Our saviour: The soldier, whose gun is circled, helps two women to safety. His identity has been protected for security reasons
Posted on 09/24/2013 11:13:22 AM PDT by Starman417
I love coffee. But I don't drink it everyday. Nor do I need the caffeine-fix. I simply like the taste. When I was growing up, I used to love going to Japan and having bottled coffee milk. It was like chocolate milk; but coffee flavored, and sweet. They no longer sell those. Just watered down iced coffee beverages.
Starbucks Frappuccinos are somewhat reminiscent of my favorite childhood drink in Japan. But it leaves a bad aftertaste in my mouth. And frankly, I prefer Coffee Bean's pure vanilla ice-blended.
Well, 6 days ago Starbucks left another bad taste in my mouth:
Our company’s longstanding approach to “open carry” has been to follow local laws: we permit it in states where allowed and we prohibit it in states where these laws don’t exist. We have chosen this approach because we believe our store partners should not be put in the uncomfortable position of requiring customers to disarm or leave our stores. We believe that gun policy should be addressed by government and law enforcement—not by Starbucks and our store partners.Recently, however, we’ve seen the “open carry” debate become increasingly uncivil and, in some cases, even threatening. Pro-gun activists have used our stores as a political stage for media events misleadingly called “Starbucks Appreciation Days” that disingenuously portray Starbucks as a champion of “open carry.” To be clear: we do not want these events in our stores. Some anti-gun activists have also played a role in ratcheting up the rhetoric and friction, including soliciting and confronting our customers and partners.
For these reasons, today we are respectfully requesting that customers no longer bring firearms into our stores or outdoor seating areas—even in states where “open carry” is permitted—unless they are authorized law enforcement personnel.
I would like to clarify two points. First, this is a request and not an outright ban. Why? Because we want to give responsible gun owners the chance to respect our request—and also because enforcing a ban would potentially require our partners to confront armed customers, and that is not a role I am comfortable asking Starbucks partners to take on. Second, we know we cannot satisfy everyone. For those who oppose “open carry,” we believe the legislative and policy-making process is the proper arena for this debate, not our stores. For those who champion “open carry,” please respect that Starbucks stores are places where everyone should feel relaxed and comfortable. The presence of a weapon in our stores is unsettling and upsetting for many of our customers.
I am proud of our country and our heritage of civil discourse and debate. It is in this spirit that we make today’s request. Whatever your view, I encourage you to be responsible and respectful of each other as citizens and neighbors.
Starbucks is free to not only make such a request of its patrons; but to ban firearms on its own premises, if so desired.
Peggy Noonan in an interview with the CEO:
The company, which has some 10,000 stores and 160,000 employees in the U.S., is asking customers who carry handguns in open-carry states to please not bring their guns into the store. It’s hard to believe this will be taken as controversial or as anything other than reasonable, fair and sane, but we are an interesting country.I spoke to Starbucks Chairman Howard Schultz this afternoon, by phone. Why did you do this? Why does Starbucks have to have a position on people bringing guns in for coffee?
“We are not a policy maker and we’re not on any level anti-gun. But over the past four months there’s been episodes in and around our stores that alarmed us. Advocates on both sides [of the gun debate] began to stage events in and around Starbucks stores that mischaracterized Starbucks’ brand and position. That was not in the interests of our company, our shareholders and employees. So open-carry comes, and we abide by the law. But it began to disturb us, the number of customers and children who became alarmed at seeing people in the store carrying guns. . . . We had a couple situations the past few weeks where some people walked in with rifles! [Some local Starbucks stores] became a staging area for the argument over Second Amendment rights. We’re not pro-gun or anti-gun, and we decided to respectfully ask gun owners to leave their guns out of Starbucks.”
And yet by this request not to bring firearms on their premises is indeed taking a position; one on the side of the anti-gun advocates. They are not taking a neutral position. Think of the reverse reasoning if it read: ....it began to disturb us, the number of customers and children who became alarmed at seeing people in the store not carrying guns. . . . We had a couple situations the past few weeks where some people walked in without rifles!
(Excerpt) Read more at floppingaces.net...
bump
can’t seem to find where that “proverb” came from....anyone have any clues, or is it just made up....
How about being a gardener in a Minnesota shopping mall?
The only place I’m nervous is in gun free zones. I conceal carry everywhere on the theory that nobody will know if I don’t use it. If I do use it it’s better to ask forgiveness than to be a victim. (I may still be a victim, but I will do my damn best to make my life count.)
I make way better coffee than SB.
Just got a french press, pretty cool. Much quicker and less gas used than the percolator.
The percolator use to take almost 30 min to boil. The tea-pot boils water in like 8min. A lot less gas used.
Although generally a good writer, Peggy Noonan has fallen into the deep end. Her op-ed the weekend after Benghazi bought into the administration meme about the video-maker. She equated him with the Serb nationalist who killed the Archduke Ferdinand in Sarajevo prior to the start of World War I.
Her attitude is the same as the rest of Manhattan’s re: firearm possession in coffee shops.
“When I was growing up, I used to love going to Japan and having bottled coffee milk. It was like chocolate milk; but coffee flavored, and sweet.”
Milk flavored with coffee and sugar what a treat growing up.
Called ‘pearl tea’ by my elders.
Thanks for the prompt.
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