TheBakersfieldCalifornian.com

Since when did Halloween become primarily about blood-splashed walls and adult film get-ups? I suppose I should be smitten with the holiday since my birthday is the day prior, but at this juncture -- from what the holiday has become -- I'd rather not participate unless it's to sprinkle holy water or distribute pamphlets about STDs.

Of course, there's still the child-centered aspect of Halloween, where little ones dress up as characters and go door-to-door asking you to part with chocolate goodies. But even that is starting to get iffy with the inappropriate costume selection now available to 5 year olds. And if a parent has the good sense not to dress his or her children up as horrors or . . . um . . . the other ones, they are still left to dodge multiple images around town that are PG-13 at best.

For example, there is a cleavage shot, of what I'm guessing to be a promiscuous vampire, plastered on a telephone pole not far from my house, advertising a Halloween event. And then there's the land of the undead and mutilated, aka blood galore, splashed around town because isn't that what Halloween is about?

Um, no. I pulled this off History.com:

"(Halloween) is thought to have originated with the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain, when people would light bonfires and wear costumes to ward off roaming ghosts. In the eighth century, Pope Gregory III designated Nov. 1 as a time to honor all saints and martyrs; the holiday, All Saints' Day incorporated some of the traditions of Samhain. The evening before was known as All Hallows' Eve and later Halloween. Over time, Halloween evolved into a secular, community-based event characterized by child-friendly activities such as trick-or-treating."

This excerpt convinces me that some people are celebrating a polar opposite tradition. What started as dressing up to scare away ghosts has turned into people getting so gory that they're trying to scare away the living. And that part about "child-friendly activities" makes me want to laugh! What part about sex and chopping people up are child-friendly? How is encouraging teens and young adults to harness their inner homicidal maniac a community-based event?

I used to adore Halloween. What was there not to like? Candy and camaraderie are happy ingredients for good times. But now I feel as if I'm on guard during the entire month of October because gore is splashed all over town from billboards to magazine spreads to drive-through windows.

There's a reason I don't go see slasher movies: I don't want to see the bloody mess. And since I don't, I simply never purchase a ticket. No harm, no foul. Gore fans can watch what they want to watch, and I'll watch what I want to watch, and our worlds shouldn't collide. But now, it seems as if there isn't a choice. Every October, I have to see dead bodies and blood displayed so businesses can make a buck.

Well, I object.

Bloodied bodies aren't like butterflies and puppies, you know. There's nothing innocent and run-of-the-mill about slapping those sorts of underbelly images up for the community as if we're looking at an upcoming gardening show at the Fairgrounds we should check out.

There are things that are good in this world, and they seem to dwindle each year. And then there are things that are bad in this world, increasing like a wildfire, as if someone is pouring gasoline upon it. It's my opinion that bloodied bodies and indecent costumes aren't on that good list; I don't see how that stuff is part of the future skill set for what I hope my sons will be -- good husbands and fathers. It certainly doesn't help, and I'd argue it actually inhibits. Showing your son how to hold open doors -- good! Showing your son how to decorate cast-offs from a contrived throat slashing . . . really? How's that going to help?

I understand people have a right to expose themselves to the gore, and that's fine. I just don't see why I have to be convinced and beckoned -- through local news and magazines -- to see what all the rave is about. I get it, it's there, stop making us all look at it. It's a niche fascination, not a widespread one, and ads should remain in that niche.

Now, get ready to send the hate mail, because here's my last point: I wonder which billboard would get more people up in arms -- the arterial spray of a zombie, or a picture of the crucifixion? Both are bloody and both represent holidays. So why do I think there would be more opposition if a picture of the latter was plastered on a billboard come Easter?

Heather Ijames is one of three community columnists whose work appears here every Saturday. These are the opinions of Ijames, not necessarily The Californian's. You can send email to her at heatherijames@hotmail.com Next week: Inga Barks.