No clowns at Southwest (well, at least no killer clowns)
One of the downsides of social media is how fast silliness can spread. And it's all fun and games until somebody gets whacked over the head with a 2" by 4".
The clown rumor that reverberated off the Southwest towers last night raising anxiety levels across the campus started on Twitter, a usual suspect for not overly accurate breaking news.
UMPD Dispatch received call about clown loose in Southwest but the caller only cited Twitter and not actual sighting of said clown.— Larry Kelley (@amherstac) October 4, 2016
UMass was not the only esteemed institute of higher education dealing with the near hysteria. In New York last night college students took to the streets "chanting vulgar anti-clown slogans."
Kind of makes me wonder what is going to happen on Halloween.
At the height of the Cold War one of he concerns the Air Force had about UFOs is the mass hysteria brought on by unknown lights in the sky could be misinterpreted as a Soviet attack thus inadvertently setting off a catastrophic chain of events.
Although there were never any reports of the UFOs being piloted by clowns. Maybe that will be next.
Perhaps you should have left this one alone, rather than participating in the social media hype.
ReplyDeleteBut I'm the voice of reason.
ReplyDeleteIn this case, you are a voice for no reason.
ReplyDeleteThere have been clowns walking around Amherst in costume for decades...and people are just noticing now?
ReplyDeleteAre they going to scoop the peace drum marching Leverett Buddhist ???
ReplyDeleteAmherst is full of clowns some have costumes and other don,t. No news here Larry.
ReplyDelete"One of the downsides of social media is how fast silliness can spread."
ReplyDeleteDemonstrated daily by this site, if you want to use "spread" pretty generously.
Said the CAN who visits early and often.
ReplyDeleteDrunk drivers scare me way more than clowns.
ReplyDeleteLook on the bright side. At the end of the year this can be your Stupidest Post of the Year.
ReplyDeleteumASS, the therapeutic university, has a hysteria about CLOWNS!
ReplyDeleteumASS, where ACT's Reign of Terror remains unabated,has a CLOWN problem/
The UMPD, which now does everything but "enforce the criminal code of the Commonwealth" is now CHASING CLOWNS.
Priceless.
Larry Kelly did a public service in reporting this -- Coulrophobia is a recognized mental illness.
Can we trade the clowns, which seem to have no real effect, for regulators, who are ruining local and small business?
ReplyDeleteKiller Klowns from Outer Space and 1986 Stephen King. Oooh. Scary clowns. Need safe space.
ReplyDeleteThat's it. I'm citing a lack of trigger warning and petitioning the State Attorney General to have this site shut down. (Is that how I'm supposed to do it, VIra?)
ReplyDeleteThe scary part of Stephen King is that Derry *is* Bangor, and all the historicak stuff he writes about actually happened. The Dalton Gang, Dakin's Sporting Goods, which back then had been where King says they were, etc.
ReplyDeleteWe can all save - and party - when they scoop the lil trick o treaters - aaay - Jason ??!!!
ReplyDelete