As the first black man elected President of the United States, Barack Obama’s win is unprecedented. But there’s another first associated with him, too.

“I think that’s the first time bulletproof glass was used around a candidate during an acceptance speech,” says Tony DiPonio, the vice-president of operations at Pacific Bulletproof Co., a manufacturer of bullet resistance products.

Viewers at home couldn’t see it, but Obama gave his Nov. 4 victory speech in Chicago’s Grant Park while sandwiched between two-inch thick, 10-feet high, and 15-feet long bullet-resistant glass panels. News crews formed a layer of protection in front of him. Nearly all of the city’s police force worked the crowd around him. Undercover agents were posted in the skyscrapers surrounding the venue. And the air above the President-elect was a designated no-fly zone, minus the numerous police helicopters that dotted the night sky.

Ever since Hillary Clinton alluded to the A-word way back in the primaries and got blasted for it, the possibility of Barack Obama’s assassination has been nestled uncomfortably in people’s minds.

People don’t want to hear or talk about the A-word, which is understandable, given the excitement and optimism Obama has brought to a country on the brink of implosion. But the man will be, after all, the first black president. This consideration was beside the point during his race to the White House—and rightly so—but now that Obama’s crossed the finish line, perhaps it’s time to own up to the real danger that looms over his historic presidency.

The public may prefer to keep hush-hush about any impending threat, but thankfully, the Secret Service seems more than ready to face reality for us. The bulletproof glass is just one step toward protecting Obama.

Is it all overkill? Hardly.

There are nine levels of bulletproof protection, based on the dimensions of the glass used. The highest level used for civilian situations—in banks, fast food restaurants, check cashing stores—is a level three.

“For Obama, they used a level five, which could withstand a 7.62 mm round armor piercing, which you’d see out of a rifle,” says DiPonio. “Thinking a guy’s not going to run up to the podium with a handgun, that’s a smart choice.”

Glass with a level five protection rating also sufficiently shields against the impact of any debris that could fly from an explosion about 10-15 feet away.

DiPonio anticipates that we’ll be seeing more and more of this glass used in these situations.

“From the research I’ve read, a few days after Obama was elected, gun sales went up almost 300 percent,” he says.

In addition, white supremacy groups are claiming that they’ve seen a membership surge since the election. Their website traffic is up. Former Ku Klux Klan leader David Duke acknowledged that Obama has emerged as “a visual aid for hate groups.” This has prompted the Secret Service to amp up its protection by arming the President-elect with 30 body guards—24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Obama had already been the target of countless threats and a couple assassination attempts prior to election day, so the public’s insistence on skirting any discussion of the man’s safety is a little negligent, but at least we can rest assured that the Secret Service has stepped up its efforts to have our boy’s back. We may not want to see our next president “on display” in a glass box, but if we want to see him make history on Jan. 20—then so be it.

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The unemployment rate has risen to 6.7 percent. The loss of 533,000 jobs this past November was the greatest one month decline of that nature the country has seen since December 1974.

Some may call it delayed justice, others a come-uppance, paying the piper, or what-have you. I don’t know what to call it, but O.J.’s going to prison for 16 years. He was sentenced in Vegas today, for the robbery and kidnapping of two sports memorabilia dealers based in the country’s glitzy sodom. Simpson tearfully apologized and pleaded for sympathy and a lax reaction. It may be difficult to watch for some and lovely for others, but either way, it’s here.

India has, to the devastated fury of its citizens, revealed that the scale to which the attacks on Mumbai affected its people, has a great deal to do with a lapse in India’s security response to the disaster.

U.S. Auto executives had another go at asking for a House approved $34 billion bail-out to prevent their companies from going bankrupt. The House Committee seems for now reluctant to dip so deeply into taxpayer money to rescue GM, Ford and Chrysler and the thousands of people employed there.

It seems two wannabe trannies and their suit-clad counterparts managed to bilk Harry Winston out of 85 million Euros worth of swag. Four men, two wearing wigs and dresses, paid the supremely chic Paris-based jewelry vendor a visit, touting guns, threats and a desire for gems.