Sandy Hook Ongoing: Bullet Proof Backpacks

Going by the visuals, the Connecticut shooting has drawn as much attention to “homeroom defense” as it has to the sources of gun violence and gun control. What I can’t tell is how much that’s a natural response to the Sandy Hook horror and how much it’s an effect of the NRA’s proposal to change the subject place armed guards in schools.It reminds me, though, of the concrete thinking following 9/11 and the shoe bomber episode when huge resources went into airport security and body scanners. If comparing the production of bulletproof backpacks to the mega – investment in airport x-ray technology is ludicrous, both speak to how easy it is to become distracted from the roots of the problem.

As for the photo, we see the daughter of the manufacturer of the backpacks modeling their use in her backyard in Massachusetts. Call it a marketing bonus that the backyard of Bullet Blocker’s owner is so reminiscent of the woods around the school in Newtown. So, I’m guessing you need enough time to swing the pack around and then count your lucky stars if the psycho only sprays you with automatic weapon fire below the knees?  …And then (thinking about those scanners again), check out the caption to see how much one of those little items is going to set you back.

(photo: Jessica Rinaldi/Reuters caption: Amanda Curran, 18, daughter of Bullet Blocker inventor Joe Curran, demonstrates how to use a child’s bulletproof backpack in the event of a shooting, outside Curran’s home in Billerica, Massachusetts December 19, 2012. The child’s bulletproof backpacks range in cost from $250 to $600, depending on the size of the backpack. According to Bullet Blocker Vice President of Business Operations Elmar Uy, their products stop 99.9% of bullets from all handguns.)