Should I buy a Trek (ethical reasons)

[Dino Suegiù]

Originally Posted by makoti

Don't buy from a company you don't like. It'll always be in your head. Too many good options to give your money to a company you don't think is ethical.

Originally Posted by Seramount

if you have a conscience about a company's actions, act on it.

I haven't bought a single gallon of gasoline from Exxon since the Valdez incident.

Originally Posted by choke

Only you can decide if their past history is enough to make a difference.

For me, I'll never own a Trek. I even go further and include anything made by Oakley, Giro and Nike.

I do not really care about Lemond, or Lance, or Trek, either way, but ethics are personal, so I think these replies above are good because they suggest an answer to the question from exactly that pov and nothing more. Ethics are not so simple, and subscribing to and applying even more (outside) "morality" just gets confusing.

Can anyone really answer another person's questions about "personal ethics", whether the question is about swatting a fly or buying diamonds or polluting oceans? Ethics are not only about boycotts.

[Dino Suegiù]

Originally Posted by Burnette

It's not hurting any company whether you buy or not and the only effect it's having is a negative one upon yourself. It seems to be tying you up in the weirdest of conundrums. Appreciate what a privileged and also crazy position you seem to be in.

Are ethics about "hurting any company"?
Why would it be a "negative [effect] upon yourself" if the op follows his or her beliefs?
The conundrum seems elsewhere, if effects on markets are one's definition of ethics.

Originally Posted by Burnette

This seems to have near nothing to do with bicycles and all to do with an existential exercise.

Perhaps ethics are in fact all to do with existential exercise, and the "bicycle acquisition quandary" being posed here is simply a vehicle for the discussion?

[Burnette]

Originally Posted by Dino Suegiù

Are ethics about "hurting any company"?
Why would it be a "negative [effect] upon yourself" if the op follows his or her beliefs?
The conundrum seems elsewhere, if effects on markets are one's definition of ethics.


Perhaps ethics are in fact all to do with existential exercise, and the "bicycle acquisition quandary" being posed here is simply a vehicle for the discussion?

You're overthinking it bro, one dude buying a bicycle and that's all it is. Any effects felt are to the buyer, sellers could care less about one sale lost or gained based on archaic arguments.

Geez people, it's bicycles, we shouldn't go out of our way to make spending money this hard.

[Dino Suegiù]

Originally Posted by Burnette

You're overthinking it bro, one dude buying a bicycle and that's all it is. Any effects felt are to the buyer, sellers could care less about one sale lost or gained based on archaic arguments.

Geez people, it's bicycles, we shouldn't go out of our way to make spending money this hard.

How am I "overthinking it", sorry? Bro? No.

Ethics are personal, and so whether one's acquisition (or not, i.e boycott) affects the "offending company" (or not) has really nothing at all to do with the core issue. Arguments related to ethics are certainly not archaic, in any case. Just look around the current world, right?

The op stated that it is an ethical question, for him or her. So, why try to define that person's ethics then? If the op wants to buy a Trek, fine. That is obviously entirely their own choice. How that choice relates to their ethics only they can know. That's all.

[Burnette]

Originally Posted by Dino Suegiù

How am I "overthinking it", sorry? Bro? No.

Ethics are personal, and so whether one's acquisition (or not, i.e boycott) affects the "offending company" (or not) has really nothing at all to do with the core issue. Arguments related to ethics are certainly not archaic, in any case. Just look around the current world, right?

The op stated that it is an ethical question, for him or her. So, why try to define that person's ethics then? If the op wants to buy a Trek, fine. That is obviously entirely their own choice. How that choice relates to their ethics only they can know. That's all.

Well, when it's time to go out for dinner we're taking my bus because otherwise we would all starve mulling over all of the baggage of the restaurants if left up to such musings.

[echappist]

Originally Posted by Burnette

As you have shown yourself to be a tax dodger and therefore hate America I can no longer buy anything from you in the classifieds.

Just kidding, get your Trek and ride the hell out of it. If you have the resources to enjoy luxuries don't let the squabbles of strangers impede on the fun.

And post up pictures and thoughts of the bike when you get it. New bike day, now that's fun!

guilty as charged

will post up when i get it; might be a while though. I'm on an one-in/one-out policy, as i have to limit the number of bikes I have.

[Burnette]

Originally Posted by echappist

guilty as charged

will post up when i get it; might be a while though. I'm on an one-in/one-out policy, as i have to limit the number of bikes I have.

Great! Look forward to it whenever you pull the trigger. I didn't care for the look of the older Treks but that aero Madone is the bomb! I really like it and Trek has so many color options too. Ride reports have been favorable and if I were to go that route my local dealer is an awesome guy and would work with me.

I'm locked into save mode for now though and will live through you for the moment, Ha!

Take care and I'll see what ya do down the road.

[OtayBW]

The thing that I find kind of dumb, or unfortunate, about all this (Trek = 'bad guy' nothwithstanding) is that there are SO many people out there who just go to the local shop and plunk down $XXXX to $XXXXX+ on a Brand T, or S, of G, etc. without knowing or caring about all the other great options out there. Good for the shop, but it seems like a lot of the mainstream bike biz has largely become the 'fast food' option....

[Burnette]

Originally Posted by OtayBW

The thing that I find kind of dumb, or unfortunate, about all this (Trek = 'bad guy' nothwithstanding) is that there are SO many people out there who just go to the local shop and plunk down $XXXX to $XXXXX+ on a Brand T, or S, of G, etc. without knowing or caring about all the other great options out there. Good for the shop, but it seems like a lot of the mainstream bike biz has largely become the 'fast food' option....

Online sales will continue to rise and eventually rule and by going that route you see how saturated the bicycle biz is with so many brands and models.

Go to Adrenaline bikes or Wrench Science and look at all the brands there and even they don't carry everything. There's tons more out there beyond that.

IMO though even if you do go SpechTrekonndale you're likely getting a good bike, so it's not like there's a great loss by going that route at all. They make great stuff.

[OtayBW]

Originally Posted by Burnette

Online sales will continue to rise and eventually rule and by going that route you see how saturated the bicycle biz is with so many brands and models.

Go to Adrenaline bikes or Wrench Science and look at all the brands there and even they don't carry everything. There's tons more out there beyond that.

IMO though even if you do go SpechTrekonndale you're likely getting a good bike, so it's not like there's a great loss by going that route at all. They make great stuff.

Whether they make a great bike or not is not my point. Some people love McDonalds, too. Not my cup of tea.

[Burnette]

Originally Posted by OtayBW

Whether they make a great bike or not is not my point. Some people love McDonalds, too. Not my cup of tea.

Well, they do indeed make great bikes and it's great we have what I would wager is almost too many choices with many being good ones. It's like there's so many flavors of great tea that you couldn't try them all in a year.

[fogrider]

Originally Posted by echappist

So here's the deal. My current race bike is about 5 years, and its components are falling apart. Left shifter is near the end of its service life, front derailleur doesn't really work that well (the braze-on is flexy), and the pinch bolt on the front brake broke from erosion. All could be fixed, but it feels more like that any more I spent on it is less I can spend on a Di2 bike. It still has a bit of life left, but I'm beginning to think that I should get a new bike and go Di2.

THoughts?

if you want a new bike, take your time and ride as much as you can. but I have rebuilt bikes and they ride like new! or it's pretty easy to get SRAM etap shifting systems and you're in business.

[93KgBike]

Wait a year, then buy a Cannondale SystemSix

[rodney]

Originally Posted by oldpotatoe

?? At the risk of this becoming a 'doping by dikcs', thread.

No doubt I have higher ethics than you too. Take your drugs elsewhere.

[echappist]

Originally Posted by 93KgBike

Wait a year, then buy a Cannondale SystemSix

I dont like disc brakes