First thing first: There are no zombies now, nor will there be any in ten years from now chasing people in order to feast on their brains or to cough some zombie phlegm in a carefully-designed prepper’s soup.

Now you’ll ask why would I even write about this. Well, it could be the fact that I am getting ridiculously ticked off when reading about zombie walks (including zombie walks for children), or hearing yet another theory about the world ending and zombies getting the best of us, or seeing an increasing array of articles in outdoors stores that are dedicated to those who call themselves “zombie preppers.” If the latter concept makes your hair stand on end, I’m with you. It’s severely dislocated from reality and the whole concept an insult to human intelligence.

The Center for Disease Control has blog entries about how to help people prepare for zombie attacks. I should state that they believe, just like most of the people do, that zombies do not exist. The reason they use it as a way to get the information out is because it gets people worked up enough to get ready for really devastating events such as hurricanes, earthquakes, etc. Now that’s where I scratch my head and ask: Can people not be addressed like mature individuals and be told how to prepare should a disaster occur? I never told my children they should stay in bed after bedtime because there are monsters under the bed ready to get them. Why would I want to be told that as an adult? What’s with the infantilizing of the adult humans and them nodding their heads in approval?

If the world ends, it will because we allow our minds to be invaded not by the zombie virus as one of the idiotic hypotheses out there is suggesting, but by gluttony and that incessant desire to have more, more of everything, better and more sparkling than yesterday’s stuff and ideally cheaper. And more. Oh wait, I already said that.

If the world ends it is because we cannot see the real threat to our world as we know it: Environmental disasters caused by pollution, overfishing and low-grade genetically-modified and processed foods; Health crises caused by lack of common sense when treating diseases and the saddening phenomenon of “creating” diseases in order to medicate (read make profits off of new drug prescription) while overlooking diseases that are real and in need of being addressed in a way that might not make anyone richer but would make for a healthy, better adjusted community; disastrous social situations caused by isolating from our fellow humans and hiding behind screens until we can’t tell what’s real and what’s not.

If the world ends it is because we are forgetting to live as a global community. Preparing to survive should the apocalypse strike, is the ultimate proof that living as separately as we can from our fellow humans is a sad reality. What if preparing ing would actually involve becoming aware of what is wrong in today’s society (all of it, that is, all continents and humans included) and decide to act on it in a manner that’s accountable and compassionate. That kind of stuff has a ripple effect, a positive one

What if children will be told about the realities of the world and they’ll be listened to when they’ll come up with ideas on how to address them. Because they will, and the reason is quite simple: They have (still) unadulterated minds that can see right from wrong and call it as it is. And so do many people who are raising awareness about the goings of the world not because they want to make a buck or hide in zombie-proof bunkers, but because they want to make the world last and because they want to leave it better than they found it (is is still realistic to aim for that? Let’s hope so.)

What if adults will be told “here’s what you need to know and how to prepare should any disaster strike” but the zombie part will be left out because otherwise they might feel insulted. We do have approximately three pounds of brain material after all. What if there will be more of a collective consciousness and awareness of the fact that all we have is today and now, and making the best of every day for yourself, for the ones you love, and for the world you live in, is a worthy goal.

So I had it with the zombie crap. I am saddened that Discovery Channel caters to what some refer to as a “cultural phenomenon” and airs shows like “The Zombie Apocalypse.” So, you’ll say, watch it or don’t watch it, no one’s putting a gun to your head. True enough, but why cater to something that’s not only fictional but bad fictional and more over, puts a negative spin on the idea of being prepared for natural disasters (some caused by global warming, ahem).

I do not like the idea of any of my neighbors filling their houses with guns and ammo for zombies, or barricading their houses to prevent zombies from stealing their food and ravaging their homes. And I do not like the idea of any of my neighbors seeing potential zombie material in any of us who do not subscribe to the idiotic hypothesis that they zombies exist or will soon. I would like to think that my neighbors are just as willing to come and help me and my loved ones and offer us help in any form, should we need that extra help, just like I would help them and offer them what they need if a situation occurs.

If it’s not humanity that drives our actions then there is a high risk of dying inside. No amount of prepping will prevent that. According to Wikipedia a zombie is an animated corpse resurrected by mystical means, such as witchcraft.The term is often figuratively applied to describe a hypnotized person bereft of consciousness and self-awareness, yet ambulant and able to respond to surrounding stimuli. The way I see it, if there’s any danger of zombies coming our way, we are a few years too late to prevent it since they are already here in the shape of those who prepare for the very thing. Concluding with a “joke’s on you, zombie doomsters” seems darn appropriate. In the day and age of problems ans crises that are real and hard to resolve, spending money and funds for a “what if” scenario of the most ludicrous kind troubles me.

As for the world ending, the question is not whether you can survive on your own, I believe, but whether the journey to that point was worth it. Because if we only live for ourselves the whole time and prepare to face a possible ending the same way, we will find that the place we’ve saved ourselves for is one empty cold planet. Said Norman Cousins, American political journalist, author, professor, and world peace advocate (1915 -1990): “Death is not the greatest loss in life. The greatest loss is what dies inside us while we live.” As always, do as you please.

Thoughts? Much obliged if you decide to share.