“Is America’s largest retailer getting out of the hunting and fishing business? If not, it certainly seems to be cutting back. Earlier this year, Wal-Mart told fishing tackle suppliers that their gear — like fabrics and other ‘rural products’ — might be removed from some stores altogether, or at least be stocked only seasonally. That doesn’t mean Wal-Mart is getting out of the fishing business, company executives said. Nor is the company turning its back on hunters, they added. But recently, Wal-Mart joined New York mayor Michael Bloomberg at a gathering of his group, Mayors Against Illegal Guns, to announce a series of changes to the way the company handles firearm transactions. In the future, firearm purchases at Wal-Mart will involve a video record of the sale, which the store will keep on file as a database of gun buyers. Employees also will be given the discretion to deny firearms sales to anyone who’s had a firearm traced by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms for any reason. In the meantime, the National Rifle Association is urging hunters and shooters to contact Wal-Mart to show displeasure with the change.” (05/13/08)