Boycott Dick's Sporting Goods

[timekiller13]

You are correct.

I am a firearms dealer and this is absolutely the case and the BATF field agent has openly told me this very thing before. I would refuse to sell a firearm to anyone who I don't feel would use it correctly or is buying it for nefarious purposes, but being 20 years old isn't nefarious on its own.

Yep. I worked at a mom n pop gun shop for 10 years. We refused sales at least a few times a year because the situation seemed shady, i.e a straw purchase, someone giving off bad vibes, smell of drugs or alcohol on the person etc. Hell, there is a gun shop in town that refuses to sell guns to anyone who is not a US citizen, even if they are legally allowed to purchase a gun.

 

[BrushyHillGuide]

I think the operative word to define will be discriminate. The Christian bakery definitely discriminated against the gay couple and did it for moral & religious reasons. Race discrimination needs no explanation as to its origins. If the No Gun Under 21 policy gets tested in court (it will) the stores like Dick's and others will be attempting to prove it's not about simple age discrimination for them. They'll be trying to show that any gun seller should be able to make legit discriminatory decisions based on their risk assessment of the proposed buyer. If they can show enough evidence that their decisions are based on public safety, I believe there's a decent chance the court could side with them...and especially so in the current political-social climate regarding mass shootings in schools.

Keep in mind also; these stores are doing this knowing it will cost them sales opportunities on guns. They also know there will be backlash from us gun owners. They'll use that as proof they are serious about minimizing gun-related violence and are willing to concede sales to make it happen. I don't know how it ends up, but I do know there are a lot of rural young men who grow up in hunting families and a firearm is almost a birthright to them. An across-the-board ban on selling to under-21s is too indiscriminate and punishing. There has to be a better way to assess the buyer and make a decision to sell or refuse. Some (un)common sense needs to happen.

I definitely agree with you, Kevin. The only thing I’d point out is that “sporting goods” stores of today don’t resemble the “sporting goods” stores of 30-40 years ago. When I was growing up, must “sporting goods” stores were small independent stores or regional chains that catered to their communities. There was also a very different national image of guns. I grew up in rural communities where sporting goods stores carried some guns and camping gear along with a few footballs, bats and gloves. When I went to visit family in a city, their sporting goods stores sold every type of sports gears EXCEPT guns and camping gear. There just weren’t these giant stores trying to be a one-size-fits-all store for everyone in the country. Sears was the one sort of exception but it was just different. These big chains we have today are clearly geared towards city folks who play ball sports. Sure, they have some small hunting and fishing sections but they’re not front and center. Actually, they’re usually towards the back. A dispassionate assessment makes it pretty clear that they are FAR more concerned with Golf, Baseball, Soccer, Tennis and workout gear. Those are the core consumers that are their bread and butter and whom they will cater to first and foremost. If they hear from enough of them that they don’t approve of anything gun related, they’re going to bow to those customers desires. They’re not in the business of supporting sports - they’re in the business of making money off sports. They will drop ANY sport that causes enough controversy to endanger business from their core consumers. The mom and pop sporting goods stores that were put out of business by these big flashy box stores that undercut prices and could profit from single digit margins didn’t have to worry about the politics outside their own communities. Stores like Dicks only service rural communities (where you rightly pointed out have a pro-gun culture) along the edges; and those communities don’t comprise an influential segment of their customer base. I’m pretty sure that their market studies show that this move will either be a “wash” OR will actually result in an increase in sales and customer loyalty from their core client base. They will, no doubt, GAIN far more consumer loyalty amongst their core, urban-based clientele than they’ll lose, as a result of their “socially responsible” policy change. The suburban soccer mom who has never held a gun and is terrified about her kids’ safety at school and the middle aged golfing dad who’s grandpa had a gun he brought back from “WW 2” but has never shot one (Dick’s typical customers) are actually going to appreciate this policy change; and they will show it but going out to buy some stuff.

It would not surprise me to see stores like this dropping firearm sales entirely. They could likely make more money and avoid controversy (in the long run) by converting the gun/hunting real estate into another, non-controversial sport with higher margins.

You’re absolutely right that there are far better solutions than changing the age on buying long guns. Unfortunately, the real solutions are far more complicated and long term and politically unpopular than people want to deal with - both politicians AND the public. This is nothing more than a placebo designed to provide the instant “feel good” that our instant gratification society demands; and Dicks is using it as a marketing tool.


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[dotman]

I do not believe youth is a protected class under federal anti-discrimination laws.[/QUOTE

Are you still a youth at age 18


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From what I see, 28 is still youth today.