The abomination of Halloween

Halloween has become a over-commercial abomination, originally the pre-Christian ‘Samhain’, when it was believed the souls of the dead returned to their homes on that night, incorporated into the Christian Church as ‘All Saints Day’ November 1st. 
It then morphed from the innocent Irish Halloween into this vulgar Americanism and a socially sanctioned form of doorstep mugging.
Teaching children that receiving treats by threatening tricks sends the wrong message.
 I realise it’s mostly harmless fun, but teaching children that intimidating is a way of receiving gifts is wrong.
‘Trick or treat’ is sending out the wrong message to children and adults. 

D M Deamer, 
Penleys Grove Street, Monkgate


The world has gone mad!

Stop the world, I want to get off! 
Every day we see, hear, read about more and more people, of all ages, in most countries suffering from stress, anxiety, worry, fatigue, mental illness - WHY?
Many have offered reasons like Covid, the lockdowns, cost-of-living rises, unemployment, increase in crime, extreme frustration, not being listened to, illness, unable to TRUST anyone!
All of these things concern someone somewhere, but I firmly believe it is often a more simple straightforward situation that is causing so much harm.
The world has gone MAD. Its priorities are wrong.The pace of life is too fast, we live in “tick box” times. Almost every task, no matter how simple, now has to be done “ONLINE”! 
WHY? It is virtually impossible to talk directly to a PERSON nowadays in any big business, bank, the NHS, the police, travel companies, government ministers, finance and insurance companies, and many others.
What were simple tasks for all of us, NO longer are. The computer is king, the internet, whilst having a good side, has many, evil, dark areas. Today’s machines cannot answer so many questions and problems.
 I am 77, and like many my age, feel utterly disregarded and long for the good old days to return.
 I had a very happy childhood, a very good school, enormous fun, pleasure, satisfaction in work/ job as a farm machinery salesman, and as a lawn salesman, and immense pleasure from playing cricket and hockey, a hobby of model railways and great overseas holidays, especially in Germany.  
So many of today’s policies make life unnecessarily difficult and frustrating, ie closing railway ticket offices. 
I was never lonely, nor bored.
The people “in charge” seem to regard any customer as a nuisance! 
My age group, on the whole, are the lucky ones, I do NOT envy today’s young. 
We need a rethink, end greed and the mania for growth. We need to learn to communicate and TALK to one another again, and those in power need to LISTEN! No wonder suicide rates are at an all-time high. It need not to be like it is!!

David Quarri,e
Lynden Way, Holgate, York

Homes needed in city

Hear, hear Matthew Laverack; we need homes in the city centre. It is better to use centre sites rather than the madness of floodplains.
In our city there is much empty space which could be converted. My residence used to be the site of a printing press....

Rose Berl,
Vine Street, York