Scouts' motto

May 21 has come and gone and much has happened. With thousands dying every day, earthquakes, tsunamis, wars in half a dozen countries, we do not need the rapture to bring about the end of the world, it’s already well underway.

With that being said zombies are not a sign of the apocalypse, the idea of the "zombie apocalypse" is a romanticed form of a Class 4 outbreak. While this would spell the end of the world as we know it, it is not the apocalypse of Revelation. Smaller Class 1 and 2 outbreaks are what must be prepared for as they can happen at any time without warning. Which is why it is so important to be prepared and not wait on Patient Zero (a misunderstood title.)

Patient Zero is a term used by survivors for the first person to become a zombie. This is however is used a bit too loosely. Because the first recorded zombies were thousands of years ago, if Patient Zero is simply to refer to the first zombie then no living person knows who Patient Zero was. The term should more specifically refer to the one who is first infected in an outbreak. Patient Zero of course comes from the book by the same title.

So preparation is so important. Everyone talks about it so much, but what is it? Preparation is being ready for anything. Having the supplies, knowledge and training to not only survive but thrive in any situation. Having emergency supplies, firearms and hand-to-hand training, emergency plans, exit strategies, contact lists, technology and construction skills, mechanical skills are all important parts of being prepared. Scouts' motto. Another part of being prepared is awareness. Spreading awareness is a vitally important part of helping your loved ones be prepared.

Awareness can be spread through wearing a gray ribbon, telling friends, sharing tactics and websites. The Information Age is aptly named because we can learn anything we choose and thus it is only the lazy man who will not be prepared when the time comes to be tested and either survive an outbreak or add to it’s severity. Other ideas for spreading awareness include to blog about it, tweet about it, mail off letters of survival tips or lists of needed gear to loved ones.

Having a core group of people to discuss ideas, preparations and plans with is a great idea. Or join an online community, a lot of great ideas and experience can be gained from people in vastly different areas, backgrounds and skills sets then yourself and the people you have immediate access to.

Knowing your emergency services and resources could play a large part in getting ready for the future. Here are a few suggestions but be sure to come up with your own. Use these resources to their full potential for information before the fall, after the fall these organizations won't hold together long.

CDC
Red Cross
Kid's Health
eHow
wikiHow
Google
Healthy Canadians
PADIS
AAPCC

Information is out there waiting for survivors to go seeking it out.


Stay vigilant, may the infection never reach you, and those close to you have the resolve to do what is needed should you be so unfortunate, Mike D.