When a Customer Loses It
May 30, 2005 – 10:49 amThis is a rather amusing story of a woman who took her television to Best Buy to get repaired and then proceeded to completely lose her composure when they didn’t actually repair it. So much so that she pulled a gun on the repair man.
The reason I find this story rather amusing is that I know of a few instances where friends or acquaintances of mine have been really pissed off while dealing with the personnel at either Best Buy or Fry’s Electronics. Fortunately, though, none of them felt their situation was so desperate as to warrant pulling a firearm.
7 Responses to “When a Customer Loses It”
Wow! That’s a helluva story. The full news article mentions that the woman has a known mental disorder that she takes medication for. Now, I’m not an NRA member, but I do support the second amendment to the constitution. (A somewhat appropriate topic for today, being Memorial Day.) I see no need for your average citizen to own assault rifles or semi/fully automatic weapons. But I think a regular handgun or hunting rifle/shotgun is okay. But only if the owner can be declared mentally competent to use the firearm. This woman has a disorder that, even with medication, can make her mentally unstable; enough so that she pulled a gun on an innocent TV repairman who was trying to fix an unfixable TV. I think that people like that shouldn’t have access to guns, and that if it was the husband’s gun then he should be held partially responsible for failing to secure it properly from his wife.
So, tell me: Have I really opened a can of worms here, or what?
By Adam on May 30, 2005 at 1:10 pm
Amusing. I thought the Best Buy people would never know how close I was to pulling a firearm on them (or at least resorting to real violence) last time I dealt with them. Appears I was wrong…in a sort of general way.
By Dixie on May 30, 2005 at 1:41 pm
Adam: No, I doubt you’ve opened much of a can of worms. In fact, I would think your views are pretty close to (if not within) the mainstream. Start talking about how every citizen should have the right to own any gun, or how no citizen should have the right to own any gun, and then you may be inviting a more lively discussion.
Dixie: One of the incidents I had in mind was the one you’re likely talking about (was it a PDA? an iPod? I don’t remember). I do know, though, that you were highly steamed. And yes, the Best Buy people might also have to take a class in crisis negotiation as part of their training.
By jjk on May 30, 2005 at 1:55 pm
I guess someone has to say it: with the possible exception of hunting rifles, I see no reason that anyone should need to own a gun. But hey, that’s my opinion — and certainly I agree that within the United States the mainstream is closer to Adam’s comment.
By Paul.za on May 31, 2005 at 1:15 am
Interesting essay on the anti-gun sentiments of the British (where all handguns are illegal): http://mwillett.org/Politics/guns.htm
By Paul.za on May 31, 2005 at 1:20 am
It was a PDA. Had it been my beloved iPod, there definitely would have been violence.
By Dixie on May 31, 2005 at 11:25 am
So, Paul. I recall reading or hearing about a handgun ban in Australia. Naturally, the ban was intended to reduce crime, and natrually it had the opposite effect. The criminals held onto their guns, while the law-abiding citizens handed over theirs, meaning that the criminals no longer had anything to fear when robbing people. The crime rate shot up. And I would posit that the same would happen here, should handguns be banned outright.
Now, in a perfect world where a ban on handguns actually means that no one has access to handguns, and where the world is at peace and there is no terrorism or fear of ones neighbor, then sure, I could agree with you Paul. But we’re a long way away from that kind of world. Would I personally purchase a gun for myself? No. But I would imagine that owning a properly secured gun (meaning, keep it in a childproof gun safe) and putting a sign by your door indicating that you own a gun would significantly reduce someone’s desire to rob your house. And my fellow Southerners can probably appreciate me saying that I’m always extra polite when around people who drive truks that have the Stars’n'Bars on them, with shotgun/rifle racks in the rear window, and with horns that play Dixie.
By Adam on May 31, 2005 at 2:27 pm