every year for several years now?

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That’s all from me, I’ll see you next time.

-Mateo

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