Sonic And Chili's Announce No-Gun Policies

[The Nature Boy 4,224]

Oddly enough I agree with Chili's and Sonic. Notice they say NO OPEN CARRY. These people walking into restaurants with rifles slung over their shoulder are not helping the cause.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/05/30/chilis-sonic-gun_n_5419942.html

Chili’s and Sonic became the latest national chains to wade into the gun debate on Friday, announcing in apparently coordinated statements that firearms are no longer welcome in their restaurants.

In separate statements to The Huffington Post, the companies said that they were asking customers not to openly carry firearms in their eateries, following a similar move by Chipotle earlier this month.

“We recognize that the open carry of firearms creates an uncomfortable atmosphere and is not permitted under many local liquor laws,” Ashley Johnson, a spokeswoman for Chili's' parent company, Brinker International, said in an email. “So, we kindly ask that guests refrain from openly carrying firearms into our restaurants and we will continue to follow state and local laws on this issue.”

A Sonic spokesman said the company will defer to local laws with respect to storing guns in vehicles, but said it will no longer permit firearms in its dining areas.

“We’re asking that customers refrain from bringing guns onto our patios or into our indoor dining areas,” said Patrick Lenow, Sonic's vice president of public relations.

He acknowledged that, before the company set the policy, he "spoke to a number of my peers at non-competing restaurant concepts" this week.

Johnson also suggested the statement was coordinated. "When issues like this happen, we always talk to others in the industry to get their perspective," she said

Both spokespeople said that the recent shooting in Isla Vista, California, did not affect the timing of their announcements.

Chili’s told HuffPost last week it was reviewing its policy, which had been to follow local laws, after a video surfaced of activists from the group Open Carry Texas bringing assault rifles and other heavy firearms into a San Antonio location. The protesters were asked to leave after upsetting other diners.

Soon after, Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America, which advocates for tougher gun restrictions, launched a campaign calling on the businesses to crack down on guns, or face boycotts. Chipotle was the first to adopt a new policy in response, asking customers to not carry guns into its locations.

Shannon Watts, the founder of Mom's Demand Action, said the social media campaign to convince Chili's and Sonic had gathered steam over the last week, attracting the support thousands of members, along with celebrities like actress Melissa Joan Hart and rock musician Billie Joe Armstrong.

"We know moms make the majority of spending decisions for our families," she said. "When we collectively wield our economic power we can make a real difference."

Next week, supporters were planning to deliver tens of thousands of petitions to the corporate headquarters of both companies, Watts said. She credited the images of gun-toting people at the restaurants that went viral with helping to force the issue.

"No one wants to see photos of assault rifles in their restaurants," she said. "It's not good for the brand."

Last Friday, hours after HuffPost reported that Chili's was considering a rule on guns, Open Carry Texas backed down. In a statement, also posted on its Facebook page, the group acknowledged that its tactics, which are intended to encourage broader acceptance of firearms in public, were having the opposite effect. Carrying rifles and shotguns into businesses is the approach that has "gotten the most resistance and suffered the largest setbacks," the group said.

CJ Grisham, the president of Open Carry Texas, told HuffPost on Friday the group would comply with the restaurants' requests. "Our comment is that business owners have a right to make their employees and customers defenseless to the criminal element," Grisham said. "We have always honored private property rights. Gun free zones have only proven that criminals don't read signs."

The coffee giant Starbucks has also requested that customers leave guns at home, following rallies at one of its stores in the wake of the 2012 mass shooting in Newtown, Connecticut.

[Jacque67 7,328]

Thank goodness for the Mom's Demand Action...

[Karee 4,191]

Sonic is a drive in type fast food place. Are they gonna start searching cars?

[Novembro 1,763]

Good. That open carry group in Texas needs their wings clipped.

[Boiler 46,276]

Concealed Carry is fine.

The title is misleading.

Edited June 1, 2014 by Boiler

[The Nature Boy 4,224]

Sonic is a drive in type fast food place. Are they gonna start searching cars?

I thought about that when U read this. They do have open picnic like areas, where you can get out and eat. maybe that is what they mean

I am very pro gun, and I support firearm rights. I just think strapping on a huge handgun and going in a restaurant is not a great idea. I bought a holster from a gun expert the other day at a show. He said he never open carries, as it can lead to all kinds of other issues.I just think tactically it is not prudent. I also think going in Starbucks wit AR-15'S over your shoulder does more to hurt the cause tan help it.

Not saying open carry should be illegal, just saying I don't think it a smart move

Maybe if you want to open carry, they issue a small pin on permit you can wear, that identifies you , much like a badge does a cop

[Karee 4,191]

I thought about that when U read this. They do have open picnic like areas, where you can get out and eat. maybe that is what they mean

I am very pro gun, and I support firearm rights. I just think strapping on a huge handgun and going in a restaurant is not a great idea. I bought a holster from a gun expert the other day at a show. He said he never open carries, as it can lead to all kinds of other issues.I just think tactically it is not prudent. I also think going in Starbucks wit AR-15'S over your shoulder does more to hurt the cause tan help it.

Not saying open carry should be illegal, just saying I don't think it a smart move

Maybe if you want to open carry, they issue a small pin on permit you can wear, that identifies you , much like a badge does a cop

I don't see the point in open carry, besides trying to stir up trouble and get attention.

[eieio 1,594]

Why would someone need to "open carry" in a restaurant? Stupid b*******

Would you bring an axe into a restaurant? or a chainsaw?

[Teddy B 17,252]

I thought about that when U read this. They do have open picnic like areas, where you can get out and eat. maybe that is what they mean

I am very pro gun, and I support firearm rights. I just think strapping on a huge handgun and going in a restaurant is not a great idea. I bought a holster from a gun expert the other day at a show. He said he never open carries, as it can lead to all kinds of other issues.I just think tactically it is not prudent. I also think going in Starbucks wit AR-15'S over your shoulder does more to hurt the cause tan help it.

Not saying open carry should be illegal, just saying I don't think it a smart move

Maybe if you want to open carry, they issue a small pin on permit you can wear, that identifies you , much like a badge does a cop

I agree that any type of open carry by civilians is ridiculous and does nothing but cause more problems, other than a civil war or a complete break down of society, there really is no reason I can think of where it should be legal.

I have no problem with concealed carry for responsible gun owners, the problem is deciphering who those responsible gun owners are. I also agree that any business owner should have the right to not allow concealed carry on their property.

AR-15's, they have no functional purpose in today's society and should not be sold to the general public.

Edited June 2, 2014 by Teddy B

[The Nature Boy 4,224]

Concealed Carry is fine.

The title is misleading.

You know the VJ exact title thingy

[Harpa Timsah 13,258]

Sonic Chili's sounds like indigestion.

[The Nature Boy 4,224]

I agree that any type of open carry by civilians is ridiculous and does nothing but cause more problems, other than a civil war or a complete break down of society, there really is no reason I can think of where it should be legal.

I have no problem with concealed carry for responsible gun owners, the problem is deciphering who those responsible gun owners are. I also agree that any business owner should have the right to not allow concealed carry on their property.

AR-15's, they have no functional purpose in today's society and should not be sold to the general public.

Now see you were doing so good, then you slipped off the pavement and went in the ditch

An AR-15 is just a gun like any other, and no more dangerous than a handgun.

[Novembro 1,763]

Would you bring an axe into a restaurant? or a chainsaw?

I bet you could find some people in Texas and Florida who would.

Sonic Chili's sounds like indigestion.

But their Limeades! Divine.

[Teddy B 17,252]

Now see you were doing so good, then you slipped off the pavement and went in the ditch

An AR-15 is just a gun like any other, and no more dangerous than a handgun.

Ok, I'm open minded on this issue. Please explain to me what purpose the AR-15 serves the average gun owner that can't be served by any other guns already being sold.

[The Nature Boy 4,224]

Ok, I'm open minded on this issue. Please explain to me what purpose the AR-15 serves the average gun owner that can't be served by any other guns already being sold.

If you can explain to me why you want to ban AR-15's but not other guns that do the same exact thing.