Recently, the Price Chopper store in my area put a No Firearms sign on the front door at eye level. We've had CCW in Missouri for almost seven years now so it was a bit of a shock to suddenly see that sign appear.
I'd parked in a spot in front of the windows where I could see my car. So I went back to the car, locked my gun in the console, and went in to the store and asked to speak to the manager. I told him that I was sorry to see that he no longer wanted to see "my kind" in his store and handed him a "No guns = No $$$" card, one of those available free from
Free "No Guns, No Money" Cards . (That card is Missouri-specific but I understand similar cards are available elsewhere on the 'net.)
He of course asked what I meant . As he looked at the card, I pointed out that any crazed person with an attitude, a rap sheet as long as his arm, and a grudge would be in no way stopped by his sign. Such a person is already carrying illegally and used to ignoring societies mores. A No Guns sign would have no effect upon that person.
I told him that the only people he could expect to honor his sign were people who had spent money to obtain training in firearms and firearms laws. These people had spent money applying for their CCW permits. We had undergone background checks, in Missouri a triple check through by the local sheriff, the MSHP, and the FBI. And we had spent up to $100 in fees to the sheriff to get that permit to be able to legally carry. By putting up that sign, he's saying that he is more afraid of people like me than he is of the sort of sociopath who ignores all of society's rules.
Furthermore, I said, honest CCW people do prevent and/or stop crimes. The Family Dollar store next door to him has had a tiny "no guns" sign in a lower corner of their window for years. I told him how ironic I'd found that when, a few years ago, a shopper was attacked by a man in front of a Family Dollar in Tupelo, MS. The news report said as many as twenty people had stood around shouting at the man, honking their car horns at him, and dialing 911 as he continued stabbing the woman. None of those "recommended" actions worked. What stopped the assault and saved her life was a man who pulled a gun and ordered the attacker to stop now and lie on the pavement or he was going to have his f'ing head blown off. And this occurred in front of a store whose chain has that No Guns sign as a corporate policy.
Furthermore, I said, he's requiring unsafe behavior of my and "my kind." To come in and talk to him while honoring his sign, I had to unholster while in my car, not the easiest of actions while carrying concealed in my normal manner. Upon leaving, I was going to have to reholster, thus unnecessarily handling the gun twice. Without his sign, the gun would have stayed safely, securely, and discreetly in its holster threatening no one. Furthermore, it was now in my car posing a risk of theft if the car were to be stolen or broken into while I'm in the store.
I then concluded by telling him that he had an excellent store with a good selection and good prices there and I enjoyed shopping there. But there isn't enough difference between it and the store a few blocks away to justify disarming just to shop there. Instead, I would be honoring his wishes in the future by taking my money to the nearby Country Mart.
The next morning I received a phone call from the store manager telling me that he'd thought about the points I'd made and he wanted to let me know that he'd taken the sign back down shortly after I'd left.
