Clowns Tormenting Law Enforcement, Really | Weekend Read

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Wave of Creepy Clowns Haunt Law Enforcement

It was as if the doors of a comically overcrowded tiny car exploded open, throwing white-faced, big-shoed carnival staples in every direction. Clowns lurking at the edge of the woods. Clowns chasing school children at bus stops. Pistol-packing clowns opening fire on an unsuspecting victim.

It sounds like stuff straight out of a horror movie. But these stories, and plenty more like them, are real reports that have been fielded by law enforcement in Georgia in recent days, and follow a haunting trend in the Carolinas and elsewhere in the South this season.

There have been arrests, some have proven to be fake and more remain under investigation. But one thing is clear: Be they real, imagined, or a combination of the two, a wave of creepy clowns have made their mark this season. >>> Read more.

Trump's Call for a Flood of Poll Watchers Could Disrupt Some Voting Places

Donald Trump's campaign website implores voters to "Help Me Stop Crooked Hillary From Rigging This Election!" by signing up as observers. He warned people at an Aug. 12 campaign event in Altoona, Pennsylvania, that Clinton could win the state only by cheating, and he asked supporters to "go down to certain areas and watch and study, and make sure other people don't come in and vote five times."

No one knows how many of the Republican nominee's supporters will heed his call to stand in polling places on Nov. 8 and challenge some voters' credentials 2014 but past experience suggests that a wave of partisan poll watchers could create confusion and discourage people who have a right to cast ballots. >>> Read more.

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Alabama Fuel Pipeline Spill Causes Gas Shortage Concerns

A leak in Alabama has closed a gas pipeline that delivers fuel from the Gulf Coast to locations in the Southeast and the Eastern seaboard, leading to a state of emergency in several states and causing headaches for consumers as fears of gas shortages persist.

A state of emergency has been declared in Tennessee, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Alabama and Georgia. Authorities launched a response effort after discovering that fuel from the line, operated by Colonia Pipeline, had leaked into a nearby pond in Shelby County, Alabama on Sept. 9. >>> Read more.

Image via Graeme Maclean, Wikimedia Commons