No Halloween At School?

When we grown-ups decided to become more politically correct, did we ever think about how much fun we'd be taking away from our kids?

Two years ago was the last time my kids were allowed to dress up for Halloween at school.  Why?  Because a handful of anti-Halloween parents claimed it distracted kids from their studies and it conficted with their religions.  Did you know that a survey done in 2005 by the National Confectioners Association found that 80% of adults would be handing out candy and that 93% of children would be going trick-or-treating?  So, why don't their kids just stay home for the day, citing religious reasons?

This year my daughter's school has a new policy that no homemade baked goods can be brought in for birthdays or parties ... supposedly due to food allergy concerns.  Upon my badgering, the principal admitted to me that there has never been a food allergy-related incident at this school, but we don't want to start now!  What?  Oh, and then there's the little issue of the kids whose parents don't want to feel "pressured" into bringing things in for birthdays and what about the kids with birthdays during the summer months.  What!

OK, I am guilty of taking a batch of brownies in to my daughters class for her birthday as a treat for the class to celebrate her birthday.  No candles, no cupcakes, no frosting.  And I always took in a few sugar cookies as well for those who might be allergic to OR don't like chocolate.  Plus, I always told the teacher to give them out at the very end of the day so as to avoid a mid-day sugar rush.  But, apparently, in my doing all this, I've pressured other parents to match me.  I've made people feel bad!  Give me a break.

And if celebrating Halloween is so bad, then how come Kwanzaa is now OK?  Kwanzaa is celebrated by less than 2% of the population (and only 13% of African-Americans) ... yet my kids had to learn a Kwanzaa song in music class last year.  And Halloween is clearly celebrated by more than that, but they can't have a Halloween party, can't wear their costumes, can't sing Halloween songs, and can't have any treats distributed.

[Yeah, that paragraph might get me flagged or flamed or whatever but I am using it as an example of extreme political correctness running rampant in this country!]

At what point will this get so insane that we can no longer speak our minds, have the true freedom to celebrate what we want, and when will people stop treating kind gestures as guilt-inducing inconveniences!