Arguably, one of the best parts of Halloween is all of the treats. Kids often look forward to trick-or-treating for months before the big night and then spend hours afterwards organizing and trading all of the loot they’ve brought in. Even adults can enjoy baking or crafting adorable spooky season-themed goodies: cupcakes decorated like ghosts, brownies shaped like spiders, beverages that look like blood. But if you’re a traditionalist, there is nothing wrong with simply enjoying some classic Halloween candy.
Trick-or-treating is usually aimed at children, though, as we adults have access to purchasing candy year round. We don’t need permission from our parents to buy a chocolate bar or some gummies. But according to one mother on Reddit, her neighbor was too greedy to leave all of the Halloween treats for kids…
Below, you’ll find the full story of how one mother got revenge on her vegan neighbor after the woman had the audacity to steal bags of candy from children. We would love to hear your thoughts on the situation in the comments below, and then if you’re interested in checking out another Bored Panda article highlighting how great trick-or-treating can be (when there is no one stealing a “candy tax” from you), look no further than right here.
Trick-or-treating is often the most exciting part of Halloween for kids, but for this mother, it ended up leading to a bit of drama
Image credits: Charles Parker (not the actual photo)
After finding out that her vegan neighbor stole a "candy tax" from her kids, this mom decided to call the woman out
Image credits: Amy (not the actual photo)
The mother later shared some additional info on the situation
Image credits: MySuperSecretAccnt
They say that revenge is best served cold, but perhaps sometimes, it is best served sweet. Trick-or-treating is an extremely exciting time for many kids, as they get to go out on the town dressed up in fabulous costumes and return home with more candy than they could have ever dreamed of. About 35 million children in the United States embark on trick-or-treating adventures every Halloween, and while this holiday is often about spooks and scares, for any adult to tamper with the joy of trick-or-treating is just not right.
This mother can purchase candy any time she wants, and she had her chances to enjoy trick-or-treating when she was a child. There is no need for her to steal any of the fun of Halloween away from her kids, or her neighbor’s kids. And as some of the readers noted, a "mom tax" is perfectly fine if she asks for a few pieces from her own children's candy at the end of the night, as long as they are candies the children won't eat. Not every kid enjoys nuts, coconut, caramel or certain fruits, so I'm sure they would be happy to sacrifice a few pieces if they had no intention of eating them in the first place.
As for being vegan, many people responded in the comments how obvious it is that many candies have gelatin in them, and they are absolutely right. As someone who has been vegan for many years myself, gelatin is one of the first “sneaky” vegan foods you learn about through a quick Google search or viewing some videos on YouTube. When it comes to things like candy, most vegans always err on the side of caution and assume that the treats are not vegan unless the label says otherwise or they have been able to do some research online.
It seems likely that this mother is not actually vegan behind closed doors, and she simply promotes that image to the public. If she had done even the slightest bit of research, she would know that there are plenty of candies out there that are vegan, such as Swedish Fish, Sour Patch Kids, Skittles and Dots. If she just purchased her own sweets, she would have spared herself the embarrassment of this whole situation, and she could easily find some treats that do not contribute to the torturing or killing of animals (if she cares about that at all).
Americans purchase nearly 600 million pounds of candy for Halloween, or the equivalent of 6 Titanic ships, so there is certainly no shortage of treats available. Clearly, this “vegan” mother deserved to be called out for being greedy and hypocritical, but we would still love to hear your thoughts on this situation in the comments. Do you plan on taking your kids trick-or-treating tonight? And do you ever impose a “candy tax” on them? Feel free to share your thoughts down below, and have a happy Halloween, pandas! I hope you all find some delicious treats to enjoy tonight (whether you're vegan or not!).
Readers have overwhelmingly sided with this mom, saying her neighbor deserved to be called out for her greed and ignorance
