re: 2 black guys arrested at a Philadelphia Starbucks by 8 cops

I definitely think they should have exited the premises when asked to leave, but I honestly don't see how it's possible to fairly enforce a policy requiring all patrons to purchase something before taking a seat without just making individuals get in line immediately upon entering the location. If the reason they called the cops was due to these guys not paying for a drink then I wonder how many other people they've called the cops on for doing the same thing. After all, people pretty much camp out at coffee shops for hours without buying shite, and I've never heard of it escalating to this point. It seems like a ridiculous waste of resources. Discretion should definitely be used in situations like this. There is gray area, and if the guys weren't disturbing other patrons or causing a disruption then honestly who gives a shite if they sit there and wait for their friend. It's entirely possible they were eventually going to order something. This whole incident is pretty silly when you look at the bigger picture.

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but I honestly don't see how it's possible to fairly enforce a policy requiring all patrons to purchase something before taking a seat without just making individuals get in line immediately upon entering the location.

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This really is the main issue here. Other issues have clouded the discussion but this is the issue. What triggered the employee to come over and approach them?

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. If the reason they called the cops was due to these guys not paying for a drink then I wonder how many other people they've called the cops on for doing the same thing.

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Agree once again. I have always thought of Starbucks of a place where people sit and do work and drink coffee. What gives you the right to just sit there for hours on free Wifi? A single cup of coffee? Seems kind of silly but that seems to be the case

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There is gray area, and if the guys weren't disturbing other patrons or causing a disruption then honestly who gives a shite if they sit there and wait for their friend. It's entirely possible they were eventually going to order something. This whole incident is pretty silly when you look at the bigger picture.

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I do agree with you once again but there does need to be a line to cross. I dont know how they enforce it but if people are allowed to just come sit down, take up tables and not buy something, what would Starbucks or any other place of business do when homeless people started coming in, sitting down and just using the bathrooms? In a way, it opens up a can of worms that is very hard to deal with...

I have no idea what these guys did to trigger the incident but in the end, they were not customers, did not purchase anything and were asked to leave. They did not leave and even told the employees they didnt even care if they called the police then told the police they were not going to leave when asked. One can only come to the conclusion that they were looking to be difficult at that point and got what was coming to them.

The point was made earlier that they were civil. They absolutely were. But why go through all that the way they did. Certainly they knew the police were going to arrest them for not doing what was asked of them. If I would have been really pissed at Starbucks, I might have stayed till the police arrived but once they asked me to leave, I would have left

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I hope the day comes when corporations stop caving to Twitter outrage and apologizing for stupid shite like this.

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I still cant figure out what there is to apologize about?

I see no problem with upholding policies, but I really don't see how you could fairly enforce a policy that dictates anyone who enters the establishment has to pay for something in order to stick around without getting really prescriptive or super rigid. To play devils advocate, if I purchase something through the drive-thru am I entitled to the same privileges as someone who sits in the shop and utilizes the location's resources? Basically if a guy sits in a Starbucks for 3 hours only having ordered 1 drink and I went through the drive-thru am I entitled to come back to that location at a future time and also sit for 3 hours without having to order an additional drink due to my previous purchase?

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I went through the drive-thru am I entitled to come back to that location at a future time and also sit for 3 hours without having to order an additional drink due to my previous purchase?

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Leaving the premises and coming back hours later isn't the same as the person who ordered something and has been sitting there the entire time.

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That's completely false. I was at the Starbucks on Jefferson and Freret last Sunday and some girl who was dressed like she just finished a workout came and walked straight to the restroom and didn't order anything

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In larger cities some the bathrooms of starbucks have locks on them and the "password" to the lock is printed on your receipt. If you walk into a Starbucks, use the restroom and leave, what is Starbucks going to do? In this scenario, they asked the people to leave, if you're leaving already there isn't much that they can do.

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It's not a good sign when you have to put locks on public bathrooms.

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It's not a public bathroom. It's a private bathroom that is available to paying customers, specifically used to deter the general public from using it

blacks don't have to follow laws/policies anymore, it's 2018, everyone has to pander to them or they'll be protests, riots, etc