In the last 20 years, school shooting have almost become commonplace. It's no longer the horror of Columbine, but rather parents are more apt to fear "when" rather than "if" their child's school a shooting target. And thus Bodyguard Bulletproof Blankets were born, taking advantage of parents' fear.
When I first encountered this product, I thought it was an article for the satirical news site, The Onion. As Caroline Moss of Business Insider put it, "If mass shootings weren't such an integrated part of our culture, you'd think this was an SNL skit or an Onion article."
Unfortunately, this is a real thing. When a company can turn a profit because school shootings are prevalent, something needs to change. Whether it's improved and increased awareness of mental health or better gun control, something needs to be done. Making money by taking advantage of parents' fear for their children isn't something that should occur, least of all in the United States. We should be better than that.
But we aren't. According to an article in the Huffington Post, "Stan Schone, managing partner at manufacturer ProTecht, told The Huffington Post that consumer response to the product has 'far exceeded our wildest expectations' in the 10 days that the blanket has been available for purchase."
And the blankets aren't cheap. According to the ProTecht website (the company making the blankets), the blankets are starting at "$1,011.49 each (price includes shipping)."
"Each BodyguardTM blanket is made using a bullet resistant 7mm thick ballistic Ultra High Density Polyethylene Fiber layer. (Ultra High Density Polyethylene Fiber is a high strength synthetic fiber that is virtually 15 times stronger than steel, and 40 to 50 percent stronger than Aramid fibers currently used for ballistic protection by law enforcement agencies, worldwide.)"
There are a lot of products out there that will supposedly provide extra protection in the event of an attack. Perhaps it will. But ultimately, the only thing that will make schools safer is keeping dangerous people away from them.
