I finally got a reply from the General Manager - the policy is for the NN store only!
The no weapons policy is for our location. Our store has been robbed twice in three years. Our guests have made complaints to our staff and managers when they see guns in our store they feel uncomfortable. I was a victim in our last robbery! I invite you to please come back to our restaraunt but all weapons will have to stay out of the bulding!
Sincerely,
Jim McCracken
My reply:
I am sorry that you were the victim of the robbery! I can understand how a trauma like that could affect your thoughts on the subject. I am guessing that you didn’t feel that great during the robbery and probably were unarmed at the time. Your policy is only putting people like me into that same victim state with no ability to defend ourselves while at your restaurant. Would you prefer your family to be defenseless if the same situation affected them? That is what you are asking me and my family to do by coming to your restaurant unarmed.
I guarantee you that the people that committed those two robberies would not abide by your policy. Your policy only disarms people that would do you no harm and possibly come to your assistance during a crisis. I would guess that it took the police a couple minutes to show up after the robbery. A lot of bad things can happen in that time and I don’t want to wait for the cavalry to show up to save me. Police most often show up after the crime has been committed.
As far as people complaining about feeling uncomfortable, If I am conducting myself in a professional manner doing everything legally why would a complaint about my handgun be valid? I can understand that if people are rowdy, drunk, rude or otherwise you can always ask them to leave and deny them service whether they carry a handgun or not. Why ask law abiding people to leave (or not show up at all) just because they carry a firearm? There are people that have been traumatized by a serious incident like yourself that may be skittish around firearms and then there are hoplophobic people that have an unnatural fear or a gun for no valid reason. Either way their or your fear does not negate my basic human right to defend myself and my family!
I will not sacrifice my family’s safety by disarming. There are plenty of competitors that simply follow Virginia law and allow law abiding people to carry firearms legally in their restaurants. Just this week I have been to the County Grill, China Ocean, Chipotle.
Over my many visits to your restaurant I have talked to four employees about Open Carry and the laws regarding firearms in Virginia. One hostess talked about how her father took her shooting (as I take my daughters) and another waiter talked about purchasing a Glock like the one his Dad let him shoot. There never seemed to be any fear and only curiosity from your staff.
If you would like to discuss some basic handgun safety and handle/shoot a handgun please let me know and I could take you to Lafayette Gun Club so you might understand that the gun is simply a tool and not inherently evil by itself. There are estimated 2.5 million gun uses each year that save/defend innocent life. In many cases the mere sight of the gun stops the criminal from going through with the crime. About 70% of polled convicted felons said that if they knew the person they planned to attack had a gun they would choose a different target. Guns in the hands of good people is the solution to bad guys running amok. In every state that made concealed carry an option crime has dropped.
I hope that you will change your policy sometime soon!
Sincerely,