REI, Politics and Public Lands

[Woods]

REI would only respond with a politically correct standard email. I've seen such (exact form letter) posted in other forums re similar topics.

Why not contact the folks at REI and ask them?

That's how I found out that they don't make any contributions to any political parties and never have, contrary to the story about the Green Party receiving 5% of their profits.

 

[Woods]

Got my response from BRC. They too will not offer any specifics. Can't blame them, just as I can't blame REI for doing the same. It's what I expected and ultimately I'd deem this as a good thing. Keeping doors open for the future...

Note from Greg Mumm:

Hello Brett,

Mary Jo forwarded your email to me for response.

I read the thread. Seems there is quite the discussion going on, not unlike
similar threads I have seen from time to time in various forums, regarding
various companies.

To answer your questions directly:

During my tenure at BRC, we have not applied for any grants from REI.
Although, that is not to say we won't.

At this time, BRC doesn't have what I would describe as a working
relationship with REI.

BRC also doesn't have any guidelines it is offering to its members in regard
to patronizing REI.

Make it a great day!

Greg Mumm
Executive Director
BlueRibbon Coalition

 

[bearman512]

Why not contact the folks at REI and ask them?

That's how I found out that they don't make any contributions to any political parties and never have, contrary to the story about the Green Party receiving 5% of their profits.

John E here is my earlier post in case you missed it.

I quit buying from REI back in 1994 when I went to the local Albuquerque store and seen the Green Party poster van parked in the middle of the parking lot. I did not think anything about it until I went to check out and I asked why the van was parked there. The young man at the check out counter told me that REI supports the Green Party and asked if I would make a donation. I asked for the manager. I asked the manager why they support the Green Party and he went on to tell me everthing I would expect to hear from a Duck Squeezing Tree Hugger and that REI at the corporate level donates 5% of all profits to the GP. I had 2K in merchandise on the counter that I had just paid for with a credit card and I immediatly said thanks for all the road closings you will be causing and asked for my money back!
From that point on I have made it a point to inform all my friends, and all my military co-workers primarily the ones that purchase thousands of dollars worth of equipment from REI and asked them to use anyone but them.
For the most part I think I have helped keep a cool million or so out of thier hands for the last 15 years.

Like Woods stated REI is a COOP-

A cooperative ("coop"), co-operative ("co-op"), or cooperative ("coöp") is an autonomous association of persons who voluntarily cooperate for their mutual, social, economic, and cultural benefit.

and the individual members do no or are not required to divulge who they donate to contrary to what we read on the internet as we all know that anything on the internet is real and 100% true. LOL
All this said and I did get an answer from the manager that Albuquerque REI does support the Sierra Club and does not support the Blue Ribbon Coalition and I was asked to leave.
Too bad, I should have made a large purchase and then asked the manager, and then I could have done the same thing I did in 1994.
By the way the reps in the store are very knowledgeable about their products, and for the most part very nice, but also very Liberal.
John E we have to look at each state and each REI store differently I don't live or offroad in Cali so I don't make statements thinking I know what the local REI stores do.
Rando: Sorry to say that the Albuquerque store has not changed they now 100% support the enviro lobbiest any way they can.
I will not return!

 

[dstock]

John E here is my earlier post in case you missed it.



All this said and I did get an answer from the manager that Albuquerque REI does support the Sierra Club and does not support the Blue Ribbon Coalition and I was asked to leave.

Just to clarify, you just asked a question and they asked you to leave based on you asking the question? Was there an argument, or a scene or something?

 

[bearman512]

Just to clarify, you just asked a question and they asked you to leave based on you asking the question? Was there an argument, or a scene or something?

No argument no scene and the manager was very polite. He seen me asking questions in each of the departments and I think one of the sales reps thought I was a little abrasive(I have been known to be)and I was asking questions that could have been political in nature.
He did not specifically say leave he talked me to the door and said have a good day like any good manager that does not want to start a scene.
A correction to this is the manager had not heard of the Blue Ribbon Coalition but did say they support the Sierra Clubs position. He assured me that REI does not monitarily support any groups, but will assist with programs sponsered buy the Sierra Club and assistance can be whatever you want to imagine.:sombrero:

 

[bearman512]

No argument no scene and the manager was very polite. He seen me asking questions in each of the departments and I think one of the sales reps thought I was a little abrasive(I have been known to be)and I was asking questions that could have been political in nature.
He did not specifically say leave he talked me to the door and said have a good day like any good manager that does not want to start a scene.
A correction to this is the manager had not heard of the Blue Ribbon Coalition but did say they support the Sierra Clubs position. He assured me that REI does not monitarily support any groups, but will assist with programs sponsered buy the Sierra Club and assistance can be whatever you want to imagine.:sombrero:

I think I will step to the side and be a spectator from here on I have stirred the pot enough, and for all you folks from Cali, the quote is from a old friend I met years ago when I was a rock crawler and did not mind breaking my toys.
His name is Del Albright and is in the know out there in Cali as well as what the BRC is up to.

This landuse email comes to you from Del Albright,
Team Albright LANDUSE HIGHLIGHTS FOR JULY 2013, FROM TEAM ALBRIGHT
1. Legal Issues; from the Eldorado National Forest to the shores of New Jersey, check out what our largest legal effort in OHV recreation is doing, with BRC's legal team here: https://www.sharetrails.org/legal
2. United FWDA: raffles, jeep blessings, landuse updates, e-news, Carnegie SVRA and more, here:http://www.ufwda.org/2013/06/june-2013-enews/
3. BRC, BlueRibbon Coalition: a whole new look; an improved mission and presence nationwide, and your home for landuse and access alerts, news and battles. More on my blog here: http://delalbright.blogspot.com/2013/07/the-new-brc-blueribbon-coalition.html
4. After Market Affairs: whether you're an off-roader, a classic car bug, or a car hobbyist who needs aftermarket products, SEMA Government Affairs are out there fighting for us and with us. Learn more about SEMA here: http://www.sema.org/government-affairs
5. Ocotillo Wells: southern CA desert, affecting all of us in this lawsuit; more here: http://delalbright.blogspot.com/2013/06/fight-for-our-freedoms-fight-for.html 5. Imperial Sand Dunes (Algodones): BLM issues RAMP, more here: http://www.cal4wheel.com/southern-c...lm-issues-final-ramp-for-imperial-sand-dunes; and here is the take on this from the American Sand Association: http://www.americansandassociation....106-blm-announces-record-of-decision-for-ramp.
6. Independence Day: "bread and circuses," the Roman Empire said as long as people had food and fun, they would not worry much about the erosion of their nation (borrowed from Brad Thor's book, The Apostle). The current erosion of the USA includes the dismantling of our recreational freedoms, especially OHV recreation, by motor. Will we sit by, especially when we are celebrating July 4th, Independence Day, and let our access be butchered by exclusionary elitists (borrowed from Stacie Albright quote)??? More about what July 4th means here: http://delalbright.blogspot.com/2013/07/july-4-independence-day-meaning.html###
All for now....
Team Albright Del Albright www.delalbright.com

 

[Woods]

Del is a well known and well respected offroader. He's a real gentleman. I've met him on a trail above Huntington Lake. Thanks for the post.

I think I will step to the side and be a spectator from here on but for all you folks from Cali in the quote is from a old friend I met years ago when I was a rock crawler and did not mind breaking my toys.
His name is Del Albright and is in the know out there in Cali as well as what the BRC is up to.

 

[Christophe Noel]

There's a great deal of hyperbole going around at this point in this thread. For what it's worth, three of my closest friends and avid overlanders work at REI HQ in Seattle in their management offices. I dare say one has overlanded more than many of those who think all REI employees are ant-ohv. There is no anti-ohv culture within their employee group or corporate ethos. They do have a long standing history of supporting groups that strive to protect our wild landscapes as well as our access to those landscapes. This is why they have been excellent partners with The Access Fund, IMBA and other like minded groups. This may come as quite a shock, but many of the most incredible climbing areas are accessed by...OMG...off road vehicles. It's a long standing joke that every "dirt bag hippy climber" has a lifted Tacoma.

As has been said, balance is the key, and judging by the organizations that REI supports and the reasons they give to support those groups, they too are striving to find the balance.

 

[Woods]

Let's keep this on track.

- Populations are growing. Trails for motorized vehicle use are being closed at a much faster rate than than they are being opened. No hyperbole. Strait facts.

- This isn't about the people who work at REI. It's about the ethics of REI.

There's a great deal of hyperbole going around at this point in this thread. For what it's worth, three of my closest friends and avid overlanders work at REI HQ in Seattle in their management offices. I dare say one has overlanded more than many of those who think all REI employees are ant-ohv. There is no anti-ohv culture within their employee group or corporate ethos. They do have a long standing history of supporting groups that strive to protect our wild landscapes as well as our access to those landscapes. This is why they have been excellent partners with The Access Fund, IMBA and other like minded groups. This may come as quite a shock, but many of the most incredible climbing areas are accessed by...OMG...off road vehicles. It's a long standing joke that every "dirt bag hippy climber" has a lifted Tacoma.

As has been said, balance is the key, and judging by the organizations that REI supports and the reasons they give to support those groups, they too are striving to find the balance.

 

[bearman512]

There's a great deal of hyperbole going around at this point in this thread. For what it's worth, three of my closest friends and avid overlanders work at REI HQ in Seattle in their management offices. I dare say one has overlanded more than many of those who think all REI employees are ant-ohv. There is no anti-ohv culture within their employee group or corporate ethos. They do have a long standing history of supporting groups that strive to protect our wild landscapes as well as our access to those landscapes. This is why they have been excellent partners with The Access Fund, IMBA and other like minded groups. This may come as quite a shock, but many of the most incredible climbing areas are accessed by...OMG...off road vehicles. It's a long standing joke that every "dirt bag hippy climber" has a lifted Tacoma.

As has been said, balance is the key, and judging by the organizations that REI supports and the reasons they give to support those groups, they too are striving to find the balance.

Well said flounder but just like I said in my earlier post each state and store can be really different than the next.
But like Woods stated:

This isn't about the people who work at REI. It's about the ethics of REI.

This is funny:

It's a long standing joke that every "dirt bag hippy climber" has a lifted Tacoma.

 

[dstock]

No argument no scene and the manager was very polite. He seen me asking questions in each of the departments and I think one of the sales reps thought I was a little abrasive(I have been known to be)and I was asking questions that could have been political in nature.
He did not specifically say leave he talked me to the door and said have a good day like any good manager that does not want to start a scene.
A correction to this is the manager had not heard of the Blue Ribbon Coalition but did say they support the Sierra Clubs position. He assured me that REI does not monitarily support any groups, but will assist with programs sponsered buy the Sierra Club and assistance can be whatever you want to imagine.:sombrero:

Thanks for the clarification.

 

[Christophe Noel]

Woods, I'm just trying to complete the full picture. There is nothing within the corporate culture or the REI employee populous that can be declared anti-OHV.

Look, this isn't chaos theory or advanced physics. REI sells outdoor gear. That gear is used in remote backcountry environments. By contributing to organizations that strive to protect those lands, REI is protecting their market. In this effort to support wilderness environments, they donate to organizations that may have an agenda which threatens OHV user groups IN SOME SELECT AREAS, but it's a far stretch from being "anti-OHV."

 

[craig333]

You have to remember REI started out selling climbing equipment and slowly branched out. They'd just started selling backpacking equipment when I joined (back when membership was free). Vehicle dependent has never been their focus. I can't say about the corporate culture but a good portion of the shoppers there are certainly anti ohv. I get a lots of dirty looks when I park my Jeep in the parking lot with the anti Sierra Club sticker.

 

[bearman512]

You stated that you were told by someone at an REI store that the company donated 5% of their CORPORATE profits to the Green party. That was your claim.

REI does not now nor have they ever donated any money to a political party, anyone who told you otherwise is either lying or incorrect. If you choose not to believe me, I urge you to contact them directly via their website.

It doesn't matter what state I live in. Individuals who work for REI are free to support any organizations they choose, that is a far cry from claiming that the company donates money as a Corporation to a specific political party. They simply do not do that.

Let me ask again.Did you see the year was 1994. And where do you get the nads to say I am a lier. Dude drop the weed it is affecting your reading!
Dare I ask how old you where in 94 and what states you had explored by that time?
Sounds to me you could be a little off center and have sipped the coolaid I have a couple friends out there that are that way. I guess we all chose our lifestyles all the best!

 

[Woods]

Besides the fact that it's a sweeping generalization, there's now way that you can prove your first comment and it's very easily dis-proven.

Your second statement contradicts itself. I believe that REI supports special interest groups. Many of those groups work to eliminate access to motorized vehicles. That does make them anti-OHV. I do not see REI supporting any OHV advocacy groups. If they did, I would believe that they support offroad vehicle use. There isn't any balance. And what select areas? Is the select area the United States of America? If so, then we agree.

Trails are being closed on a very large scale. Special interest groups drive these closures.

Woods, I'm just trying to complete the full picture. There is nothing within the corporate culture or the REI employee populous that can be declared anti-OHV.

Look, this isn't chaos theory or advanced physics. REI sells outdoor gear. That gear is used in remote backcountry environments. By contributing to organizations that strive to protect those lands, REI is protecting their market. In this effort to support wilderness environments, they donate to organizations that may have an agenda which threatens OHV user groups IN SOME SELECT AREAS, but it's a far stretch from being "anti-OHV."