# Is the Jimmy Kimmel Halloween prank cruel or damaging to children? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [November 7, 2014, 12:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-jimmy-kimmel-halloween-prank-cruel-or-damaging-to-children/703941 "2014-11-07T00:10:29Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 7
**Author:** ![Lust4Life](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ecc23a/32.png) [@Lust4Life](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lust4Life)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2014, 11:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-jimmy-kimmel-halloween-prank-cruel-or-damaging-to-children/703941/121 "2014-11-12T11:25:31Z")
My take on Practical jokes is they can sometimes be very funny indeed , but all to often its an excuse for some people to carry out spiteful acts . ---
**Author:** ![Mister\_Rik](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mister_rik/32/491_2.png) [@Mister\_Rik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mister_Rik)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2014, 12:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-jimmy-kimmel-halloween-prank-cruel-or-damaging-to-children/703941/122 "2014-11-12T12:45:48Z")
I’m reminded of this Jack Handy quote: “One thing kids like is to be tricked. For instance, I was going to take my little nephew to Disneyland, but instead I drove him to an old burned-out warehouse. “Oh, no,” I said. “Disneyland burned down.” He cried and cried, but I think that deep down, he thought it was a pretty good joke. I started to drive over to the real Disneyland, but it was getting pretty late.” ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2014, 12:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-jimmy-kimmel-halloween-prank-cruel-or-damaging-to-children/703941/123 "2014-11-12T12:47:58Z")
> [@Heffalump\_and\_Roo](#): > > Or maybe more appropriately for this topic: > > Kids to parents: The police just called. They need you to call them back. I just reported you for abuse at school today. [for eating my Halloween candy] > > If the parents roll on the floor laughing before the Halloween candy part is revealed, then I’ll buy the whole idea that the family just likes to laugh and takes things in stride. But mostly this kind of thing is just an excuse to be nasty to people who can’t fight back, and since the kids don’t know any better, that’s what they continue to pass down the line. When my daughter was 5? whatever age kids start feeling they are too big to be babied, we were at the mall. On the way to the car I reached for her hand. She felt it was unnecessary. I took her hand anyway, and she said, “Stranger Danger”. I dropped her hand and glanced around. People were looking. I eventually laughed… ---
**Author:** ![Heffalump\_and\_Roo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/heffalump_and_roo/32/7691_2.png) [@Heffalump\_and\_Roo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Heffalump_and_Roo)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2014, 9:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-jimmy-kimmel-halloween-prank-cruel-or-damaging-to-children/703941/124 "2014-11-13T09:00:49Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > When my daughter was 5? whatever age kids start feeling they are too big to be babied, we were at the mall. On the way to the car I reached for her hand. She felt it was unnecessary. I took her hand anyway, and she said, “Stranger Danger”. I dropped her hand and glanced around. People were looking. I eventually laughed… That’s what I mean about the disparity in experience. If she had the knowledge of an adult, she’d yell “Rape!” and look around desperately. That would have gotten a bigger impact. Children don’t really have the tools to make a prank a fair game. ---
**Author:** ![tellyworth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/977dab/32.png) [@tellyworth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tellyworth)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2014, 11:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-jimmy-kimmel-halloween-prank-cruel-or-damaging-to-children/703941/125 "2014-11-13T23:23:47Z")
> [@Guinastasia](#): > > How would those same kids not realize that the Halloween was a joke as well? Seriously? Because their parents deliver the line seriously. “All your candy is gone” is entirely plausible. Besides, it doesn’t matter why. Clearly they _did_ believe it. That’s why they’re upset. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Blue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Mr.Blue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Blue)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2014, 1:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-jimmy-kimmel-halloween-prank-cruel-or-damaging-to-children/703941/126 "2014-11-14T01:10:29Z")
I think it could be cruel or damaging to kids, but it could also do nothing other than prove what kind of kid you have been raising. A kid that is materialistic (spoiled), could go ape shit being told their candy is gone. A kid who has trust issues from the beginning from just bad parenting, could just be further damaged from the prank. A kid who was brought up to be accepting and forgiving would not be effected very much or at all. It the video you can see each of these examples. So to me its more like a parenting test than a prank. IMHO [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-the-jimmy-kimmel-halloween-prank-cruel-or-damaging-to-children/703941.md?page=6)