They seem to be. Especially in the southern United States..
And getting arrested when found!
New York MAGAZINE is reporting on the pop culture phenom in a latest September 23 run.. Adam Raymond writes,
Reports of creepy clowns first emerged in Greenville, South Carolina, where a red-nosed creepo was reportedly trying to lure kids to a house in the woods by flashing wads of cash. Police looked into the claims and found nothing.
In Alabama, schools across the state ramped up security after reports emerged on social media that clowns were going to attack local high schools with guns. In Ohio, a sheriff’s office is looking for two clowns and advising citizens to contact the department because “we are unsure what their intentions are at this point.” And in Florida, a state where you might think clowns would be among the most normal roadside sightings, police keep getting calls about clowns but are having a hell of time finding them.
Here in coal country, the news is the same..
SMALL TOWN CLOWNS
Frackville PA.. Pottsville PA .. Ashland PA. Supposedly clowns lurking behind scrubs, scaring people at night.. I am dubbing it the small town clown fad.. There are some new stories reported today that Wilkes Barre PA is also having a burst of clowns..
I have written before that a clown under a street light at midnight holding a balloon could very well be one of the most frightening images one’s mind can endure.. But are these sightings really sightings?
I have come to a conclusion that some of these local sightings are just psychosis.. I don’t think people are seeing nearly as many clowns as they 1) report they are and 2) think they are..
The whole fad is also being driven by the media–a media that decides to use stock images of ghoulish clowns or Pennywise from IT in their news articles..
This past week, the Frackville police here in my local area thought it would be wise to post an image of clowns with a report that they are in the neighborhood.. the story took off like a rocket, to the point where kids on school buses were scaring little kids about deadly clowns behind woods. It is the stuff urban legends are made of.. or even local yokel legends.. Nonetheless, I have it from a good source that some of the local police departments professing word of clown sightings are now regretting their early decisions. Almost annoyed with the number of sightings that are being reported through social media..
Last night, under the Friday night lights of coal region football, the plays on the field were the second topic. Up first: Who is dressing up like clowns and terrorizing a region. I bet that topic was also being discussed around America from coast to coast.. and beyond to the rest of the planet where the phenomenon is popping up.
My prediction stands: We will face a clown deluge from now until Halloween night. When it gets cold, the masks were come off and attention will be turned to the next fad. But until then clowns will abound.
Keep calm, Earth.
