Costco tells gun owners to keep out

[aries]

I'm surprised they didn't say it was a state law.  I went into the wal-mart in Plymouth a little less than a year ago and they wouldn't sell me lighter fluid because I am a minor.  When my mom tried to buy it they said they couldn't sell it to her either because she would just give it to me.  Their excuse was that it was a law.  They said that I could be an informant working on a sting for the police and if they caught them selling lighter fluid to a minor they could get fined $5,000.  Well I said 'Show me the law'.  They couldn't.  And I tried to find it, but they just made it up.  We complained to the management but they would never respond to us.

The ironic part is that they could sell the actual lighter to me.  I could also buy knives and R-rated movies there.  But god forbid I get my hands on lighter fluid.

Rule of thumb is that if something "dangerous" can be had at a convenience store like cumberland farms, or a sporting goods store in the case of knives, don't get it at wal mart if you are young.

I have never heard of a law in NH that restricts knife sales by age, there may be one, I dont know, but I have bought several locking 3"+ blade knives at sporting goods stores since I was 16 and have never been carded. I stopped carrying a knife around with me every day after I lost my favorite one... I don't know if I'll replace it since I have a tiny keychain flip knife, a flimsy one that cost me a buck, but it works.

On top of that, you can buy ephedra, pseudephedrine (sometimes since as of this month they have to have you sign a log due to federal law) and stuff like robitussin and claratin, without being hassled, lighters and fluid, and other items at such stores without much trouble. They are relatively careful about alcohol and cigarettes but they don't check ID's very hard or enter them into the computers like walmart does (most dont), I know a few people with fake ID's that manage to buy 2 or 3 30-racks of that nasty keystone beer all the time. Still don't know how people can drink that stuff. Give me a good IPA any day.

I realize I'm rambling here and it's probably because I'm on a fairly strong dose of prescription painkillers. I had a headache that wouldn't go away until I got to... a large dosage. But hey, it's gone and I feel great.

[Fluff and Stuff]

No way. Any store with a policy like that is not getting my business.

It doesn't have a policy like that.

[aries]

Is there anybody else here that would ignore this ban and CCW anyway? I respect property rights in principle, but enforcement is the responsibility of the owner. You run the risk of getting kicked out if discovered, but you also have the benefit of being able to defend someone else or your self if the store was held up or a gunman came in on the attack.

Costco (like most stores) does not want anyone to try to stop a gunman from robbing the store if they are already inside the store.

Well I want to stop one from taking my wallet.

[KBCraig]

I'm not saying they don't have such a national policy, but they didn't receive any evidence of one.

Either there is not a national policy or the stores in TN refuse to follow it (thus making it not a national policy).  I am pretty sure I would have heard of a national policy at Costco if there was one.

There are not that many places where open carry is frequently seen, and I imagine that Costco isn't located in most of them. If it had come up before, you can bet it would have been reported on PDO or other pro-gun site.

Based on their reputation as a "progressive employer", I suspect that Costco could indeed be anti-gun. Sam's sells gun safes and rifle cases and hunting accessories. Does Costco? (I don't know; there's not one here.)

Kevin

[Fluff and Stuff]

By progressive, do you mean the best pay of any large retail store in the world?  No, Costco does not sell guns but it does sell safes.

[Dreepa]

I'm surprised they didn't say it was a state law.  I went into the wal-mart in Plymouth a little less than a year ago and they wouldn't sell me lighter fluid because I am a minor.  When my mom tried to buy it they said they couldn't sell it to her either because she would just give it to me.  Their excuse was that it was a law.  They said that I could be an informant working on a sting for the police and if they caught them selling lighter fluid to a minor they could get fined $5,000.  Well I said 'Show me the law'.  They couldn't.  And I tried to find it, but they just made it up.  We complained to the management but they would never respond to us.

The ironic part is that they could sell the actual lighter to me.  I could also buy knives and R-rated movies there.  But god forbid I get my hands on lighter fluid.

About 10 years ago I tried to buy beer in Costo in MA.  Because I had a VA DL they would not sell it to me.  My brother was with me and they wouldn't sell it to him either because he would 'give it to me'.  I then told the manager why could the man with the 5 year old girl buy wine? He might give it to her...

[error]

There are not that many places where open carry is frequently seen, and I imagine that Costco isn't located in most of them. If it had come up before, you can bet it would have been reported on PDO or other pro-gun site.

keepandbeararms.com isn't a pro-gun site?!

[KBCraig]

There are not that many places where open carry is frequently seen, and I imagine that Costco isn't located in most of them. If it had come up before, you can bet it would have been reported on PDO or other pro-gun site.

keepandbeararms.com isn't a pro-gun site?!

Of course it is. I apologize for not making my point more clearly: If Costco truly has a nationwide policy against carrying firearms, you can bet that we would have seen it reported before now on other pro-gun sites.

KABA is adamantly pro-gun, but they don't have the traffic that THR or PDO have, and the example cited only proves that a single store manager wrote a letter backing his own position against open carry. It doesn't say anything about national Costco policy.

I'm only trying to find out if there is such a policy.

Speaking of KABA, have there been any updates about Angel Shamaya, or has he become persona non grata? Any outcome to his arrest, or any updates? I'm not a regular KABA reader, but I check there every now and then, and I haven't seen diddly.

Kevin

[KBCraig]

By progressive, do you mean the best pay of any large retail store in the world?

No, I mean they're often cited as an example by "social progressives" who wish to force Wal Mart (and everyone else with more than 50 employees) to pay well above minimum wage, provide 100% medical/dental/optical/psych, fully paid maternal/paternal/adoption/stress leave, free cappucino and hourly breaks...   

As I said, I have no knowledge about Costco. If they pay more, hooray for their employees!

No, Costco does not sell guns but it does sell safes.

I was asking in comparison to Sam's, which also does not sell guns (although parent company Wal Mart is the biggest gun retailer in the country). Sam's has many regional variations, so I wouldn't be surprised if the gun safes, rifle cases, hunting accessories, ATV gun racks, game dressing kits, etc., that we see locally, are not available in SF, Chicago, NYC, or Boston.

Just as I wouldn't be surprised that a Costco manager in Minnesota was imposing his own anti-gun rules, without a national policy backing him.

Kevin

[Fluff and Stuff]

By progressive, do you mean the best pay of any large retail store in the world?

No, I mean they're often cited as an example by "social progressives" who wish to force Wal Mart (and everyone else with more than 50 employees) to pay well above minimum wage, provide 100% medical/dental/optical/psych, fully paid maternal/paternal/adoption/stress leave, free cappucino and hourly breaks...   

Costco doesn't offer all of that, but it does offer quite a bit.  It offers all of that because, in the long run, it keeps costs down. I like that Wal-mart's policy of low pay and not much else that is good works for it and Costco's policy of top pay+ works for it. 

[Dreepa]

Costco has the best 'rep' in terms of pay and benefits of stores.

It also has the highest average 'per capita income' of shoppers.

[mvpel]

This was covered in GO-NH Firearms & Freedom a year or so ago.

[lildog]

I'm having trouble opening the letter in the original link.  Can anyone tell me if its clear if this is a local policy or a national one?

[error]

The letter makes it abundantly clear that it's a national policy. Otherwise I wouldn't have brought it here in the first place.

"Our policy is not a new policy and we do not customize it for each individual city/county/state/country where we do business."

[Fluff and Stuff]

I'm having trouble opening the letter in the original link.  Can anyone tell me if its clear if this is a local policy or a national one?

I can assure you that if it is a national policy, the policy is ignored in the only stores I have ever visited.  In TN, for a company like Costco to ban guns it has to post a 20 or so word quote big and bold right outside the front door.  This is not posted at the Costcos I have seen, and thus they have no power to ban guns from anyone except the employees (which may be fired if they take a gun into the building but not have criminal charges filed against them).