As August approaches, parents are already getting a head start preparing for their kids to resume classes in the fall. On the back to school shopping list are all the usual suspects: school supplies, new clothes, and bulletproof backpacks. Wait, what? Yes, you read that correctly. Parents are purchasing bulletproof backpacks, and they're flying off the shelves.
Manufacturers have adapted to the sad reality of our all too frequent mass shootings in schools with hardly any restrictions on gun control in the foreseeable future.
But the availability of the life-saving school gear isn't exactly calming nerves.
For $160, this backpack from Office Max could save your child's life.
Remember when backpacks were originally meant to carry all your textbooks? Things have changed in 2018.
The cute color is a temporary distraction from the gravity of the situation here.
But there are other alternatives to buying a bulletproof backpack. Bulletproof inserts are also available for purchase, but they're not much cheaper; they can still cost upwards of $125.
Alex Shkop, the shop manager for Guns and Range Training Center in West Palm Beach, suggested the dense, bulletproof insert that fits into most backpacks would be the perfect solution for parents concerned about their child's safety in schools.
Shkop told CBS 12:
Kids are basically sitting ducks, 'cause they can't leave the school. School is under lockdown, and they're sitting in the classroom like sitting ducks, so this will give them at least an extra layer of protection.
He demonstrated how students could protect themselves from a gun attack, with the ballistic shield being able to withstand a bullet fired from a handgun up to a .44 magnum. However, it won't stop bullets shot from a rifle.
You probably want to just get small, and kind of hold it here and hopefully cover your head if you can.
It's sad that we have to come to that, but that's just the reality,
One woman was disheartened over the discovery of the life-saving insert, not because of the product's potential, but because it was a reflection of the new normal.
Other backpack companies have opened up kiosks in local malls, vying for a consumer's patronage in exchange for assuring a child's safety.
How far away are we from sending our kids off to school in uniforms like this?
It's unsettling. But it's the world we live in, sadly.
Are companies exploiting the culture of fear by making money?
These new products – while they can potentially save lives – just don't have us excited about going for back-to-school shopping.
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