Lately on the news, we have had a variety of stories to babble about. Whether it be Hurricane Matthew or maybe the Presidential Debate, we have had a fair share of information to chew on. These stories are typical stories and can easily be discussed through a casual conversation. Once we watch a little further in we come across the ‘unsettling’ news. The kind of news that makes your hair stand up. The kind of news that makes you question the sanity of your own American people. Pardon the dramatic build, but I am referring to the recent clown sightings.

What are clowns? They are commonly known as a comic entertainer with a traditional costume and exaggerated makeup. We first would be able to find them at the circus. Then, their fun acts were soon introduced into rodeo. As we have heard lately, there have been multiple clown sightings in the United States, and some of them have turned up violent. From attacks to threats, clowns have reshaped their appearance into being something sadistic. The costumes are ripped to appear eerie. The painted fixture on the masks closely resembles blood, a gruesome and cringing thought.

These clown sightings started off in the strangest of places; varying from the forests to corn fields, to even school playgrounds. Like sheep, other people caught onto this new social media craze. Thus, taking the clown sightings across the entire nation. As an average person who doesn’t find enjoyment in fear, we start to question the purpose behind such actions.

In my opinion, I thought the clown craze was more of a movie hype than anything. With two new movies coming out involving clowns, “It” and “The Clown”, It would just make sense for clowns to start appearing. It could be an act of advertisement, maybe a few interested random citizens took upon. Either way, I thought of the first few sightings to just be propaganda. As they started to get violent, I started to get a little more interested in their purpose.

Although the truth behind the clown sightings is still a mystery, it has allowed me to take a step back and think. We live in a fragile society. With a slight shift or push, our society goes into a moral panic. Here we are, wounded by the recent outrages over the past few years, we sit vulnerable. We are hand-shy to the smallest of questions; and the question this past month has been clowns.If a thing doesn’t have a purpose, we are all frightened by it. We are scared of the unknown. Behind the mask could be a killer, or an innocent human being trying to go with today’s crowd. We could easily relate this to the recent police shootings. Every day a police officer is put into a situation where they must judge the character of others. They must evaluate the subject, whether it be a clown or a local resident, and they must judge whether or not they are safe. We are forced to do the same. Clown or not, there is somebody under that mask. This just happens to be the kind of world we live in. If the subject is not directly threatening you or your family, the best option is to ignore it. Like my mother always said, “ignore them and they will surely leave you alone. Just remember to stay safe and keep an eye out for your neighbors.