Dale Welch走进位于弗吉尼亚州的一家星巴克，腰上别着手枪的他点了一杯香蕉星冰乐外加一份肉桂小面包。他称至少有一位顾客忍不住再次打量了一下他的枪，但咖啡师们并未做出偷看的举动。 Dale Welch recently walked into a Starbucks in Virginia, handgun strapped¹ to his waist, and ordered a banana Frappuccino with a cinnamon bun. He says the firearm drew a double-take from at least one customer, but not a peep from the baristas.

Dale Welch突然光临这家咖啡店，此举是为了同许多枪支持有者一道，在几个允许人们公开携带枪支的州内，行使并宣传他们应有的权利。 Welch's foray into the coffeehouse was part of an effort by some gun owners to exercise and advertise their rights in states that allow people to openly carry firearms. 即使是在几个容许“公开携带枪支”的州，许多商店还是可以拒绝携带枪支者入内。而那些对枪支说不的商家，也与枪支拥有者展开了政治对抗。作为最大的连锁咖啡店，星巴克显然不接受这套。星巴克在本月的一项声明中称，将遵循州及地方法律（容许公开携带枪支），并表示其所有店铺都拥有自己的安全措施。 Even in some "open carry" states, businesses are allowed to ban guns in their stores. And some have, creating political confrontations² with gun owners. But Starbucks, the largest chain targeted, has refused to take the bait, saying in a statement this month that it follows state and local laws and has its own safety measures in its stores. 枪支政策专家，密西西比大学政治学教授John Bruce表示：“星巴克之所以成为一个特别目标，是因为它起源于西海岸的嬉皮士文化，很多愿意花4美元来购买咖啡的忠实顾客，都期许星巴克会对枪支说不。但显然他们失算了。” "Starbucks is a special target because it's from the hippie West Coast, and a lot of dedicated³ consumers who pay $4 for coffee have expectations that Starbucks would ban guns. And here they aren't," said John Bruce, a political science professor at the University of Mississippi who is an expert in gun policy. 71岁的Dale Welch生活在弗吉尼亚州里士满市，是一位已退休的物业经理。他认为携带武器喝咖啡，这没什么不可以的。 Welch, a 71-year-old retired⁴ property manager who lives in Richmond, Va., doesn't see any reason why he shouldn't bear arms while he gets caffeinated. 他说：“除了我自己，没人能为我提供保护；所以我经常会随身携带武器，这已经成为我的一种生活方式——同时也波及到我经常光顾的咖啡店。” "I don't know of anybody who would provide me with defense⁵ other than myself, so I routinely as a way of life carry a weapon -- and that extends to my coffee shops," he said. 一月初，拥枪与反枪争夺零售商家的战争变得激烈起来。与此同时，北加利福尼亚州的枪支狂热份子们开始走进星巴克及其他的一些商店中，该州法律允许枪支持有者在公众场合公开携带武器，他们这样做也是为了检验此项立法的效力。随着该举动不断波及到其他的州，反枪支组织迅速对于在当地商店中举行的“枪支大游行”提出抗议。 The fight for retailers⁶ heated up in early January when gun enthusiasts⁷ in northern California began walking into Starbucks and other businesses to test state laws that allow gun owners to carry weapons openly in public places. As it spread to other states, gun control groups quickly complained about the parade of firearms in local stores. 在一些自发的游行中，只有一两名参与者携带枪支走进商场中。而在另一些有组织的游行中，数十人颇为自豪地携带武器走进一些餐厅。 Some were spontaneous, with just one or two gun owners walking into a store. Others were organized parades of dozens of gun owners walking into restaurants with their firearms proudly at their sides. 一次，约100名携带武器的活动者计划好前往加州胡桃溪市的加州披萨厨房聚会；但在得知他们并不受欢迎之后，他们只好前往另一家餐厅。而那家连锁店和皮兹咖啡一样，都是反枪支商户中的一员。 In one case, about 100 activists⁸ bearing arms had planned to go to a California Pizza Kitchen in Walnut⁹ Creek¹⁰, Calif., but after it became clear they weren't welcome they went to another restaurant. That chain and Peet's Coffee & Tea are among the businesses that have banned customers with guns. 就如同许多商店谢绝赤脚顾客进入，某几个州的餐厅和商店也一再重申自己开店的前提就是选择禁枪区。 Just as shops can deny service to barefoot customers, restaurants and stores in some states can declare their premises¹¹ gun-free zones. “OpenCarry.org”团体是鼓励拥枪游行的领导组织，该组织发表声明为星巴克“决定对合法携枪顾客一视同仁”的举动而喝彩。 The advocacy group OpenCarry.org, a leading group encouraging the demonstrations¹², applauded Starbucks in a statement for "deciding not to discriminate¹³ against lawful¹⁴ gun carriers.

“星巴克被视为一家有责任感的公司，一家与时俱进的企业，而这项政策也正好与之相符。”“OpenCarry.org”的联合创始人John Pierce表示。“如果你们想拥护人权，那么就必须支持它们。我为它们喝彩，我本人也会竭尽全力，路上经过时，我会把这个消息告诉所有星巴克的经理。” "Starbucks is seen as a responsible corporation and they're seen as a very progressive corporation, and this policy is very much in keeping with that," said John Pierce, co-founder of OpenCarry.org. "If you're going to support individual rights, you have to support them all. I applaud them, and I've gone out of my way personally to let every manager of every Starbucks I pass know that."