Redwood Summer was officially over, but the fight to save the last remaining old growth redwoods in both Mendocino and Humboldt County was nowhere near finished. With the November election looming where the fate of no less than four ballot initiatives (Proposition 128, Big Green; Proposition 130, Forests Forever; and their corporate industry sponsored counter initiatives, Proposition 135, Big Brown, and Proposition 138, Big Stump) that could affect the state of California’s legal process for protecting forests, and all of the lawsuits—no less than ten—holding up Louisiana Pacific THPs on the North Coast, the situation in northwestern California’s timber dependent counties remained very tense indeed. The new rules enacted to protect the Northern Spotted Owl and the “New Directions” policies enacted at the CDF added further fuel to the fire, a fire that had been started long ago by capitalist timber practices that had all but devastated the forests and working conditions in their nearby timber dependent communities for over two generations. The pressures brought on by corporate timber to liquidate as much of their holdings as possible under these circumstances created a powder keg that was ready to explode. In the middle of September, 1990, it finally did.
L-P had been trying to cut THP 1-89-468, Osprey Grove on the Navarro Ridge since before the largest demonstration of Redwood Summer in Fort Bragg, and both L-P and the gyppo operator that had been awarded the cut, Pardini, had been determined to carry the work out. Redwood Summer had slowed the cut long enough for Friends of Osprey Grove to seek and win a temporary injunction, which was quickly overturned by Judge James Luther, but the combined efforts of Redwood Summer and FOG allowed Save the Redwoods League (STRL) to enter into negotiations with L-P to buy the grove, or so they thought. Negotiations dragged on for almost two months, while Redwood Summer took center stage, with much back and forth but no agreement.[1] At one point, L-P offered the grove to STRL if environmentalists would agree to drop the other lawsuits holding up the nine other THPs in the region, a condition that STRL executive director, John DeWitt, called “absurd and unreasonable”[2] Talks between the two parties continued regardless, however, and during the week of September 2-8, 1990, STRL director John DeWitt offered to buy Osprey Grove and the surrounding timberland for “fair market value”[3]
Then, on Tuesday, September 11, 1990, two events happened simultaneously. First, the California State Board of Forestry—which had granted L-P a continuance on nearby THP 1-90-280, Deer Creek, one of the nine other legally contested THPs, also located on the Navarro Ridge—ruled by a 5-1 vote (with Carlton Yee dissenting, naturally) to uphold a decision made by CDF director Harold Walt since the previous BOF meeting to deny the cut, because it violated both the letter and the spirit of the Z’berg-Nejedly Forest Practices Act. In a report that hinted that the CDF had finally decided to choose the scientific method over capitalist ideology, officials had determined that the Deer Creek stand would yield 15 times as much timber if left standing for 40 more years than it would if it were cut immediately. The Board also criticized L-P’s plan as being unclear, and their ruling exhausted L-P’s appeals process on the THP. L-P spokesman Chris Rowney declared that the company would be handicapped because of California’s “new” regulations, which allowed competitors elsewhere not governed by them to have an unfair advantage. That the “new” regulations had existed since 1973 but had never been seriously enforced, or that L-P was a multinational corporation with vast holdings in many states besides California was a fact that everyone knew, however, and Rowney’s protestations failed to move the Board who was finally listening to reason. Rowney also indicated that L-P would appeal both the ruling—though he didn’t specify how—and challenge the State’s authority on the matter in general. Navarro Ridge resident Patricia Schiferal, on the other hand, was elated, stating, “We applaud the (CDF) finally coming forward and enforcing the existing laws.”[4] Gail Lucas of the Sierra Club was very active in the fight to save Deer Creek.
Meanwhile, L-P moved back into Osprey Grove and began logging it, illegally. Early on Wednesday morning, Steve Heckeroth once again heard the sound of chainsaws cutting in the grove, about a half-mile from his home.[5] L-P had evidently broken off negotiations with Save the Redwoods League. Heckeroth, who had contacted Redwood Summer organizers after the discovery of Osprey Grove back in July, once again contacted activists to try and halt the logging using direct action. He also contacted attorney Rod Jones who filed a temporary restraining order in Mendocino County Superior Court to try and halt the cut.[6] The surprised Heckeroth recounted, “I figured it was such a small section, they would just let it go. I didn’t think they would come back here with a vengeance.”[7] He further declared, “We heard them on Wednesday, but judging by the amount of work they did, they must have been here on Tuesday too.”[8] Zack Stenz documented what happened next:
“Steve Heckeroth went with his video camera to check on the grove and was met with a torrent of verbal abuse from Pardini’s loggers, who were in the process of cutting the Grove. The neighbors put out the call for assistance, but we were taken by surprise, and were still recovering from Redwood Summer exhaustion. We were only able to muster about a (half) dozen people, and of those only two of us ventured into the woods. I arrived at about 9 AM and attempted to persuade the loggers to stop cutting. Like Steve, I was rewarded with threats and insults. ‘Where are you from?’ asked one logger.
“‘Fort Bragg,’ I answered, evidently surprising him. After a moment’s confusion he spoke again.
“‘Yeah, we’ll be looking for you,’ he said icily. I spent the rest of the morning darting through the upper half of the grove, which one logging crew cursed me and others tried to encircle me. When they came perilously close, I would exit out the side of the Grove, wait a few minutes, then reenter the woods and start the chase over again. It didn’t stop the cutting, but I hope it slowed them down a bit as each minute the loggers chased me was one minute they weren’t cutting an ancient redwood. Finally the top borders of the grove was ringed with loggers and security people, including L-P’ s Richard Goss, who warned me not to reenter, and owner [Mancher] Pardini, who dared me to reenter the Grove, presumably so he could beat the living day-lights out of me. ‘Come on,’ Pardini said, ‘I’ll even let you have the first punch.’ I kindly declined his offer, and on the advice of the neighbors and fellow Earth First!er, I didn’t renter the woods alone that day.
“Logging stopped about 2 pm that day, though whether from our actions or the brisk winds that sprang up that afternoon is unknown. From the top of Osprey Grove the damage didn’t look very severe; logging had been concentrated toward the bottom of the Grove (and up to 200 feet outside of the area marked on the timber harvest plan as it turned out.) That evening three of us entered the Grove to inspect the damage. It was disheartening; over sixty percent of the grove had been wiped out. The living forest we had defended in July, with its abundant wildlife and rich multilayered canopy was now a wasteland, the soil ripped by machines and open to the sky. The opposite side of the valley, once obscured by greenery, was now in open view, revealing the scarred hillsides from an older timber cut; one clearcut staring at another. As I looked up at the blue sky above I saw a lone osprey circling overhead, surveying the remains of the forest named in this honor.”[9]
L-P’s Registered Professional Forester, Lee Susan, who supervised the cut, later claimed that he didn’t recall who made the decision to reenter the grove and resume cutting, though he described the order as coming from “somewhere up the chain of command”, and that he knew several days in advance of the order. When asked why he didn’t inform the neighbors, FOG, or STRL, Susan retorted, “We didn’t notify the neighbors. Why should we give them a chance to chain themselves to the trees and vandalize our equipment. That’s like putting your ‘Kick me’ sign out in advance. We didn’t want to give them advance notice to work up a bunch of shenanigans.”[10] Meanwhile, Superior Court Judge James Luthor once again denied Jones’ request for a TRO on logging in Osprey Grove, so Jones and co-counsel Carol O’Connor, of San Francisco, filed an appeal in the First District Court of Appeals in San Francisco.[11]
On September 13, Zack Stenz, his mother (Anna Marie Stenberg), and three other unnamed forest defenders reentered the grove to try and halt further logging.[12] Stenz’s account continued:
“(W)e were determined to do what we could, so the five of us spread out along the top border of the Grove at about 6:30 am. Again we tried to speak with the loggers and again we were verbally abused and threatened. Though we were at times perilously close to the trees being cut, the loggers showed no sign of slowing or stopping. I don’t know what was more horrifying, watching the ancient trees being cut or witnessing the attitude of the people cutting them down. They enjoyed what they were doing, and wanted us to know it. ‘The joy of malice,’ one person called it, and I had to agree. Did they care that they were destroying some of Mendocino county’s last old growth? ‘There’s millions of board feet set aside in parks,’ a logger said. He couldn’t bring himself to use the word tree or forest to describe redwood ecosystems, only cold hard economic terms like ‘board feet’ or ‘standing inventory’.”[13]
The conduct of Pardini, his crew, Lee Susan, and other L-P personnel was captured on videotape by Earth First! – IWW Local #1 member Kay Rudin[14] and quickly shown on a local Mendocino County cable access TV news show.[15] Once again, L-P officials had shown that their alleged “Statement of Principles” was empty talk.[16] Susan who had attacked at least one demonstrator with an axe during the first round of actions in Osprey Grove in July[17] bristled at the claim that his crew had been abusive, arguing instead that the crew had been provoked. He declared, “I’m not going to criticize the crew. There are things that have come out of my lips that shouldn’t have, but I don’t think it’s right to stir things up, then sit back and film them.” He then claimed that the loggers and his fellow L-P employees had been taunted by Stenz, et. al. for having “yellow balls,” which was indeed a pejorative comment that some Greens had come up with inspired by the Yellow adherents who advertized their allegiance to corporate timber by displaying yellow colored Styrofoam balls on their automobile antennae.[18] Lee Susan was hardly one to talk however, given his affinity for axe handles and for his hot temper. Just recently, L-P’s RFP and his wife, Teri, had been giving a live interview to reporters from San Francisco Bay Area PBS TV station KQED Channel 9 that had been watched by—among many others—longtime Albion environmentalist Sam Miller. Miller had been so incensed by what she considered to be bald faced lies—no doubt many of them official L-P pronouncements—that she immediately rushed over to the scene to challenge the pair. The KQED camera crew had concluded recording the Susans but resumed filming and—according to Miller—Lee Susan “flipped out”, yelling at Miller, including dismissing her opinions as those of “an untrained housewife who knew nothing (of forestry)”[19]
Susan continued, “I think (the crew) handled things pretty well considering the conditions we’ve put up with all summer long.”[20] The videotape didn’t support Susan’s accusations that the crew had been provoked, however, and showed that the opposite was in fact the case; Stenz elaborated on what actually happened in greater detail:
“The carnage we witnessed and the callousness of the people perpetrating it did take its toll on us; we all cried, one man left the woods and vomited, he was so overcome with nausea and repulsion at what we were seeing. And yes, some of us did become verbally abusive, after a time, and none of feel good about it. However, we were never threatening toward anyone, and given the circumstances, it was the safest and sanest way to deal with the rage and frustration we all felt, especially when we left the Grove and encountered—Pardini and our old nemesis Lee Susan lounging against a tree with a smirk on his face. ‘How’s Judi’s pelvis?’ Pardini asked, then laughed. Did we respond in an abusive manner? Yes, but I don’t think anyone could blame us at that point. Given the enormity of Susan’s and Pardini’s crimes, against the forest, against the neighbors, and against the demonstrators (including Lee Susan’s earlier assault on demonstrators with an axe handle) our verbal abuse was a restrained response.”
“At that point some of us proceeded to Steve’s house in check on the status of the legal case. An appeal had been filed in San Francisco that morning, and word on its result was expected any moment. A matter of minutes would determine if there was anything left to save.
“In the meantime, Anna Marie and another activist had returned to the grove, with Kay Rudin videotaping the proceedings. Susan and L-P security men Jack Sweeley and Richard Goss went after them, at which point Anna Marie dived into the hollowed out interior of a giant redwood while Kay warned the men away by informing them that they had no legal right to touch them. Legally, the men were obligated to stop the logging and have the sheriff’s department come and remove the demonstrators. They continually refused to do so, even when asked by us.”[21]
Susan claimed that “there was no written L-P policy about dealing with trespassers,” but his job was to ensure that no unsafe practices were allowed. Apparently attacking a “trespasser” with an axe handle or falling trees within less than twenty feet of a protester doesn’t constitute an “unsafe” practice.[22] Susan, of course, shifted all of the blame to the protesters arguing that it was they who were endangering the loggers by “distracting (the latter) from paying strict attention to their job.” Susan also claimed that the protesters should have known better, because the protesters were always in constant danger of large broken off limbs hanging from some of the other trees, elaborating, “Some of them weigh up to 100 pounds and they can come down, dropping 100 to 200 feet. That’s why they call them widow-makers.”[23] Redwood Summer demonstrators were well aware of the danger, however, having covered much of the hazards extant in logging sites in their nonviolence trainings. Stenberg recounted her experiences stating:
“Someone had to witness the slaughter of those trees. I sat in the ‘Cathedral Tree’, I took my stand there; it wasn’t going to go. When they were taking down the trees I didn’t feel any difference between me and the trees.
“They told us to move when they were going to fall a tree next to us, and I told them if they were going to murder the tree they might as well murder me. But still they felled it. And my eyes are still infected by being so close to the flying saw dust when it came down.
“They really wanted the ‘Cathedral Tree’ because that’s where all the original arrests were made when LP first tried to cut the old-growth there and that was the tree closest to the neighbor’s hearts. It was a total and vindictive cut.”[24]
Lee Susan admitted that a tree had been felled near Stenberg but defended this action by claiming that it had been felled downhill, and therefore was not a hazard to her.[25]
Heckeroth remained at home, awaiting an update, while Stenz returned to Osprey Grove to resume his defense of the forest stand under L-P’s continuing assault:
“When I arrived, Kay and Anna Marie were in a standoff with the men, while another demonstrator kept running around another part of the grove distracting the loggers. ‘I’d like to drill him a third eye,’ one logger said. When I saw three men grouped threateningly around my mother, I got extremely agitated again. Though Sweeley and Susan were unbelievably hateful, I persuaded Goss to let me in to see my mother, ostensibly ‘to talk her out’ And indeed I asked her if she wished to leave, and when she refused, I sat down in the tree and stayed with her.
“The loggers continued to log, sometimes barely twenty feet away from our faces. We stayed put, determined to save at least the tree we were sitting in. We got depressed. We cried. We tried to lift our spirits by singing… The other demonstrator kept distracting the loggers. He was so distraught that at one point he suggested that he steal a logger’s gas can, douse himself, and threaten to immolate himself unless the loggers stopped. ‘Don’t,’ my mother said, ‘they’ll only throw a cigarette at you.’”[26]
Stenberg and Stenz sat in the hollowed out Cathedral Tree singing Happy Birthday, since it was Stenz’s twenty first that September 13th, and what Kay Rudin would later describe as “the worst ever rendition of” The Internationale.[27] Stenberg recalls:
“(The loggers were) totally divorced from their feelings and have probably been since early childhood. They weren’t even making beds on which to fall these trees. It was what Zack called, ‘a feeding frenzy.’ I asked the loggers, right after they took out the tree right next to us, ‘How did it feel to kill your grandmother?’
“And they responded, ‘I loved it, I fucking loved it!’ The order had come to stop and they were ignoring it. Zack and I stood right in front of their chain saws as they were revving them up. There were only five of us.”[28]
At this point the loggers responded, “Fuck you!; fuck your grandmother!; fuck the trees!”, which was recounted in a poem written by Mimi Graham after she witnessed much of the carnage from Kay Rudin’s tape.[29] Meanwhile, however, 4th District Supervisor Liz Henry, who had not spoken out at the rally in Fort Bragg in solidarity with Judi Bari and Darryl Cherney despite her daughter, Lisa’s admonishment to do so, finally did act. She had seen Rudin’s videotape on the local cable channel and was livid. The footage of the loggers falling trees—at the orders of Lee Susan and Jack Sweeley—had created quite a stir, even taking up 90 minutes of discussion on a local community radio station’s morning talk show.[30] Henry contacted L-P, eventually reaching Western Division Manager Joe Wheeler. “I expressed my dismay, my distress. I told him I was concerned about the community reaction to this method of cutting with no notice and he agreed to stop (the) falling,” she reported. This development reached the ears of Steve Heckeroth who returned to the grove to inform Pardini’s crew and L-P’s staff about the decision.[31] Zack Stenz recalled what happened next:
“When Goss was told of the order he replied ‘I have to hear it from him.’
“‘Go call him,’ Steve replied, and Goss left, presumably to use the phone. He returned shortly, and in the meantime, logging had stopped. We all breathed a little easier, and when a logger walked in front of an old growth tree fifteen feet away, we assumed it was to urinate. Then he fired up his chainsaw, and twenty minutes later, a four hundred year old tree was changed from a living organism to a length of dead wood while we all watched incredulously. ‘I love it, I fuckin’ love it’ a logger yelled as the tree fell. Then Goss gave the word for work to stop.”[32]
Lee Susan conceded that he allowed Pardini’s crew to keep cutting the grove even after Heckeroth informed them of the stop work order, saying, “They’ve been telling us we can’t cut this for weeks and months. They’ve told us that about 100 times, but we have no confidence at all in what they say.” Susan only agreed to stop the cut after receiving confirmation on his radio. He claimed that no further trees were cut after that, but this, too was an untruth.[33] Stenz’s recalls:
“The men turned to leave, and on their way out, a man fired up his saw to cut another ancient redwood; this time, our paralysis dissolved. Simultaneously, without even thinking, my mother and I ran down the hill and jumped between the chainsaw and the tree. ‘What are you gonna do?’ the logger said, revving his saw.
“‘Stay right here,’ Anna Marie replied.
“‘Be a hell of a mess,’ Lee Susan said, but despite his threats, the logger shut down his saw and left. He fired up his saw one more time, making a shallow cut in a tree on the hill above us while another logger yelled ‘down below,’ threatening to fall the tree on us. ‘One last act of terrorism,’ was how a demonstrator described it. Early that afternoon legal word came in, the logging of Osprey Grove was illegal. But by that time it was almost too late. Of the original grove, only 12 old redwoods and one old Douglas fir remained.”[34]
Stenberg and her son remained in the grove until they were certain the loggers would not return that day.[35] Sheriff’s deputies had been called to the scene by L-P, but they made no arrests, because they arrived about the time that logging had been halted.[36] It was an empty victory. Anna Marie Stenberg recalled:
“We only made a small dent; we saved 12 out of the 60 old-growth trees that were originally there. That day was Zack’s birthday and the (14th) was mine. I totally identified with those trees, those trees and I were the same, and they still are. They murdered a bunch of my brothers and sisters and grandmothers and grandfathers. Someone had to witness this, and I just sat there and watched and cried.”[37]
Anna Marie turned 43 on Friday the 14th of September. That day, Liz Henry toured the site with Dave Bartlett, a representative of the State Parks and Recreation Department. Henry relayed that Save the Redwoods League was still interested in buying the grove—or what was left of it—to convert it into parkland. However, it would be small consolation if it happened. The Supervisor commented, “(T)he grove is pretty much gone. There are still a few scattered old-growth trees and a number of very large stumps. Now it’s too little, too late.”[38] Save the Redwoods League executive director, John DeWitt confirmed the supervisor’s statements, declaring, “We’ll probably still try to buy it as long as it isn’t too chewed up. They still haven’t said they will sell it. They have only said they will do a stay of execution.”[39]
L-P spokesman Shep Tucker issued a half-hearted apology[40], claiming that L-P was unaware that anyone was still interested in buying the grove, an explanation many considered an unlikely story.[41] Said Tucker, “Because of the number of timber harvest plans in litigation, and because of the appeals situation, we need to carry on and get these logs to the mill. (Save the Redwoods League) is not interested in it themselves and no one else in the community has contacted us.” John DeWitt, in about as mild a response as one could give, countered Tucker’s lie, declaring, “They’re not being square. We’ve acted in good faith. We’ve attempted to purchase the property at fair market value and Louisiana Pacific is determined to cut it down. It’s their property and we’ve done all we can do.” DeWitt insisted that the League had sent L-P a letter the previous week still offering to purchase the grove, and that L-P had not responded at all, let alone communicated that they were not interested in the offer. “It’s unfortunate, because it represents a breakdown of what, in the past, was a fairly cooperative relationship”, mourned DeWitt.[42] Tucker later conceded that he “misspoke.” Joe Wheeler offered that L-P had renounced its demand to STRL to drop the other nine lawsuits in exchange for purchasing Osprey Grove, declaring, “That’s long since forgotten.”[43] Lee Susan was less conciliatory. He suggested that he contested area was too steep for a park—which missed the point entirely, because the goal of preservation of forestlands in parks was not necessarily intended to allow greater access to humans for recreational purposes, but rather to sward rare and endangered ecosystems the highest level of legal protections available.[44] Susan also trotted out the oft-repeated canard that “There were enough old growth redwoods were preserved in parks anyway”[45] Susan opined, “I don’t get all teary eyed about another old-growth tree.”[46]
Many of the Mendocino County coastal residents were outraged at L-P’s callousness and the conduct of Pardini’s logging crew. Judi Bari suspected that the timing of the cut had everything to do with the fact that most of the local Redwood Summer organizers were thoroughly fatigued after three months of nonstop campaigns and many of the supporting activists who had been called in from elsewhere had gone home.[47] Zack Stenz declared, “I’m…trying to come to terms with some of the grief and shock that I still feel from witnessing Osprey Grove’s destruction, for though the acreage cut was small, the magnitude of the crime committed there cannot be understated.”[48] Steve Heckeroth called the cut “mean-spirited” and indicated that L-P was simply acting out of revenge and using Pardini’s logging crew as pawns.[49] William Boosinger, in an open letter to various publications, wrote:
“Louisiana-Pacific, in a one week cutting frenzy, laid waste the majestic 1,000 year-old giants of Osprey Grove. And for what? The profit generated by the destruction of one of the earth’s irreplaceable treasures will merely pay a month’s salary to the ‘outsider,’ Harry Merlo. Insatiable greed and short-term profit drove the destruction, just as they always have…
“Do we need greater legal protection from the corporate rip-off artists? Absolutely! If the ‘wood products’ corporations were truly interested in long-term protection of all environmental resources, we wouldn’t need volumes of regulations governing their behavior. Yet, we know that every concession to ecological responsibility ever made by these raiders was forced upon them by laws and courts.
“Ancient virgin redwood forests are not a renewable resource. They are in incredibly complex biological ecosystem that evolves only once in the life of the earth.
“I am angered by the callous destruction of Osprey Grove, but below my anger is a profound sadness as I witness the rapid degradation of our entire biosphere. Osprey Grove is simply a microcosm of our larger ineffable loss.”[50]
Attorney Rod Jones had filed various legal motions, on behalf of FOG including a contempt order in the Division 4 Appellate Court, which was eventually honored. Jones offered compelling evidence, as provided by licensed surveyor David Russell—who had been hired by the neighbors living near Osprey Grove—that L-P had violated the conditions of their THP. THP 1-89-468 had shown 2.8 acres slated to be clearcut. A later survey, conducted by the company had revealed double that amount. Russell’s survey, however, showed that the company had clearcut between 6.4 and 7.7 cares, nearly triple their allotted amount. L-P had been caught red handed in yet another lie.[51] A judge issued a legal ruling that L-P had indeed been logging illegally in Osprey Grove, though—of course—it was a case of fixing the barn door after the horse had bolted.[52]
L-P wasn’t done angering the community, however, and the corporation insisted that it be allowed to remove the remaining downed logs from the logging site, before it would agree to a sale to Save The Redwoods League, who refused.[53] Friends of Osprey Grove were absolutely incensed, and wrote an open letter declaring that L-P was bargaining in bad faith and was utterly disingenuous about any ostensible interest they had in selling the grove, especially given the fact that the latter had lied when they claimed that they nothing of any recent offers to buy it. They specifically singled out company president Harry Merlo, suspecting that it was he, himself who had ordered the cut. The letter began:
“When your company approached us about this THP more than a year ago, and when your representatives testified in court recently on this suit, they claimed they were ‘good neighbors’ and wanted to treat everyone fairly. It is hard for us to consider Louisiana Pacific any kind of neighbor given the devastation caused by your chainsaws and workers.
“Now your law firm in Ukiah has asked our lawyer to talk with us about agreeing to bypass the stay order we obtained on your logging of rare old growth redwood and fir trees in Osprey Grove. Despite the total lack of professionalism and un business like behavior of your company in never bothering to notify Mr. John DeWitt of Save the Redwoods League that the negotiations had ended our lawyer still agreed to convene a meeting and did so.
“We met for long hours on Friday evening, September 14th, and again on Saturday. We met because your company asked us to although we rather doubt that we owe you such courtesy. We talked at length, attempting to insure some objectivity and a clear perspective.
“We will not agree to log removal. You had the opportunity to remove the logs that were already cut and on the decks, in fact we were informed that you would be coming in to remove already downed logs during the negotiations, but instead you chose to cut down the old growth.
“We feel wary of letting your company back into the grove during the stay since you didn’t act in good faith by letting Mr. DeWitt or our lawyer, Mr. Jones, know that negotiations were over. In a letter mailed on Friday, September 7th, Save the Redwoods League again offered to buy the land, yet there were four days of operations in the grove that following week despite Joe Wheeler’s receipt of the offer. Also, your cutting of old growth continued on Thursday long after workers knew management had agreed to a halt. We feel that we are dealing with a group of people who say what they think we want to hear, yet do what they please. If you so desperately want those trees you have killed, then we suggest you enter into immediate negotiations with Mr. DeWitt for the sale of the land. At least the few trees that you were stopped from cutting will serve as some symbolic memorial to what once existed here. Further, if you really want to be a ‘neighbor,’ then why don’t you disclose to the public what other old growth stands are tucked away on your property, particularly near Highway 128, and open discussions for a sale of those as well.”[54]
Lee Susan had publically denied that L-P’s cut had been made out of revenge, despite a ruling against L-P made the same week as the logging activity in the grove, because Pardini’s crew had begun logging before the ruling had been issued.[55] Even this claim fell flat, however, and FOG presented substantial evidence that the cut had indeed been made out of spite:
“You…state in your 1989 Annual Report to your shareholders that L-P’s preferred product is not old growth, but ‘plentiful, noncontroversial trees without much commercial value, the smaller diameter logs.’ Of course, if this is true one wonders why your company found it so necessary to conduct the old growth massacre that began last Monday, Sept. 10th and why the downed timber now is so very important to you.
“We’ve seen your huge stockpiles of sawlogs at your various yards around the county; we’ve never seen so many stored in all of our collective year residing in this county. Was it necessary to surprise us with chainsaws just to collect some more? Was it, as one suspects, vindictiveness—taking out your corporate anger for losses on the THPs in the courts and before the Board of Forestry last week? If not, then step forward publicly and tell us why you permitted Mr. Wheeler, Mr. Morris, Mr. Susan and others to behave so disgracefully.
“We accepted our loss in the trial court with dignity. We issued no press releases. We attempted to facilitate the sale of the land for fair market value as the best resolution for all parties. Wasn’t the money good enough? Your corporate behavior has drawn the line.[56]
Ironically, Gail Lucas had little to say about Osprey Grove, though she was one of the nearby residents who could have spoken out. Bruce Anderson went as far to suggest that Lucas had cut a deal with L-P over Deer Creek in exchange for her silence over Osprey Grove, though there was no substantive proof of this.[57] Lucas did publically offer to compromise with the force of corporate timber in March of 1991, however, in a “deal” that was little better than the so-called “compromise” negotiated by Bocso, Keene, Hauser, Merlo and Hurwitz in March of 1990, so such a compromise is not out of the question.[58]
Earth First!ers and IWW members wasted no time negotiating with a corporation that had no intention of negotiating honestly and used the slaughter of Osprey Grove to kick off their follow-up to Redwood Summer, which they decided to call “Corporate Fall”.[59] The idea had already been hatched prior to the falling of Osprey Grove and was, in fact, originally named as part of a humorous response by Naomi Wagner’s partner to the serious question of what came after Redwood Summer (the answer was, naturally, “Corporate Fall”, which was to be followed by “Nuclear Winter” and “Spring James Brown”—which was a tongue-in-cheek pun relating to the “Godfather of Soul’s” incarceration due to allegations of tax evasion at the time).[60] Northern California Earth First!ers humorously declared a four-year moratorium on naming campaigns after seasons following that revelation.[61] Darryl Cherney[62] and Richard Johnson[63] had both independently referred to Corporate Fall at the onset of September, well before the slaughter of Osprey Grove. The organizers called for a rally on Monday, September 17, 1990 at the Mendocino County Courthouse in Ukiah. 50 demonstrators shoed up demanding “L-P Out of Humboldt County” and promised that their next demonstration would take place at either the office, or perhaps one of the many extra homes of Harry Merlo located in the area.[64] The Redwood Summer-turned-Corporate Fall organizers had been inspired by a statement made by IWW folksinger Utah Phillips’ in his first conversation with Judi Bari, that the Earth wasn’t dying so much as it was being killed and those doing the killing (the corporate chiefs) had names and addresses.[65] Judi Bari, making her first public appearance since the protest at the FBI offices in San Francisco echoed Phillips’ statement and added, “These are not (just) faceless corporations.”[66] Bari reiterated that activists were aware that “trees and workers are both victims” of corporate timber.[67]
The focus of Corporate Fall, therefore, would be to “bring the protests right to the posh offices and lavish homes of people who are actually responsible for the slaughter of the planet.”[68] The corporate press was, understandably, not amused. The Eureka Times-Standard denounced it as “another way for Earth First (sic), International (sic) Workers of the World, and other ultra-socialist organizations to raid the public coffers and consciousness with their myopic quest to save the world from itself.”[69] Members of Mother’s Watch responded in a likewise, hysterical fashion.[70] The Times-Standard made no denunciations of the latter, even when they continued to campaign, even though they had engaged in actual acts of terrorism, including their attempted blacklists.[71] That Earth First!ers and IWW members had attempted to raise hardship funds for Pardini’s crew resulting from their blockade of the logging in Osprey Grove back in July was evidently not worth mentioning by corporate timber’s mouthpieces.[72]
Thomas Loop accused Earth First! of making a mountain out of a molehill.[73] Evidently Loop didn’t think the conduct of Pardini’s crew, Lee Susan, or L-P warranted any discussion at all. Either that, or he wanted to do what he could to prevent discussion, hoping that the matter would die, because—once again—the Yellows had thoroughly disgraced themselves. As if to emphasize the point, at a meeting of the Mendocino Community Cable Television board meeting, held the night of Wednesday, September 19, 1990 at Fort Bragg High School, Lee Susan, Thomas Loop, and John Cimalino—the erstwhile District 4 Supervisor who had retired in 1988 only to be replaced by Liz Henry—appeared together to denounce the airing of Kay Rudin’s videotape because it contained “foul language”, notably loggers cussing wildly. They demanded that the footage not be shown again. Though they based their arguments on “community morality”, it was likely that their actual motivation was to keep the truth of what happened hidden.[74]
L-P’s actions had so thoroughly angered the nearby Navarro residents and many more had been further angered after having seen the video that the company found it prudent to issue and official apology.[75] Two weeks after the cut, L-P’s Western Division Manager Joe Wheeler issued a press release including the following statements:
“I would like to apologize to the citizens of Mendocino County and in particular our neighbors adjacent to Osprey Grove for the confusion regarding the disposition of that timberland and the THP. I feel there was a perceived arrogance on L-P’s part because I misread the situation and I apologize.
“We thought that when the original Temporary Restraining Order (TRO) was settled in our favor, we could proceed. We proceeded in the Grove roughly two weeks later after not hearing directly from Friends of Osprey Grove…
“Our Resource Manager toured the property with concerned citizens. We also contacted John Dewitt of Save the Redwoods League and asked to re-open negotiations without media involvement. A formal apology was extended and written to Mr. Dewitt for our prior communication to the media. A Save the Redwoods representative met with our Chief Forester this past weekend to review the grove.
“The recent filing of a contempt order is unwarranted and unnecessary in light of our most recent progress. There seems to be a communications problem regarding the process of the serving of that order, but the public can be assured that we were not falling trees.
“We would like to have the opportunity to remove the downed timber and install the necessary water bar protections to insure water quality is maintained pursuant to CDF regulations.”[76]
To many this apology sounded hollow and merely designed to save face—which was an indicator of how badly L-P had misjudged their standing in the community outside of the Yellow shirted amen corner. The Friends of Osprey Grove were not satisfied.[77] Still incensed from the scenes she witnessed, Anna Marie Stenberg likewise dismissed the apology as being “as empty as Osprey Grove”.[78] Together with Naomi Wagner, Stenberg demanded—in the name of Earth First! – IWW Local #1, that Harry Merlo, Shep Tucker, Robert Pardini, and Lee Susan issue a more genuine apology, including express apologies to:
“The Ospreys whose habitat was destroyed; the Spotted Owls whose habitat was diminished and degraded; the defenders of the grove for their personal sacrifice and risk; the videographer whose efforts to record and make public the events in Osprey Grove have been attacked and censored; all future generations of all species for the destruction of the Redwood ecosystem and its genetic heritage.”[79]
Wagner and Stenberg further declared:
“Nothing can restore the life of Osprey Grove as it was and could have remained. Apologies are not enough. L-P continues to violate the California Practices Act and the standards of good faith, in our communities. Therefore we demand the following:
“That L-P now set an example of restraint by immediately ceasing to cut any old growth trees—Redwood, Fir, Yew, or other, on any land; that L-P allow an independent agency to provide the public, with a complete inventory of the old growth it currently holds hostage; (and) that L-P specifically use the proceeds from the trees cut in Osprey Grove to establish a fund to compensate their workers for the impending layoffs that will result from their destruction of the forests.”[80]
This was too much for certain members of the Yellow Ribbon Coalition, and in a moment of chutzpah, Teri Marie Susan (Lee Susan’s wife), Larry D Galiani, and Tommye Gunter demanded that the Greens issue L-P and Pardini an apology for various perceived grievances. These included the following:
“For using ‘Osprey Grove’ for a smear campaign; for misleading the public by misnaming the five acres where there are no osprey or owl nests; for continuing to pass on untruths that neighbors were not aware of the small area of old growth contained in the THP; For misrepresenting to the public: (a) this stand’s suitability for a park—the trees are not of park-like quality. Many are dead at the top and burned at the bottom. (b) This stand’s suitability as a biological study area—the contested area is only five acres in size, far too small to conduct meaningful biological studies. (c) Use as a tree seed area—seeds from the best seed sources are already being grown in forest nurseries. (d) To save the watershed—an area this small, near the top of the ridge, would be inconsequential.”[81]
These comments merely showed that Teri Susan et. al were divorced from scientific reality, and the 4th Appellate Court’s ruling backed up the claims made by the residents.[82] Teri Susan and her cohorts were not finished however, further demanding apologies for:
“For degrading and insulting (on radio talk shows and in the press) forester Lee Susan, logger Pardini, his crew, and the industry. These verbal attacks are on cassettes; For trespassing on private property in order to protest; For distracting the loggers by harassment as they were falling trees, which is already a dangerous job; For obscene language yelled at loggers as they worked, in order to deliberately provoke responses which were illegally videotaped and then edited to delete the provoking causes.”[83]
This was a clear case of the pot calling the kettle black again. The obscene language uttered by the defenders of Osprey Grove had been thoroughly explained by Zack Stenz, and in any case, Rudin’s video revealed that the loggers had been far worse. The notion that Kay Rudin had the ability to painstaking edit out the alleged “provocations” by the protestors in such a short time is laughable. Comments made on the radio by listeners may indeed have been harsh, even hostile, but given the gravity of the situation, understandable, and certainly nowhere near as egregious as deliberately endangering the lives of others as Susan and Pardini had done. Susan, Galiani, and Gunter, also resurrected the accusation that Redwood Summer demonstrators had sabotaged Pardini’s equipment by breaking windows on some of the gyppo operator’s loaders, costing him $250, on July 22, 1990, during the first round of logging at Osprey Grove, but the Mendocino County sheriff’s department found no evidence linking the damage to the demonstrators.[84] They also accused demonstrators of, “implying the trees had been spiked, causing further worry to loggers,” for which there was not one shred of proof or evidence.[85] Certainly the media had never reported any such threat, and they were quick to imply that any spiking, no matter how insignificant or distant from any actual Redwood Summer campaign, was the work of Earth First!.[86] The trio also demanded apologies for:
“For causing two halts and court trials which cost Pardini and his crew thousands of dollars in wages, plus loss of income to the industry, and therefore loss of taxes to government to support public projects. Added to the taxpayer’s burden is the cost or these two trials; for continuing to insist without proof that the timber industry has violated the Forest Practices Act; and for not accepting L-P’s apology as given.”[87]
In the matter of lost wages and income, evidently the three had forgotten about the IWW Local #1 offer to raise funds to compensate Pardini and his crew, an offer at which the Pardini’s scoffed.[88] As for the timber industry’s violation of the Z’berg-Nejedly Forest Practices Act, the independent study conducted by LSA had clearly shown this to be the case.[89] L-P’s apology was useless, in any case, because it wouldn’t bring back Osprey Grove. Local resident Bob Harris was even more blunt in his rejection of L-P’s apparent “apology”, declaring:
“The county’s negative reaction to your recent chainsaw massacre in Osprey Grove wasn’t in response to any perceived arrogance on your part. That would imply that there is some doubt about this action and there is none at all.
“No, the Osprey Grove cut was the plain variety of arrogance, blatant, brutal, reckless, and real. And there for all to see!
“Maybe this kind of public relations drivel works fine in Washington DC where politicians appreciate ambitious double talk. Fortunately for us, this is not DC and people here can see through your propaganda.
“I use paper, live in a wood home, and believe trees are a renewable resource. But they take time to grow. You can’t cut down three times more logs than you grow each year and expect to have a continuous supply of wood.
“Liquidation logging is non-sustaining. I know this sounds simple, but the large timber corporations have been ignoring this fact for years. That’s why various mills are already laying off shifts and closing down in Mendocino County, and will continue to do so whether Proposition 130 passes or not. However, the sooner we taper off overcutting, the quicker we can return to sustained yield.
“It’s now clear that the largest timber corporations in Mendocino County are not going to do this voluntarily, probably because the top-ranking executives live in high-rise apartments in Portland, Houston, or Atlanta, and couldn’t care less about our local economy or environment This is why we need some additional regulations—to control those greedy people and corporations that have already abused their freedom.
“So thanks again, LP, for showing us your true intentions so clearly…”[90]
L-P was still not finished, however. Never one to take responsibility easily, L-P resource manager Robert Morris threatened to sue surveyor David Russell for trespassing onto L-P’s private property and demanded that the licensing board revoke his surveyor’s license. Russell defended his actions citing a civil code that allowed his actions, including entering L-P’s land “without notice” if the company failed to notify neighbors of its actions, which it hadn’t.[91] Zack Stenz was not exaggerating when he declared, “the whole affair from beginning to end (had been) marked by L-P’s lies and deceptions”. Stenz was also insistent that negotiations with L-P were a waste of time, and certainly it looked that way as negotiations and dialog with L-P had been utterly pointless. Stenz believed that the grove could have been saved had more “forest defenders” been ready for mobilization, and he called for the creation of “an environmental SWAT team” for such occasions, echoing, perhaps, the “Minute Men” of the American Revolutionary War of 1776-1783.[92] Judi Bari and Darryl Cherney likewise decried the fact that “Coast libs were calling up radio station KMFB and ‘sending their energy’ instead of their much needed bodies to Osprey Grove.”[93]
Notes:
[1] “Osprey Grove: What Really Happened”, by Zack Stenz, multiple publications, including Anderson Valley Advertiser, October 3, 1990; and Industrial Worker, December 1990; an abridged version appeared in the Samhain / November 1, 1990 edition of the Earth First! Journal.
[2] “Outcry Stops Clear-Cut of Old Growth Redwoods”, by Tobias Young, Santa Rosa Press Democrat, September 14, 1990
[3] “Osprey Grove: What Really Happened”, by Zack Stenz, multiple publications, including Anderson Valley Advertiser, October 3, 1990; and Industrial Worker, December 1990; an abridged version appeared in the Samhain / November 1, 1990 edition of the Earth First! Journal. The quotation marks are in the original text. This is understandable as “market value” of an old growth forest is difficult to establish, and echoing IWW member Jess Grant’s thoughts on the matter, the workers and the community already, by rights, owned it, though likely such claims would not have been recognized by courts who accepted the dictates of private property.
[4] “Logging Ban Stays in Place for L-P”, Associated Press, Santa Rosa Press Democrat, September 12, 1990. Rowney is misidentified as “Riley”.
[5] “L-P Logs Osprey Grove: Saws Surprise Area Residents”, by Tobias Young, Santa Rosa Press Democrat, September 13, 1990
[6] “L-P Slaughters Osprey Grove: Protest Monday, September 17, 1990”, Earth First! leaflet by Judi Bari, published and circulated on or around September 14, 1990.
[7] “L-P Logs Osprey Grove: Saws Surprise Area Residents”, by Tobias Young, Santa Rosa Press Democrat, September 13, 1990
[8] “L-P Fells Old Growth in Osprey Grove”, by Judy Nichols, North Coast News, September 20, 1990.
[9] “Osprey Grove: What Really Happened”, by Zack Stenz, multiple publications, including Anderson Valley Advertiser, October 3, 1990; and Industrial Worker, December 1990; an abridged version appeared in the Samhain / November 1, 1990 edition of the Earth First! Journal.
[10] “L-P Fells Old Growth in Osprey Grove”, by Judy Nichols, North Coast News, September 20, 1990.
[11] “L-P Logs Osprey Grove: Saws Surprise Area Residents”, by Tobias Young, Santa Rosa Press Democrat, September 13, 1990
[12] “Forestry by Revenge”, Press Release, Ecotopia Earth First! Extra, Special Baby Treesus Issue / December 1990.
[13] “Osprey Grove: What Really Happened”, by Zack Stenz, multiple publications, including Anderson Valley Advertiser, October 3, 1990; and Industrial Worker, December 1990; an abridged version appeared in the Samhain / November 1, 1990 edition of the Earth First! Journal.
[14] “The First of Earth First!’s Visits to the Rich and Famous”, by Tom Cahill, Industrial Worker, December 1990 and Earth First! Journal, Brigid / February 2, 1991.
[15] “Here and There in Mendocino County”, by Bruce Anderson, Anderson Valley Advertiser, September 26, 1990.
[16] “L-P Wants Calm from Employees During Protests”, Eureka Times-Standard, June 18, 1990.
[17] “A Boy Named Sue”, from “Here and There in Mendocino County”, by Bruce Anderson, Anderson Valley Advertiser, August 15, 1990.
[18] “Osprey Grove: What Really Happened”, by Zack Stenz, multiple publications, including Anderson Valley Advertiser, October 3, 1990; and Industrial Worker, December 1990; an abridged version appeared in the Samhain / November 1, 1990 edition of the Earth First! Journal.
[19] “Here and There in Mendocino County”, by Bruce Anderson, September 12, 1990.
[20] “L-P Fells Old Growth in Osprey Grove”, by Judy Nichols, North Coast News, September 20, 1990.
[21] “Osprey Grove: What Really Happened”, by Zack Stenz, multiple publications, including Anderson Valley Advertiser, October 3, 1990; and Industrial Worker, December 1990; an abridged version appeared in the Samhain / November 1, 1990 edition of the Earth First! Journal.
[22] “A Boy Named Sue”, from “Here and There in Mendocino County”, by Bruce Anderson, Anderson Valley Advertiser, August 15, 1990.
[23] “L-P Fells Old Growth in Osprey Grove”, by Judy Nichols, North Coast News, September 20, 1990.
[24] “Hot Tubbin at Harry’s: Anna Marie Stenberg”, interview by Lynne Dahl, New Settler Interview, issue #54, December 1990.
[25] “L-P Fells Old Growth in Osprey Grove”, by Judy Nichols, North Coast News, September 20, 1990.
[26] “Osprey Grove: What Really Happened”, by Zack Stenz, multiple publications, including Anderson Valley Advertiser, October 3, 1990; and Industrial Worker, December 1990; an abridged version appeared in the Samhain / November 1, 1990 edition of the Earth First! Journal.
[27] “Forestry by Revenge”, Press Release, Ecotopia Earth First! Extra, Special Baby Treesus Issue / December 1990, and author’s interview with Kay Rudin, February 2011.
[28] “Hot Tubbin at Harry’s: Anna Marie Stenberg”, interview by Lynne Dahl, New Settler Interview, issue #54, December 1990.
[29] “Confessions of a Coward or Where Were We?”, by Mimi Graham, circulated as a leaflet. An incomplete, uncredited version appeared in the Industrial Worker, December 1990.
[30] “Outcry Stops Clear-Cut of Old Growth Redwoods”, by Tobias Young, Santa Rosa Press Democrat, September 14, 1990
[31] “L-P Fells Old Growth in Osprey Grove”, by Judy Nichols, North Coast News, September 20, 1990.
[32] “Osprey Grove: What Really Happened”, by Zack Stenz, multiple publications, including Anderson Valley Advertiser, October 3, 1990; and Industrial Worker, December 1990; an abridged version appeared in the Samhain / November 1, 1990 edition of the Earth First! Journal.
[33] “L-P Fells Old Growth in Osprey Grove”, by Judy Nichols, North Coast News, September 20, 1990.
[34] “Osprey Grove: What Really Happened”, by Zack Stenz, multiple publications, including Anderson Valley Advertiser, October 3, 1990; and Industrial Worker, December 1990; an abridged version appeared in the Samhain / November 1, 1990 edition of the Earth First! Journal.
[35] “Forestry by Revenge”, Press Release, Ecotopia Earth First! Extra, Special Baby Treesus Issue / December 1990.
[36] “Outcry Stops Clear-Cut of Old Growth Redwoods”, by Tobias Young, Santa Rosa Press Democrat, September 14, 1990
[37] “Hot Tubbin at Harry’s: Anna Marie Stenberg”, interview by Lynne Dahl, New Settler Interview, issue #54, December 1990.
[38] “L-P Fells Old Growth in Osprey Grove”, by Judy Nichols, North Coast News, September 20, 1990.
[39] “Outcry Stops Clear-Cut of Old Growth Redwoods”, by Tobias Young, Santa Rosa Press Democrat, September 14, 1990
[40] “Forestry by Revenge”, Press Release, Ecotopia Earth First! Extra, Special Baby Treesus Issue / December 1990.
[41] Letter to the editor by William Boosinger, multiple publications, including Willits News, September 23, 1990 (“Ineffable Loss”); Ukiah Daily Journal, October 14, 1990 (“Lost to Generations”); and Anderson Valley Advertiser, October 24, 1990 (“Bandit Harry”).
[42] “L-P Logs Osprey Grove: Saws Surprise Area Residents”, by Tobias Young, Santa Rosa Press Democrat, September 13, 1990
[43] “Outcry Stops Clear-Cut of Old Growth Redwoods”, by Tobias Young, Santa Rosa Press Democrat, September 14, 1990
[44] “L-P Fells Old Growth in Osprey Grove”, by Judy Nichols, North Coast News, September 20, 1990.
[45] “Myths, Deceptions, and Lies”, Anderson Valley Advertiser, October 25, 1989.
[46] “L-P Fells Old Growth in Osprey Grove”, by Judy Nichols, North Coast News, September 20, 1990.
[47] “1990: A Year in the Life of Earth First!”, by Judi Bari, Anderson Valley Advertiser, January 2, 1991.
[48] “Osprey Grove: What Really Happened”, by Zack Stenz, multiple publications, including Anderson Valley Advertiser, October 3, 1990; and Industrial Worker, December 1990; an abridged version appeared in the Samhain / November 1, 1990 edition of the Earth First! Journal.
[49] “L-P Fells Old Growth in Osprey Grove”, by Judy Nichols, North Coast News, September 20, 1990.
[50] Letter to the editor by William Boosinger, multiple publications, including Willits News, September 23, 1990 (“Ineffable Loss”); Ukiah Daily Journal, October 14, 1990 (“Lost to Generations”); and Anderson Valley Advertiser, October 24, 1990 (“Bandit Harry”). Emphasis in the original.
[51] “LP Strategy: Just Lie and Sue”, EcoNews, November 1990.
[52] “Judge Stops Logging in Navarro’s Osprey Grove: L-P Cutting Twice the Old Growth Found in THP”, by Chris Calder, Mendocino Beacon, September 13, 1990; “L-P Logs Osprey Grove: Saws Surprise Area Residents”, by Tobias Young, Santa Rosa Press Democrat, September 13, 1990; “Outcry Stops Clear-Cut of Old Growth Redwoods”, by Tobias Young, Santa Rosa Press Democrat, September 14, 1990; “Logging Halted at Navarro”, by Chris Calder, Ukiah Daily Journal, September 14, 1990. [RECHECK SOURCES].
[53] “Forestry by Revenge”, Press Release, Ecotopia Earth First! Extra, Special Baby Treesus Issue / December 1990.
[54] “A Letter to Harry Merlo”, by Friends of Osprey Grove, multiple publications including, Mendocino Commentary, September 20, 1990; Mendocino Beacon, September 27, 1990; and Country Activist, October 1990.
[55] “L-P Fells Old Growth in Osprey Grove”, by Judy Nichols, North Coast News, September 20, 1990.
[56] “A Letter to Harry Merlo”, by Friends of Osprey Grove, multiple publications including, Mendocino Commentary, September 20, 1990; Mendocino Beacon, September 27, 1990; and Country Activist, October 1990.
[57] “Media Watch”, by Bruce Anderson, Anderson Valley Advertiser, September 19, 1990.
[58] “The Sierra Club Surrender”, by Judi Bari, Anderson Valley Advertiser, March 20, 1991.
[59] “Corporate Fall Kicks Butt”, Press Release, Ecotopia Earth First! Extra, Special Baby Treesus Issue, December 1990.
[60] Need Source!
[61] “EF! Visits Maxxam Hood”, press release, Ecotopia Earth First! Extra, Special Baby Tressus Issue / December 1990.
[62] “An Interview With Redwood Summer Strategist and EF! Musician Darryl Cherney”, by Sharon Seidenstein, Ecology Center Newsletter, October 1990.
[63] “Redwood Summer: Victory!”, by Richard Johnson, Mendocino Country Environmentalist, September 1, 1990.
[64] “‘Corporate Fall’ Next on Earth First! Slate”, by Tobias Young, Santa Rosa Press Democrat, September 18, 1990; “Bari Calls for ‘Corporate Fall’”, by Chris Calder, Ukiah Daily Journal, September 18, 1990. [RECHECK SOURCE].
[65] “Redwood Summer Turns Into Corporate Fall”, by Sidney Dominitz, EcoNews, October 1990.
[66] “Corporate Fall Planned”, Willits News, September 21, 1990.
[67] “Redwood Summer Turns Into Corporate Fall”, by Sidney Dominitz, EcoNews, October 1990.
[68] “Corporate Fall Kicks Butt”, Press Release, Ecotopia Earth First! Extra, Special Baby Treesus Issue, December 1990.
[69] “Sigh! - Here We Go Again”, editorial, Eureka Times-Standard, September 19, 1990
[70] “Earth First! Claims Full of Hypocrisy!”, letter to the editor by K.R. Nelson and “Earth First! Members Stand for Nothing”, letter to the editor by M Nelson, Humboldt Beacon and Fortuna Advance, September 20, 1990.
[71] “Mothers’ Watch Takes on L.A.”, Eureka Times-Standard, September 19, 1990.
[72] “Gyppos Shafted at Osprey Grove”, Industrial Worker, September 1990.
[73] “Osprey Grove ‘Hullabaloo’ is Out of Hand”, letter to the editor by Thomas Loop, Mendocino Beacon, October 18, 1990.
[74] “Here and There in Mendocino County”, by Bruce Anderson, Anderson Valley Advertiser, September 26, 1990.
[75] “L-P to Apologize for ‘Osprey Grove’: Surprise Logging Touched Off Outcry”, by Tobias Young, Santa Rosa Press Democrat, September 27. 1990.
[76] “Joe Wheeler’s Statement Regarding Osprey Grove”, Press Release, September 27, 1990 (Presented in some instances as a paid advertisement in various publications); and “Arrogance: L-P Says it’s Sorry for Cutting Old Grove”, by Tobias Young, Santa Rosa Press Democrat, September 28, 1990.
[77] “Friends of Osprey Grove Want More than Apology” by Carrie Switzer, Willits News, October 3, 1990.
[78] “1990: A Year in the Life of Earth First!”, by Judi Bari, Anderson Valley Advertiser, January 2, 1991.
[79] “L-P Apologize? Don’t Hold Your Breath Folks”, by Naomi Wagner and Anna Marie Stenberg, Anderson Valley Advertiser, October 3, 1990.
[80] “L-P Apologize? Don’t Hold Your Breath Folks”, by Naomi Wagner and Anna Marie Stenberg, Anderson Valley Advertiser, October 3, 1990.
[81] “Logger Supporters Want Apology”, by Teri Marie Susan, et. al., Mendocino Beacon, October 11, 1990.
[82] “L-P Facing Court Case”, by Chris Calder, Ukiah Daily Journal, October 10, 1990.
[83] “Logger Supporters Want Apology”, by Teri Marie Susan, et. al., Mendocino Beacon, October 11, 1990.
[84] “Windows Broken at Protest Site”, Santa Rosa Press Democrat, Monday July 23, 1990
[85] “L-P Facing Court Case”, by Chris Calder, Ukiah Daily Journal, October 10, 1990.
[86] “L-P Finds Spikes in Logs at Samoa Mill: Timber Protesters Deny and Tampering”, by Mike Geniella, Santa Rosa Press Democrat, August 8, 1990.
[87] “Logger Supporters Want Apology”, by Teri Marie Susan, et. al., Mendocino Beacon, October 11, 1990.
[88] Letter to the editor, by Danny Pardini, various publications, including Ukiah Daily Journal, July 26, 1990 (“Wrong Type of Help”); Anderson Valley Advertiser, August 1, 1990 (“Pardini’s Priorities”); and Santa Rosa Press Democrat, August 7, 1990 (“My Job is Logging”).
[89] “An Interview With Kelpie Wilson”, by Sharon Seidenstien, Ecology Center Newsletter, October 1990.
[90] “Open Letter” by Bob Harris, featured in multiple publications, including, Mendocino Beacon, October 4, 1990 (“L-P’s Mistake”); Ukiah Daily Journal, October 8, 1990 (“We Know L-P’s Intentions”); Willits News, October 10, 1990 (“Thanks Again L-P”); and Mendocino Country Environmentalist, October 15, 1990 (“Blatant, Brutal Arrogance”).
[91] “LP Strategy: Just Lie and Sue”, EcoNews, November 1990.
[92] “Osprey Grove: What Really Happened”, by Zack Stenz, multiple publications, including Anderson Valley Advertiser, October 3, 1990; and Industrial Worker, December 1990; an abridged version appeared in the Samhain / November 1, 1990 edition of the Earth First! Journal.
[93] “Forestry by Revenge”, Press Release, Ecotopia Earth First! Extra, Special Baby Treesus Issue / December 1990.