Hello!

I was browsing around and came across a Zombie Squad video. I've known about them for awhile and know they do provide good emergency preparedness information. What I want to know is do they teach some things that are TEOTWAWKI? Are they a respected organization in the areas they are currently in? Is anyone here a member?

I'd like to know a little more about the organization as a whole before I go and try to start a chapter. I do realize they do community service, etc, but I'm more interested in any interaction they may have with local emergency management.

I visited, and was not impressed.
Your mileage may vary.

There are members here that I respect who post there too.

A good group, bigger and honestly a bit more active as a group than ETS is as a result. Not as refined, and the fringe is a little more likely to stumble in, but it is very well moderated. Yes, there are some raging egos, and sometimes people have blowouts over quite literally NOTHING, and people have lost a lot of my respect for it, but there are a lot of people who take preparedness very, very seriously and are very good there. The big things to keep in mind is (a) Zombie Squad isn't very subtle, and (b) if you take the forum, the topic or yourself too seriously, you won't enjoy it. And if someone says "no, dummy, it wont' work, do it this way", it isn't personal.

There are a lot of cross posters. I'm not sure if this is the best way to describe the difference, so maybe others can help. *pokes Blast, JIM, Airballrad and a few others* I would say it is the difference between a classy, high end jazz club with 120 year old scotch and 80 year old wine, and a bar where there is sawdust on the floor, a cage around the stage and bouncer who looks like an extra out of Lord of the Rings. But both will toss you just as fast for talking religion, politics or paranoia. I've also watched both places mourn leaders, and take on emergencies. I'd like to think I have friends in both places, not just the cross posters, and I've got a as much respect in both as I have for both forums and their mods.

They are very similar, and very complimentary, even if ZS isn't always quite so professional. Another way of thinking of it is, ETS is what ZS will be when it finishes growing up. *laughs* Come on over, set up an account, and introduce yourself. Shoot PMs to a few people if you will, so the cross posters will know you are there. And just watch us.

I hope this helps. It is late, and I'm probably rambling.

I was more interested in the actual "physical" chapters. People apparently get together and do public service.


I wonder, would that be something ETS would think about doing in the future? Branch out from the forums and become more active in the community?

+1 LOL!

I enjoy Zombie Squad a lot. It's not a place for people who are easily offended, but there are a surprising number of really smart people there. TEOTWAWKI conversations are welcomed and encouraged. As with ETS, talk of religion, politics, and any illegal activites (homemade explosives, fullauto modification to guns, distilling alcohol, etc...) are very strictly forbidden. Also, no one under 18 is allowed. I've already gone camping with one great guy I've met on ZS.

Basically, I read ETS for info on making it back home from a walk in the woods. I read Zombie Squad to learn how to fortify my neighborhood against Neo-mongol hordes.

Come on over, we won't eat your brain...

-Blast

Having tried to get Houston area ETS members together on a number of occasions I have to say there is something rather antisocial about the average ETS member...unless you offer them beer and fried pickles.

-Blast

I agree Blast. It's everybody's "Speed of Life" that creates scheduling problems. The beer and pickles at Hydes Cafe in Spring, Tx is the proper "bait" required to make it happen.

Fried pickles?

I am all for regional food. In fact, sampling them is one of my favorite things to do while travelling for business/pleasure. But fried pickles... that's just... wrong. -chuckle-

Fried Dill Pickles "sound" thoroughly disgusting, I agree!!

But they taste every bit as good as the sound of it is bad, to the mind.

Hyde Cafe's/Spring, Tx, slice their pickles lengthwise before battering, this is definitely better than battering the crossway sliced hamburger dills that most places provide.

Don't forget the salt lightly sprinkled over the pickles, or the beer to wash it all down with!!!

Batter fried Zuchini and fried green tomatoes will also make you bring back things that you hadn't even thought of stealing yet!

I am more or less a lurker at both sites. I think Ironraven summed it up perfectly, especially this: "Not as refined, and the fringe is a little more likely to stumble in...". Zombie Squad is WAY more likely to attract the ,<censored> and its posters are not generally as respectful as ETS. If you have questions about ZS Chapters I would shoot an e-mail to one of the mods over at ZS, the guy in charge is named Kyle, though they are all pretty helpful.

I'd love to see ETS big enough for that to be possible, but it while it has been tried, I'm only aware of a few times it has been pulled off. *high five to Blast* ETS started as a some what impersonal and highly intellectual forum, who's members do a LOT, but mostly on their own. ZS started off the other way, as a service and socializing group that started a forum.

Not saying it isn't possible, it just seems like ETS is more "rugged individualists", while ZS is more "yeh, how ya' doin'".

Dumb question: what's the correct address for ZS?

I've looked at www.zombiehunters.org/forum/ (love their logo).

But there's also zombiesquad.net and zombiesquad.org -- are these from the same outfit?

Just trying to avoid kooks and clones, spammers and jammers, etc.

Yes, that is the right place.

-Blast

I just joined there as well...yet another forum to surf. Same username as here (and everywhere else)

Im a ZS member and there is ALOT of great info there. I really like reading Gunny, NRA, Woodswalker and several other reviews on products in the bug out area.

As long as we are talking ZS, there is a posting on the Personal Experiences part of the forum (on the 1st page if I recall) by a guy who went through Katrina. He posts under the name "Raptor". It is an excellent read. He discusses what works and what doesn't, things that happened while bugging out, just all sorts of things in great detail. Definitely worth looking at.

I don't know if making the reference to another site like that will get me in any kind of trouble with the moderators. If so, please forgive me and let me know.

LW

Well, I confess I enjoyed the humour surrounding the whole zombie schtick. It makes the whole survival business a lot more approachable to people, especially the younger crowd.

And I do love the logo etc. LMAO! I need to get some of their gear for my nephews.

But it seems I have to wade through a lot of stuff to get to anything solid, in terms of information. So I may lurk there on a slow day.

If someone comes across a thread with some real meat to it, maybe they'd care to share the link here.

This is the posting that I was referring to. I mean it is chock full of really good information from someone who lived through it, what worked and what didn't. I don't know if this will work as a link or not. Sorry if it doesn't. It is a very good, although long read.

LW


http://zombiehunters.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=32&t=16627

Interesting read. Thanks for the link.

*stumbles in, looks around*

Sorry for the late response; I was taking a nap...

I will add another +1 to what ironraven and Blast said.

ETS and ZS are complementary, in my opinion. ETS focuses more on practical short term stuff where the world is not ending (my boat is sinking, so I am stepping up into my liferaft). ZS does that too, but is more about the long-term, totally messed-up situations (my continent is sinking, so I am stepping up into my boat).

I enjoy both a lot.

Also, I lurve fried pickles. They are my favorite Renaissance Festival breakfast.

While I lurk here most the time I'm usually pretty active on ZS. I just have been very busy with SAR stuff over the last few months I haven't really been on either much these days.

so +1 on all of it

For the record, ETS was contacted by Zombie Squad in it's early days.

I do not recall all, nor was I privy to the particulars.

It was Doug's decision to maintain the Foundation's independance.

This is not a reflection on ZS or anyone else, but it deflects

many potential conflicts of interest.


A few years ago, My then Gf sold my knife collection while I was

in hospital. She offered many on a popular knife website.

A set was sold 'as new.' Well, they were 'as new' except I had

The temerity to clean up the factory edge and treat the sheath

with hot beeswax. My G/F sold the set for almost nothing.

The buyer went ballistic, posting photos and claiming foul. He

also figured out I was moderator here, no doubt by my actually

using my real name and tried to bash the website. Rumours were

flying, I came home to find

several items I didn't want sold gone. I had to do PR,


offering to buy back with S/H ANYTHING people were upset with.

Naturally, the one complaintant liked his knife set enough to

refuse ( and resold it on that forum for a 150% profit later.)

This is one reason why ETS doesn't hold hands with just any

pretty girl online, nor do I off.

And I think that it is good that ETS, ZS and similarly insanity-free preparedness/survival sites should remain separate. Yes, there will be cross posting, because we have a lot of people who like to go various places.

Why is that most of us have 50+ channels of television, rather than just streaming ETS-TV? Sure, most of us here watch some of the same shows, but not all of us watch all of the same stuff. Same difference. I have stuff I'll post over at ZS (like when I'm feeling silly) that I might not post here, and vice versa.

That, and if the insanity barriers should slip, like they did IMHO at a certain forum a while back, people can bail out of them and still regroup at places where they are comfortable. I hadn't known that ZS had contacted ETS, but I'm not surprised. As I've said, they have a very similar vibe to them, not just because of the mutual members.

Does Lieutenant Tom Keefer post at Zombie Squad?

Another cross-poster here.

I'm also a ZS-member and mostly spend a lot of time in the first-aid section. Together with members like Doc Simon, Tac Medic and GanaEMT I think we've set up quite a good board in which there can be both professional discussions on TCCC, ACLS, etc. and more humorous posts like the infamous Throwdown-thread..


As said, ZS definately isn't for the lightly-offended
but I think that the sense of humor on ZS is just awesome.