If you read the news on a regular basis, no doubt you're aware of the creepy clown phenomenon that's taken the United States by storm since early August. For whatever reason, certain individuals have decided to dress up as clowns in order to intimidate people. Now the craze has spread to other countries, including England. Fortunately for the people who live in the Cumbria area, they're being properly protected from these freakish fools. No, we're not talking about the police. For something like this, you need Batman on the job...or at least someone dressed like him.
A photo shared on the BBC Cumbria Facebook page earlier this week showed someone dressed like Batman chasing one of these creepy clowns away. After all, given how many times he's beaten The Joker over the decades, the Caped Crusader is our best line of defense against them. However, don't get your hopes up of this new Batman sticking around to fight anyone wearing question marks or wielding weaponized umbrellas. The company Cumbria Superheroes is taking credit for his appearance, using the man in the Batman costume as a way to reassure the local children that they don't have to worry about these "killer clowns." It looks like they've been successful, as one kid wrote to "Batman" thanking him for catching that clown. Bruce Wayne would be proud.
We'd be lying if we said we didn't get a kick out seeing a guy in a Batman costume chase after a clown, not only because it looks like a moment ripped straight from the pages of a comic book, but because this is helping kids in Cumbria rest easier. That said, the creepy clown situation has definitely become worse over the last several weeks. As The Telegraph noted, one police force in Britain had to deal with "14 clown-related incidents in 24 hours," and the sightings appear to be escalating. In the United States, there have been creepy clown sightings in more than half the states, and there have even been some reports of violence breaking out.
It's one thing to use clowns as villains in fictional stories (like It), but considering how the majority of these incidents have resulted in threatening activity, this craze has obviously spiraled out of control, not to mention damaged the reputation of professional clowns. Even McDonald's has had to limit their mascot Ronald McDonald's appearances so as not to frighten children. As of now, it's unclear when any of this insanity will die down.
Although the proper course of action if you're being intimidated or threatened by a creepy clown is to call the police, we can't help but hope that others around the world will take up the Batman mantle to to strike fear into the hearts of this particular superstitious and cowardly lot.
