Sic Will Smith on them.
I think that contrary to some claims, a ‘zombie army’ is almost the US military’s ideal opponent. In fact, I think one of the fair criticisms you could make of the US military is the do too much training with the expectation of facing a zombie army.
The US military’s war fighting doctrine emphasizes mobility and avoiding direct contact with the enemy in favor of bringing overwhelming power to a point. Alot of the militaries doctrine assumes that they will be facing an enemy that outnumbers them, which is tactically inflexible, prone to using direct human wave attacks, and which is dangerous primarily at close range. To thwart this, the US military relies on a high degree of manuever, long range fire power, a high degree of communication and battle field awareness, and alot of individual initiative by platoon and company level commanders.
The US military is probably the best prepared military you could have to meet a relatively unintelligent, predictable enemy that relies on melee combat to inflict fatalities. There are difficulties, in that the US military is heavily tied to logistic support and the ‘never leave a man behind’ doctrine is something an enemy can exploit, but the US military is trained to adapt rapidly because of the assumption that small units can easily find themselves overwhelmed and surrounded on a fluid battlefied.
I honestly don’t foresee the US military having much of a problem. It’s the US civilian population that would prove to be a problem, because they are not used to taking orders. But on the whole, even the US civilian population doesn’t cause me big worries. You don’t generally see break downs in civilian order in a crisis in the US. The self-organizing orderly response of the US population to 9/11 is just about perfect crisis response. US rural regions are very heavily harmed with low population densities and high degrees of community cohesion. The interior of the US where all the food and oil is is almost impentratible by zombies after the initial surprise phase. And I don’t think we can expect the initial surprise phase to last very long, because the US civilian population is probably the most literate in the world on the potential threat of a zombie invasion.
As far as being prepared for things that will never happen goes, we are probably as prepared as you can get.
I’ve enjoyed your column for many years and appreciate the knowledge you bestow upon the masses. However, I found your recent article regarding how the US Military would fight a zombie invasion to be wanting. Specifically the line “Even though the standard-issue M-16 is inferior to the Garand…”
As a US Marine, I feel qualified to speak authoritatively on the subject of firearms. Despite the claims of some, the M-16 (or more specifically M16A2 and M16A4 which are the current variants used by the Armed Forces) is a far superior weapon to the M-1 Garand, no matter if your target is human or ex-human. Let’s take the comparison point by point.
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The Garand holds 8 rounds in an en bloc clip. This archaic system required the user to insert the clip into the rifle. The Garand’s bolt had a tendency to slam home while the user was attempting to slide the clip in, giving the user “Garand Thumb”, as the Veterans sardonically called it. In comparison, the M16 uses a 20 or (more commonly today) 30 round magazine. Since the M16A2 and M16A4 are both semi-automatic (one trigger pull, one bullet fired), this does not necessarily increase wasteful ammunition expenditure, but rather gives the user more time to fire and less time spent reloading. Additionally, magazines can be “banana clipped” (duct-taped together), to decrease load time.
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As Max Brooks explained in his manual, lighter caliber firearms are not necessarily a down-side when fighting the living dead. All that is required is enough power to penetrate the skull and obliterate the brain. A .22 can-plinker can do this. The 5.56mm round of an M-16 can definitely do this. Therefore, the extra penetration provided by the Garand’s .30-06 round is in many ways a downside. If you look at the graph on the following link, you can compare the wound ballistics of a smaller round (in this case the 5.56mm used by the M-16), to a heavier round.
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/d/d0/556vs762.JPG
As you can see, the damage caused by the lighter round would be better fitted to the desired result; turning a zombie’s brain into something that resembles a strawberry slushee. Additionally, the lighter size of the M-16’s round allows the user to carry more ammunition. As a last point, the recoil of an M-16 is much lighter, and therefore better suited for those with a smaller stature (since circumstances during a zombie invasion would undoubtedly require women to take an active role in combat, this is an important feature).
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Close combat with the M-16 or Garand would be fairly similar. Both can mount a bayonet, and both have metal butt plates. A factory-new Garand weighs an extra pound, giving a very slight advantage when butt-stroking, however accessories (such as ACOG sights) would increase the weight of the M-16. Regardless, as my MCT instructor once said “If you have to use your rifle butt as a weapon, it’s probably not your day.”
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Accessories available to each weapon clearly clinch the competition in favor of the M-16. The M-16A4 Picatinny rail system allows for a veritable cornucopia of “toys” to be attached to the rifle, whereas the Garand’s accessories are limited to a pack of Lucky Strikes or a bayonet (useful for opening canned food).
I’m sorry to have rambled on for so long, however I feel I wouldn’t be doing my civic duty if I didn’t help your readers be better prepared for the inevitable zombie invasion. Now you know, and knowing is half the battle!
If you destroy the optic nerve (with the eyeball) your attacker will be blind, a well aimed 22LR is more that sufficient. I have always wondered why blinding was not standard operating procedure with monster or zombie attacks. Now triffids are a different problem. Always assume your attacker is subject to the laws of physics if they are not your in BIG TROUBLE. GRAVITY it’s a GREAT IDEA and IT"S THE LAW
One simple item, the courtesy collar. A rugged plastic or metal or even leather collar with shotgun shell snugged up nicely against the back of the skull and aimed so that it will blow your brains into tiny pieces. In the front is a digital countdown timer with a nice big red button over the sternum and a ten hour countdown which will trigger the shotgun shell if you don’t hit that nice friendly red button once every 10 hours. Zombies are too dumb to push the button (even if the virus takes less than 10hours to turn you) and this will prevent zombies from recruiting you.
A common courtesy to all your fellow survivors of a zombie attack it will save your friends and family in case of accidental bite AND will save you squad mates and loved ones from the psychological trauma of having to put you down if infection should happen. Buy one for all the members of you family (don’t forget grandma, 'cause if she turns into a slavering zombie she won’t forget you), available in a variety of colors. Required wear for refugees in all safe zones.