Trick or Treat and the Philippine Economy

The global financial markets have been spooked lately. I have been meaning to write about trick or treating this Halloween but it has been put off until today.

What did I notice for trick or treating this year 2008? Hardly anyone gave candies, much less imported goodies or chocolates. With the financial crisis and the melamine scare, most people "bought Filipino" which is quite good actually. A lot of residents in the place where we live gave snacks or junk food as these are relatively inexpensive, bulky, and sure to make the kids happy.

People were more creative. They served gulaman (our local gelatin served with syrup), hotdog on a stick with marshmallows, and dirty ice cream. Were we worried that the ice cream might have used ingredients from China? What the heck. You only live once and if you always deny yourself the stuff that you like, you die a little, a thousand times, throughout your life.

The treats were gone faster. People gave out less since after we had only gone around for a short time , some residents were already saying: "Ubos na." (It's finished.)

So, you want to know the true state of the Philippine economy? You don't need government or some hotshot economist to let you know. The answer lies not in that crystal ball next door but in the lootbag that your kid happily carries.