Sometime there's dummies on both sides of the counter.
Was in a store when a guy comes in wanting 8mm ammo. The counter guy says he's got some 8mm Magnum ammo. The customer thinks "magnum" ammo would be great. I 'splained that if he had an 8mm Mauser, the cartridges wouldn't chamber. They both looked at me like I was the village idiot. I walked away reasonably confident that no one was going to get hurt, at least, except maybe in the pocketbook.
Another time, I saw some South-of-the-Border types trying to buy some 7.62x39 ammo for deer hunting. The clerk was having a heck of a time explaining why they needed the expensive soft-points rather than the cheap FMJ. Don't know how that one turned out either.
I was working the gun counter at Dick's once and another employee came over and asked how you bought a gun. I explained that once he picked one out, he had to fill out the paperwork so we could call it in and verify that he didn't have a criminal record. He asked what kind of crime would disqualify him. I explained that any felony and even some misdemeanors, like a domestic violence conviction would keep him from being approved. He hung his head a little and said, "oh" and walked away.
