Comments on: Got a Food Question? Ask The Shmethicist

By: graeme

graeme — Fri, 26 Dec 2008 15:17:13 +0000

I have food in the freezer that has gone past its sell by date by a year, would it still be safe to eat

By: ck

ck — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 01:45:29 +0000

Aw pshaw. You can’t fornicate with demons unless it’s dark! Going trick or treating during the day is the ultimate sign of being a little wuss. God… what’s happened to America???

By: Shmethicist

Shmethicist — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 15:55:51 +0000

CK, yours may be aquiline, but still it is clearly a shnoz for sniffing out subtle shmethical concerns.

If you are a daylight trick-or-treater, this year you are free and clear on the Halloween/Shabbat conflict.

If you’re after candy (or other hallowing times) after dark, however, you’re up the Negev without a paddle.

Because one can lobby the secular authorities to manipulate time, but as anyone who watched too much TV, including commercials, back in the 1970s knows, we have to answer to a higher authority.

By: ck

ck — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 11:20:32 +0000

Aw man. When I was a kid I loved, LOVED, Halloween. And it didn’t turn me into a Satan worshiping pagan either. My Mom wasn’t too pleased about Halloween but the kids always won out – except when it fell on Shabbat. Then we would have to content ourselves with just passing out free goodies to the neighborhood kids as we had no eruv in our ‘hood.

That having been said, I appreciate your inaugural post and all, despite the excessive schtik – my family is as Jewish as they come but I think big shnozzes are symptomatic of Jews with shtetl ancestry – my family is possessed of nothing but the finest aquiline noses. But how can you write a post like this on an otherwise fine Jewish blog and not even mention the ethical issues of Halloween falling on Shabbat?

By: Rabbi Shmuel

Rabbi Shmuel — Sun, 26 Oct 2008 23:02:30 +0000

“The kits include FREE fair trade chocolate samples. FREE CHOCOLATE!!! Surely that’s one way to put a Jewish spin on a pagan festival. Find out more.”

No, no my dear Crystal Shmeth, what’s Jewish about it is not that it’s free but that it resembles Purim where instead of extorting candy under pain of property damage, we give treats to our friends.

Boruch Hashem we live in the woods so trick or treaters are not a problem (especially this year that H-ween falls on shabbos.

Here’s an ethical dilemma I haven’t quite worked through – if you’re gonna throw eggs at a Toyota Prius on Halloween would it be better if they were from free range birds? Or when festooning the neighbor’s trees with toilet paper (ostensibly for not giving out fair trade goodies), should one use “Seventh Generation” – does that lend an aura of mindfulness to the act?

Just curious

PS – othere than the few cheap shots, actually an entertaining post.

By: Avigail

Avigail — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 19:08:49 +0000

Lois, where are you sitting to enjoy that amazing Portland cupcake? Boy, do I miss the carrot cake cupcake at St. Cupcake! Next time you’re in NYC we’ll have to scout out a good place for our local cupcakes (so far, no one compares to St. Cupcake).

By: Judith

Judith — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 11:16:17 +0000

Not wanting to contribute to the epidemic of obesity and diabetes, I’ve given out stickers before and the little kids like them. The big kids just want the candy. I did too when I was their age.
By the way, sweetearthchocolates.com sells organic fair trade candy in Halloween inspired shapes. They also have vegan options.

By: Eric Schulmiller

Eric Schulmiller — Thu, 23 Oct 2008 22:26:31 +0000

I’m SO bummed I missed the deadline for those reverse trick-or-treat kits – what an amazing idea!!

Here’s a good source for more background info:

http://tinyurl.com/5es55k

Another solution, while not any healthier, is to simply give out non-chocolate candy, like Airheads (which are shockingly popular in my n.o.t.w.), Blowpops, etc.

And, depending on your political persuasion, you might decide to let your (locally-grown?) pumpkin send a message as well:

http://tinyurl.com/3rwb4c