Later today, we'll open our doors to the sight of little ghosts, goblins and other make-believe monsters screaming "Trick or Treat!"

That got us to thinking about the things in life that scare our socks off the other 364 days of the year.

We asked a few people in the office and around the community what really frightens them this Halloween. Here's some of the scary scenarios and terrifying topics that knock at the doors of our hearts and minds and keep us up at night:

n Uncontrolled wildfires in California that could easily happen in the Black Hills.

n A plunging stock market that decimates retirement plans.

n A U.S. housing market that leaves homeowners unable to sell or paying two mortgages.

n Aging Baby Boomers who threaten to overwhelm Social Security and Medicaid programs in the near future.

n Super-bugs such as MRSA, and a host of other antibiotic-resistant bacteria.

n Seven years of drought that threatens agriculture and recreation in western South Dakota.

n The cost of gasoline at the pump. Rep. Stephanie Herseth Sandlin believes that the prospect of $4 a gallon gas and $100 a barrel crude oil is especially scary for South Dakota families and businesses.

n Kids without a good education. Rapid City Superintendent Peter Wharton loses sleep over the young people who are being left behind in our education system. "The kids we're missing who will be woefully unprepared for life and who won't grow up to become contributing members of society," Wharton said.

n The financial and human costs of war in Iraq and the threat of being pushed to the brink of another war in Iran scares us.

n Sen. John Thune fears that U.S. troops won't get the support needed for their mission.

"The failure of the Democrat-led Congress to fund our troops while they are fighting abroad is not only scary, but highly irresponsible. Regardless of how one feels about the war, we must put politics aside and provide our troops with the resources they need especially when they are in harm's way," Thune. said

n Partisan politics in Washington, D.C., scares Sen. Tim Johnson.

"What scares me the most is the continued fighting and highly partisan atmosphere in Washington. Real progress can only be made if politicians from both parties come together to get work done on behalf of the American people."

Perhaps the best advice this Halloween comes from another politician who knew about facing fearful situations like the Great Depression and World War II.

As Franklin Delano Roosevelt warned us, in that famous quote from his first inaugural address, the "only thing we have to fear is fear itself."