Running For A Cause

Running For A Cause

Cause you want to stay alive is a perfectly reasonable reason to run. In fact, it's built into our systems in the sort of fight or flight instinct. If you don't have it then you are probably dead. Well, maybe not in the modern man. We're such big babies about all of that. But in any event, if you've ever wondered if you could survive a zombie infestation/outbreak, now is the time to put those skills to the test as you go to the Run For Your Life event.



The event is a 5k (3 mile) run from point A to point B with a lot of twist and turns in the middle in terms of paths to go through and zombies to out run. It's all a bit interesting but most of all it'll cost you to run as well as to watch out in the desert area of California. Where it's normally zombie towns the other 364 days out of the year.

Don't get me wrong this whole event sounds like a blast but I have to say I'm on the fence on this one. It sounds like it could be a great time and be lots of fun trying to outrun zombies, but then there's part of me that just wonders about how much fun it can actually be when you have 300-400 people running from a group of zombies.

I bet a lot of people get picked off in the crowds in the first few minutes. Then you have to factor in that the zombies may vary between the classic roamers to the fast moving bastards and you have a situation where it's going to be craaaa-zy.

You die when they take both of the flags that are hanging off your side. Which combines another aspect nerds never had to deal with -Flag football. But the event happens in SoCal on Oct. 20th. Which seems like it's perfect in terms of being right there for Halloween.

Then you have to factor in that the majority of zombie enthusiast are fat lazy nerds who probably couldn't run a mile if a real zombie was actually chasing them. Oh, don't worry, I'm also talking about me in that group. It's those of us who the whole post apocalyptic world of zombies appeals to.



Because really, it seems that the zombie talk isn't spreading as fast as the make believe virus..

The map reveals two important spatial patterns. First, much of the world lacks any content mentioning "zombies" whatsoever. Second, and related, the highest concentrations of zombies in the Geoweb are located in the Anglophone world, especially in large cities.

Oddly enough it also shows how Africa, the place where the word "zombie" originally came from, misses out on any of those criteria and really has no concern about zombies.

The results either provide a rough proxy for the amount of English-language content indexed over our planet, or offer an early warning into the geographies of the impending zombie apocalypse

So as you can see by the fact that there's even a zombie run as well as very little to no concern about zombies in the vast majority of non-first world areas, that this whole zombie scare is really a case of being a first world problem.

Zombie Preparedness Week

Zombie Preparedness Week

The world didn't end this past weekend but that's no reason why you should be dancing in the streets in some sort of victory dance or anything. Just because the rapture didn't occur doesn't mean that you have nothing to fear.

What about zombies?!

Yeah. That's right. I said it. Zombies. Don't turn your back on the potential fear of the undead coming back to life and consuming your brains.

It can happen.

No, I'm not crazy. Not anymore crazy than that one moron predicting the end of the world.. who, might I add, is still suggesting that it will happen in October.

But unlike him, there's actually reputable places warning you about being prepared for the potential zombie invasion.

The following was originally posted on CDC Public Health Matters Blog on May 16th, 2011 by Ali S. Khan.

There are all kinds of emergencies out there that we can prepare for. Take a zombie apocalypse for example. That’s right, I said z-o-m-b-i-e a-p-o-c-a-l-y-p-s-e. You may laugh now, but when it happens you’ll be happy you read this, and hey, maybe you’ll even learn a thing or two about how to prepare for a real emergency.

A Brief History of Zombies
We’ve all seen at least one movie about flesh-eating zombies taking over. but where do zombies come from and why do they love eating brains so much? The word zombie comes from Haitian and New Orleans voodoo origins. Although its meaning has changed slightly over the years, it refers to a human corpse mysteriously reanimated to serve the undead. Through ancient voodoo and folk-lore traditions, shows like the Walking Dead were born.

So what do you need to do before zombies…or hurricanes or pandemics for example, actually happen? First of all, you should have an emergency kit in your house. This includes things like water, food, and other supplies to get you through the first couple of days before you can locate a zombie-free refugee camp (or in the event of a natural disaster, it will buy you some time until you are able to make your way to an evacuation shelter or utility lines are restored). Below are a few items you should include in your kit, for a full list visit the CDC Emergency page.

• Water (1 gallon per person per day)
• Food (stock up on non-perishable items that you eat regularly)
• Medications (this includes prescription and non-prescription meds)
• Tools and Supplies (utility knife, duct tape, battery powered radio, etc.)
• Sanitation and Hygiene (household bleach, soap, towels, etc.)
• Clothing and Bedding (a change of clothes for each family member and blankets)
• Important documents (copies of your driver’s license, passport, and birth certificate to name a few)
• First Aid supplies (although you’re a goner if a zombie bites you, you can use these supplies to treat basic cuts and lacerations that you might get during a tornado or hurricane)

Once you’ve made your emergency kit, you should sit down with your family and come up with an emergency plan. This includes where you would go and who you would call if zombies started appearing outside your door step. You can also implement this plan if there is a flood, earthquake, or other emergency.

But it's not just enough to have a kit that you could, incidentally use for Earthquakes. If you want to take it further, and to reveal the real intention of this blog post... How about some real-estate that I can interest you with..

I present to you the zombie proof home.

Scared of zombies? Concerned about the apocalypse? Have we got the house for you.

A Polish architectural firm has designed the world's first zombie-proof abode — the "Safe House".

It's not really inspired by the walking dead, but it's been getting plenty of attention as the world celebrates its fifth annual Zombie Awareness Month.
Built between 2005 and 2009, the house features Rubik's Cube-type movable parts and folds in on itself completely at the end of the day to seal against outside threats.

"Every day the house acts in a similar way — it wakes up every morning to close up after dusk," says architect Robert Konieczny of KWK Promes.
Located on the outskirts of Warsaw, the Safe House has just one entrance, on the second floor, connected by a drawbridge.

For extra security, after crossing the bridge, visitors have to wait within a safety zone before being let into the rest of the house.

During the day, the house opens onto a garden and the movable walls change position to create a courtyard.
"There is no risk of children escaping to the street area in an uncontrolled way while playing in the garden," says Mr Konieczny.

Yes, why go out with your small party of survivors to some abandoned prison or castle estate when you live in a zombie fortified home already? Especially with the cool factor that comes with the rubik mechanism that transforms this home at the drop of the hat to something no one can get into.

Here, check out more pictures of this freaky home.
























You have to admit, that's pretty intense. There's a lot of homes like this all over the world, mostly in Europe and Sweden. Not because they fear zombie invasions anymore than we do, but because they're designed by post-modern people looking for a home to attract some rich guy to show off how much money he has by doing something completely different.

This one is just the first one that I've seen with a retractable drawbridge. Over all, it's pretty freaking cool. Even if the whole front wall is a bit overkill.

Zombie Protest

Zombie Protest

I'm well aware that I did my zombie post for the month. And while I'm sure I should leave well enough alone, I'm not. It's because the subject is zombies and well, you know well enough to know that I can't shut up about them.

A while back I reported on Left 4 Dead. Now since I haven't actually bought the game and just played it like any red blooded true American, in the sense of free-o-charge. Not to mention the circumstances that left me not ever having a copy (thank you connections from EA that never followed through...) I didn't give much a fuck when I heard the announcement at E3 and saw the footage and grabbed the one poster I could get of it that there was a sequel coming out called 2L4D.



Now, you would figure that this if Valve we're talking about. The makers of Half-life and all the various incantations that have spawned from it. I mean, shit, how many "game of the year" editions of the same game can you out? I guess that's why I wasn't sweating it when the before mentioned red headed wonder never bothered to get it for me. I knew that there would be a million different versions out there to buy from. A couple months after the first one there's always a new edition that has way more bells and whistles than the ones from previous before.

So it should come to no surprise to anyone that Valve is putting out a sequel to a popular game engine... Killing zombies. But yet again, people feel compelled to be pissed at just about anything and everything.....

Whatever your view is of internet boycotts, Left 4 Dead might be the first critically acclaimed franchise whose announcement of a sequel was answered by nearly 10,000 fans pledging not to buy it. Since the game was unveiled June 1 at E3, a Steam group called L4D Boycott (NO-L4D2) has assembled 9,742 members as of Saturday, and seems to be growing. Far from being enthused about a new game, they have nine complaints, most of which concern L4D2 obviating the need for, and undermining the value of, L4D1 - and just a year after the fact

• Significant content for L4D1 was promised, and never delivered
• Valve put little faith in L4D1 since they almost certainly started working on L4D2 right after release
• The fact that L4D2 is nearly identical to L4D1 will decimate the community for both games
• The announced date is not nearly enough time to polish content or make significant gameplay changes
• The new character designs seem bland and unappealing so far
• L4D2 is too bright to fit in with L4D1's visual aesthetic
• The fiddle-based horde music is extremely disliked, though the differently orchestrated music is otherwise welcome
• L4D2's release will result in a drop in quality and frequency for L4D1 content, even compared to before
• The community has lost faith in Valve's former reputation for commitment to their games post-release

Don't get me wrong. If I actually did pony up the 50 bones for the game back when it came out, I may as well be pretty peeved about this whole situation. But would I have been peeved enough to create this video for my anger?



No. Even though I'm a creative guy, I'm still not THAT creative. Holy hell, that was the most amazing thing I have ever seen. Bravo, good sirs. Bravo! If E3 was good for no other reason this year, it was because it spawned that sort of reaction.

Knowing me, I would have just addressed my outrage on a random internet message board. You know, the typical thing one does when they are pretty pissed at a company, a movie they've seen or just about any other reason to angst.


Fans of the series invade Valve

I guess I can't totally relate to all of these things though. I never got the whole achievement points down. I avoid playing my Xbox for that very reason. It was bad enough back in the day with High Scores. I still maintain the high score for Pac man at one laundry joint and I still get all paranoid about it being beaten. So I don't even want to get into the world of Achievement points. God damn system is worse than crack and I will not fall victim to it.

I can see where everyone is all pissed at this news. The way the game play for 2L4D and the only additions to the game being slightly minor, it does seem that they could have easily made this into downloadable content for all those who already shelled out the 50 bones the first time.



Adding in a New Orleans backdrop doesn't seem to add much, and if anything, opens the source folks to create wacky new games such as "Survive Katrina" or something else otherwise witty. I mean, will their be a topless zombie walking around with some beads? Now that, I would sell out some cash... and some beads for!

Don't get me wrong, I'm going to play this. So I can't really talk shit. I guess the best thing out of all this is that I didn't have to pay a huge price for it since I didn't bother getting the first one, which at this point looks like a Beta test version of this game since it still has so many tweaks to get worked out.



As for your folks planning on protesting this game.. Shine on, you crazy bastards! I think it's a just cause to be pissed about. You paid your hard earned cash, you should have a finished game. Especially if the content and the support was promised and never delivered on. Don't want to be a mindless zombie spending your cash on anything and everything Valve puts out

Banning Zombies

Banning Zombies

Well, here's your monthly Zombie blog because I have a quota on at least writing about those damn undead at least once a month. On a message board I read often they actually had to ban any talk about potential zombie attacks.

Zombies. Goddamn zombies. Guess what... they're not real. The dead will not walk and we do not need three weekly threads discussing how much of a boner shooting a corpse would give you. Besides, everyone knows that the real threat comes from rogue unicorns.

Makes sense really. "Zombie" threads have been banned on some of the other gunboards because the mods and admins eventually realized that "zombie" = anyone who can't pass the paperbag test.

Speaking as a person who digs the whole zombie situations, I can honestly say that they're nothing more than a metaphor for the perception of high-density urban chaos and suburban white flight, it's only natural that a gun psychopath would latch on to them as a sanitized vehicle for their murder fantasies. All they are is just methods to shoot at a human looking target without the regret or repercussion of actually killing a "human being"

Seriously, Zombie apocalypse fiction is just survivalist shit for nerds. I'd like to put something on the Sci-fi channel. It would be a cross between that god awful Deadliest Warriors and Discovery Channel's Survivor man. It'll be a reliving of actual horror situations. Then again, Sci-fi turned into some game hybrid named Sy-fy or some shit. So that's not going to happen.

Till then I can just pull Political messages out of my ass for the Zombie situation. Because as we all know. Only our white cowboys can stay the barbarian hordes



Watch on as our brave security forces suppress lawless urban savages



We must secure the existence of our people and a future for white children.



LOOK OUT, CRACKER



Remember at the end of Night of the Living dead when Ben got shot by the armed militia? Maybe the real zombies... are us? At least all of those of you who are racist fucks! I mean, come on. Look at this cover!



I love the Walking Dead as much as the next guy but that cover alone just screams out a race war going on!

Really, the zombie works on multiple levels for the antisocial, gun-toting losers. First you have the post-apocalyptic fantasy of social collapse and post-social fantasies hold special appeal to people who feel as though they either don't fit in or have been denied the particular stance in their social hierarchy.

By wiping the "slate" clean(slates are, of course, black) they are given a chance to reassert their social role via rugged individualism and a reaffirmation of the power of their masculinity, both of which are culturally intergrated with gun ownership and use, the zombies as a convient target. A backdrop against this re-illumination of the ideal of manhood, a shambling, incoherent "mass" entity with no individualsim and apparently high levels of cooperation. The communist urban masses that the antisocial individualist msut rise against in order to reestablish the natural order of things.

Then again, the horror and fantasy act as distancing mechanisms through which people can "safely" and vicariously act out a variety of social anxieties and conceits. The 50's spawned a lot of these with hilarious atomic horror movies because of their nuclear paranoia, and the development of the urban-rural sociogeographical divides helped push zombies onto the stage . The original dracula story was about the fear of the Slavic "other" and the defense of the purity of anglo women. Sure it's changed a lot over the years and now has been nutered with the use of vampires in Twilight. Still doesn't change the origins.

Zombies are those socially inept lashing out. DEAD SET was the most culturally insightful Zombie films as of late highlighting the zombie rush towards reality programing and what it says about us.

Then you have things like World War Z. Which is probably the most liberal take on the situation. The world comes together to cooperate against zombie threats, Colin Powell becomes President with Howard Dean as VP and Cuba becomes an island Paradise. Not even Romero's films can touch that sort of Zombie utopia off an apocalypse scenario.

Then again, all that shit is too deep for the moment, I'm suppose to be away from the computer. So I'll save all that deep shit for another blog. As if I need more blog fodder.

Then again, Maybe these fine folks should join me as I move to Boston. It seems that the Boston Police are willing to warn the public about a zombie uprising. At least they are on twitter. Which with the way that society is going is going to be the only means of communication come another five years.

Boston_Police: INJURED OFFICER: Officer from district 4 transported to Beth Israel Hospital, human bite to arm, suspect in custody.

willcady: @Boston_Police if that was a zombie bite, would you tell us?

Boston_Police: @willcady Yes, absolutely

Boston police. I tell you. I wonder how they tell the difference between drunk Red Sox fans and Zombies? It really does bring a new meaning to the Green Monster. Unless of course the zombie actually looks gray and gross. Then they could totally change the name.

But if you're like me, you don't trust the po-po. You should find your own means to protect yourself from zombies. How about a plant?



Besides being an addictive game, it's really a funny concept. I have some gardening gloves that promote this game now and I think I'll do some planting.

Caution: Zombies - It Must Be A Sign

Caution: Zombies - It Must Be A Sign

In the last few weeks there has been an epidemic going on. A ZOMBIE epidemic! But before you board up your homes, gather weapons and raid any malls you should know where they're coming from.

First it was a spotting in Austin, Tx warning people that Zombies were ahead.

You can find the evidence all over the internet. Dustin Coates and Julie Montgomery were among dozens of people who captured road signs flashing, “Caution: zombies ahead, run for cold climates, the end is near!“ Signs on both sides of Lamar between MLK and 15th were altered some time Sunday.

"This is a first for us. We are new to this kind of thing,” said Sara Hartley, Public Works spokesperson.

Hartley says whoever did this cut the locks to the computer system and hacked in.

"While the content of what it was changed to was amusing to a lot of people we want to make sure that people understand it's a public safety hazard," said Hartley.

Zombies would invade Austin. Godless, bastard town full of Sodomites. This would be perfect if it was placed on a road close to Zilker Park during Austin City Limits. When you walk out of there you're already hung over, dirty as fuck and practically a zombie. And have you've ever been to South By South West? Paint the crowds green and you've already witness the Zombie mobs.


Fucking zombies, I got a ticket once because I didn't slow down to 45 before driving through a zombie area. NO ONE ELSE EVER SLOWS DOWN geeze!

I guess I would suggest that Austin is quite possibly the most prepared city in the country for a Zombie Apocalypse. Why you ask? They have all of the following:

*A well armed, yet liberal minded population.
*4 indoor shopping malls conveniently located around the city.
*Law enforcement trained in herding large gatherings of inebriated people.
*Easygoing populace makes forming "loose-knit band of survivors" simple. Just stand in the middle of an street and yell "Who want's to form a loose-knit band of survivors?" and 20 people will be there in seconds.
*Huge number of aspiring filmakers who have studied every zombie movie made in hopes of being the next Tobe Hooper or Robert Rodriguez.
*Alamo Drafthouse located there. Few entrances that are easily barricaded, large supply of movies to watch, industrial sized kitchen, plenty of alcohol for drinking/molitovs, etc.

Then the zombies showed up on the road signs in the grand ol' corrupt Illinois

COLLINSVILLE, Illinois - Pranksters in at least three states are messing with electronic road signs meant to warn motorists of possible traffic problems by putting drivers on notice about Nazi zombies and raptors. And highway safety officials aren't amused.

The latest breach came Tuesday during the morning rush hour near Collinsville, Ill., where hackers changed a sign along southbound Interstate 255 to read, "DAILY LANE CLOSURES DUE TO ZOMBIES."

A day earlier in Indiana's Hamilton County, the electronic message on a board in Carmel's construction zone warned drivers of "RAPTORS AHEAD — CAUTION."

And signs in Austin, Texas, recently flashed: "NAZI ZOMBIES! RUN!!!" and "ZOMBIES IN AREA! RUN."

Officials in Illinois are concerned the rewritten signs distract motorists from heeding legitimate hazards down the road. The hacked sign on Tuesday originally warned drivers of crews replacing guardrails.

"We understood it was a hoax, but at the same time those boards are there for a reason," said Joe Gasaway, an Illinois Department of Transportation supervisory field engineer. "We don't want (drivers) being distracted by a funny sign."

Authorities haven't figured out how pranksters access the signs. Gasaway believes the Illinois sign was changed remotely, and Austin Public Works spokeswoman Sara Hartley suspected the hackers there cut a padlock to get into the signs' computers.

Some Web sites, such as Jalopnik.com, have published tutorials titled "How to Hack an Electronic Road Sign" as a way to alert security holes to traffic-safety officials. Jalopnik urges its readership of 2.6 million a month not to put its lesson to practice.

"Hacking generally is about showing where there are holes in security systems, and I think this is a great example of that," the site's editor-in-chief, Ray Wert, told The Associated Press by telephone Wednesday. "I'm sure there are all sorts of ways to use that information in a way that's inappropriate, but we're trying to make clear this is an issue that needs to be confronted by traffic safety and transportation officials."

Wert said he had no immediate plans to take down Jalopnik's how-to guide.

In Illinois, tampering with an official traffic control device is a misdemeanor punishable by up to a $250 fine — half what a culprit might have to pay in Texas if caught. If convicted in Indiana, a culprit faces up to a year in jail and $5,000 in fines.

They had to deal with political craziness for a while now, I can only imagine that a Zombie situation will be a piece of cake to them. Let's be honest, there's already the zombie mentality for Chicago fans who follow the Cubs. What a bunch of losers!



So the big question is how are they doing this? It's really very simple and whenever I hear people call others "Hackers" for things like this, a little part of me dies inside. This isn't hacking. This is a simple prank. You don't need all that high tech information to do this. All you need to do is learn how to type on a glorified speak and spell. Hell, there was talk at the last defcon about billboard hacking.

This is the ADDCO portable sign. Today, you see what is on the inside, and how they are programmed to display important information.
*** WARNING YOU SHOULD NEVER TAMPER WITH THESE SIGNS ***

1. The access panel on the sign is generally protected by a small lock, but often are left unprotected. Upon opening the access panel you can see the display electronics.


2. The black control pad is attached by a curly cord, with a keyboard on the face.



3. Programming is as simple as scrolling down the menu selection to “Instant Text”. Type whatever you want to display, Hit Enter to submit. You can now either throw it up on the sign by selecting “Run w/out save” or you can add more pages to it by selecting “Add page”

** TIP ** Should it will ask you for a password. Try “DOTS”, the default password.

In all likelihood, the crew will not have changed it. However if they did, never fear. Hold “Control” and “Shift” and while holding, enter “DIPY”. This will reset the sign and reset the password to “DOTS” in the process. You’re in!



If you're not brave enough to break the law, you can always look at these regular signs being "hacked" by others and laugh.

Now you may be asking if this sort of pranks are ever a good idea. Those road signs are there to tell motorist important information like if a Left lane is closing ahead or that they should buckle up. I think it was worth the sacrifice simply because in one of the news stories about this CNN asked DO YOU HAD A ZOMBIE ESCAPE PLAN. I have to simply wonder, Do you?



Apparently only 56% of us have a plan. 22% don't have a plan, and 20% don't believe. By my math, there's 2% missing? Maybe those are just the first to get turned.

Also, you missed the section below the poll. "Your guide to the undead". For those of you who are looking for 'research' projects, the last one listed points to http://www.zombiepinups.com. No, I haven't gone there to see how good/bad it is.



And if you haven't been played out on all the zombie stuff so far, you can always read Pride and Prejudice and Zombies.

Pride and Prejudice and Zombies features the original text of Jane Austen's beloved novel with all-new scenes of bone-crunching zombie action. As our story opens, a mysterious plague has fallen upon the quiet English village of Meryton—and the dead are returning to life! Feisty heroine Elizabeth Bennet is determined to wipe out the zombie menace, but she's soon distracted by the arrival of the haughty and arrogant Mr. Darcy.

Oddly enough, I could see Colin Firth in a zombie film. As much as I hated the Keira Knightley version, she at least had the thin zombie look going.

So I think all this should meet your zombie quota. Hell, with a new Walking Dead issue coming out this week, I think you'll have more than your fill of Zombie to choose from.