Virtual Zombie Outbreak

Every week, as part of #zombietalk Thursdays, we are going to start Virtual Zombie Outbreak, with a new outbreak starting in a new city each week.  Given how today's social media tools spreads news, there's little doubt about how news of an outbreak would find its way onto Twitter and Facebook.  Think of this exercise as a zombie outbreak firedrill.  Here are the "rules":

• Starting at 9AM Eastern Time, the outbreak starts.
• If you're in the city where the outbreak is happening, posting updates as if the outbreak were really happening, ie. "People are running through the streets!" or "We've barricaded ourselves at the Walmart on 34th and Broadway"
• If you're not in the city where the outbreak is happening, post updates as if your city were responding to the outbreak, ie. "They've shut down all incoming flights from Gotham City!", or as if news outlets were reporting (or covering up) the outbreak, ie. "CNN reports that the National Guard has been mobilized"
• Make sure to include the hashtags #virtualzombieoutbreak or #vzo lest we have another "War of the Worlds" situation on our hands.  Also include #zombietalk if you have space.
• Let the outbreak evolve throughout the day, it doesn't make sense for the first sighting to be at 10AM, and then have the city overrun by 10:05AM (unless its some sort of super virus)
• Have fun and be creative!

10 Weapons to Avoid during a Zombie Outbreak

1. Flame Thrower - The zombies will just catch fire, but won't actually stop coming after you until their brains melt/blow up.  Also, burnt zombie flesh smells terrible.
2. Revolver Pistol - Limited ammo, long reload time, and little stopping power.
3. Morning Star - Could get stuck in a zombie, rendering it useless.
4. Chainsaw - These things run on gas.  Your luck runs out as the gas does.
5. Ninja Stars - You'd have to be able to hit them in the head, and even if you do, it may not breach the skull.  Sorry, but the ones you got in Chinatown will do you little good.
6. Grenades - Grenades are lethal because of the shrapnel rips apart the flesh of people within close proximity of the explosion.  This would only work if the shrapnel gets stuck in the zombie brain.
7. Silver Bullets and Wooden Stakes - Zombies are not warewolves nor vampires.
8. Pepper Spray - Studies are inconclusive as to whether zombies rely on sight and smell to track their targets, which limits how effective pepper spray would be.
9. Lawnmowers - Contrary to popular belief, these things are quite heavy and lifting one to shred zombies to pieces would prove to be quite cumbersome.
10. Bare Fists - Avoid punching or bitch-slapping zombies if at all avoidable.  Doing so may open up wounds on your hands and may result in infection.