Florida Politics - Campaigns & Elections. Lobbying & Government.

Blake DowlingOctober 31, 2016

Technology can be scary. That said, my Halloween column focuses on some frightening examples of tech gone awry; some you might find scarier (dumb scary) than an Ernest movie. Who remembers those? AWFUL. Others are disturbing in a more realistic way. I recently noticed an email alert about a fake “blue screen of death.” An […]

Phil AmmannOctober 31, 2016

For many Floridians, the most unsettling part of Halloween isn’t ghosts, goblins, or zombies. It’s figuring the state’s tax rules on candy. The innocent goody bag can become a minefield of tax policy, with often-confusing rules governing grocery store purchases statewide and throughout the country. Florida TaxWatch, the nonprofit bipartisan government watchdog, uses Halloween to demonstrate exactly […]

Peter SchorschOctober 30, 2016

The witching hour is upon us. Ghosts and ghouls fill the streets. Zombies walk side-by-side with princesses and superheroes. Their mission the same: Spook and scare their neighbors in hopes of scoring enough candy to sustain them for the next year. Total spending for Halloween is expected to reach $8.2 billion in 2016, according to […]

Florence SnyderOctober 30, 2016

How did Halloween come to be first runner-up to Christmas among holidays that excel at separating families from their money? We can thank people like John Murdy, creative director and executive producer of Horror Nights at Universal Studios Hollywood. In an interview with Marketplace Weekend’s Eliza Mills, Murdy recalls growing up in the ’70s, when […]

Drew WilsonOctober 3, 2016

Halloween is expected to set records this year with more than $8.4 billion in retail sales, according to a new survey from the National Retail Federation. NRF estimates more than 171 million Americans plan to celebrate the holiday and will spend an average of $83 each on costumes, candy, decorations, and greeting cards. The numbers […]

Bill PrescottNovember 18, 2015

Just before Halloween, Yale sent out a message to students, asking that they consider other students’ cultural sensitivities when dressing in costume. Asking grown people to not act like jerks is tedious, but this message seemed appropriate to some students who feel marginalized on Yale’s campus. An email went out afterward from Erika Christakis, a […]

Peter SchorschOctober 31, 2015

Rick Scott the Socialist’s trial balloon struck out with his hospital profit sharing plan earlier this year. It was openly mocked by Republicans and Democrats alike. But now, just in time to scare red blooded capitalist children at Halloween, Scott the Socialist is back. I’m told his staff has been shopping a hospital price-fixing bill to […]

Peter SchorschOctober 30, 2015

Even though classic costumes such as witches, vampires and Frankenstein’s monster may have gone out of style and been replaced by superheroes and Star Wars characters, the Halloween spirit is alive and well. The Florida Department of Health said this week that the average American will eat 3.4 pounds of candy this weekend, and many kids will eat more than […]

Melissa RossOctober 30, 2015

We think of Halloween as a very orange-colored holiday, between the pumpkins and the candy corn. But this year, you may spot a few teal-colored pumpkins in your neighborhood. The Teal Pumpkin Project is a growing part of Halloween, and it’s a visual way to encourage families to hand out some non-food items to children with food allergies. One in 13 […]

Marc YachtSeptember 1, 2015

Two annual events occur whose sole purpose is to scare people. Halloween, where the little boys dress up like Superman and the girls rush about the neighborhood as Little Bo Peeps. Childlike adults are not to be denied their festivities disguised as the Devil or Lady Godiva at raucous, drunken costume parties. Halloween is more […]

Tag: Halloween

Blake Dowling: This Halloween, tech can be really scary

A real fright for Halloween: Florida tax rules on candy, treats

Halloween is brought you by these Florida lobbyists and political associations

Florence Snyder: Postcard from Halloween

Retailers expect Halloween to break records, $8.4B in sales

Catherine Durkin Robinson: 20 things social justice warriors should know

Rick Scott the Socialist is back with already rejected price fixing bill

Halloween is brought you by these Florida lobbyists and political associations

The Teal Pumpkin Project comes to Florida this Halloween

Dr. Marc Yacht: Television's weather madness takes hold