Poll: Which is the Greatest Halloween Candy?

So, you all have probably figured out by now that TPTB are all real-life friends. We don’t make any secret of that fact; after all, it’s why this site exists.

As such, we spend most of the day (and evening) popping into and out of a Super Secret Chat Room. Well, last Friday morning, I posted a link in chat, and damn, Skippy, if all hell didn’t break loose.

It didn’t quite get to the level of slapping each other with gloves and choosing seconds, but it was just short of that.

Here’s the link that incited the near-riot: Most Popular Halloween Candy

What say you, Glibertariat? What’s the greatest Halloween candy of all time?

Comments

470 responses to “Poll: Which is the Greatest Halloween Candy?”

  1. leon

    Marshmallow Peeps and Cadbury Eggs

    1. Rebel Scum

      And candy canes. Don’t forget those.

      1. A neighbor did that. I thought it was hilarious.

    2. *prepares to defend the honor of Cadbury*

      1. Cadbury is the superior mass-market chocolate. This should be apparent to anyone. Hershey’s is gross.

        1. mindyourbusiness

          I miss the old Cadbury chocolate flavor Richer, more mellow.

        2. Mad Scientist

          Eat some decent chocolate for a while, then have a Hershey’s bar. It will be very apparent that Hershey’s is wax with a chocolate flavoring.

          1. My palate is as sophisticated as a toddler’s. I wouldn’t know the difference.

      2. Jarflax

        Die Herren Lindt und Nestle blicken Sie eng an.

  2. A Leap at the Wheel

    Snickers and Reece’s Peanutbutter $Shape, obviously.

    1. Drake

      Peanutbutter snickers?

      1. MikeS

        Ick

  3. Candy corn. It is inherently Halloween. You don’t have to like it know it’s Halloween candy.

    1. Ozymandias

      Literally, The WORST.

      1. But VERY Halloween!

        1. Certified Public Asshat

          A nice decoration, but terrible candy.

          1. I use these and these for Christmas decorations. I put them in pretty candy dishes.

          2. Shirley Knott

            Ribbon candy for the win!
            It was traditional at least as far back as my grandparents.

          3. Nephilium

            The worst is that they make shite like this. FFS, there is no flavor other then sugar!

          4. Cannoli

            Confession time: I actually like candy corn. Only in small doses though.

          5. Mix it with dry roasted peanuts. Fall incarnate.

          6. It’s a good start, but I can’t help but feel it needs two or three more ingredients.

          7. As noted elsewhere, that is a Payday bar, which I love. A king size is one meal for me.

          8. Fatty Bolger

            1-5, “eh, they’re OK.”
            6-10, “why am I eating this?”
            11+, “I feel like throwing up now.”

          9. Yeah, that’s about right. A smahandful does i

  4. PieInTheSky

    Rom tricolor!

    I feel excluded by the poll. I call microagression. Anyhoo candy sucks.

  5. Rebel Scum

    Black licorice.

    1. PieInTheSky

      African american you mean

    2. Ozymandias

      Literally, the Second WORST.

      1. Agreed, but ALSO very Halloween.

        1. Fourscore

          “I thought this was Halloween candy, not “my favorite candy”?”

          Big difference in giving as opposed to receiving

          As a little beggar I hated a napkin with a “surprise” in it. Candy corn, peanuts or some such. Money was always welcome though.

          As a giver I looked for something individually wrapped in big bags and cheap so kids could reach into the phony pumpkin and get a handful but not those chalky rolls of corn starch.

      2. Drake

        The absolute worst.

      3. I love black licorice, just not the crappy twizzlers stuff.

  6. Drake

    Heath and / or Skor bars. Toffee with chocolate mmm….

    1. kbolino

      Skor > Heath

      Naturally, they’re harder to find.

      1. PieInTheSky

        Never heard of either

        1. Drake

          English butter toffee coated in chocolate.

    2. Heath will do when I can’t have my aunt’s homemade toffee.

    3. Heath tears out my fillings.

      1. Drake

        And fills them with goodness.

  7. Gender Traitor

    A recent upstart, but Peanut Butter M&Ms are orgasmic. Anything Reese’s is right up there, too.

    1. PieInTheSky

      Individual m&ms or packs ?

      1. Gender Traitor

        38 oz. Party Size.

        1. I don’t think they have party size anything in Europe.

          1. Jarflax

            Sure they do!

          2. Shit, 50 oz is a medium at QuikTrip.

        2. Shirley Knott

          Um, I thought that was the single serving size.

    2. Gadianton

      I like to mix these with the caramel ones in a candy dish.

      1. Bobarian LMD

        I find the caramel ones quite addictive.

    3. That is right thinking, madame!

  8. Peanut butter kisses taffy chews

    I thought this was Halloween candy, not “my favorite candy”?

    Also, Milk Duds and Sugar Daddies.

    1. Gender Traitor

      Halloween is the cheap, tawdry excuse to eat your favorite candy. Yay Halloween!

      Also, libertarians refuse to adhere to guidelines.

      1. We aren’t doing Halloween this year for various reasons, one of which is that nobody comes to our block now. People’s parents drive them to upper class neighborhoods for the “good” candy.

        1. Gender Traitor

          We haven’t for years, since Mr. GT ODed on it as a kid. We go out to eat during trick-or-treat hours.

        2. Cannoli

          This is our first year actually doing Halloween since we’re now in a neighborhood with kids. I bought a bunch of candy one year in my old apartment, and two people showed up. This year, I’m worried I’ll run out.

          1. We have more children in the neighborhood now, but out of three families with oodles of kids, two of those are evangelical Christians.

            Mine are 13 and 16. They aren’t cute anymore.

        3. R C Dean

          People’s parents drive them to upper class neighborhoods for the “good” candy.

          When we lived in Dallas, we were the nearest “good” neighborhood for, apparently, quite a few people. I always really got a kick out of the early round of little kids, but as the evening went on they would get older and older, until we would get some that couldn’t even be arsed to wear a costume. Protip: if you have facial hair, you’re too old to go trick-or-treating.

          Currently, we live in a neighborhood of old farts on big lots that is literally the end of the road on the edge of town. So, no trick-or-treaters.

          1. Sensei

            We get some of that, but not a lot. It’s too hilly where we live.

            Funny thing is I live in a very affluent town, but in one of the two “poorer” sections. In the other “poor” section they get drive ins from some of the surrounding less affluent towns AND all the kids from the affluent parts of town.

            The reason for the affluent kids is that in the affluent sections the houses are so set back and hilly that to go door to door would 5+ minutes a house. Average house there goes for over $1m.

          2. leon

            I have done the “Good Neighborhood thing” once, but that was when we were living in Busy McBusy street apartment, so doing our own neighborhood wasn’t a fantastic idea with a little kid.

          3. Protip: if you have facial hair, you’re too old to go trick-or-treating.

            Why do you hate ten year old Hispanic kids?

          4. And their parents, who, apparently, think it’s totes cool when four grown adults and one child go house-to-house all expecting to get candy.

          5. Tulip

            We get tons of kids for different reasons: the houses are close together, on one way streets, and almost every house participates. We’re not the expensive neighborhood, but for the reasons I listed, we get (literally) hundreds of kids.

  9. The Late P Brooks

    A recent upstart, but Peanut Butter M&Ms are orgasmic.

    Nothing to do with Halloween, but Coffee Nut M&Ms are better.

    I don’t know what is the “best” but there were some things I threw directly into the trash, like popcorn balls and candy corn (that shit is horrifically awful).

    1. Gender Traitor

      Coffee Nut M&Ms??? Had not seen. I may never sleep again.

      1. Bobarian LMD

        The jalapeno ones are good, too.

  10. The Late P Brooks

    Marshmallow is disgusting. In any form.

  11. invisible finger

    popcorn balls with pins inside

    1. I am more of an apple with a razor blade traditionalist.

    2. Brett L

      I told my wife to go through my kids’ Halloween candy and steal all the good edibles. Not because of the children, but why should they get the good candy?

  12. The Late P Brooks

    Not specifically Halloween candy, but I used to buy Hershey miniatures, because I found eating the leftovers unobjectionable. I usually skimmed off all the darks as i filled the bowl.

    Nobody in his right mind would trek up here looking for a piece of candy on Halloween or any other day of the year.

    1. Suthenboy

      This guy gets it.

    2. Same for me. 1000-foot driveway that goes uphill from the end of a dead-end road.

  13. Ozymandias

    I can tell you what isn’t the best candy:

    1. Circus peanuts – why would you want to eat packing material?
    2. Candy corn – If there is a shittier taste experience, I’m unaware of it. Just inject some HFCS into your veins and be done with it.
    3. Anything anise flavored – BlackAfrican American Licorice, Sambuca, Ouzo, you name it – those anise flavored cookies are barely passable by the mere fact of being a cookie… except why wouldn’t one have chocolate chips if having a cookie in the first instance?
    4. Cadbury Eggs – Great commercials with the clucking bunny, but who thought infusing sugary-splooge inside of a chocolate shaped egg was a flavorful idea??

    1. Fourscore

      Hooked on real licorice but never buy candy for myself. Seems like other people give it to me at gift time. Candy and coffee, (” We didn’t know what to get you”) but I really don’t need any thing any more. I can’t figure out how to get rid of the accumulation now. Sll it at the auction?

      1. Estate sale. Let auctioneers come and assess the value, then go out of town for a weekend vacation while they work.

        1. Fourscore

          Good answer, Mojo. I’d like to give some stuff away but I know that things that mean something to me have little interest to the receipient and would never get used and probably sold or worse, pawned for pennies.

          1. Take it to Goodwill and take the sweet tax deductible donation.

          2. I drop stuff off at the thrift store all the time, but I don’t bother with receipts anymore. All my combined deductions on schedule A (medical, charity, etc) didn’t add up to the standard deduction.

    2. Certified Public Asshat

      How dare you include Cadbury Eggs with that otherwise correct list.

      1. R C Dean

        To be fair, they used to be better before they were acquired.

        I do prefer the caramel ones to the regular ones, though.

        1. Gustave Lytton

          That’s true for about all acquired candy brands.

    3. #4. Find a second. M-4s at dawn.

      1. Ozymandias

        Accepted, sir! We shall do it at… (checks max range on M4)… 1500m.
        And it appears Tundra has already volunteered to bring my, ahem, “M-4”.
        (Damn sexy-looking, Tundra, and I don’t even like Beamers).

        1. Tundra

          I always want to hate those fuckers and then they go and do something like that.

  14. gbob

    Not a candy guy. This fat is meat and beer based.

    That being said, around this time of year, it’s the kit kats that go missing from the Halloween candy I go buy for the trick or treaters.

  15. MikeS

    THC edibles

    1. Bobarian LMD

      Who else is trick-or-treating at MikeS’ house?

      1. No one, he’s the only resident of the city he lives in.

        1. He can barely get Fedex service there.

  16. Cannoli

    Reese’s peanut butter cups, hands down. Also the best candy when it’s not Halloween.

    1. Sean

      This is the correct answer.

      Followed by peanut m&ms and snickers.

    2. Nephilium

      See, Tulpa here is right.

      Those are the ones I have to make sure I don’t buy too many of, otherwise they start disappearing. Kit Kats rank up there as well (especially the dark chocolate variant).

        1. Nephilium

          Nope. Still got ~20 pounds to drop. But there is no need for me to order those online, I’ve got several friends who have a direct line to the Japanese Kit Kat flavors, and I live by the largest candy store in America. Taking the nephews there is an equal measure of entertainment and exasperation.

    3. I told you you would get a warm Tulpa welcome.

      1. Cannoli

        It’s good to have traditions

      2. leon

        Is this the Tulpa from Twitter or another Tulpa?

        1. You know, omnitulpa….us.

          1. leon

            All within the Tulpa, Nothing outside the Tulpa, nothing against the Tulpa

            – Some Italian Dude.

        2. This is a Tulpa I have been corresponding with for some time and she (YES SHE) is delightful.

          1. Cannoli

            That’s just proof I’m Tulpa. There’s no such thing as a female libertarian.

          2. leon

            Well we are all Tulpa, but welcome aboard!

          3. Scruffy Nerfherder

            eh, fuck off Tulpa…

            And welcome to the party.

          4. Ozymandias

            How does it feel, Mojeaux, to go through life.. with PANTS ON FIRE!!!
            All Tulpae know there are no libertarian womynz.

          5. +1 no need for butt warmers during football season.

    4. leon

      I used to love Peanut Butter cups. But now I’m not so sure.

      1. Anaphylaxis got to be too much?

        1. leon

          Epi-Pens get expensive yo.

    5. Mad Scientist

      This is the only acceptable answer. The rest of you assholes are so wrong, I’m embarrassed for you.

    6. True. As a wee lad, these went first. They usually didn’t even make it past Halloween.

  17. leon

    As a kid these were my favorite Hallowen treats.

    “Toothbrush and cookie” from the dentist next door.
    “Evangelical Comic Book”
    “Apple”

    what else…

    1. Could you color in the comic book? Cuz if not, losers.

      1. leon

        Yes you could, IIRC

    2. “Tulsi Gabbard Apologist”

      Pennies

      1. Nephilium

        LOL. We were just talking about crappy Halloween shit on Sunday, explaining to the youths that were there about people giving out pennies.

        1. Jarflax

          There was one old dude in my neighborhood that gave out Eisenhower dollars. That was pretty awesome.

          1. *frantically hunts for time machine *

    3. Jarflax

      Chick Tracts! They were awesome. About a cuntehair away from being tijuana bibles with all the “Catholics are the Whore of Babylon” cartoons.

  18. CPRM

    I’ve never been trick or treating. We didn’t have it in my town when I was a kid. We had a costume contest in the school gym. Now they do that AND trick or treat. Kids today are spoiled.

    Mini Mr. Goodbar is the best. A full size Mr. Goodbar doesn’t taste the same, the proportions of chocolate to peanut are off.

    1. PieInTheSky

      me neither

      1. leon

        Well you dress up like a vampire every day, so It might not be all that special for you.

    2. Co-sign Mr. Goodbar.

    3. Suthenboy

      So you are…..looking for Mr. Goodbar?

      I don’t really think that is what halloween is about, but hey, you do you man.

    4. They didn’t just take you to a bar on Halloween?

    5. I’ve never seen a full-size Mr. Goodbar. Next you’ll tell me you can buy a full-size Krackle.

  19. Private Chipperbot

    Hmm. JackBlast rum and hot cider is sugary enough to be candy. And it’s delicious. I’ll allow it.

    We are set for the 1000 or so kids that will be coming by tomorrow. Garage covered in visqueen, decorated with fluorescent paint, and lit with black lights. Clowns and lighting outside along with a patio heater.

    By the way, the new LED black lights are fantastic. I still run 4 tubes of fluorescent 48″, but these new little ones blow them away.

    As for candy, it’s just bags and bags of stuff we put in a giant witches cauldron. I give out Taco Bell sauce packets to teens in crappy costumes, and pudding shots to adults.

    1. pistoffnick

      “…Taco Bell sauce packets to teens…”

      Excellent!

      We don’t get many kids at our current house, but at both previous locations we would get swamped. My neighbor stopped counting at 800 one year.

    2. We’re not saying BEAM’s an alien, but . . .

      LED black lights? SERIOUSLY???

      I may never use normal lights again.

      1. Private Chipperbot

        These – https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07DNN2HTL/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

        They kick out a ton of energy; everything that can glow is really bright. Wait until after Halloween if you want to purchase, they were only $23 for the pair when I got them. Going for $36 now.

  20. Rhywun

    These never appeared in my halloween haul but I loved both Starburst and Skittles. Probably too much.

  21. pistoffnick

    I used to impose a dad tax on my kids after they went trick or treating: 1 mini Snickers bar from each of them.

    Best:
    1) Snickers
    2) Reeses Peanut Butter Cups
    3) Pearson’s Salted Nut Roll
    4) Peanut M&M’s

    Worst:
    1) Circus peanuts
    2) Raisins
    3) Apples
    4) Licorice

    I would add candy corn to the worst list, except that when you mix it 25%:75% with peanuts, the combination becomes delicious.

    1. Jarflax

      That is just a Payday bar.

    2. Private Chipperbot
      1. Private Chipperbot

        Oof. Threading fail.

    3. Nephilium

      Man, none of you have even put the Necco wafers on the worst list. Did you not have that one house that would hand out the sad size packs they released of them (because there is nothing fun about Necco wafers).

      1. We’re not saying BEAM’s an alien, but . . .

        Being a Canuck has its advantages — Necco wafers never made it up here. (We still have those disgusting taffee things, but they’re an endangered species, Thank God.)

  22. Rebel Scum

    THIS is NPCNN.

    And on Tuesday night, Fox’s Laura Ingraham led a panel discussion in which she and her guests suggested that Vindman might actually be a double agent for the Ukrainians.

    How? Why? Well, what’s happening here is clear. Vindman was born in Ukraine. He fled the country with his father and twin brother at age 3. (His brother, Yevgeny, is a lawyer at the NSC.)
    And so, despite the fact that Vindman’s entire life has been an uniquely American success story — college graduate, decorated military veteran, government official — Republicans are seizing on the fact he was born in Ukraine to suggest his motives in coming forward to speak out about his concerns over Trump’s behavior are something short of pure.

    What evidence — outside of the fact that Vindman was born in Ukraine — do people like Duffy, Kilmeade and Ingraham have to make these outrageous claims? Oh, none.

    Fascinating.

    1. leon

      Now if they had called him a Russian Agent, that would have been fine. No evidence necessary.

    2. one true athena

      ah yes, the ‘say there’s no evidence’ ploy, even though this dude got PAID by fucking Burisma. God damn, where did this company even get all the money they’re paying these americans? What is its real business? Because I’m growing more dubious that it’s ‘energy’.

      1. Got a link? I can’t find anything on Vindman being paid by Burisma on the Googles.

  23. Not Adahn

    Fun sized versions of candy bars from M&M Mars
    Miniature Reese’s Crunchy

    Anything else is space that should be filled with one of the others

    1. “Fun Sized” They’re not fun, they’re a terrible tease.

      1. A Leap at the Wheel

        Fun size is four feet long and has “team lift” printed on the side. The stuff sold under “fun size” is a lie.

          1. Nephilium

            On another side of that, there are also the full sheets of Rice Krispie Treats.

      2. Certified Public Asshat

        You might be mixing up Fun-Sized with Minis. Minis are trash.

    1. I didn’t even realize half those products were still on the market, let alone the “most popular”.

    2. I’m in ur Skittles killing ur flavors.

      By far the worst thing that has ever happened to me.

  24. Not Adahn

    How old is that link? Are Life Savers even made anymore?

      1. Not Adahn

        They’re Canadian now ?!?

  25. PieInTheSky

    in various local traditions of kids begging food we would get basically hardtack (covrigi)

    https://retete.unica.ro/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/shutterstock_147924656.jpg

    And walnuts

    1. Jarflax

      Unsalted pretzels?

      1. Add some salt and we can talk.

      2. PieInTheSky

        they usually had a bit of salt but not much

      1. PieInTheSky

        for scale

        1. Not Adahn

          Ah, they’re boiled first. So Romanian bagelbretzels. I’m assuming it’s just wheat flour and yeast, or is there some sort of flavoring?

          1. PieInTheSky

            also water, salt and occasionally poppy seeds

          2. PieInTheSky

            now there are also some more german brezel like, larger fluffier with mroe salt and poppy.

            https://www.romania-insider.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/covrigi-petru-2.jpg

            The old ones were pretty hard, almost brittle

  26. I hate Lifesavers, but I LOVED getting these at Christmas.

    1. Sean

      mmmmm….butter rum.

      1. You aren’t wrong.

    2. Gender Traitor

      Wild Cherry Life Savers FTW.

      1. MikeS

        The redhead is wise.

  27. Gender Traitor

    ::dons tinfoil hat:: SP is trying to sabotage Glibfit! ::crumples tinfoil hat, goes to break room for Hershey bar w/Reese’s Pieces.::

    1. Nephilium

      Be strong GT!

      The first couple of trick or treaters to my house get any left over full sized bars from s’more making through the summer/fall. It helps to have a way to get rid of those easily.

      1. Gender Traitor

        You have left over full sized bars??

        1. He never eats the ones injected with warfarin.

        2. Nephilium

          Usually a couple (2-4) that have lingered, as I’ll pick up a multipack or two when they’re on sale at the grocery store. They’re the standard Hershey ones, and I prefer dark chocolate, so they’re not too tempting for me. They go right on top of the Candy bucket for handing out, so they go first.

    2. DOOMco

      On glibfit, I’m up and over 160 now!
      Still at least 10 pounds to go, but my bmi doesn’t come back “oh my God eat something”

      1. Don Escaped Texas

        is there a link to GlibFit ?

        1. Don Escaped Texas

          I found the link in a footer; the page pointed me to LoseIt. Is there a group there for us?

          1. DOOMco

            I haven’t jumped into any. Just following along at home.

          2. Don Escaped Texas

            there’s a group function; I searched for Glib and Glibertarians and got naught

            might be a privacy issue for some of the chippier Glibs

          3. Tonio

            https://glibertarians.com/glibfit/

            This is linked at both the top and bottom of the page. Both take you to the collected Glibfit articles in reverse date order, scroll past the Resources at the top and they you’ll hit the posts.

  28. Scruffy Nerfherder

    As such, we spend most of the day (and evening) popping into and out of a Super Secret Chat Room.

    I KNEW IT

    I knew there was a Star Chamber.

    *buys more tinfoil*

    1. pistoffnick

      Is the Super Secret Chat Room like the Champagne Room?

      1. Heroic Mulatto

        Despite my best efforts, yes.

  29. We’re not saying BEAM’s an alien, but . . .

    Well, first of all, the “. . . in America . . .” part will doom your deliberations — there are superlative candies outside of the USA that could be the greatest Hallowe’en candy ever.

    1. Certified Public Asshat

      I spoke too soon.

    2. A Leap at the Wheel

      Shit man, its 2019. There’s superlative chocolate made in the US nowadays. Its just not mass produced for Halloween candy.

  30. Certified Public Asshat

    I’m impressed we made it far into the thread and no one has said “well actually, American chocolate is garbage and I only consume the finest European chocolatez.”

    Hershey’s > Mar’s btw.

    And I am not sure if it is the greatest, but Take 5 is, well, at least top 5.

    1. I’m not much of a chocolate consumer, but when I do, I like the Hersheys nuggets.

    2. Not Adahn

      Hershey’s > Mar’s btw.

      Have you met UnCiv? You two should get along like gangbusters.

      1. why? Misplaced apost’rophes?

    3. I have products I like from both companies.

      1. Certified Public Asshat

        Me too, I gave the edge to the one with a theme park.

    4. Scruffy Nerfherder

      American chocolate is wax with chocolate flavoring.

        1. Scruffy Nerfherder

          If being honest is edgy, then yeah… I am edgy.

          *dons leather jacket, slicks back hair*

        2. Heroic Mulatto

          Also, chemically incorrect.

          Cocoa butter is a fat/oil, not a wax. If it were wax, it wouldn’t melt in your mouth.

          1. Not Adahn

            Beeswax will.

          2. Bobarian LMD

            That’s not what I do with cocoa butter.

          3. pistoffnick

            +1 Last Tango in Paris

    5. Every time I’ve tried a european mass-produced confectionary, it’s fallen into one of three flavors – like a spoonful of cocoa powder; like a spoonful of confector’s sugar; or completely lacking in anything resembling flavor.

      1. Gustave Lytton

        *removes all Mars and Bounty bars from UCS’ possession*

        1. You’ll come back empty handed. I’m trying to lose weight, so I don’t keep such things around.

    6. Gender Traitor

      Back when I was an admin asst for engineers at a multinational, I had a guy go on a 3-yr temp assignment in Germany. One December he started leaving me voice mails asking me to make his travel arrangements home for the holidays, though they had a perfectly capable English-speaking admin in the German office. I left him a VM back re: the travel & threw in, “…and yes, some German chocolates would be lovely! Thanks!” (He’d mentioned nothing of the sort.)

      He brought ’em. They had booze in ’em. They were awesome.

      1. Don Escaped Texas

        Whenever we came back the clear expectation was to reload the office on chocolate, formal waferthingies, and gummybears (made from real horses)

      2. We’re not saying BEAM’s an alien, but . . .

        Just found some in Italy called “Pocket Coffee espresso” made by Ferrero. Dark chocolate, liquid espresso centre, a real pick-me-up. I woulda killed for candy like this when I was younger.

    7. PieInTheSky

      I only eat chocolate 85% or more. No candy.

      As a kid my faves were chocolate truffles, there were these ones that had a thick layer of pure cocoa on the exterior that was bitterish and gave way to the sweeter chocolate interior.

      But it is all European

      1. Certified Public Asshat

        You are excused, being a European and all.

        *Sticks American flag into Hershey’s bar*

      2. PieInTheSky

        there was also a hard candy that was covered in cocoa dust which I liked.

  31. DOOMco

    For Halloween I think it’s the special Reece’s cups or the miniature milky ways.

  32. Heroic Mulatto

    are all real-life friends

    Allow me to translate: “We all swing together.”

    1. leon

      Do we think we could get Kate Hill to join Glibs?

      1. In a twist, he’s actually saying they platonically take SP to the playground where there’s a swingset.

        1. Heroic Mulatto

          Yes, we are all in a polyamorous same-sex group marriage where we share parenting duties of SP.

          1. We’re not saying BEAM’s an alien, but . . .

            No wonder she wants to be left alone in the morning.

  33. The Late P Brooks

    They were awful, as candy, but suddenly I want to get some of those little packs of candy cigarettes and randomly hand them out to kids I see.

    1. Heroic Mulatto

      They sell candy vapes now, old man.

      1. Not Adahn

        Not anymore — they’ve been banned.

        1. Heroic Mulatto

          To be fair, this shit should be banned.

          That’s like the pedophilia of nicotine.

        2. leon

          Yesterday a Utah Judge overturned the State Health Departments emergency ban on them, so you might not be able to buy booze, but come get your flavored vapes.

    2. leon

      Why not just hand out candy flavored vape packs?

    3. “Tulsi Gabbard Apologist”

      The candy cigarette connoisseur knows that there were two types: the hard candy one that was just awful and the bubble gum one wrapped in paper which looked more like a cigarette and had enough powdered sugar around the bubble gum interior so that you could blow powdered smoke clouds from the candy cigarette if you blew on one end. I think most states have actually outlawed the bubble gum version, because it was awesome.

      1. Gender Traitor

        My grandfather would walk us from his house along nearby railroad tracks to a soft-serve stand that also sold the bubble gum cigars. Three flavors, IIRC. I can almost see the labels.

        ***SIGH!*** I miss Geep!

        1. “Tulsi Gabbard Apologist”

          The candy cigars were a little different from what I’m talking about. These looked like cigarettes with similar wrapping.

          But, speaking of candy cigars, I once had an uncle whose wife was very much against smoking so when his first kid was born he brought candy cigars into work instead of real cigars. He worked at a machine shop and people were not pleased. My dad had to go out and buy cigars to hand out at his work to celebrity the kid’s birth, because otherwise people where going to kill him.

          Note to dads: man up and buy real cigars to celebrate your kid being born or just don’t buy anything. Candy cigars are an insult.

          1. Gender Traitor

            Geep smoked R.G. Dun Admirals, made from the finest floor-sweepings in Lima, OH.

      2. Fatty Bolger

        I was really surprised to see candy cigarettes in my son’s trick or treat candy just a few years ago. I had assumed they’d stopped making them.

      3. Ozymandias

        Mrs. Mandias and I were just discussing some of the candy we saw at a Trunk or Treat in our neighborhood and “forgotten candies” came up – candy cigarettes was at the top of our respective lists of “those can’t possibly still be around.” Great trip down memory lane.

        Another one of those that we laughed about were the wax bottles that contained about 2.5 mL of some colored sugar water, but you wound up chewing on wax for most of the time. You basically got one mouthful of sugary water and a wad of wax. I also had to confess that I never could get Razzles to become gum because I swallowed them after a brief chew to break them up.

        Also, Wacky wafers were the shit.

        1. Mad Scientist

          You can still get candy cigarettes.

    4. Nephilium

      The candy store near me (linked above) still cells the candy cigarettes and the gum cigars.

  34. DOOMco

    For the first time, I’ll be at a spot that has kids come begging for candy.

    How do I get them in my orphan mine with the others?

    1. R C Dean

      Roofies.

      Err, at least that’s what somebody said.

  35. Sensei

    Any house that gives out full size bars.

    When I was growing up there were a few houses that bought full size candy bars.

    In my neighborhood I’d be broke if I did that.

    1. DOOMco

      When I was a kid, we lived in ga for a brief time. That neighborhood was the best.
      I had to go back home for another pillowcase. Some homes had full size. Enough to not call it rare.

      It was something north of 8 pounds of candy that night.

  36. Tres Cool

    Snickers, Twix, Reese’s, M&Ms in that order.

  37. AlmightyJB

    Beer

      1. Don Escaped Texas

        BREAKING: NCAA will permit athletes to be compensated for their names, images and likenesses, Board of Governors says. https://t.co/4rLzgF127e— The Associated Press (@AP) October 29, 2019

        Kids get paid: fine.
        Shoe corps take over sport: fine.
        Athletes less like students every year: fine.

        I still get taxed for bonds to pay to renovate stadium every five years: total fucking bullshit.

        1. Don Escaped Texas

          got……………………damMITT!

          1. Private Chipperbot

            Interesting. What happens when the school is Nike, but the athlete signs with Adidas? Or Nike says here a fat check for you to go to Oregon?

  38. The Late P Brooks

    How do I get them in my orphan mine with the others?

    Leave a trail of candy corn to the entrance.

    *The dumb ones are easier to keep in line.

    1. Bobarian LMD

      The Woods method.

  39. Bobarian LMD

    Apparently, someone in NC hates the best Halloween Candy.

  40. Certified Public Asshat

    My next candy #hottake:

    Swedish Fish, meh.

    1. leon

      My take on Swedish Fish:

      1. Mmm
      2. Meh
      3. I’ve had my annual quota.

      1. Greta Thunberg.

    2. “Tulsi Gabbard Apologist”

      They are freaking awesome. That and “bit o’ honey” were my favorite candies growing-up. I would trade away all the chocolate candies for them, because chocolate is just awful.

      1. leon

        Better change your handle to “Swedish Fish Apologist” cause you are just wrong.

        1. leon

          Or Bit o’ Honey Apologist.

          1. “Tulsi Gabbard Apologist”

            The notion that I would have to defend the good name of Swedish Fish or Bit ‘O Honey baffles me.

          2. leon

            Because they are both awful. (Ok Swedish Fish are ok for the first three, but after that, awful).

          3. “Tulsi Gabbard Apologist”

            Worst take ever

          4. Certified Public Asshat

            I like you Leon.

          5. Certified Public Asshat

            Nevermind, just saw your take on pumpkin pie.

          6. leon

            Some truths are too bitter to taste. I get it.

      2. I totally forgot Bit o’ Honeys! I love those!

  41. leon

    OT: Listening to Dave Smiths Rebuttal of a Debunking of the NAP, and i have to say it drives me crazy that he thinks it’s somehow more authentic to go into this debunking without having listened to the argument first. Just listen to it and then you will have a good understanding of the argument rather than pausing at random moments and attacking straw men. They guy has plenty that he is wrong about, but you’re going down the wrong paths because you refuse to listen to the whole argument beforehand.

  42. The Late P Brooks

    The candy cigarette connoisseur knows that there were two types: the hard candy one that was just awful and the bubble gum one wrapped in paper

    The ones I remember looked (and tasted) like a stick of chalk with a bit of red food coloring on the end.

    1. “Tulsi Gabbard Apologist”

      That was the hard candy one. I think some places still sell them, but they are awful. I haven’t seen the bubble gum ones wrapped in paper in at least ten years. They actually looked like cigarettes and you could puff on them and let out a cloud of powdered sugar.

      It’s easier for a kid to get a sex change nowadays than buy realistic candy cigarettes. The world I grewed up in is gone.

    2. l0b0t

      IIRC, the paper wrapped gum version was the better of the two as you could blow out of it and the powdered sugar/cornstarch/talc used as a desiccant looked like smoke.

      1. “Tulsi Gabbard Apologist”

        Yes. So I’m not insane. They existed. I swear few people remember them. They were so awesome.

        1. R C Dean

          I ‘member, too. Sometimes we’d get them when we were at the store to get our belt onions.

        2. A Leap at the Wheel

          Used to walk down to the corner store and buy those when we visited Grandma back in the day.

        3. Suthenboy

          I remember them

        4. We’re not saying BEAM’s an alien, but . . .

          Hell, yeah. Bought those all the time when I was a kid. Haven’t seen ’em in decades.

  43. l0b0t

    The little peanut butter things that come in unmarked orange wrappers. Also, the themed Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups as they have a higher PB to chocolate ratio.

      1. l0b0t

        YESSSSS!!! SO delicious. Also, Alton Brown has a decent recipe for candy corn.

  44. R C Dean

    This seems like a little much for Halloween to me.

    Police found more than 40 skulls, dozens of bones and a fetus in a glass jar next to an altar in the den of suspected drug traffickers in Mexico City during a raid this week, authorities said on Sunday.

    Not to worry, though.

    Four of the skulls were built into the altar in the central Tepito neighborhood, where police arrested 31 people on Tuesday on suspicion of drug cartel activity, the city government said in a statement. A judge ordered 27 of the suspects released.

    1. Story seems a little light on sugar.

    2. Suthenboy

      The injun death cult? They have always been around.

  45. PieInTheSky

    Why is there no pumpkin candy in the US? You have pumpkin everything.

    1. Oh there is… somewhere.

      It’s just not going to win out in a crowded field.

      1. Fatty Bolger

        They don’t taste like pumpkin, though.

        1. Neither do those scads of “pumpkin” products out there.

          1. R C Dean

            Because they aren’t “pumpkin”, they are “pumpkin spice“?

          2. Pumpkin custard is just the vehicle to carry the spice mix. My mom used to use squash and it tasted pretty much the same.

            People don’t like the PUMPKIN. They like the SPICES.

          3. Most canned pumpkin is cut with butternut squash anyway.

          4. Not Adahn

            Huh. Around here the shops have sandwich boards advertising that their pumpkin spice lattes are “made with real pumpkin puree.”

          5. Fatty Bolger

            Fair enough. But they don’t even taste like pumpkin spice.

    2. Certified Public Asshat

      There have been Pumpkin Spiced M&M’s and I think Pumpkin Pie Kit Kats.

  46. leon

    On the topic of Halloween and Thanksgiving i will say this:

    Pumpkin Pie is Awful and a communist plot. Apple Pie FTW.

    1. l0b0t

      I grew up with pecan pies and buttermilk pies, occasionally a sweet potato pie.

    2. You and my husband can go sit over in that corner with your noses to the wall.

    3. LJW

      I’m burnt out on all things pumpkin. Agreed apple pie FTW

      1. leon

        Its good to have support, in the face of this NPC-like rhetoric. Thank you.

    4. Pat

      You probably put a slice of cheddar cheese on it too, you absolute degenerate.

      1. Cheddar cheese goes on well-buttered banana bread.

        1. Pat

          In my youth I made county-fair-blue-ribbon-award-winning banana bread. Shame I don’t really like banana bread…

          1. Slather it in butter with a thick slice of extra sharp cheddar and you will.

            I despise bananas (like, they make me throw up), but that teensy flavor with cheese is scrumptious.

          2. Pat

            Eh, I can’t eat any of that shit anyway now because of my cholesterol.

            I’m fairly convinced cholesterol isn’t a great predictor of peripheral artery disease, but I still stick to a pretty rigid – although not AHA-approved – diet.

    5. “Tulsi Gabbard Apologist”

      Boo this man. Boo him mercilessly!

      1. Sean

        ? Boo

    6. PieInTheSky

      how about 18th century pumpkin bread?

      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u76Yv3Feazk

    7. Nephilium

      leon:

      You are wrong.

      Pumpkin Pie is amazing, especially when instead of the pastry crust, you go with a gingersnap crumble crust.

    8. leon

      The people don’t like to hear the hard truths, but I won’t stop saying them. Pumpkin Pie tastes like eating grub paste. It’s texture is atrocious and no one says “American as Pumpkin Pie”.

      1. PieInTheSky

        agree tbh

    9. creech

      Ah, pumpkin pie. Once upon a time, my wife got out of shower and came downstairs in her bathroom looking for a snack. I said there is only one piece of pumpkin pie left.
      She said I could have it, grabbed it and rubbed it all over her chest. Best pie I ever ate.

    10. *mulls over declaring war on leon…obviously some sort of Russian asset*

    11. Mad Scientist

      Pumpkin Pie is Awful and a communist plot. Apple Pie FTW.

      THIS!!!!

    12. I do not dislike apple pie, but it is not my favorite. After XX was born, my sense of smell was trashed. Apples and apple-flavored anything tasted rancid/rotting and that went on for about 5 years. 16 years later and I still can’t quite shake the vestiges of that.

      1. mindyourbusiness

        Marie Callendar’s Razzleberry pie FTW.

  47. LJW

    Butterfinger used to be then they pulled a Coca Cola and changed the recipe.

    1. I know.

      It’s Not supposed to taste like peanut butter!

      1. Pat

        A Butterfinger that tastes like peanut butter is actually just a 5th Avenue.

    2. Wait, when did this happen? I haven’t eaten a candy bar since I started drinking beer but Butterfingers were my go to back in the day, them and JujyFruits at the movies. And yes the black Jujyfruits are the best jujyfruits.

      1. Within the past year.

        1. Ah, no wonder, 30 years to late for me to notice.

          1. leon

            He said while not watching his TV he doesn’t have….

  48. Pat

    The answer is Rolo.

    Here’s why: they’re actually delicious, but you would never ever actually buy them as a stand-alone candy. You run across them in the variety bag once a year at Halloween and then forget about them again.

    1. Pat

      Runners up: Chick-O-Stick and Neccos.

      1. A Leap at the Wheel

        Your opinions are bad and you are bad and you should feel bad.

        1. Pat

          Yeah, well, that’s just like, your opinion man.

  49. Zagnut.

    Fight me.

    *hides behind Warty*

    1. The Bearded Hobbit

      Zagnut.

      My favorite. I stopped eating candy years ago. Do they still make Zagnut?

      1. Yes, but Hershey’s bought them in the 1990s.

  50. In the category of things people apparently buy, but you don’t know anybody who’s ever heard of them: maple nut goodies.

    https://www.brachs.com/products/others/maple-nut-goodies.html

    1. Pat

      When I was a kid they had one of those big Brach’s candy dispensers on the end cap of the aisle at Safeway. You know it’s shit candy when you can’t even get unsupervised kids to steal it from a giant fucking bin.

      1. Sensei

        Stuff was expensive!

        I used to work as supermarket cashier. That was sold by weight and you were much better off buying bagged candy. The reason you bought it was the variety. Some of them were OK others awful.

        Kids today with those scanners don’t know how good they have it. You used to have to check out what department the item came from, taxable or non taxable, food stamp or non food stamp eligible, etc for each item. However, when I worked there weren’t 40 different varieties of lettuce. You still have to identify produce. Which is why for inventory control lots of supermarkets will put UPC codes on produce so as to stop cashier mistakes.

        1. Pat

          My local Smith’s (Kroger) bar codes most of the produce, including lettuce, cilantro, parsley and anything else sold in a bunch with a twist tie closure. 9 times out of 10 the cashiers just put in the item code instead of scanning the tiny (and usually wet) bar code though.

          Albertsons and Wal Mart don’t bar code anything. It’s always wild at Wal Mart. You might end up with the cashier ringing up $1.50/lb sweet onions as $.68/lb yellow onions. Or you might end up with the cashier ringing up $.99/head iceberg lettuce as $.68/lb cabbage…

          1. Sensei

            For common items it was easy enough to memorize the produce chart. I’m not surprised more experienced cashiers simply key the item in instead of trying to read a mangled bar code.

            Produce is a critical department for store margins. You don’t want to have stuff going out under priced.

            The store I worked was a closed shop. I have great fun with NYC liberals explaining that as a former union member that I oppose closed shops.

      2. Not Adahn

        Brach’s red licorice was vastly better than Twizzlers.

    2. Gender Traitor

      Genuine maple sugar candy is the Best Thing Ever. We’d get it during visits to the local Children’s Farm (associated with the local Audubon Center.)

    3. Bobarian LMD

      Awful.

  51. l0b0t

    When I was wee, I loved the Marathon bar; mainly because I lived in Marathon, FL.

  52. KSuellington

    Jolly ranchers (sour apple is the best), gummy bears, sweet tarts, and sour patch kids.

    1. Pat

      Man did I love cheap gummy candy when I was a kid. The sour apple Sour Punch Bites and Sour Punch Straws are also stellar. Starburst and Mamba were probably my favorite though (orange and pink Starburst > * – and all the colors have a different flavor, I don’t care what they say). Once I got my braces on I quit eating all that shit and never started back up.

      1. KSuellington

        When I was in my early 20’s I decided for a few years that going to the dentist wasn’t as good a use of my money as going out to bars several times a week. When ifinally went after a three year break I had seven cavities. I pretty much cut my sugar (aside from booze) down to almost zero. But even still I will probably inspect my sons’ candy and remove some suspicious looking gummy things.

  53. The Bearded Hobbit

    Fried eggs and beer.

    1. Fried beer? How do you get it out of the frier without the can exploding?

      1. A Leap at the Wheel

        Mix it in a suspension of self rising flour and fish, duh.

        1. Ah. Should have thought of that.

          1. The Bearded Hobbit

            Coneheads on SNL, back when it was occasionally funny.

          2. Bobarian LMD

            Opening the whole six pack and drinking it at once.

            Then smoking an entire pack of cigarettes.

  54. creech

    Snickers and Milky Ways (depends on condition of one’s teeth)

  55. LJW

    When I was a kid I had a friend whose step mom worked for a candy distributor. Their basement was full of boxes of candy. Every time I went over there I came home with a box of king sized candy. My friend was so burnt out on candy he didn’t bother going out on Halloween.

    1. leon

      If you define soon to be within the next year, then any annual tradition is almost here.

  56. Chafed

    I assume HM declared his love of eating ass and declared ass the best candy.

    1. PieInTheSky

      I though pull sumo eat ass was last year

    2. R C Dean

      You mean, like this?

  57. robc

    The 3 packs of sweet tarts.

    Or Smarties. Not the horrible Canadian stuff either.

    1. leon

      Ohh. I had forgotten about sweet tarts. Those are fantastic.

    2. We’re not saying BEAM’s an alien, but . . .

      SweetTarts rock, and Canadian Smarties are one of the Legendary Candies of the Elder Ones. In contrast, plain M&Ms are Of The Devil.

  58. Rebel Scum

    Point of interest: Good & Plenty

    I separate the good from the plenty.

    1. Fatty Bolger

      Nasty & Nastier. Not a fan of licorice.

    2. Private Chipperbot

      Racist!

  59. LJW

    NCAA Board of Governors opens door to athletes benefiting from name, image and likeness

    OT I know. This is going to change the landscape of college sports.

    1. Don Escaped Texas

      reposting from major Gilmore above at 1:11 . . . ugh !

      Kids get paid: fine.
      Shoe corps take over sport: fine.
      Athletes less like students every year: fine.

      I still get taxed for bonds to pay to renovate stadium every five years: total fucking bullshit.

      1. LJW

        Yup I’m all for players making money off of their image. However, this will likely create back channel for schools to pay players or shift their current player payments to a legitimate source.

        1. Don Escaped Texas

          Kids will BYOB: bring your own bucks. They’ll be signed in high school.

          Now the question is the school / kid bargain: the school still owns the slot, and the kid’s getting paid to be seen. What does the bargaining and transaction look like when a school wants to attract a player?

          I can’t wait until they announce the salary caps for amateurs. Now that I think of it, if I don’t like paying for the stadium any more, I absolutely despise funding scholarships for professional athletes . . . that’s gotta go as well.

          1. leon

            Yeah… Though you could say that the revenue generated by the Team that they are a part of generally offsets the scholarships paid out (depending on the school)

          2. Bobarian LMD

            This’ll be a shit show. The ‘have-not’ programs will become even more have-not and eventually close out.

            And just wait for the Title IX issues… “Why does our 2nd string QB get 100K more than our entire 4 yr NCAA champ field hockey team?”

      2. Suthenboy

        What Don said X1000

        1. Don Escaped Texas

          * CNTL-prtsc *

          red letter, blind hog of a day !

          * tacks up next to velvet Elvis poster *

      3. leon

        Yeah. College Sports is crazy. Nothing against it or for it, it’s just funny to me stuff like football get so much attention from an institution that is supposed to be about academia and learning.

        1. Don Escaped Texas

          The funny thing is that nothing has grown up in the gap between NCAA and NFL.

          WFL, USFL, XFL, AAF all flopped. There’s no desire to see a semi-pro game of AAA feeder ball that’s not college.

          People want to watch a sentimental game with the drama of the short, amateur status affiliated with the sweet old alma mater’s colors.

          Other weird transaction: between shoe corps and schools. Do shoe deals evaporate: you want to recruit kids, but some are already Nike men, some Adidas, signed in high school.

          Or do shoe corps sign option letters, and the kid gets paid by the shoe corp where he attends?

          Is college ball coming back to the North? The sales and eyes are in NY and Chicago, so wouldn’t a good season at Northwestern or Syracuse (Rutgers? pukes up a little in my mouth) be much more valuable than a Bama deal? All the Florida schools stay in the mix regardless.

          1. Don Escaped Texas

            Just like buy-a-ride race car drivers?

            Is this the first full reverse Brooks performed in competition!? * giddy quiet clapping to self *

            Ooooo: screw the shoe corps; let’s go full NASCAR.

            Ohio State can be Bridgestone.
            Bama is Goodyear.
            Michigan is Ford.
            Georgia is Coke.
            Stanford is Hewlett Packard.
            LSU is Koch Brothers.
            Texas is Exxon Mobil.
            Nebraska is ConAgra.

          2. Just put the sponsor logos on the players’ uniforms.

          3. Not Adahn

            Obviously, the conferences will be organized by shoe company. At the end of the season, there will be a playoff between the conference champions (Nike, Reebok, Puma, Adidas, Under Armour, Sketchers, New Balance, ASICS) for shoe, er, football supremacy.

      4. R C Dean

        The University of Arizona has spent tens or maybe hundreds of millions on new facilities – poshy dorm/apartments, a fabulous student gym, renovations of their stadiums, etc. in the last several years. To my knowledge they have not built a new building for, you know, academics, in quite some time.

        Priorities.

  60. Rebel Scum

    But mostly I just like dark chocolate. Not Halloween related, I just have a square or so every day. Something 70-80% cacao.

    1. Gender Traitor

      ^This. Dark chocolate is not candy. It is a beneficial dietary supplement. A wonderful, delicious dietary supplement.

  61. Stinky Wizzleteats

    For the bubblegum cigarette aficionados above:

    https://www.amazon.com/Bubble-Gum-Cigarettes-count-display/dp/B004CH9WVK/ref=mp_s_a_1_3?keywords=bubble+gum+cigarettes&qid=1572372821&sr=8-3

    I’ll be damned, you can still get the things. I think I’ll order some and pass them out at Christmas.

    1. leon

      Is this the first full reverse Brooks performed in competition!?

      And now i’m going to Gilmore a Response to it.

      1. Don Escaped Texas

        I laughed

        excellent, sir

  62. Certified Public Asshat

    Hi! I’ve just been fired from Deadspin for not sticking to sports.— Barry Petchesky (@barry) October 29, 2019

    Womp.

    1. It’s almost as if when the new management said “This is supposed to be a sports site”, they meant it.

    2. Gender Traitor

      L

        1. Not Adahn

          A

          1. Tundra

            V

          2. Heroic Mulatto

            E

          3. leon

            Getting a little to close to Hans Herman Hoppe “Physical Removal”

          4. R C Dean

            A

          5. pistoffnick

            T

    3. leon

      He’s not the first person to be fired for this too. Not to bring up the Millennials suck conversation from earlier today but i’ve heard that a lot of Millenials don’t separate their Personal Life from their professional life. I don’t know how true that is, as i’ve not seen a lot of Political Gallivanting on the job where i work, but you certainly do see this in some people, where despite being told not to, they feel like they have to take on every issue and make sure it is addressed by whatever thing they are working on.

      1. It’s more prevalent in places like Deadspin, where the office culture pre-acquisition was “The Personal is Political, and that’s all we talk about”. So when the boss changes and the new boss says “Stick to what this site is supposed to be about” the people who thrived under the previous culture can’t manage to switch off.

      2. i’ve heard that a lot of Millenials don’t separate their Personal Life from their professional life

        I know I always hated office cultures that demanded that you socialize outside of work. I worked at one place where the boss paid for a cruise that everyone was expected to go on. Dude, just give me the fucking cash and let me man the phones that week. I don’t mind chatting during the workday (actually, I chat too much), but after hours? No. I want to go home to my hobbies (that was when I was single).

        1. I’m paid to talk business with these people.

          I am not paid to be their friend.

        2. Nephilium

          Look into remote work. Three days a week, I’m working from home. The two days I’m in the office, I still generally don’t talk to anyone (I’m the only employee of my company at that office). I have never met a single of my managers face to face. I see the other members of my team when they fly me down for a week or two (maybe twice a year), or when one of them comes up to my office.

          1. Look into remote work.

            I’m self-employed. Have been for 16 years.

            The above example was from when I was single.

      3. R C Dean

        a lot of Millenials don’t separate their Personal Life from their professional life

        I believe I taught our intern an important life lesson this summer. I was bitching about disruptive illegals and Border Patrol was in the hospital, and inquiring about when we could discharge one pregnant woman who squirted across the border (with a kid in tow) a few days before she thought she was going to deliver. Alas, complications ensued and her delivery was delayed. I asked when she could be sent back to Mexico to have her kid and foil her plan to break US law to have a US citizen and obtain residency for herself and her other kid.

        I could see our li’l millenial intern was about to pop at the Injustice Of It All, so I asked what this was costing us and whether we could get paid. Answer: a lot, and no. So I noted that our role was to look out for the hospital’s interests, and asked if there was a better idea than getting her out of here so the BP could take her back where she belongs. There were none. Lesson: your employer isn’t paying you to Change the World, they are paying you to do your job.

        I am not paid to be their friend.

        Or, as I told one subordinate, “I can’t be friends with somebody I might have to fire”.

        1. leon

          your employer isn’t paying you to Change the World, they are paying you to do your job.

          This is especially important in your profession as a lawyer. Lawyers get a lot of bad press as being smarmy, but you want someone who wants to push forward your interests regardless of their thoughts in the matter.

          1. Bobarian LMD

            I pretty sure the ‘smarmy’ part is the good press.

  63. The Late P Brooks

    Kids will BYOB: bring your own bucks. They’ll be signed in high school.

    Now the question is the school / kid bargain: the school still owns the slot, and the kid’s getting paid to be seen. What does the bargaining and transaction look like when a school wants to attract a player?

    Just like buy-a-ride race car drivers?

    1. Gender Traitor

      Yes, but ‘cept race car drivers don’t pretend to be students (unless they are. See William Byron.)

  64. Not Adahn

    I hope I survive this winter.

    I’ve signed up for a pistol league. Monday nights December – March will be spent driving to and from various little backwoods redneck gun clubs in:

    Hudson Falls
    Galway
    Salem
    Melrose
    Troy
    Scotia
    Greenfield

    Over/under on the number of deer impacts and/or ice-related ditch entries?

    1. Fewer Deer impacts during that span, more ice.

    2. Wait, there’s a gun club in Troylet?

      1. Not Adahn

        Apparently so https://troypistol.com/

        The one I’m worried about is the one is Scotia. They don’t list an address, just a series of driving directions and a set of GPS coordinates.

        1. It’s a trap!

          And not the fun kind where you shot shotguns at clay pigeons.

          1. Not Adahn

            Fortunately, I’ll be armed.

    3. PieInTheSky

      Could be worse. In libertopia there would be no roads

      1. Rasilio

        Hey if there are no roads then there is no road to go off of and so you never end up in a ditch

      2. We would simply fly there in our orphan and coal powered helicopters.

        1. leon

          Hot Air Balloons with Orphans as Ballast.

  65. The Late P Brooks

    Hi! I’ve just been fired from Deadspin for not sticking to sports.— Barry Petchesky (@barry) October 29, 2019

    Now you can follow your true calling, and write about sports, at a politics blog.

    Or learn to barista.

    1. leon

      What we are seeing is what happens when there is a glut in the Market. There is too much political spin for what people want. There are lots of questions like: Why did sportscasters ever think people wanted to hear their opinion? Will some of these folk shift political opinons to get a gig at another sector?

      Rasilio posted a question today, which i misunderstood, about how Principles and owners are separated from the actual super low-level decision makers. I haven’t looked into it all but this does seem to be one response. Organizations that don’t remove bad actors will tend to fail, so bad actors should be removed.

  66. The Late P Brooks

    Monday nights December – March will be spent driving to and from various little backwoods redneck gun clubs in:

    Hudson Falls
    Galway
    Salem
    Melrose
    Troy
    Scotia
    Greenfield

    Don’t they have a club in North Creek? That would pretty much reduce the uncertainty factor to nil. Buy some studded snow tires.

    1. Not Adahn

      They must not be members of the Adirondack Foothills Pistol League.

  67. Tundra

    Bit ‘O Honey are the ones I remember the most.

    My mom was a health nut, so we didn’t get a lot of candy, so Halloween was a good time.

    When my kids started participating, neither liked Reeses PB Cups, so I got all of those.

    Which was nice.

    1. Your kids are strange.

      1. Tundra

        They aren’t unique. Every year we give out way more Nerds/Skittles, etc. than the chocolate ones.

        Caramel apple pops are also very popular and really fucking tasty.

        1. Every year we give out way more Nerds/Skittles, etc. than the chocolate ones.

          Can confirm.

          XX prefers sour things, as do I. I can’t document it and I’m too lazy to look for it, but I believe a preference for tart/sour is an XX thing.

          XY is all over the map, but generally speaking, he’s not into candy. When he spends money on food, it’s Subway.

          1. leon

            , it’s Subway.

            You know what is actually pretty good? The Subway Vegie Patties, with bacon on it.

          2. Tundra

            ?

          3. First, crapping on the original ‘murican pie..pumpkin. Now this…

            RED FLAG!!!

          4. Tres Cool

            Clearly a russian plant.

          5. leon

            crapping on the original ‘murican pie..pumpkin
            I didn’t have to crap on pumpkin pie, seeing as that is part of the recipe in the first place.

      2. Bobarian LMD

        “Your kids are strange.”

        Apples tend to land right next to the tree.

  68. The Late P Brooks

    Rasilio posted a question today, which i misunderstood, about how Principles and owners are separated from the actual super low-level decision makers.

    Principal-agent problem

    Managers who enrich themselves (or respond to personally beneficial incentives) at the expense of owners/shareholders is a serious issue.

    Employees who (willfully or otherwise) neglect the larger mission of their employer to pursue their own hobbyhorse interests, likewise.

    1. Don Escaped Texas

      how Principles and owners are separated from the actual super low-level decision makers

      That’s no small part of it, though. My view is that the client is paramount, and it’s understood that my salary ends at their pleasure; it’s my job to make it abundantly clear that my work and recommendations have increased shareholder wealth.

      Often, there’s no clear connection between shareholder outcomes and agent compensation. Even as a kid, I thought it was stupid to pay salesmen based on revenue instead of profit.

      Lastly, no one sticks around any more. Instead of a solid relationship that lasts longer than a business cycle where employees are valued because they have proven to be valuable, it’s just plugging in least-common-denominator headcount and hope that the facade doesn’t fall off the front of the business before this crop of management can skip town on their golden parachutes.

      1. it’s just plugging in least-common-denominator headcount and hope that the facade doesn’t fall off the front of the business before this crop of management can skip town on their golden parachutes.

        This. This. This.

      2. We’re not saying BEAM’s an alien, but . . .

        Often, there’s no clear connection between shareholder outcomes and agent compensation. Even as a kid, I thought it was stupid to pay salesmen based on revenue instead of profit.

        YES! YES! A THOUSAND TIMES YES!

        Salespeople in the industry I worked in (telecom) would do the stupidest, most insanely un-profitable deals for the company they possibly could, simply because it increased revenue (and thus their compensation package). I used to hate those people with the heat of a quintillion ultranovas.

        1. Nephilium

          People respond to incentives. Provide bad incentives, watch people respond to them.

          /explains phone metrics to someone on the business side for the twentieth time

          1. We’re not saying BEAM’s an alien, but . . .

            Oh, their responding to the bad incentives isn’t what used to get my goat — it’s when management actively tried to move to a profit-based compensation scheme and the sales force revolted ’cause they saw their myriad schemes for getting reluctant customers to say “yes” disappearing in a puff of smoke. All their talk of “we need to get more revenue in this company” was just bullshit, and they knew it.

            I pretty much stopped co-operating with any salesperson after that, and explained to any superiors why I stopped, multiple times.

          2. R C Dean

            If I pay a 20% incentive to a salesman, for something we have a 15% margin on, I have lost money.

          3. R C Dean

            We do a lot of incentive contracts. I have constantly told people that they need to keep two things in mind:

            (1) You get more of what you reward, so we need to think really hard about what we are incentivizing. Because:

            (2) Inside every incentive is a perverse incentive trying to get out.

          4. Jarflax

            It is the curse of large organizations. If things are small you can give raises and bonuses based on your direct knowledge of performance, when things get larger you need systems, which will always calcify and be corrupted.

    2. PieInTheSky

      Well when owners are too detached from the business shit happens. Managment in not entrepreneurship

      But there are a ton of issues in managment. One is that big corporations are in the end bureacracies and like the state this causes issues. If through vatious mechanisms the state removes the market penalties for bad managment for very large corps, then you get what you get

  69. May I talk about Christmas yet? No? Damn. *slinks back into the corner*

    1. Gender Traitor

      Will allow discussion of planned or in-progress holiday craft projects (gifts and/or decorations,) which I’m probably too late to finish in time. Knitting’s getting off to a slow start this season. I blame global warming.

      1. Tres Cool

        Throw in a dash of patriarchy just cause.

        1. Gender Traitor

          Hell, yeah! That’s why I can’t weld or forge while sitting on my ass on the sofa. The Man’s keepin’ me down!

    2. Nephilium

      Not until after Thanksgiving!

      I stand for the feast holiday!

    3. Private Chipperbot
      1. “That’s how I want to go out: dehydrated and covered in tinsel.”

        “Sounds like a gay pride parade.”

        ROFLMAO

    4. Mad Scientist

      May I talk about Christmas yet?

      Sure, if you’re inquiring about gifts. I want a fire truck.

      1. Gender Traitor

        I’ll knit you one.

        1. Jarflax

          You think that link was a joke. I would bet you 90% of the men here looked at that link and immediately wanted one. Inside every middle aged curmudgeon is a little boy that still wants to be a:

          Fireman
          Cowboy
          Knight
          Explorer
          Racecar driver

          1. We’re not saying BEAM’s an alien, but . . .

            Shitlord!

            You forgot astronaut.

          2. Jarflax

            I posted this as the thread dies, which makes me sad as it means no one will see what I did there.

          3. Mad Scientist

            You forgot to list Uniformed Army Guy.

          4. That you couldn’t think of an occupation that starts with “U”?

          5. Jarflax

            yes. I thought about undertaker, but…. I mean that is just creepy

          6. Inside every middle aged curmudgeon is a little boy that still wants to be a:

            Fireman
            Cowboy
            Knight
            Explorer
            Racecar driver

            Pffftt. That goes without saying.

            Mad Scientist expressed a desire for a fire truck. 1 Hotwheels is all I’mma spring for.

  70. Tripacer

    I always liked Bottle Caps when I was a kid, but peanut butter cups are the best non-Halloween candy.

  71. Don Escaped Texas

    The cleanest coal is no coal ?

    Robert E. Murray, the U.S. coal baron who pressed the Trump administration to help save America’s struggling miners, placed his company into bankruptcy as demand for the fossil fuel continues to weaken.

    Not that it matters or is even true but funny thing I remember from childhood: Difference between a Democrat and a Republican is that when you buy a Democrat he stays bought.

        1. Gender Traitor

          A

          1. PieInTheSky

            X

    1. Urthona

      The media keeps making this claim, but it’s not entirely true.

      While U.S. demand for coal continues to decline, globally the market for coal (overall, not as a percentage) was among the top of all time last year. Asia’s appetite for coal is just fine.

      1. PieInTheSky

        But in read chiana and india will be full solar in 5 years

        1. Urthona

          ha, yeah. I mean I guess China could if they wanted. It’s a totalitarian state.

          But, they don’t really plan to and they’re even rolling back previous efforts.

          Let me put it this way: if the U.S. stopped burning all fossil fuels entirely, destroying its way of life, plunging back into the dark ages, etc., etc. the world would still double its CO2 emissions in the next decade or so. Because of China and India.

      2. We’re not saying BEAM’s an alien, but . . .

        Asia’s appetite for coal is just fine.

        Yep. China loves themselves some of that sweet anthracite (read: low sulphur) coal that Canada ships to them. And collapsing North America markets plays well into China’s hands — that just means they get the high-quality stuff at a lower price.

        Truly, rampant environmentalism has managed to bugger us rather royally.

  72. Unreconstructed

    Dammit. Now I want candy!

    1. PieInTheSky

      I know a guy who’s tough but sweet
      He’s so fine, he can’t be beat
      He’s got everything that I desire
      Sets the summer sun on fire…
      I want candy, I want candy

      1. Gender Traitor

        ::bows to Pie’s knowledge of American pop music::

  73. Grummun

    Reese’s cups (specifically the dark chocolate minis), or Heath minis.

    Re: “waxy” American chocolate, WTF? You’re not trying. Scharfenberger, even after they got bought by Hershey’s, makes really good chocolate. They’ve got a 68% (or thereabouts, it’s the bar in the powder blue wrapper) that is, for my purposes, a fine eating chocolate. Even the local Kroger’s, not exactly a Mecca for foodies, has a selection of middle- to high-end chocolate.

    1. Gender Traitor

      Lindt or GTFO.

      1. PieInTheSky

        Lindt is so mainstream

        1. Gender Traitor

          ::turns in hipster card::

      2. Grummun

        Lindt or GTFO

        I gotcher Lindt riiiight here.

        Nah, Lindt is good, around here it’s probably the best reliably available chocolate, everybody carries the stuff. Mrs. G gets it sometimes, and she’s way more of a chocolate snob than I am. I was mostly arguing against the “American chocolate is crap” BS, and Lindt is Swiss (at least, owned by the Swiss, maybe they make it in America).

  74. The Late P Brooks

    Asia’s appetite for coal is just fine.

    I see lots and lots and lots of coal trains headed west. I’m pretty sure they’re not bound for Portland or Seattle power plants.

  75. Jarflax

    My entire office leaves tomorrow for a conference they are hosting that lasts the rest of the week. Everyone except me :D. Most of my other clients will also be attending, so at some point this weekend I will swing by (it is local) and press the flesh. I have one NNN Master Lease to prepare between now and Friday, no other business remotely likely to arise this week, and just put a huge pot of Jambalaya on to cook. I also just popped open a bottle of Michter’s Rye (as mentioned previously I have never tried Rye. so I picked a low middle priced bottle to give her a try). If I don’t like that, or like it too well, I also bought a bottle of Glenmorangie Lasanta. Life is good!

    1. MikeS

      I haven’t tried Micther’s yet, but I’ve heard good things. Prost!