I worked for the
Kroger Company for 23 years until they fired me. Well, technically I resigned which is a nice way of saying if I voluntarily left they would give me a severance package. Regardless, I could keep showing up at the store, but they were no longer going to pay me to do so. I am about ready to criticize their policy on carrying a gun in their stores. Lest you think my disagreement over their decision is affected by my termination, let me assure you it's not. Getting fired was the best thing to happen to me. I decided to go to college and ended up with a master's degree in social work. A field I like much better. Moreover, I can't believe it took them so long to fire me. For the first 20 years I was an excellent employee, for the last three I sucked big-time. So I deserved getting fired.
A group called Mom's Need Action has been working to change Kroger's policy.
Does the Kroger policy make sense. Here is a statement from the company, "Millions of customers are present in our busy grocery stores every day and we don't want to put our associates in a position of having to confront a customer who is legally carrying a gun. But the NRA says that gun owners are good law abiding citizens. If asked to not bring a gun in a store, why would a Kroger employee have to worry about a confrontation. Could it be that one of the people in such a confrontation ... HAS A GUN! In Ohio the law states an owner can request that guns not be brought into his establishment. If gun owners follow the law, what's the problem?
Is shopping at a grocery store dangerous. I estimate I worked 24,760 hours during my career at Kroger's. Number of times I was assaulted ... zero. And I was in customer service and later management. Two areas you often converse with angry people. If the place is so damn dangerous, why don't they allow employees to carry guns. "Cleanup in aisle 7, the meat cutter just shot a guy. That is all."
I must admit the scenarios that Mom's Need Action use do not make sense to me. Evidently there is a rule that says you cannot skateboard in a store. I thought this one was a no-brainer. First, I don't think I ever had anyone skateboard in a store. Second, If I did I'd say, "Hey that's a RAD board (Editors Note: I realize RAD is probably out of use today, but I hope to get points by trying to look cool) do you think you could take it outside for me. I guarantee the skateboarding is much better out there. Then there's the girl with the ice cream. I find it hard to believe there's a rule against this. But I did leave in 1998 when the company seemed to have common sense. Maybe they've lost that somewhere. If I saw a sweet little girl drop her ice cream on the floor, I would call for a cleanup and then ask if she'd like a replacement. I might bring the ice cream back in a plastic bowl, but I'm not going to tell a little girl she can't eat her ice cream in the store.
Still, the point of the ads is well taken. There are plenty of actions you cannot take in a grocery store. You cannot steal items although it often happens ( sometimes the robber will have a gun ). The employees are taught to give them what they want. The store will have sales of 100,000 that day, do not lose your life over a six dollar steak. But with all of these gun toting heroes in the store, I'm sure the robber will get blown to pieces. Thus the gun owner serves a purpose and theft is reduced. However, while gun owners are trained to use guns, they are not necessarily trained who to shoot at or to look for collateral damage. Imagine the person trying to leave the store with merchandise is a young mother stealing baby formula so her two kids can eat. Hell, I probably wouldn't even call the police for that.
The basic fact is despite what the NRA believes, guns don't belong everywhere. Especially an assault weapon. There's a reason they have assault in their name, they assault things. Does the gun owner carrying an assault rifle into a grocery store plan to assault the frozen food aisle? You see, it doesn't make sense. Grocery stores are safe, they cater to little people sometimes referred to as children, and there is no statistical evidence that you will be shot by your cashier. A Grocery store is not the place to show off your American made Armalite M15A2 National Match Semi-Automatic Rifle (that's a real gun). Just as it's not the place to show off your small penis. People who bring guns into grocery stores aren't worried about safety, they're trying to show-off. "Look at me, I'm carrying a gun." A Neanderthal can carry a gun. Do yourself a favor and act like a human being. Leave the massive gun hardware at home and the peashooter in your pants.
Oh and to my former employer, use some common sense and stop looking like an ass. Change your gun policy.