Look what Milwaukee and the Journal Sentinel have been doing to Badger. No crimes committed by Badger, but you wouldn't know it to read the newspaper or listen to the politicians. I fully expect Badger to be out of business within the next few years. Then they'll move against the Shooters Shop.
I don't feel too badly for Badger. I guess, if I had to choose whether they stay or go, I'd rather they stay in business to act as a lighting rod of negative attention for every other store in the metro area, but that's about it.
1. The guys working at Badger are on average, a bunch of arrogant aholes. (And I know they've been less than friendly to you too, things concerning CCW, and the cause of RKBA in WI in general...)
2. "That element" does indeed shop almost exclusively there. And IMO the proximity of Badger as closest into the City of Milwaukee does not completely explain it. You'd think to a lowlife wanting a gun it would be important enough to them that they'd be willing to flip open the phone book and drive another 15-30 minutes to try Shooter's, Fletcher, Sportsman's (when it was open) or even Gander. I don't know that Badger is doing anything illegal to attract that business. Maybe it's just now word of mouth and/or a self-fulfilling prophecy from when they did sill sell the Bryco/Jennings/Lorcin crap guns, and they reap what they sow.
#3. They did lead as the origin store in the number of ATF gun traces in the country when such stats were available.
Now I know there's good reasons for that, the MPD is "fussy" and does a trace on EVERY handgun they recover, even if such a trace is not material to the criminal case, or circumstances which the handgun was recovered. That pumps Badger's number above the average, and our proximity to Chicago/IL which has the FOID card system, which may drive handgun (straw) buyers up to Badger here in WI where we (thankfully) do not probably accounts for the rest.
And I certainly understand that the Journal Sentinel and the libtard anti-gun Milwaukee establishment has a vested interest in shutting them down above and beyond their actual crime impact. So while I know they haven't done a complete job of the story, and they overlook the unique circumstances that pump up their trace count in the ATF statistics, I do have to wonder if Badger is completely innocent either.
Overall, when it comes to the "Badger Guns situation" I just don't see any winners or victims here, just the lowbrow/ghetto store with rude staff, the thugs, and the big-city liberals.
If Badger had made even the smallest pro-forma display of support or concern for the state of RKBA in WI, I'd be more willing to go to bat for them, but they have not. And one previous owner (Beatovic) even said he was in support of banning private face-to-face sales to the Journal-Sentinel. Knowing full well he stood only to gain from more sales or transfer fees.