The NO Shopping Network

[Vince Pinto]

Hi folks,

I think the following link is self-explanatory.

http://www.progressivefunds.com/hci/

[j1b]

Thanks for bringing this to our attention.

Listen - while we're on the subject - I read a letter in American Handgunner the other day about a guy who went to a Wal-Mart store where a sign was posted stating that no guns were allowed in the store - w/ permit or otherwise. He suggested that the readers of the magazine not shop at Wal-Mart due to its corporate policy.

Well . . . I work for Wal-Mart. Actually over the years I've come to find that I am proud to work for Wal-Mart. As it turns out we do not have a corporate rule that says customers can't carry guns into the store. We as a corporation are not anti-gun. In fact the president of the Wal-Mart Stores Division is a bit of a gun nut. The only policy we have that I am aware of is that associates can't carry guns into the store.

Wal-Mart is pretty good when it comes to this issue. We are a huge target - so by nature we have to take precautions - but by in large I think we do a pretty good job. When 9/11 happened and K-mart made a press release stating they wouldn't be selling handgun ammunition Wal-Mart did not follow suite. Every year for the Cancer Challenge we run a fundraiser where associates can either play golf or go to a trap shoot. We continue to sell guns at pretty damn good values, and not just the skimpy guns - some are pretty decent. Granted we no longer sell handguns - and I'm not certain the politics there - but I only ask that you not let one local store manager screw up the image of a company that (in my opinion) has done pretty well as it relates to this issue.

I had to get my $.02 in - since I do work for this corporation. As a disclaimer I am not a press guy, nor am I involved with public relations. I do think Wal-Mart is a resectable company with good values. It just so happens that we're REALLY REALLY big.

Thanks for the ear

JB

[sfinney]

Speaking of being VERY, VERY big - One company not included in the link above, that is one of the most active supporters of HCI and all other gun control legislation is AOL / Time Warner.

I try to avoid  buying any Time Warner products, and most assuredly do not use AOL.

[for those of you with "@aol.com" on the end of your email addresses!!      ]

[j1b]

We switched accounts not too long ago because of that very reason.

JB

[Flexmoney]

I am of the opinion that the companies listed on that link might not be "anti-gun".  I think that the listed companies might give some sort of commision for linked sales.  This organization seems to be using the listed retailers to skim funds for its cause.

Dillon had a big list of companies that were anti-gun in one of the Blue Press articles.

[shred]

Geez... all that page is is a batch of Linkshare links. Anybody can get one of those and get a percent or two of sales made by clicking the links.

For example, my personal web page has an REI linkshare on it. That doesn't mean REI supports me, IPSC, scuba-diving or flying squirrel enslavement.. I could get a Dell link in about two minutes.

Pop over to http://www.linkshare.com and get some links for your gun club's website-- then they'll get the cash instead of HCI.

[EricW]

Thanks for the clarification Shred!

I'm pretty simple-minded about these issues.  In my mind, if you're giving X% of sales to HCI, you're anti-gun.  I don't care how the relationship came to be.  But, enough negativity already.

There's a lot of companies out there who are pro-gun, maybe they don't wear it on their sleeves, but are run by folks on the right side of the issue.  Who's the keeper of the "A" list?  Dillon?  The NRA?  I've got a couple of folks I'd like to add to the "A" list.  I'll bet there's a lot of folks people know through the course of doing business that ought to be on the "A" list but aren't.

I'm not going to list anyone here, as this forum is not the proper venue for RKBA stuff.  

E

[shred]

Well, you could think about it more as a commission or referral bonus if that'll makes more sense. Anybody that sends customers via Linkshare gets a commission on those referrals.

Most companies don't care how the customers get there (most block porn sites, but that's about it)

If you scope around on the ProgressiveFunds site and it's parent, you'll find that they have these kind of pages set up for everybody from HCI to the GOP, including the Gun Owners Foundation and some sort of Michigan Militia.

This isn't any different than sending people to your favorite salesperson (be) so they get the commisions.. Pick who you want to get the cash and shop away.

(Edited by shred at 5:01 pm on Mar. 1, 2002)

[Ron Ankeny]

I too question whether or not this is the place to discuss RKBA issues. But, since Vince started the thread, there is a pretty good list of anti-gun companies on the Anti-Gun Coalition of America Website.