I’m vaguely ashamed of my first reaction on reading this news story:
BOGOTA, Colombia (Reuters) — Two clowns were shot and killed by an unidentified gunman during their performance at a traveling circus in the eastern Colombian town of Cucuta, police said Wednesday.
It’s a horrible tragedy, yes. And the kids who saw it happen are likely to be terribly traumatized. But somewhere deep inside me a voice is saying, “Well, yes, but they were going to be traumatized anyway. After all, they were going to see clowns.”
Let’s face it. Clowns are creepy. The white faces, the exaggerated grins… Think about Batman: he’s supposed to be this creepy, scary, darkly brooding vigilante. Who did they pick to be his nemesis? Who could possibly be creepier than a giant freekin’ bat? The Joker. A bright smiling psychopathic clown.