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Corporate Walmart Thinks it’s September 10, 2001

on February 10th, 2011 | Filed under Asides, Optoblog

A shoplifter pulls a gun on four Walmart employees in a small room. The four employees heroically bring him to the ground. Walmart fires all four a week later because as the full story at KSL.com explains:

AP09 is Walmart’s policy on dealing with shoplifters. A copy obtained by KSL shows employees are allowed to use “reasonable force” to limit movements of struggling suspects. If a weapon comes out, however, associates must “disengage” and “withdraw,” the policy states.

Imagine you have a Walmart employee who cares more about rules than their own life. In that exact moment, they hesitate because rule AP09 springs into their head. Their hesitation could cost them their life. I applaud these three men and one women. They acted reasonably and rationally. We should throw a parade in their honor.

The pansy lawyers in corporate who wrote AP09 should revise their documentation to say, “However, in a post 9/11 world, if you believe your life is in danger, you should fight like Joshua on the 7th day at Jericho so that your inaction won’t cost you your life and potentially others lives also.”

Agreed, no one thinks a pair of socks or a computer is worth anyone’s life trying to defend it. Criminals don’t care about your life. They kill kids to steal their Nike Air Jordan shoes! They kill to try to stay out of jail. You won’t know if they actually shoot or not until after the fact, but guess what! The very fact they pulled out a deadly weapon means that they are willing to use it! This isn’t about socks or computers anymore. We have to assume that if they pull a gun they are going to shoot! They are willing to…kill…you!

Walmart shouldn’t expect people to play dice with their own life. Those Fabulous Four didn’t allow chance or the crazed mind of a felon to determine whether they went home to their family that day.

Before September 11, 2001 popular belief was that if you give into the demands of evil people, then you would be okay. Apparently corporate Walmart never got the memo that the rest of us received on 9/12.

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2 Comments

2 Responses to “Corporate Walmart Thinks it’s September 10, 2001”

  1. And let’s cut the crap that firing them was about safety. Is shooting fish in a barrel the new definition of safety? Walmart, your employees aren’t fish.

  2. Imagine this this had gone the other way. Imagine Walmart Corporate issuing a statement to the families of the deceased employees, “We’re sorry for your loss, but we’re really proud of your loved one for obeying rule AP09.”