* From the Illinois Policy Institute…

Illinoisans are facing a fiscal emergency. Homeowners are saddled with the nation’s highest property taxes, job creators have to navigate an uncompetitive workers’ compensation system, not to mention the worst pension crisis in the nation, and billions in unpaid bills. But politicians are unwilling to confront those challenges, even as residents continue fleeing for other states as a response.

At least one Springfield lawmaker, though, wants Illinoisans to brace themselves for another threat: Zombies.

On Jan. 12, state Rep. Chris Welch, D-Westchester, filed House Resolution 0030, which would designate October 2017 as “Zombie Preparedness Month,” urging “Illinoisans to educate themselves about natural disasters and take steps to create a stockpile of food, water and other emergency supplies that can last up to 72 hours.”

The language in this bill demonstrates insensitivity and a lack of seriousness on the part of lawmakers.

And on and on like that they go, concern trolling over a harmless little resolution with bipartisan support.

* Actually, Welch’s idea might do some good. From the resolution…

WHEREAS, Tornadoes, floods, and other natural disasters are real and all Illinois citizens should be aware of the potential danger; while prevention of natural disasters is not viable, citizens can be prepared with emergency supplies and plans; and

WHEREAS, If the citizens of Illinois are prepared for zombies, than they are prepared for any natural disaster; while a Zombie Apocalypse may never happen, the preparation for such an event is the same as for any natural disaster; and

WHEREAS, Disasters disrupt hundreds of thousands of lives every year and can have lasting effects, both to people and property; and

WHEREAS, Over 60% of Americans are not practicing or preparing for natural disasters, and only 39% have developed an emergency plan; and

WHEREAS, Practicing for preparedness makes perfect, and staying safe is important for the citizens of Illinois; and

WHEREAS, Citizens should have supplies on hand, which may include, water, food, medications, tools, electronics, sanitation and hygiene, clothing and bedding, important documents, and first aid…

…Adding… As noted in comments, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has a Zombie apocalypse preparedness page. So, this ain’t new.

* Rep. Welch defended himself on Twitter and a snit broke out…

Oh, for crying out loud.

* And then it took a turn for the worse…

Sheesh. Also, I know of no poll that shows Rauner at 15 percent disapproval, but I digress.

* Eventually, I intervened and so did GOP Rep. Grant Wehrli (a noted Twitter troll himself) and everybody stopped arguing and went on to enjoy their holiday weekends.

All that energy expended over a little resolution.

       

34 Comments - Arsenal - Tuesday, Jan 17, 17 @ 10:45 am: Welch’s language was harmless and “politician funny”. Maybe it gets a couple more people to look at the issue, but if it doesn’t, no harm done. IPI’s response was All About Eve. - Joe M - Tuesday, Jan 17, 17 @ 10:49 am: CDC is a step ahead of them. https://www.cdc.gov/phpr/zombies/ - Anonymous - Tuesday, Jan 17, 17 @ 10:50 am: We live in a tornado,ice storm,blizzard,earthquake area and being prepared just shows common sense. Grocery stores in Evansville In.ran out of food over the weekend because of the ice storm to our west. Trucks could not make it for a period of time due to bad roads. - John - Tuesday, Jan 17, 17 @ 10:52 am: The zombies thing is actually a really good idea. It totally makes younger people think about disaster management. I see nothing wrong with that. If you really think the state of IL or Feds are going to quickly save you in a disaster then you are already failing at keeping your family safe. - Chicago_Downstater - Tuesday, Jan 17, 17 @ 10:54 am: Ugh! Is thin-skin contagious? If so I think it might be too late to prep for that epidemic. But seriously, anything that potentially raises awareness of disaster prep is a good in my book. - Ratso Rizzo - Tuesday, Jan 17, 17 @ 10:55 am: Illinois Policy is a professional trolling website, so they doth protest too much. They also banned me from their Twitter account for trolling Rauner. - Huh? - Tuesday, Jan 17, 17 @ 11:00 am: Someone did a study recently and estimates that if there was a zombie apocalypse, mankind would be wiped out in 100 days. The paper was published in the University of Leicester Journal of Physics Special Topics. The article goes on to say that zombie apocalypse preparation is a metaphor for real-life disaster preparedness. So Welch’s resolution has merit. www.livescience.com/57407-zombie-apocalypse-would-take-100-days.html - A guy - Tuesday, Jan 17, 17 @ 11:01 am: Wehrli and Welch…it all comes down to that. Lord help us. - (un)Happy - Tuesday, Jan 17, 17 @ 11:02 am: Obviously the Rep. Welch understands what IPI does not. By including a current pop culture reference in the bill, it will reach more people than if had not. Now every person who Google’s anything relating to Zombie, apocalypse and variations thereof, will get this bill in search results and may read it out of curiosity, thereby becoming educated about emergency preparedness. Also, if we don’t start doing things like this that includes younger generations we become obsolete. Besides why can’t public service be fun once in a while? - City Zen - Tuesday, Jan 17, 17 @ 11:03 am: What Would Negan Do? Give Welch points for marketing and attempting different ways to engage the public. - Mokenavince - Tuesday, Jan 17, 17 @ 11:03 am: Springfield has more than its share of Zombies, just look at the House leader. - Precinct Captain - Tuesday, Jan 17, 17 @ 11:04 am: IPI is against disaster preparedness if Rauner and Griffin can’t personally profit from it. - Carhartt Representative - Tuesday, Jan 17, 17 @ 11:06 am: I can see why IPI would be sensitive to any attacks on zombies. - Anotheretiree - Tuesday, Jan 17, 17 @ 11:09 am: With the election of “he who should not be named”, the doomsday preppers are staring to seem less crazy. Very soon we will face a nuclear crisis with North Korea. It may spiral out of control and include China. And we have a mentally ill man in charge. I’d rather face zombies with Rick and the gang… - Just Observing - Tuesday, Jan 17, 17 @ 11:12 am: I’m so sure the IPI found the resolution offensive and insensitive [sarcasm]. So ridiculous. - wordslinger - Tuesday, Jan 17, 17 @ 11:13 am: This, from the goofs who trot out the Madigan big-head-prop at their astro-turf “protests.” Gee, I think they’ve forgotten who they are and their noble mission. –Illinois Policy is an independent organization generating public policy solutions aimed at promoting personal freedom and prosperity in Illinois.– https://www.illinoispolicy.org/our-story/ - A Jack - Tuesday, Jan 17, 17 @ 11:17 am: Zombies eat brains. So the IPI probably doesn’t think it is a worthwhile problem. They are relatively safe. - Anon221 - Tuesday, Jan 17, 17 @ 11:18 am: Another good article on the Leicester report: http://www.popsci.com/scientific-research-zombie-epidemic-apocalypse The CDC got a lot of negative blowback in the press initially when they released the Z Apocalypse stuff, but it has resulted in some thoughtfulness, which is what it was originally designed for. - Liberty - Tuesday, Jan 17, 17 @ 11:25 am: rauner will be in hot water if the ESDA workers are on strike when the zombies appear. - c'mon, man - Tuesday, Jan 17, 17 @ 11:53 am: Where’s the IPI’s “non-partisan” outrage over Moffitt and his new gig and its pension ramifications? (Nothing against Moffitt, but the pension issue is an IPI favorite topic) - Bigtwich - Tuesday, Jan 17, 17 @ 12:02 pm: Calm like Rahm https://archpaper.com/2011/11/quick-clicks-zombie-train-chicago-scales-tracking-la-church-sales-and-booking-philly/ - Anon - Tuesday, Jan 17, 17 @ 12:08 pm: I was suprised when the CDC used zombies to promote disaster prep, but it got headlines; It’s silly, but it worked nationally to get attention, why not use it in Illinois. Like the old saying; ‘an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure’, seems to me that applies here. A little disaster preparation can go a long way to avoid some disaster relieve. Besides, it’s not like Illinois lawmakers saying silly things is a new development…. - Michelle Flaherty - Tuesday, Jan 17, 17 @ 12:08 pm: The cost of a zombie apocalypse? Approximately $50 million. - It's All About Me - Tuesday, Jan 17, 17 @ 12:21 pm: How insensitive to Zombies, what a bunch of Zombaphobes - Lil Squeezy - Tuesday, Jan 17, 17 @ 12:23 pm: I tend to think that legislation, even resolutions, should avoid topics like zombies. With that said, every local news broadcast and local newspaper will run a story on this in October. Its a good idea for a resolution. - WhoKnew - Tuesday, Jan 17, 17 @ 12:25 pm: Digression is #3 of the troll’s Super Power wish list! /s - Teddy - Tuesday, Jan 17, 17 @ 12:46 pm: Maybe Rauner can buy IPI a sense of humor. - Juvenal - Tuesday, Jan 17, 17 @ 1:41 pm: Diana Rickert’s outfit accusing Democrats grandstanding, insensitivity, headline chasing. Hill- ARIOUS. Kettle, meet Calphalon factory. - Timmeh - Tuesday, Jan 17, 17 @ 2:47 pm: I don’t have a zombie survival plan of my own, but the what-if scenario has crossed my mind. A couple of my friends have put more thought into it than I have. Besides, we shouldn’t be worried about zombies. We should be worried about ALIENS. - DuPage Bard - Tuesday, Jan 17, 17 @ 3:11 pm: Not sure why you and Wehrli stopped it, no one ever stopped Sandack when he was going bats##t crazy. Matter of fact IPI loved it. GOP not used to having someone call them out? Maybe IPI can go cry in a safe space somewhere. Dems need to do more of this and do it soon. - JustRight - Tuesday, Jan 17, 17 @ 3:58 pm: How much money is this “Zombie” campaign? Is there a measurable success when other gov have adopted similar policies? Or is this just a feel good policy that will allocate millions to something that sounds like a good idea? - Rich Miller - Tuesday, Jan 17, 17 @ 4:04 pm: ===will allocate millions=== It’s a resolution, not a bill. - wordslinger - Tuesday, Jan 17, 17 @ 4:06 pm: – Or is this just a feel good policy that will allocate millions to something that sounds like a good idea?– About the same millions that have been “allocated” for every other resolution ever that has been passed. Running total so far: Zero. You know, you could have actually read the resolution….. - Anon - Wednesday, Jan 18, 17 @ 8:56 am: I get that the Illinois policy Institute is basically a propaganda arm at this point, but why do they keep lying about this? ===Homeowners are saddled with the nation’s highest property taxes=== Are the property taxes high? You bet. But New Jersey has an higher effective property tax rate than Illinois. But they just keep saying it when it’s not true and by failing to qualify exactly what they mean when tey say it’s the highest is leading to what looks like dishonesty. Never mind that the reason why property taxes are high is because the state doesn’t pay it’s bills and decided to keep income tax artificially low and not adequately fund programs that would keep those taxes low. They just can’t keep calling it the highest. They’re lying. Sorry, comments for this post are now closed.