HikeArizona.COM

:SB:
Due supposedly in response to the standoff in Oregon, Forest Service employees have been told...
they are not allowed to speak to members of the public until notified otherwise.
Talk about a ridiculous gag order!
(Even TRAL volunteers are encouraged NOT to wear their TRAL/FS logo t-shirts until further notice as well.)

So don't feel bad if you encounter an FS employee and wish to ask them a question and they walk away without saying a word.

(My gut feeling is this standoff is going to be wrapped up very soon... whether it ends in violence or not)

I know you block me, and may not read this, but do you have a source or link? Otherwise, this sounds like Right-Wind BS.

@CannondaleKid
Link, please?

Sorry, no link.

As a Forest Service/TRAL volunteer I received it in a direct communication from the leader of TRAL.
Frankly, being an internal communication, I don't expect this to be posted officially on the FS/BLM/NP or any other Federal web site.
(We don't want to stir up the wackos now do we?)

Hopefully, once the Oregon standoff is over they are allowed to interact with the public again....

That's Great!

no--" what are you doing in this area?"
" why are you on that road"
" where are you going?"
" That area is really rough, don't go alone!"
" we haven't been down there in a while, can you report back?"

They might actually be looking out for the safety of the volunteers and FS employees-- with an Arizonan fatality in Oregon, they are probably hoping to prevent more wacko's from engaging with anyone they see as a representative of federal lands. Oregon is not the only place with idiot militia crap going on-- they're being pests up in Flint right now, too. They have every cause to be cautious.

:SB: times infinity

Tough_Boots wrote:They might actually be looking out for the safety of the volunteers and FS employees

I fully understand that... but ya gotta admit it seems like overkill (wrong word to use?) when things are taken to this extreme. At this rate any law enforcement personnel will be going around incognito, wearing civvies and driving their own cars... NOT!

Like the armed on the AZT thread... what are the odds? Long enough that it's the farthest thing from my mind, so I don't worry about it.

In my opinion, there's way too much unnecessary paranoia (usually generated by the media to feel relevant) for my taste these days.

CannondaleKid wrote:what are the odds? Long enough that it's the farthest thing from my mind, so I don't worry about it.

easy for you to say when you're not responsible for anyone else but yourself.

@Tough_Boots But seriously now, let's take a look at how this affects the general public...
(BTW, this ACTUALLY HAPPENED yesterday)

FS personnel along with TRAL volunteers in an area for ATV's and they were checking ATV for licenses as they passed by. When a person on an ATV stopped to ask the FS employee a simple question, and since the FS folks weren't allowed to interact with the public, they said nothing and simply turned and walked away.

Ok, so since the TRAL volunteers were allowed to talk to the public, they answered the question. Then the person who asked the question made a comment about how rude the FS people were by turning their backs.

So what I'd like to know...
#1. Is it better to not speak to the public AT ALL for any reason? (So if a FS Ranger sees someone committing a crime on FS land they should turn and walk away?)
OR
#2. Be realistic and let them do their job? (Yes, there is a remote possibility they could be attacked by a wacko, which could happen ANY time, standoff in Oregon or not.

Let's not paralyze federal/law enforcement personnel in WHOLE country by what-if's.

I think you're making a big deal out of something that will probably only be in effect for a few days.

@skillpore


I feel like if carrying an AR15 while hiking is an acceptable way to be "prepared", then temporarily limiting public engagement during a time of militant occupation of public lands is probably acceptable

@skillpore

you may be overestimating the percentage of FS employee's that are actually LEO's...

@skillpore

When there is a threat of physical danger, its understandable for non-essential services to be suspended. I'm pretty ok with that statement.

Alright guys...

I don't believe this story, never did. Sounds right out of the Limbaugh Files, or who ever is that fixture, these days.

CannondaleKid wrote::SB:
Due supposedly in response to the standoff in Oregon, Forest Service employees have been told...
they are not allowed to speak to members of the public until notified otherwise.
Talk about a ridiculous gag order!
(Even TRAL volunteers are encouraged NOT to wear their TRAL/FS logo t-shirts until further notice as well.)

So don't feel bad if you encounter an FS employee and wish to ask them a question and they walk away without saying a word.

(My gut feeling is this standoff is going to be wrapped up very soon... whether it ends in violence or not)

A typical knee jerk reaction that has nothing to do with them. The bs in Oregon is not going to spill over into AZ or anywhere else. If the FS, BLM, or any other alphabet agency is that paranoid, they need to turn in their little green get ups and go get a job at UPS. If one did ignore me, that in itself would provoke a smart "A" response from me, since I am one of millions paying their way. Where and when does the ignorance stop?

CannondaleKid wrote:Sorry, no link.

As a Forest Service/TRAL volunteer I received it in a direct communication from the leader of TRAL.
Frankly, being an internal communication, I don't expect this to be posted officially on the FS/BLM/NP or any other Federal web site.
(We don't want to stir up the wackos now do we?)

Hopefully, once the Oregon standoff is over they are allowed to interact with the public again....

Thank you bud for the intel, but the only "wackos" out there are the government agencies you people volunteer your services to. I hope you're being facetious with the "Wacko" comment? I know you volunteers do most of the grunt work for the FS and others. I hope you keep your sanity and don't drink from their cup of delusional fantasy's.

AZDigger wrote:........Where and when does the ignorance stop?

We will never know, since too many people are far too willing to believe virtually anything they read or hear, without seeing a substantiated source or having an unbiased confirmation (such as actually being ignored by a FS employee). The OP is a prime example of someone getting grapevine information, assuming anything ever even came from the FS, and it being misunderstood and corrupted. If there ever was a gag order on employees, it was probably related directly to the Oregon incident, and not a blanket order to not talk to the public.

Jim_H wrote:

AZDigger wrote:........Where and when does the ignorance stop?

We will never know, since too many people are far too willing to believe virtually anything they read or hear, without seeing a substantiated source or having an unbiased confirmation (such as actually being ignored by a FS employee). The OP is a prime example of someone getting grapevine information, assuming anything ever even came from the FS, and it being misunderstood and corrupted. If there ever was a gag order on employees, it was probably related directly to the Oregon incident, and not a blanket order to not talk to the public.

Excellent point, thanks for the feedback. The Oregon thing was a bs endeavor from the start and not supported by most patriots. That said, there will certainly be a ripple affect throughout the government. Since most of us don't want to talk to them anyway a gag order could be a blessing. I'm tired of being stopped by FS and asked what I'm doing. As for SAR, most of us have a direct line to help and don't need FS or BLM personnel to make that happen.

How often are you stopped by the Forest Service and questioned? I have never been, and I have spent a lot of time on their lands.