The confronting ATM-style machines dispensing a deadly product in a minute and a half
Concerns are mounting over the new technology which makes it easier than ever to buy this killer item.
Soda. Snacks. Shotgun shells... Vending machines are being loaded up with ammunition at shopping centres across the United States. And demand is exploding.
“Our automated ammo dispensers are accessible 24/7, ensuring that you can buy ammunition on your own schedule, free from the constraints of store hours and long lines,” goes the company sales spiel. “Our machines are as easy to use as an ATM.”
They’re already appearing in Texas, Oklahoma, Colorado and Alabama.
It comes as the US gun violence epidemic continues with more than 10,184 dying under the barrel of a firearm in the US so far this year. About 332 were in mass shooting events.
The high rate of gun violence last month prompted the federal Surgeon General to declare it a public health crisis. The epicentre is the nation’s capital - the Washington District of Columbia. It has a gun fatality rate of 13.93 deaths per 100,000 people. Second worst is Louisiana, at 10.91.
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Ammunition vending machines in high demand
Now shopping centres across the Land of Opportunity are demanding that American Rounds stand and deliver their Automated Ammo Retail Machine (AARM for short).
The first was rolled out on a trial basis in Alabama late last year.
CEO Grant Magers told US media that his Dallas-based company had loaded up seven touch-screen-operated machines that dispense all your favourite brands of 9mm ammunition and 12-gauge shotgun shells.
But he said his 10 employees are now staring down the barrel of 200 delivery requests.
“I cannot provide you with specific state-by-state expansion plans. However, we have requests in for machines in approximately 42 states,” Magers told Newsweek. “I can say that we have had requests from business owners and customers in California.”
There are an estimated 435 million guns in private hands in the United States.
The nation only has 333 million people.
Little wonder ammunition is considered as much a daily staple as bread, milk and butter.
Which may be why the idea of ammunition vending machines appears to be so popular among rural grocery store owners.
Especially, says Magers, in Florida.
And he says his company is happy to tailor the flavour of on-call ammunition according to individual community needs - and which hunting season is active at any given time.
“We had someone tell us that they wanted a .410 shotgun round in this particular community because a lot of the folks there will use that for varmints and snakes and things like that that get on their property,” he told NPR.
Vending machines verify user's age and identity
The vending machines are not quite your average chip, sandwich packet and can variety.
Its credit card reader and inventory status reporting system must already be connected to the internet. So, adding a webcam and driver-licence scanner was a logical next step.
The images are fed back to a central system to verify the user’s age and identity before completing the transaction.
“The whole experience takes a minute and a half once you’re familiar with the machine,” Magers said.
And its heavy steel, double-walled, triple-locked casing should shoot down any thoughts of a smash-and-grab attempt, he adds.
“Ammunition … is traditionally sold off the shelf,” he said. “[It] just sits openly like boxes of cereal at a grocery store.”
Criticism mounts for ammo vending machines
Not everybody is convinced.
The vending machine in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, has already had to be relocated after its compliance with local state laws was called into question.
And some US states require a police record background check at the point of sale.
“Should we move forward in one of those states, then clearly we would have to meet those requirements like any other retailer,” Mayer said.
“A federal license is not required to sell ammunition,” the Federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) said in a statement. “However, commercial sales of ammunition must comply with state laws as well as any applicable federal laws.”
University of California, Irvine, professor of criminology George Tita told NPR the vending machines delivered their own set of safety concerns - such as the buyer’s state of mind.
“A vending machine is not going to be able to say, ‘Hey, are you okay?’ or ‘Why do you need this ammunition?’” Tita said.
“I’m not sure what problem the company is solving that wouldn’t be solved by responsible ownership of any facility selling ammunition.”
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