Open Carry States and Lattes

Enjoy your coffee and your venti cappuccino in open carry states. (photo courtesy of Zazzle.com)

If you like to bring along your handgun when you’re picking up your morning latte, you’re in luck. Starbucks has decided to abide by the laws of the land in open carry states. The move comes after the coffee chain wound up in the crosshairs of the national debate over gun control.

In the 43 US states which allow the open carrying of handguns, gun owners will be permitted to pack heat when they come into a Starbucks. This is the official company decision after some issues that arose when local stores attempted to ban customers from openly carrying weapons. The open carry lobby caught wind of the coffee chain’s ban, and arranged meet-ups where dozens of people with pistols on their belts, visited various Starbucks.

In their official statement, Starbucks said: “The political, policy and legal debates around these issues belong in the legislates and courts, not in our stores.”

And while the issue of gun control, and open carry laws, is a divisive one, this whole debate leaves out one important question. Is it really a good idea to have people carrying around guns when they haven’t had their morning coffee yet? Morning crankiness and magnums could be a potent mix.