The Unusual: BulletProof Clipboards

First there were bulletproof T-Shirts.

then there were bulletproof summer Polo’s

Next there were bulletproof Underwear.

Now you can accessorize your outfit with the inclusion of a bulletproof clipboard.  The folks at ThinkGeek.com, which have some up with some pretty unconventional inventions in the past, have added what they call the Bulletproof Body Armor Clipboard to their line-up and even included a video field testing it.

From their tongue-in-cheek product description:

Each Bulletproof Body Armor Clipboard is a section of Level II body armor, with a clip attached to hold the paper. Level II body armor is tough enough to stop the penetration of 9mm bullets.  The Bulletproof Body Armor Clipboard is the toughest clipboard we’ve ever held. Sure, it’s heavy, but when you own a clipboard that can stop bullets, weight doesn’t matter anymore. Nothing matters anymore, other than your own awesomeness for being the only person in the office to own aBulletproof Body Armor Clipboard.

For more on the clipboard including video of their field test, click HERE.

Women Can Be Their Own Bodyguard

Proving that you don’t have to be in the bodyguard business to benefit from some of the safety and fitness training that goes into high-end security work.  ICON CEO Elijah Shaw takes TCL Reporter Emily Engberg through our new Safety & Fitness Course designed for civilian women.

Pulled from elements of our highly acclaimed ICON Celebrity & VIP Protection Training Program that has helped bodyguards from around the globe to operate successfully in the world of Executive Protection, this unique course is a great way for women to challenge themselves mentally & physically, while at the same time learning new skills that could one day literally save their life.

To learn more about the course or register, click HERE.

ICON CEO Elijah Shaw Interviewed on America’s Frontlines

This Friday at 1:00 pm CST i’ll have the pleasure of being interviewed on the radio show “On America’s Frontlines of Crime & War” found on Voice America which broadcast to over 130+ countries.  The show, hosted by JJ Sutton & William Vinelli has had some pretty interesting and engaging guest in the past, such as Security Driving Expert Joe Autera and the controversial Joe Arpaio, better known as  ”America’s Toughest Sheriff”.  Both tough acts to follow, so i’ll try not to put anyone to sleep.

Here’s the episode blurb:

The protection industry has been around for centuries. Words that spring to mind are Honor, Integrity, Warriors, and so on. Today the industry is much different than what it once was. Some of the driving factors are the fact that private wealth has changed our society dramatically. We now think of Celebrity Protection as the top most level of private industry work. It has many appealing factors that draw new faces to our industry. Traveling on private planes, staying in luxury hotels, and attending the best parties – but behind the scenes real professionals are quietly handling some of the most detailed choreography that defines them as the true professionals they are. These hardworking men and women are the real deal in Celebrity Protection work and they do follow the age old adage of handling things with Honor &, Integrity. In this episode we speak with a Celebrity Protection Expert, Elijah Shaw who discusses how hard the work really is.

To catch the show click HERE.

Anatomy of a shooting: FL School Board Incident

A tragic scene occurred in Florida where a a deranged gunman entered a local school board meeting with the intent to do harm.  The situation ended with the death of the gunman, Clay Dukes, and the injury of the security officer who rushed to the area once notified.

The officer engaged in a gun battle with Clay Dukes, being wounded.  The Gunman died of a self inflicted injury after being shot by security.

At one point a very disturbing incident occurs when a woman who was previously released returns to the boardroom and attempts to knock the firearm out of the attackers hand using her purse.  The gunman brushes off the attack, and luckily elects not to harm the woman.  While I have to give her points for her courage, the attempt was not a sound idea and the execution of it likely could have left her, as well as the other board members dead.

my heartfelt support goes to Security Officer Mike Jones, who was injured in the exchange,  his decisions in a life or death situation  resulted in lives saved.

Watch the video for the final moments of the conflict, and read a version of the story:  HERE.

Man Throws Book at President

A paperback book was hurled towards President Obama seconds after he completed a Democratic rally in Philadelphia on Sunday, but aides say the incident in no way affected the event.

In video of the President, the book appears as little more than a blurr hurdling past his head to his left as he waved to the crowd on his right.  It is not clear how close the book came to him but it is apparent the President does not notice it at all. The paperback seems to be coming from the direction of the audience penned in closest to the stage, not from the thousands of other spectators behind barricades farther back…

The US Secret Service found and interviewed the man who threw the book onstage.  He was deemed to be an “overexhuberant” supporter who wanted the President to have a copy of a book he had written, according the Special Agent Edwin Donovan of the Secret Service in Washington.  “He was deemed not to be a threat and was not arrested,”

For full story, click HERE.

Definitely  not as much of a security risk as another individual who decided to throw something at the US Commander in Chief.   Also looks like an Agent had an eye on the object but didn’t overreact.

Iraqi Reality Show Plants Car Bombs on Celebrities

File under “S” for stupid.

Move over Punk’d, a new show on Iraq television makes unwitting contestants think they are going to jail after they are pulled over at a security checkpoint and a explosive device is found in their vehicle.

The show “Put Him in [Camp] Bucca” has received numerous protests but continues to air.

Popular public figures are tricked by being invited to the headquarters of  TV station Al Baghdadia to be interviewed, while en route a fake bomb gets planted in their car while they were being searched by Iraqi soldiers — who amazingly are in on the prank.

The unwitting celebrities are then secretly filmed, Candid-Camera-style, as they reacted with shock, disbelief and anger as fake checkpoint guards shout abuses at them: “Why do you want to blow us up?” “You are a terrorist.” “How much did they pay you to do it? You will be executed.”  Quality television indeed.

Click HERE for more on the story.

And just in case you think “how dumb is it that Iraqi soldiers are doing pranks like this in a war where untold lives are being lost“?  Meet a member of the US Military who while on active duty in Iraq, decided to film his own version of Punk’d by planting a explosive device in a car during a traffic checkpoint and filming the drivers reaction.   Nice.  Click HERE for the video.

Bodyguard Training Calendar

Minneapolis, MN September 8-12th 2010 – Icon Services Corporation present a five-day course of practical theory and hands-on training in the world of Celebrity & VIP Protection. If you are new to the bodyguard industry or a current operator looking to refresh and polish your skills, this course will offer excellent instruction into the professional side of Close Protection work. Taught by industry veteran Elijah Shaw, who in addition to his corporate clients, has traveled the world as the personal bodyguard of international public figures such as musical giant Usher, supermodel Naomi Campbell, and rap megastar 50 Cent, the course will offer real world problems, scenarios, and solutions from instructors that are currently active in the industry.

“Your training is an invaluable tool to your industry. I was very impressed how realistic the training was that you provide. Having been taught by the best, I can honestly state that I learned quite a bit in your class. There is always room for improving ones skill set, and your training definitely added to mine”.

Special Agent Robert E. Jones / US Secret Service

For more information click HERE

Today Show Interview with Elijah Shaw

So in the interest of national security (joke),  I got my hands on the the full Today Show interview conducted by host Amy Robach.  The interview is a excerpt from their recent segment with Bodyguard Careers on females in the Executive Protection Industry.

I know after the original piece aired there was a little bit of debate on if female newcomers in the industry should get that amount of exposure.  My thought process is that the Today Show viewership for that week was 4,900,000, so that was 4,900,000 that got to hear something positive about our industry as opposed to “bodyguard writes a tell-all” or “Security Contractor Takes a Bribe in Iraq“.   That type of positive exposure has got to be good for our community, and acts as a counterbalance to all the negative stereotypes.

See related:  FEMALE BODYGUARD FEATURED ON TODAY SHOW

Executive Protection Training Video

A very small sampling of the drills that go into honing skills in the Executive & VIP Protection Industry.  These are the building blocks that create the total package that clients, Detail Leaders and decision makers are looking for.

The guys that attended the recent training course were from all backgrounds and walks of life, but I think what was so impressive is that regardless of their pedigree’sthey put their egos on the shelf (well mostly) and engaged in the physical and mental exertions that form muscle memory.  Continue on that path and at when the moment of truth comes, your actions (or reactions) are on autopilot.

For more information on ICON Executive Protection Training, click HERE.

Stalkers Using Social Networking to Find You

A  group of independent scientist have conducted a study that shows just how easy it is to learn your whereabouts while using the geo-tagging features now popular with social networking sites such as Twitter & YouTube.

The scientist were able to use the geo-tags which gives longitude and latitude information precisely enough to identify the home in which a particular images were shot after being placed on social networking sites.   In addition to video, these tags can also be embedded in smart-phones messages and still photos.

For the full story, click HERE.