Arson is no joke, even when it’s committed by a man dressed as the Joker.
Politicians that blame comic books and videogames for society’s ills may have a new real-world example to use in their arguments for getting rid of anything fun. An Irish man was recently caught red-handed burning down his former high school dressed as the Joker. Arson everywhere is soon to be blamed on the existence of Batman.
The Joker is Batman’s longtime arch nemesis and may have risen to a new level of popularity thanks to Heath Ledger’s portrayal of him in the mega-hit movie The Dark Knight. Christopher Clancy of Clondalkin, Ireland attempted to get into the spirit of the comic book/movie villainy by dressing up as the Joker, pouring gasoline around his high school, and lighting it on fire.
When police arrived on the scene they saw a man dressed “in a purple suit, with green hair, a white face and red painted lips,” just like the Joker. “He then told us to go around the corner and we would see what he had done,” police said. Clancy was upset because he believed the school was “run by hypocrites” and says he “didn’t like the way they treated my friends.”
Clancy’s arson reportedly caused more than $1 million in damages, which is a pretty lame act when it comes to Joker standards. If the Joker was mad at the way a school treated his “friends,” he would have just blown up the entire school while everyone was in it, including his friends. This was obviously an attempt to get attention or just misguided teenage anger. Totally lame Clancy, totally lame.
Source: Irish Independent via io9
Published: Jul 28, 2010 04:28 pm