If you've been on social media at all lately, you're probably familiar with the phenomena that are "clown sightings." It's happening all across the country and now it's happening at our very Illinois State University Campus. Multiple clown sightings were reported last Monday night, with clowns allegedly walking on the quad, around turner hall, and driving on the sidewalk in a car outside the Alamo II.

As someone who loves Halloween and being scared, I do enjoy the idea of a world where every October the things that go bump in the night come out to terrorize citizens and make life a little more interesting. But while these clown sightings are obviously just masked men lurking, there are clearly unsettling things about strangers wandering around in the dark obscuring their face from view. And then there is the fact that some of these clowns have reportedly been carrying weapons like knives, guns, and machetes. This is obviously a problem for us sane people who do not desire to be machete'd on the quad. The thought of masked lunatics running around with weapons is enough to keep anyone awake at night but this might just be the one time we are actually glad that this campus is always swarming with cops.

Some people might be asking why Clowns? it seems to happen every October that people dress up as them and roam the town. Why not werewolves, ghosts, or mummies? The truth is that most people are just really scared of clowns and I can't say I'm particularly fond of them either. I can say I am a fan of a good wholesome scare for fun, but not for real life terror on my walk home from the library at night. The bottom line is that the clowning around needs to stop, if people want to be scared they'll go see a horror film or visit a haunted house!

Remember to stay safe out there and never walk alone!