Since 2006, Howard Street between Ridge and Clark has been the Halloween battleground for egg wars between groups of teens. Homes, businesses, and even people in the area often become unwilling targets.
"Everywhere, there was my car. They were on the floor," said Maria Von Medvey, Apple the Second Boutique. "They were on the windows. People who was walking on the streets."
Medvey says the egg wars damage more than her property. She says business suffers because customers are reluctant to shop in the area around Halloween.
"People feel intimidated by that because they don't care if you're walking, you're going to be a target," Medvey said. "If you're in the way, they are going to get you." Source.
32 comments:
The soaring cost of eggs might reduce the amount of them being tossed as H'ween pranks.
But again, don't count your chickens before they're (very prematurely) hatched.
Kudos to the Brummel Park Neighbors and Network 2424's combined Halloween Patrols. A lot of organization went into this effort.
Volunteers are still needed for the Halloween patrols. Volunteers will be in groups of 3-4, outfitted with identifying vests and POLICE radios.
There are more of us than of them. This is OUR neighborhood. Get involved. It is AMAZING how much difference is made with visible neighborhood involvement like this.
Staying inside and looking out your windows tsk tsk-ing simply abdicates the streets to the thugs.
There is POWER in NUMBERS!
Billyjoe - Is this your only day job or do you have other blogs to monitor?
ILHT said...> "Volunteers will be in groups of 3-4, outfitted with identifying vests and POLICE radios."
Civilians having access to the police radios. This ought to be interesting to listen on the scanner.
Cute picture of the eggs.
"I live here too" is correct in his description of our patrols on Howard and the side streets, except that we will NOT have police radios. Rather, we have 2-way radios that the police will be listening in on. They are however the same kind that you see police wearing. Chicago and Evanston police will be able to listen in because we have secured an FCC license for our own channel. The 2-way radios were purchased by individual contributions, they are not the property of the police (and no Craig, they were not purchased by Joe Moore, but by residents in our area. Radios are assigned out Firday and have to be returned at the end of the evening, they aren't cheap).
In 2007, the 2-way radios made a big difference. Police response was fast, much faster than when calling 911, because CPD and EPD (evanston) cars were hearing the calls as they came in. Resulted in a number of arrests of teens and also totally confusing drug dealers who had no clue who all these people in reflective vests were with "police radios."
Hope that helps clarify the issue.
ms21 said...
Billyjoe - Is this your only day job or do you have other blogs to monitor?
Ms21: Is hurling lame sarcasm at billyjoe your only contribution to this blog?
billyjoe & friends:
All I am saying is that you have nothing positive to say, and it is likely annoying to 99% of the readers of this blog...you making up 1/3 of the remaining 1%. So why don't you go to the Uptown blog or wherever you are from.
We're tired of reading whatever it is you are trying to communicate.
"We're tired of reading whatever it is you are trying to communicate."
Too bad.
Props to Craig (reactionary nutcase that he is) for not censoring me like Uptown Update does. He's savvy for realizing that the many hits on his blog count for something, even if he doesn't agree with all of them.
if a kid will pay (or get his mom to pay) 200$ for a ghetto-fab coat, i think they'll be willing to pay the higher price for eggs. unfortunately eggs just went on sale at jewel... bad, bad timing.
although i was very recently a teenager, i still find the concept of throwing eggs just ridiculous.
I used to hide them in my drawer for a week so they'd be really smelly when I hit someone.
I've come to despise Holloween. I stay in that night.
Tomorrow night will be Arson Central in Detroit....if indeed there is anything left to torch, 'cause it's Holloween Eve.
Animal shelters nation-wide will not permit the adoption of black cats because of groups of occult-worhipers who like to do horrible things to beautiful little animals to commemorate this holiday.
Another generation of children will be inducted into sweets addiction, tooth decay, and obesity.
And everyone coast-to-coast is in for egg-throwing, TP-ing, vandalized cars and houses, and other stupidity.
Dear North Coast:
Claims of cat torture at Halloween are exaggerated to the point of urban legend.
Get off yer arse and do some fact checking before perpetuating such myths.
http://www.snopes.com/horrors/mayhem/blackcat.asp
My mistake on the radios. I guess I misunderstood the deal with the police training on radio use given at the EPD outpost on Howard.
So, not Police issued radios, but rather Police monitored. In any case the police will be more involved than they would otherwise be.
billyjoe
You're not censored because you're the comic relief. Hopefully, you'll calm down when you get your SSI check.
Devil's Night on Oct. 30 in Detroit hasn't been a problem for a couple of years.
Massive police presence has cooled it off.
But with the rotten economy, who knows?
Since 2006? I remember when we (mom,cousins,aunt) got cornered in the old Affy Taple building doorway and "bombed" back in 1981..lol. It was our first holloween here after arriving from Central America and we were terrified but laughing at the same time. We had just left a country in war (bullets literally flying through our windows) and now we were getting bombed by eggs...ha. Good memories. We still laugh about it over Christmas dinner to this day. It was a 10 minute attack from the roofs across Clark Street. A neighbor explained the next day what and why it had happened. No big deal, just people having fun.
Thanks for sharing that story RP30.
FYI: I love Affy Tapple!
Say what you want, this Billyjoe character is one of the most amusing fellas here. In a battle of wits he does come unarmed but he is amusing none the less. You gotta give him that.
Question RP30:
Did you have to clean up the mess at the store that was as you said "bombed" by eggs?
I'm guessing the store owner did not find it "no big deal."
On a broader note, if destruction of property and damage to individuals can be dismissed as "no big deal, just people having fun," then the problems of teen street fights, people being harassed walking down the street, graffiti, etc., can also be dismissed as "no big" deal because I'd bet that many of the perpetrators see their activity as "just having fun." Under that definition, Craig should rename the blog "morsefunhole."
billyjoe: i've found the remains of domestic cats and dogs in the forest preserves around my house. not just on hallowe'en, but on solstices and equinox too. there are sick people out there who just love to do that sort of thing, and call it religion. i'm afraid of letting any of my non-black cats out, as i'm sure some of them, being idiots, would settle for a tortiseshell cat instead.
craig: to you want some affy tapples? my little sister had a fundraiser for her school, and i ended up buying way too many.
Bernard2424:
It was late at night and it was closed. It did not happen inside. If you remember the Affy Tapple store/factory outside wall was made of white, polished ceramic tiles. I am sure all they had to do was put a water hose to it and done! I am talking about eggs and shaving cream. If it were rocks, bottles, knives, bats etc. it would be a different story. Lighten up buddy-o. This great country is becoming the land of whimps! Shoot, grab a carton of eggs and fight back if it will make you feel better ... I know it would make me feel better....ha!
I guess Devil's Night in Detroit might be less of a problem because they've already burned everything down already. The city looks like it was bulldozed under.
Most of the eggs that are used are WHITE eggs! Damned those white eggs.
I don't think the north coast has spent much time in Detroit in about 20 years. I'm not claiming it's a paradise, but the devil's night stuff hasn't really happened since the late 80's. There are actually fewer fires in Detroit on devil's night than on a typical day.
I do strongly advocate egg throwing at Halloween scrooges like the north coast. The "trick" aspect of "trick or treat" was invented to address Debby Downers like the north coast.
G Dogg said...> "I do strongly advocate egg throwing at Halloween scrooges like the north coast. The "trick" aspect of "trick or treat" was invented to address Debby Downers like the north coast."
Let's not forget these "Debbie Downers". Joe Moore, Ann Rainey and Bernard Garbo.
Sorry, that's "Q" Dogg said. My bad.
Duly noted. They also deserve a visit from the Eggman (listen to the Beastie Boy's 1989 highly underated Paul's Boutique for more info).
Craig, I think Steve Dahl reads your blog. He was talking about this egg thing today at 6:15 a.m. while I was showering (mental picture provided for Bretley) in a thick lather. He also mentioned Second City Cop's blog on his show yesterday. I know for a fact that a guy who works with him, Pete, lives in Rogers Park but I am not quite sure where. Bring on the eggs tomorrow! I'll be on Estes near Bell!!!
The denizens of the RP should be happy the egg warriors haven't discovered the 3 man sling shot. That type of technology can easily defeat the 2-way radios and foot patrols. You can fire those thing out of windows or off roofs from hundreds of yards away. It would be like a mortar attack, but with eggs. Good thing the egg warriors aren't organized like the Brummel Parkers and the 2424 Posse.
On a related note, do the RP'ers have more egg on their face from the annual egg war or from continuing to elect Joe Moore?
We've had 4 murders this year, countless shots fired, and Joe Moore & his band of loonies are worried about businesses selling eggs to kids on Halloween.
Yeah, I'm guessing those voting for Joe Moore have egg on their faces. Crime is down. Ha. What a joke that campaign slogan was.
Craig smells like rotten eggs, so does his blog
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