Ontario’s locked-door policy in schools doesn’t add up
By macleans.ca - Monday, January 14, 2013 - 0 Comments
On Dalton McGuinty’s response to the tragic Newtown shooting
Carlo Allegri/Reuters
Canada is not the United States.
It shouldn’t be necessary to make such an obvious observation. But with the premier of Canada’s largest province apparently overlooking this fact, it seems worth repeating.
In one of his final policy moves before retiring later this month, Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty recently announced a “locked-door policy” for all 4,000 publicly funded elementary schools in the province; and a $10-million fund to pay for new security systems so school visitors can be “buzzed in.” This in response to the horrific shooting of 20 children and six adults at the Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn., last December.
“In the aftermath of that tragic event that unfolded in the U.S., I think there’s an important question that we need to ask ourselves: are we taking all reasonable steps to ensure the safety of our kids at school?” McGuinty said in making the announcement. Continue…
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Colombian designer finds market for bulletproof kids’ clothes
By David Agren - Monday, January 14, 2013 at 9:48 AM - 0 Comments
Slim, stylish, and—in case of an emergency—a shield
Mauricio Duenas/EPA/Keystone Press
Colombian fashion designer Miguel Caballero dresses world leaders, the rich and famous and even royalty, with his slim and stylish bulletproof garments. Now the man known as the Armani of bulletproofing wants to outfit a new and unlikely clientele: schoolchildren. Capitalizing on the fears of parents after the slaying of 20 first graders in Newtown, Conn., Caballero recently launched a new line of children’s clothing under the MC Kids label. It includes bulletproof T-shirts durable enough resist a Mini-Uzi, reinforced puffer jackets that weigh only five pounds, and a backpack that doubles as a shield.
Caballero says he’s no opportunist, just responding to demand—albeit reluctantly. Over the years, he’s received repeated requests for kids’ clothing from clients in Asia and the Middle East, but always refused, “because I believe that minors should not be part of the conflict.” But the Bogotá-based designer does big business in dangerous places, including his native Colombia, where former president Álvaro Uribe wore bulletproof guayabera shirts, and Mexico, where he opened an outlet in the capital’s posh Polanco neighbourhood. Now he has America’s parents lining up.
