The transaction is scarcely social in nature. Every time money changes hands in the forests of Northern California Senator Dianne Feinstein hovers, harpy-like, over the transaction. Feinstein called it a win-win solution. But the only winners were the senator and her husband's buddy, Hurwitz. Not only did Hurwitz get a hugely inflated price for Headwaters, but the deal also makes it nearly impossible to protect lands outside the core Headwaters area.
Ontogeny recapitulates phylogeny, as the psychoanalyists say.
This time we see the process in miniature, with Butterfly paying her own ransom. I've talked with all the parties involved. I believe Pacific Lumber did the right thing. I am now hopeful that the Headwaters agreement will be carried out. In other words, let the logging commence.