"I wouldn’t put it 'the world is falling apart' phase yet. But the trend that we see is really concerning, and it’s consistent among all demographic groups."

Said an expert on consumer sentiment, quoted at The Hill in an article about how people aren't spending so much money on Halloween anymore. Halloween is not a necessity, so willingness to spend on it is some indication of how wealthy people feel and also how wealthy they want to look: "Halloween is the expenditure-visibility holiday."

But, come on, it's just Halloween. Halloween had become stupidly important to adults in recent years.  I'm hoping the change isn't about consumer confidence generally but cultural change. Maybe the new adults — Generation Z — will look on Halloween as something that only an embarrassingly old adult would get excited about. When I was a young adult, Halloween was a children's holiday, but then adults younger than I am got enmeshed in Halloweenery. Now those adults are old and there are younger adults. Perhaps the pendulum is swinging back. The things your parents did tend to look out-of-date and awkward, so you may find your way back to your grandparents' attitude.

Imagine being in your 20s now and having grown up with a mother who dressed up as "sexy [whatever]" every Halloween. You might think I'll get some candy in case any kids come around. That would be what your grandparents probably did.