Petition urging Walmart to stop selling guns for children

Despite Walmart having an awful record with gun violence, as this blog shows, they nonetheless continue to sell firearms.  

Sadly, one market that they sell firearms to is children.  Yes, children.  No, they don't sell them directly to kids, but rather to the parents for use by the children.  

Sensible people know that guns don't belong in the hands of small children, but that doesn't stop pro-gun extremists from arming their kids, nor does it stop Walmart from selling guns to them for that purpose.

Crickett is a company that makes such guns and directly markets them to children.  See HERE for examples of their marketing, and HERE to see one of their commercials.  The guns come in neato colors, making them look like toys.  There's even pink for little girls.  And Walmart is all too happy to help sell them.  From an article:

On its website, Wal-Mart markets the Crickett as a "youth rifle," while Gander Mountain's site describes it as a "great beginner's gun."

"All are lightweight and easy for youngsters to carry at the range and in the woods," reads the Crickett description on Cabela's site, which describes it as "a fun firearm to get your young shooter started with."

Wal-Mart did not immediately comment on whether their policy on sales of guns for children would change.

2-year old Carolyn Starks and her 5-year old brother

Here's a case where one of those .22-caliber Cricket rifles was used by a 5-year old boy to kill his 2-year old sister, Carolyn Starks.

The Coalition Against Gun Violence has launched a petition urging Walmart to stop this sickening sale of guns for small children.  I urge you to sign it.

From their page:

A new study shows that 20 children and teens are hospitalized every day for gun injuries in the United States.³ Nearly 2,700 children and teens died from gun-related injuries in 2010. U.S. children and teens are 17 times more likely to die from a gun than their peers in 25 other high-income countries combined.⁴

The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) has made it clear that “the safest home for children is one without a gun.”⁵ According to a past president of the AAP, “Firearm injuries are often fatal—there are few second chances. Young children are curious, and are often unable to remember or follow safety rules. Older children and teens naturally tend to be moody and impulsive. When you combine these traits with access to guns, the consequences can be tragic and permanent.”

Please sign the petition, and let's bring some sense to Walmart.  Otherwise, they will continue to be dealers of death.

Walmart.  Save money.  Die faster.

Walmart already surpasses number of shootings at their stores from last year, with three more months to go!

Last year, as I chronicled, Walmart stores had at least 54 shootings on their properties, plus at least 24 other non-shooting gun crimes.

This year they are going to blow that number out of the water.

As of yesterday, October 2, Walmart surpassed the number of shootings from last year.  The 55th and 56th shootings this year were an accidental shooting in a Connecticut Walmart by a legal conceal handgun carrier (one of at least 14 incidents by legal carriers since I started this blog, 10 of which have been this year!), and a suicide at a Montana Walmart by a man who had just purchased his shotgun there.  Wow.  

As I post at the running list of Walmart shootings, so far this year, there have been 56 shootings, with 19 dead and 31 injured.

Additionally, non-shooting incidents this year have included 49 armed robberies with guns, 12 incidents of guns and ammo stolen, and one plotted mass shooting.  That's twice the number I found last year!

There have also been four suicides (including one murder/suicide). 

There are three months more to go in 2013.  With 1-2 shootings a week, now, that means that the number of shootings is likely to be around 65 this year.  We'll see....

You would think incidents like these would get Walmart to re-think its policies on allowing conceal carry in its stores and continuing to sell guns, and maybe actually DO something to reduce gun deaths, like patrol more of their parking lots.

But profits come first, I guess, above the safety of their employees and customers.

Sign THIS petition today, to urge them to change.

Walmart, how many shootings does it take for you to change??

This is why their logo should say:
Walmart.  Save money.  Die faster.

So far, 85,000 people have signed the petition for Walmart to stop selling assault rifles

Earlier, I had posted about a petition by SumOfUs.org to urge Walmart to stop selling assault rifles, after the massacre in Newtown.

So far, 85,000 people have done so, according to an article:

The petition, on action.SomeOfUs.org, urges Walmart to stop selling the Bushmaster AR-15 -- the high-powered rifle linked to the Newtown shooting -- as well other assault weapons. 

Walmart pulled the listing Bushmaster Patrolman's Carbine M4A3 Rifle from its webstore very shortly after the Sandy Hook shooting, but the company still sold similar rifles in 1,200 of its stores as of December 19, according to Bloomberg. 

Walmart is the largest seller of guns and ammunition in the country, according to the Wall Street Journal. The retailer didn't immediately return a request for comment from The Huffington Post.
Walmart brought guns back to almost half of its stores in 2011, the WSJ reported at the time, after the chain pulled them from its shelves in all but a third of its stores in 2006. Bloomberg reported five days after the Newtown shooting that assault rifles appeared to be out of stock at Walmart stores in five states.

If you haven't done so yet, I urge you to sign the petition.  Let Walmart know that the sale of lethal weapons isn't tolerated, particularly assault rifles.

Walmart.  Save money.  Die faster.

Walmart bans lots of things, from books to CDs, it deems unacceptable, but still sells assault rifles

Huffington Post online has just published "12 Items Walmart Apparently Considers More Dangerous Than Assault Weapons". Check it out.  Books, CDs (like this one), the morning after pill, and even a pregnant Barbie.

But it still sells guns and ammo, including 5 assault rifle models, despite the recent mass murders using them.  Apparently those aren't dangerous at all (despite being purpose-made to kill), and are in line with their company mission (despite at least 53 shooting incidents in 2012).

Shame on Walmart!  Sign this petition now, to stop further sale of assault rifles by them.

Walmart.  Save money.  Die faster.

Visit your Walmart and demand an end to assault weapon sales

SumOfUs.org is leading a drive to visit your local Walmart store and talk to the store manager, handing them a flier, telling them that you want Walmart to stop selling assault rifles.

Here is a link where you can find instructions:
http://sumofus.org/post/walmart-guns-dropoff/?akid=1166.1096003.1hlEs8&rd=1&sub=fwd&t=1

Here is a link where you can find their flier, which you can print:
http://sou.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/walmart-flier-final.pdf

Walmart continues to sell assault rifles -- five different models, including the Bushmaster .223 that was used in Newtown.

There is also a petition drive, which you can take part in.

Walmart is the number one retail seller of guns in America, and possibly the world.  It's time to end this disgrace.

Walmart.  Save money.  Die faster.

Petition demands Walmart remove assault rifles

Despite the slaughter of 20 young children and 6 adults by mass shooter Adam Lanza, in Newtown, Connecticut, Walmart still continues to sell assault rifles, including the type used by Lanza.  

The nation is crying out for sensible gun laws and a ban on assault rifles.  But that doesn't matter to the United States' number one seller of guns.  They sell at least five different models, and they're flying off the shelves to the point of backorder.  Clearly profits speaks louder than community safety or basic decency.

Screenshot of the petition site

Now, some responsible citizens at SumOfUs.org are demanding that Walmart stop selling these weapons of mass murder, and have started an online petition.

From the petition site:

Walmart is the largest gun dealer in the US, and it isn’t just selling hunting rifles.
The AR-15 is an assault weapon, designed to kill as many human beings as possible, and was the gun used to kill 20 children in the horrific Sandy Hook Elementary shooting last week. It’s also the gun used to kill 2 people in an Oregon mall the week before, and to kill 12 people in an Aurora, CO movie theater this summer. 

The AR-15 assault rifle has no place in our communities -- but as of last week, it's being sold in over 1,700 Walmarts around the country. Walmart removed the gun from its website, but not its actual stores, and it’s still stocking other semi-automatic rifles. Will we need to wait until the next mass shooting for Walmart to take those guns off the shelves? .... 

There’s good reason to target Walmart. The guns and ammunition on Walmart’s shelves are already leading to bloodshed around the country. When Jared Lee Loughner shot Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords and 18 other people in Tucson last year, he bought his ammunition at a Walmart. A young Missouri man who was arrested while planning to open fire on a screening screening of Twilight in November had purchased an AR-15 and 400 rounds of ammunition at a Walmart. Community leaders and law enforcement personnel from Indiana to Texas report that criminals can easily steal deadly weapons from Walmart display cases.

Page 25 of the Walmart Statement of Ethics

Assault rifles like the AR-15 were designed with only one purpose: killing large numbers of people as fast as possible, firing between 45-100 shots per minute, despite being semi-automatic.  That's overkill for either hunting or self-defense.

On page 25 of the Walmart "Statement of Ethics," the company states, "We’re committed to the health and safety of our customers, members, and associates, because we care for one another."  If that's so, then why do they continue to profit from the business of killing?

Please take a moment and visit the petition site to add your name to the list of those who want an end to the selling of these weapons of mass destruction.

Walmart.  Save money.  Die faster.


UPDATE (1/4/13):  So far, 85,000 people have signed the petition.  If you haven't yet, please do so.