In a letter hosted on Guns and Ammo, Google has informed some of their merchants they will no longer allow the sale of products associated with guns, ammunition, and knives.
Weapons

As highlighted on our new policy page , in order to comply with the Google Shopping policies you need to comply first with the AdWords policies.

We do not allow the promotion or sale of weapons and any related products such as ammunition's or accessory kits on Google Shopping.

In order to comply with our new policies, please remove any weapon-related products from your data feed and then re-submit your feed in the Merchant Center. For more information on this policy please visit here."
In the letter, Google lists four principles by which they govern Google Shopping.

1) Google Shopping should provide a positive experience to users.

- If someone can't find a product that is perfectly legal to purchase, how is this a positive experience? Clearly they do not want criminals purchasing weapons and ammunition for malicious reasons - as Guns and Ammo puts it, "But what about law-abiding, responsible gun owners?"

2) Google Shopping should be safe for all users.

- This point in Google's letter is referring to the virtual safety of its users. This point states "Scams, phishing, viruses, and other malicious activities on the Internet damage the value of the Internet for everyone." Nothing here implies they are worried about the physical safety of customers. Guns and Ammo points out "it's still OK to shop for kitchen knives, which work just the same on people as they do on veggies."

3) Google Shopping should comply with local laws and regulations.

- Sure, different regulations exist, but it is still legal to responsibly purchase guns, ammo, and accessories in the United States. Google says, "Our policies are often more restrictive than the law, because we need to be sure we can offer services that are legal and safe for all users." So what about that Second Amendment? This is 2012 - if Google, one of the leaders in Internet technology, can't figure out how to regulate sales of guns by state, they have no business selling anything online.

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