wrap (someone) up in cotton wool
熊本県のある高校での授業で「イスラム国」を特集した映像を見せたところ、女子生徒2名が過呼吸を起こしてしまったようです。
2 school girls hyperventilate while being shown IS documentary
Two second-year high school girls in Kumamoto City hyperventilated during a panic attack while being shown a television documentary on the radical Islamic State group, the board of education said.
According to the board, the documentary, “Tracking ISIS,” was originally shown on NHK on Feb 1. Sports Nippon reported that the teacher, a male in his 40s, decided to show the documentary in his world history class on Feb 20. In one segment, a soldier is depicted shooting a young man to death. Although the gory image had been blurred, the remaining audio and narration upset two girls in the class. Both girls were sent to the school infirmary to rest.
今回取り上げるのは、この記事に対するコメント” people here are all wrapped up in cotton wool, and unaware of the realities of the world”にある”wrap (someone) up in cotton wool”という表現です。直訳すると「生綿で（人を）包む」となりますが、The Free Dictionary by FARLEXで調べてみると、” to protect someone too much without allowing them to be independent enough”という定義があり、「（人を）過保護する」「温室に置く」と意味すると分かりました。人に悪影響を及ぼす恐れがあるものを厳しく取り締まるのは良いことですが、厳し過ぎてしまうがゆえに物事の本質を伝えられないのも悪影響なのかもしれません。(ninetails)
