The U.S. government is not really expecting a zombie apocalypse, but the Pentagon is still prepared for that unlikely event. In 2014, it was learned that the U.S. Department of Defense has a well-thought-out strategy for fighting those frightening fictional foes, known as the Counter-Zombie Dominance Plan, or CONPLAN 8888-11 in government-speak, which states: “This plan was not actually designed as a joke.” In essence, the process of designing a contingency plan for handling zombie attacks encouraged disaster planners to think outside the box when it comes to creative strategies and tactics.
Not just a movie:
- CONPLAN 8888-11 laid out a 31-page strategy in three parts, designed to defeat marauding brain-eating predators and restore law and order.
- The first zombie tales date back to 17th-century Haiti, where zombies were believed to be African slaves who had committed suicide but were unable to "pass on."
- Stories of the undead first caught on in the United States after the release of the 1968 film The Night of the Living Dead.