Have you heard about the Ice Cream Challenge? If you haven’t yet, you should now!
Current Events
Like the Cinnamon Challenge and the Fire Challenge before it, the Ice Cream Challenge is the latest social media craze American teens and the immature are using to capture their 15 minutes of fame. It began recently when an underage girl filmed herself opening a container of ice cream inside a grocery store, licking all over the frozen dessert with her germ-filled tongue, then placing the ice cream back on the shelf for some unsuspecting consumer to take home and eat.
That lone act of defiance gave birth to what is now known as the Ice Cream Challenge — also known as “Monkey See, Monkey Do” — which has attention seekers from all across the country racing to film themselves being a copy cat for social media likes and temporary internet fame.
Because the girl allowed herself to be filmed licking the ice cream so she could post the video on social media for attention, it didn’t take long for police to discover her identity and subject her to juvenile justice. However, her ice cream licking ways only caused other dumb and bored teens (as well as some adults) to mimic the act for the bragging rights to likes and views on social media.
So, why is the Ice Cream Challenge even a thing? Why would anyone lick ice cream then leave it for someone else to buy and eat? According to Psychology experts, it’s what impulsive teens and young adults do to get attention in the social media age.
“It’s just a plain old version of antisocial behavior,” said Susan Whitbourne, professor emerita in the Psychological and Brain Sciences Department at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. “It is an antisocial act, and it’s outside the bounds of proper social behavior.”
Some people will never see fame. So, they invent their own fame by doing something so outrageous, strangers from around the world will look at them and know them and like them — even if only for a little while. With these licking videos receiving millions of views worldwide and hundreds of thousands of likes, it’s the ultimate ego boost for an attention-starved young person.
Sadly, however, the Ice Cream Challenge is not only a teenage rebellion.
Lenise Martin III, a 36-year-old Louisiana man was arrested after he posted a video on Facebook of him pulling a carton of Blue Bell Ice Cream from a freezer, opening it, licking the frozen dessert, then digging in his nose and sticking his fingers into the dessert before putting it back on the shelf. Upon his arrest, Martin said he knew he was doing wrong but was merely seeking social media attention.
In Jacksonville, Florida, a young girl posted a video to social media of her licking a tongue depressor while visiting her dentist’s office, then putting it back in the jar. What’s worse is that her mother, 30-year-old Cori Ward, admitted recording the video and posting it to Snapchat. The mother was charged with a felony for tampering with a consumer product and now faces up to 30 years in prison if convicted.
“I had just been waiting a long time. I was just being silly with my kids,” Ward told CNN affiliate WJXT. “It’s ruined my life right now. That’s how I feel at least.”
In Las Vegas, a man filmed himself spitting into a jug of Arizona Iced Tea then placing it back on the shelf — prompting a social media rebuke.
“Come on now! How old are we?” and “Who thinks to do those things?” were among the reactions.
Why are young people (and some adults) taking risks by committing heinous acts then posting a video of it on social media? According to a social psychology expert, it’s just a high-tech version of teens showing off for their friends.
Interestingly, grocery stores and consumer watchdog groups are saying the Ice Cream Challenge could have a similar effect on the world as the Tylenol scandal of the 1980s. You may recall that Tylenol and other medicines used to be open and accessible while on drug store shelves — until a madman began tainting the bottles with poison and people started dying. That event led to the practice of medicine bottles being triple-sealed to this day.
With the launch of the Ice Cream Challenge, is it time for all food items to receive the same triple-sealed protections too — just to save us all from the immature whims of bored teenagers and attention-starved adults?
Until that time, you might be wise to take a few extra precautions the next time you’re at the grocery store.
If you’re shopping for ice cream, maybe grab a carton that’s far in the back and underneath several other cartons. Inspect the carton carefully for signs of tampering or having already been opened. Also, don’t be afraid to open the container and take a look inside before tossing it in your cart. You may want to inspect other purchased food items just as carefully, too.
As the saying goes: “It’s better to be safe than sorry.” Unfortunately, this is the world we now live in and it’s time for us all to adapt.
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Lord these kids today are just bored. Maybe if they learned to go outside and play they would not come up with these childish stunts like this. In fact I can’t even blame kids since some adults are doing it now too. What is wrong with these people. Smh