Kidnappers and Their Candy!

We all know that parents instruct their children not to accept candy from strangers. But was there a time before this rule was so well known? A time where kidnappers went on a spree of candy-baited abductions? ‘
I hope so. I hope that there was one parent that stumbled on the realization that “Candy is keeping these kidnappers in business!” and they held a town meeting about it. I'd also like to think that a few days later there was a meeting among the town kidnappers where they discussed why no kids were falling for the “candy trick.” ‘
I imagine the agenda to that meeting looked like this:
1. Discuss why vans are better than station wagons.
2. Boycott on

(I assume this meeting took place in 1992)
3. The decrease in kidnappings in relation to the excess in company candy.
I think it's a testament to candy in itself that it apparently is the number one warning sign to look for when avoiding being kidnapped. It's that good. It can lure you from whatever you're doing to follow a stranger at the mere promise that you'll receive candy at some point soon.
But it sends the wrong message to a kid. It says that candy is hard to get. That if you see someone offering you no strings attached candy, you run. You run as far as you can.
Perhaps that's the main difference between children and adults. The latter can control their candy intake. A child must wait for a safe opportunity where its presented to them by someone they trust. Me, I'll take candy from anybody. I'll suffer consequences. I'll risk getting kidnapped.
Because it's worth it – it's candy. ‘