Today I took my normal route to work, a route that took me right past where a man was recently apprehended by local authorities after they noticed his van was stocked full of illegal firearms and bombs.

As I drove by, the folks on the radio show I normally listen to were addressing Halloween pranks.

Today is the day for those pranks, and the thought crossed my mind – would today have been the day that a person with a bunch of guns and bombs would have carried out a plan full of criminal intentions?

Mark Carron, the suspect in this week’s bomb incident was denied bond on yesterday. At his bond hearing, he put his sense of humor on display. He made comments to the video camera, and asked suspects in other cases if they knew of a good attorney.

While several details of law enforcement’s investigation will probably remain a mystery until Carron’s trial is complete, one cannot ignore the timing of this event.

Last year a boy in Sumter, S.C. was killed while trick-or-treating.

I guess the point I am trying to make and that pranks, property destruction, shootings and other types of crime seem to be more frequently overshadowing our Halloween traditions.

What parents enjoyed doing as children, they now restrict their children from participation as negative headlines surround the time of year. As a new parent, I share the concerns of many others – should I begin a family tradition of going door-to-door on Halloween? Is Halloween a safe time of year?

My apologies for rambling and poor transitions in this blog… I am just following my thoughts… I would like to hear yours.

This entry was posted on Friday, October 30th, 2009 at 9:18 am and is filed under All About Orangeburg. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.