Apparently there’s a program to equip cab drivers with body armor:
The Federation also is asking retired NYPD officers to donate their old vests.
I think their old guns would do more good, if that were legal in New York City. But Bloomberg has done a pretty good job of making sure only criminals and cops have guns in that city. Either way, one would think the obvious place an armed robber is going to stick his gun is at the cab driver’s head. It’s also worth noting that old body armor may not be effective. Kevlar vests degrade with time, and have expiration dates.
Someone also needs to tell the AP that there’s no such thing as a “bulletproof” vest.
Is the glass between the passenger and driver in taxicabs bulletproof? If so then vests would make a difference, since the shot would go through the seat.
I doubt cabbies will wear them even if given them for free.
Okay, taxi cab drivers don’t make much. I am sure the first month sales are down and they discover they can get a couple hundred $$$ for that vest. They’ll part with it…anyways it was too bulky and uncomfortable to wear.
Even if a vest stops the bullet, it is going to hurt like hell and kick like a mule. I think it is fair to say that the average person who thinks they’ve been shot and who feels that impact has a decent chance of assuming, “I’ve been shot, time to give up.” Not to say that vests aren’t helpful, but just like guns, they aren’t magic talismans. Without a decent survivor’s mindset they may not be as helpful as we initially think.
Obviously I don’t oppose anyone’s efforts to get them, I think it is just a bit naive to pass them out like they are magical armor. Maybe some training in personal safety techniques or the color-coded mindset scale would be just as useful.
Sounds like an interesting research opportunity; maybe you could give 1/4 of cabbies a handgun and training, 1/4 a vest and training, 1/4 training alone, and then leave the last as a control group and then see what happens?
Since when did a reporter let facts get in the way of a good story?
I’d take a vest. Getting hit with a sledgehammer sucks, but getting hit with a sledgehammer and then bleeding a lot sucks even more. The head thing is a concern with cops, too. If the guy’s pointing it at your head and making demands, it may not be too late. If he just fires, you’re out of luck anyway. What we need is to make it suck enough to act like a criminal, that even the criminals will stop it. All this gun control doesn’t seem to be doing that. Vests won’t either. That’s just another bandaid. If the criminal thinks there’s a good chance he’ll be shot as a result of his choices, he’ll most likely make better ones.
But just how ‘old’ to vest have to be to be ineffective.
This sounds like a job for ‘The-Box-O-Truth’ team! Or maybe Mythbusters!