Tuesday, July 31, 2012

Welcome to Bizarroworld.

In the wake of events in Colorado, if I could collect a dollar for each opinion piece or editorial that was some variation on "Should Guns Be Allowed In Movie Theaters?" I could buy that secret island fortress I've always wanted and be living like a Bond villain already.

Here's an example of someone who would have been tossing a dollar into my "sharks-with-frickin'-lasers" jar:
A screening of "The Dark Knight Rises" in Cookeville., Tenn., was halted on Thursday after a theater worker reported seeing a moviegoer with a gun.

According to the Cookeville Herald-Citizen, a police officer who arrived at the auditorium discovered three men with handguns.

The men didn't think they had done anything wrong: Each was one of the state's 344,000 handgun carry permit holders. They were told to put their guns in their vehicles, in accordance with theater policy, and then the movie resumed.
Oh. My. God.

It never fails to amaze me how impossibly stupid someone can be and yet still somehow remember to breathe. Listen, you ignorant window-licking paste eater, the compliance ratio with the "No Guns" policy in Aurora was three times better than yours! They only had something like a .03% non-compliance rate; just one guy ignored their signs!

"Should Guns Be Allowed In Movie Theaters?" my ass. Guns weren't allowed in the theater! People who put their trust in your fairy dust and rainbows "No Guns" policy paid for that trust with their lives. I hope you're fricking happy, you ghoul.

28 comments:

Cormac said...

Hope they're happy?
They're thrilled!!! This was their wet dream come true.
they're doing the cha-cha over still warm bodies while singing carols about high capacity assault clips and evil ergonomic designed black rifles!

Chris Rose said...

I don't understand why you have a problem with a secure theater. You should feel totally safe with all the teenage theater employees that are trained to spot and respond to immediate threats to moviegoers... you know in between checking their Facebook updates on their cellphones and filling your $7 bag of popcorn!

Bubblehead Les. said...

Yeah, 3 HONEST, Law Abiding Citizens admitted they were Armed.

Wonder how many Goblins decided to keep their mouths shut.

taylor said...

The most eye-catching part of the article for me?

Cookeville.

Born and raised in Nashville. Lived 7 years in Knoxville. Drove past it at least 100 times. Yet somehow, I always have to resist the urge to say "Cookie-ville" and giggle when I see it spelled out.

But back on point, stupid policy is stupid. When is someone going to sue these jackels for disarming them via policy without providing any form of physical security?

The liability knife needs to cut both ways lest the lawyers make merely owning a gun financial ruin.

tweell said...

A reason for me to not patronize theaters - I'm not going to take the admittedly minor chance of being a victim. They obviously don't need my money, and the popcorn is better at home.

Brad K. said...

WalMart also has a "no weapons in side for law abiding people". They don't (yet?) post prominent "Entering Disarmed Victim Zones. All potential mass shooting victims are requested and required to disarm before entering. Oh, and management assumes no liability in case there is an actual, contrary-to-law, mass shooting here. But at least we will have disarmed the likely victims, so we feel pretty good about that." signs.

Bram said...

I have to believe that nobody return to the movie from their cars. I would never return to that theater, ever.

Drang said...

@Brad K: At least in WA, any business wanting to create a victim disarmament zone must post such a policy at every public entrance to their establishment. It's amazing how many do not, including Wally World.
If one should not notice said signage and wander past it, like I did at Ikea last week, the most they can do is ask you to leave.

Does anyone think it odd that the oldest "shall-issue" law on the books is on the Left Coast...?
("Shall Issue": The New Wave of Concealed Handgun Permit Laws)

Anonymous said...

Fricking is far too kind of an adjective. Unfortunately, even the obvious alternative isn't strong enough to describe these folks. English needs killing words ala Dune. Stupid should hurt more.

Anonymous said...

Nice link, Drang!

Cormac said...

I went to see that "Batman: The Hoplophobe Rises" flick this weekend...I never saw any 30.06 sign telling me I couldn't carry.
(here in TX, that specific sign is required to carry the force of law)

Paul said...

Went to see brave over the weekend. Was armed. No one noticed, or if they did, did not raise a stink. Got pretty good service as I recall.

Robert Fowler said...

When did wally world start banning guns? Their policy before has been to abide by state law. I carry there every time I go and have never had a problem.

Critter said...

carry concealed and keep one's trap shut. i really don't understand the hooha over this.

LCB said...

The WalMarts in my area do NOT have signs posted. The teacher in my CCW class made a point of telling us that WalMart did NOT object to concealed carry in our area. Maybe its a manager decision?

Showcase has signs...but Rave does not. Guess who will get my money from now on. I tried to email Showcase, using an address I found on their website. It bounced back...

RabidAlien said...

No carry license yet, but I still am not going to go into a theater (or other business) that has a no-guns sign posted. Unless I see ALERT armed security guards patrolling the aisles and manning all entrances/exits, I'm going to assume that the business isn't interested in assuming responsibility for my security, at the same time as denying me the (future) right to carry my own security. That, apparently, is their right. Therefore, I shall take my secure dollars elsewhere. That, most definitely, is my right.

Brad K. said...

@ Robert Fowler,

I dunno. The store manager at WalMart Store 823 (small town, northern Oklahoma) told me, a couple days after Aurora, that company policy is no guns allowed. Cody claimed there were signs at the doors, but I didn't check (and I don't remember seeing any).

The Raving Prophet said...

@ Brad... that's not corporate policy. The manager lied.

Call Bentonville and report your displeasure with this new "company policy." They'll likely tell you the truth- that there's no such policy and they'll smack that store's manager on the wrist for inventing his own policies.

1-800-WAL-MART

Anonymous said...

Local AAA here in rural Ohio has a no guns sign. Told it's corporate policy. No such signs in Colorado locations.
Scared the young lady behind the counter here - she turned very pale - when I asked her if they have a dedicated safe room and phone for when a disgruntled ex- boyfriend or husband or just generally crazy comes in the door.
Smiled, took my maps, and left. OldeForce

Pakkinpoppa said...

Yeah....I'd like an alternate to AAA that allows one to mind their own safety if wanting to peruse the maps.

Hard to justify patronizing a place that doesn't trust me with a heater but trusts me to travel all over the nation with a multi ton vehicle.

Mossyrock said...

Concealed means concealed. Anyone stupid enough to raise their hand when asked if they are armed doesn't have good enough judgement to GO armed.

Ed said...

Time to produce some stickers that announce that "In case of violent event, you are on your own. Do not panic. Take a deep breath, bend over, put your head between your knees and kiss your asshole goodbye. - The Management". Post these next to the "No Weapons Allowed Signs". An educated customer is the best customer.

Anonymous said...

I was there that night, but at an earlier showing while this was going on. I drove by the theater the night before and there were no signs posted at the entrances as required by TN law. Carried as usual, never saw a sign inside that said I couldn't, enjoyed the movie, and didn't hear about this until the next day. Mentioned it to the friends I was with, and between us 4 were carrying. Not one of us saw the sign. I want to go back just to spot the damn sign, but I won't be going back as a patron.

Mossyrock, TN is a carry permit state, not a concealed carry permit state. Open or concealed, permit holder's choice. No legal penalty for being made while carrying concealed either. My personal choice is concealed as noted by the fact that the boys in blue didn't roll into my viewing asking questions.

I need to find out if the no weapons policy is corporate or local policy.

Yes the theater over reacted, but at least the local police didn't call out the SWAT team. Everyone kept their calm and got to go home. Personally I would have politely asked for a refund and left. D in Cookevegas.

GreatBlueWhale said...

Sounds like the basis for a civil rights lawsuit against the PD and the theater chain. Let's get a few multi-million dollar settlements out of some of these goobers and see what they think then.

Brad K. said...

I like the statistic Billll came up with. " The average number of people killed in mass shootings when stopped by police is 14.3
The average number of people killed in a mass shooting when stopped by a civilian is 2.3.
"

Something to consider. Along with how few mass shootings happen outside Disarmed Victim Zones.

Anonymous said...

Folks, this is TN. They're really good on many things, but CCW is not one of them. Sure, they're Shall-Issue, but have you seen the list of exemptions to carry? It's almost as bad as NC!

In TN, those "No-Guns" signs have force of law, so anyone carrying in there CAN get arrested. In other states, the signs mean diddly-squat.

TN is not as pro-gun (for self-defense) as some would like to believe.

Anonymous said...

Folks, this is TN. They're really good on many things, but CCW is not one of them. Sure, they're Shall-Issue, but have you seen the list of exemptions to carry? It's almost as bad as NC!

In TN, those "No-Guns" signs have force of law, so anyone carrying in there CAN get arrested. In other states, the signs mean diddly-squat.

TN is not as pro-gun (for self-defense) as some would like to believe.

SnW said...

The way I heard the story was, The Police officer stopped the movie, had them turn the lights up and he announced that someone had been seen bringing a pistol into the theater. Would whomever it was please come talk to him.

He was surprised when 3 men stood and came to talk with him. They showed their CCW permits and were asked to place the weapons in their car.

Our Walmart in Kalispel MT allows open carry and there is always people carrying, my 1911 included, to the dismay of my visiting out of state (CA) friends. lol