You Christians can't fool me! Your clever coffee shop ruse will not work. Do you think I will be more or less open to "spiritual conversations" at 210 than at a Starbucks? Of course not!
For those of you unfamiliar with 210 it is the name of a pet project in Visalia, CA being built next to a Presbyterian Church. The 210 coffee shop is being retrofitted in a building with a colorful past. The 210 website describes the site as having "spurred crime and violence". Really? Well, it was formerly a nightclub known as Bogart & Lulu's... I will give them that. But the incident that forced the closure of the club involved violence by (drumroll please) a Christian! What happened you ask? A local performance artist was burning a bible when the bouncer tackled the artist. Did I mention that the performer had cerbebral palsy (or something like that)? And that the bouncer was a Christian? This event started a brawl that involved the police and resulted in a complete shut down of the club. At least, this is what I have been told by my local friends. So, fast forward a few years and the Christians have now "redeemed" the site and are advertising it as a place "where friends can meet... And ask the most important questions of life in a safe environment". Forgive me for being cynical, but I see through your deceptively contrived plan. I mean, who would want to pay $4 for a frappacino to sit in a den of bible thumping maniacs cleverly disguised as cute employees... So, who would want that?
Well, if they were really, really cute... I guess I wouldn't mind. But then, aren't all Christian girls sort of... Cute-challenged? So, for now, I'm keeping my distance from the 210 trap.
