Thread: Halloween-Хелоуин

I read this on TASS:

"Этого праздника американцы ждут с таким же нетерпением, как Рождество."


Well this is completely false reality. In America it is also said that Halloween is the second most popular holiday...but to be honest, this is all propaganda created by the business community and the media...created to generate interest and enthusiam...and consequently, just to make money!

The most popular holidays in America, monetary interest aside are in order: Christmas, Thanksgiving Day, Fourth of July=Independence Day; and New Years Day. Halloween is popular only for children and dorks!

Also: It is VERY popular for alcoholic university students! in fact, more popular than thanksgiving and maybe even christmas combined(most uni students i know arent very christian and only welcome the break from classes). ^_^

Originally Posted by Siriusly

The most popular holidays in America, monetary interest aside are in order: Christmas, Thanksgiving Day, Fourth of July=Independence Day; and New Years Day. Halloween is popular only for children and dorks!

...and all of which generate obscene amounts of money in sales, to boot.

Third most popular party day after New Year's Eve and Superbowl Sunday.

To my horror some people in Russia celebrate it...

Originally Posted by Vincent Tailors

To my horror

Ну так и задумано :P

hmm, subtract children, their parents, alcoholic students, alcoholic people who remember being students, retail business owners, bored to death people from small towns... finally, subtract dorks... Siriusly, you're left alone...

Originally Posted by adoc

hmm, subtract children, their parents, alcoholic students, alcoholic people who remember being students, retail business owners, bored to death people from small towns... finally, subtract dorks... Siriusly, you're left alone...

Exactly! A grumpy old man and lovin' it!

Originally Posted by Indra

Originally Posted by Vincent Tailors

To my horror

Ну так и задумано :P

Originally Posted by Vincent Tailors

To my horror some people in Russia celebrate it...

Siriusly speaking, I agree that this is a dorky celebration.

This is not a big holiday... it's a small holiday, marking the winter solstice. There are much bigger holidays here... Christmas, New Year, Thanksgiving, Fourth of July, etc.

I have no idea why American media would say that Halloween is the second most popular holiday.

This must be a marketing/sales technique... to sell candy.

I'd have been a tad surprised to discover that Halloween is the second most popular holiday in the US if Siriusly hadn't assured us that that item of news is false. I think that people don't take Halloween seriously here in Russia. There are of course a certain number of people who actually celebrate it and consequently follow all the necessary customs of this holiday but in general, as I said, people aren't accustomed to seeing this holiday in the same way as, say, New Year or birthday. I reckon that both in America and in Russia people associate Halloween with something fun. It must be good fun to change into a devil or some other mystical creature!

It's a bad idea to celebrate a foreigners' holiday in our own country... I don't approve of such actions :-/ Even if it's not taken seriously at all. It is not ours.

I partly agree. Yet, we need some holiday from abroad. I can't remember any other foreign holidays that have as much influence (still little, though) as Halloween in Russia..... I'd venture a guess that there are none. I mean those holidays that are more or less known by Russians. I imagine that you can do whatever you want regardless of where it originally comes from.

Why would we need their holidays?

I don't mean that we are in need of foreign holidays. What I mean is that it's great when people can choose what they want to celebrate. Halloween is not an official holiday, so what's the problem? The fact that it's been growing more and more popular in the past few years? Do you project that we can soon find out that Halloween is more than just a holiday for particular groups of population?

Originally Posted by Vincent Tailors

Why would we need their holidays?

You mean you need no pretext to get hammered?

You mean you need no pretext to get hammered?

I don't drink alcohol :P It isn't a day off either...

What I mean is that it's great when people can choose what they want to celebrate.

Isn't it a bit... degrading to dissolve in an alien culture? Just one answer, what for? Let's tell Barmaley -- go celebrate Масленицу. Why don't they do that? They don't need it. Neither do we. Of course, everyone has the right to celebrate what he wants to celebrate, but let's not make it a national event...

Originally Posted by Dobry

I have no idea why American media would say that Halloween is the second most popular holiday.

Apparently, it was ITAR-TASS, a Russian news agency, that said that. Why they said that? Who knows, they can say anything...

Originally Posted by ReDSanchous

The fact that it's been growing more and more popular in the past few years?

Thanks to alcoholic students. I think it's the only group that celebrate Halloween on a regular basis.
By the way we have great pagan holiday of our own - Ивана Купала. I really don't see why we should adopt Halloween.