Sunday, August 10, 2014

Starbucks and CEO Speak Out Against Funding Isreal.

Starbucks along with its CEO, Howard Schultz, make a statement that they do not want to fund Israel and don't want to have guns within their stores. Schultz states in an interview that he is asking customers to not bring guns within any Starbucks store, however, he also made it clear that this is not a ban and customers who bring guns within the stores will be served. Although this may sound a little extreme in the eyes of an American you have to remember that Starbucks in an international corporation and has stores in 12 different countries within the Middle East and North Africa including: Egypt, Jordan and Lebanon. Although, all stores in Israel were shut down in 2003 for reasons that were supposedly unrelated to any political or religious conflict. It is common knowledge that gun violence is a popular threat in these areas of the world. I am choosing this current event because it is a conflict within a very popular, well-known chain within the US. My question to my classmates is whether or not Schultz has the right to tell these people they cannot bring weapons into his stores and also, do you feel that the people with the weapons have the right to carry them if only for the protection of themselves and those around them?

5 comments:

  1. Schultz does not have the right to tell people they can't bring guns in their stores, however this is not what he is doing. He made it clear that he is only requesting people not to bring guns into the stores based off incidents in the past to make the "starbucks experience" better, and is not banning anyone from the stores who does decide to bring their guns in. The people who do bring the guns in have every right to do so and it doesn't have to do with any law for whether or not people think it's rude or intimidating; it is just their opinion. However I don't see what threat a coffee shop really has to the people with the guns so for them to feel the need to bring them into the store is maybe just them taking their right and pushing it to the limit just because they can. So for Schultz to request for people to not bring their guns in doesn't seem unreasonable to me especially based off an incident like he said.

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  2. I do think that Schultz has the right to ask of his customers not to bring weapons into Starbucks. In light of many events that have happened recently around the world, he as the CEO of this billion dollar company is trying to do what is best for it. What really made me go along side Schultz and his decision was that him and board members did not just come up with this idea but they listened to what their customers wanted. The majority of the Starbucks customers said they would feel much safer if people did not bring guns into the store, and as a CEO he is doing his job to make sure his company is running at peak efficiency. However, people do have the right to carry a weapon and legally they can in the store, but Schultz made it very clear people would be served and treated the same if they were to be carrying a gun. Schultz is only requesting and asking people not to bring guns and understands if they must carry one. This statement he released is very reasonable yet formal and does not step on the everyday rights of United States citizens. I also side with Schultz because I don't understand why people need to carry a gun when they go in for a little while to get a coffee but I do understand how some may disagree. But all in all Starbucks isn't saying you will be kicked out if you enter with a gun but they are simply asking if you will not for the sake of others. This is very reasonable!

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  3. I agree with both of the above comments, and believe Schultz does have the right to ask for no weapons in his stores. Recently gun violence has become a bigger issue due to school and movie theater shootings, so Schultz has every right to request that customers do not bring guns into Starbucks. Also, being a Muslim makes me very biased in the Palestinian-Israeli crisis and I do not support Israel, so it's nice to see that the CEO of such a major company does not fund Israel and its mass murder of innocent Palestinians. I do not think Schultz is asking for too much from customers. People need to respect that even though they may feel safe with a loaded gun, others are completely terrified by the thought. Schultz isn't demanding this, but solely asking for customers to respect others and that should be a given anyway.

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  4. I do believe Schultz has the right to ask his customers to not bring their guns into his stores He has not made any official actions that will punish anyone who does bring a gun into Starbucks. He has just simply stated in an interview that he would prefer if there weren't any guns in the stores. Whether or not people choose to listen to Schultz is up to them. Schultz is aware of the differences between these Middle Eastern countries in turmoil and the United States and he knows that the bearing of arms is much more common overseas. He is still respecting his international customers and he hopes that they will be able to respect those who are not as comfortable with guns. Also, I think it is difficult to justify whether or not the people with guns have the right to carry guns due to the very different circumstances they are facing in Palestine and Israel. In the United States, some people feel that they need to have a gun for their personal protection, but as we have recently begun to discover is that guns are too easily falling into the hands of people who should not be armed. The controversy we face in America pertaining to the right to bear arms differs greatly from the views on this topic in the Middle East. There is much more violence in the Middle East and people may feel like they are only safe if they have a gun with them at all times. I believe that though people feel safer with a gun, eventually it will just cause more problems and make it even more difficult for peace to be achieved. Schultz's request was very reasonable because people shouldn't need guns in coffee shops anyway.

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  5. I believe that Schultz does have the right to ask customers to not bring guns into the store because he is only asking the customers not forcing them. Since Schultz is not denying to serve customers with guns and is only suggesting it would be better not to use them, he is not denying their freedom to bear arms. If he did not serve any customer with a gun and asked them to leave then it would be violating their rights and going against the constitution. Also, in the past couple of years there has been many deadly incidents involving guns in schools, movie theaters, and many other public places. By asking people to not bring guns into the stores it might lessen the risk of people being hurt or killed. I also agree with Kayla's point of saying why should people even need guns in the coffee shop anyway? If a person wanted to get a drink they could leave their gun in the car, make their purchase, and when they leave the store they can still be with their gun. It would be about 10 minutes without it. People do have the right to carry them around, but there is no need for a gun in a coffee shop.

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