During the past year, the Rainforest Action Network (RAN) has conducted a campaign of harassment and intimidation against Boise Cascade Corp. We were surprised, therefore, at the syndicated column by Molly Ivins that appeared in the Bangor Daily News on June 29, making light of our concerns about RAN and its activities.

Ivins’ column was apparently prompted by a Wall Street Journal report that the Internal Revenue Service will evaluate allegations by the Frontiers of Freedom Institute that RAN is violating federal law by using tax-deductible donations to fund advocacy campaigns.

Had Ivins contacted us prior to writing her column, we could have informed her that Boise Cascade is neither a party to the IRS complaint nor affiliated with the organization that filed it. We could also have corrected her inaccurate assumptions about Boise Cascade and old-growth harvesting.

In reality, in 2000, less than 3 percent of the wood used in our wood-products operations was old growth. Almost all of that came from federal and state government land where the harvest prescription was mandated by the government. We harvest no old-growth forests on our own land.

We also could have told Ivins that we can understand why the IRS might be concerned about RAN’s activities, which include ties with some of the most extreme environmental groups – The Ruckus Society, EarthFirst! and The American Lands Alliance (ALA).

In a May 2 letter, George J. Harad, Boise Cascade’s chairman and CEO, asked RAN President Randall Hayes to sever his organization’s ties to these extremist groups. Excerpts from this letter are as follows: “Specifically, we are very concerned about RAN’s links to other radical organizations, and what this association says about RAN’s true agenda, its honesty, and its willingness to use force and illegal activity to achieve its goals.

“These organizations include:

. EarthFirst!, which first came to the public’s attention a few years ago on a “60 Minutes” segment about the group’s tree-spiking activities – activities that led to serious injuries. Boise Cascade is distressed that Mike Roselle, the founder of EarthFirst! And co-founder of RAN, continues to play a prominent role in EarthFirst! while serving as a RAN board member. Recently, a feature story in EarthFirst! Journal praised the actions of the Earth Liberation Front (ELF) for its eco-terrorism activities and encouraged continued and expanded acts of terrorism. Since the Earth Liberation Front claimed responsibility for the arson fire which destroyed our Monmouth, Ore., office on Christmas Day 1999, we have experienced firsthand the destructive violence that EarthFirst! now publicizes.

. American Lands Alliance (ALA): RAN and the American Lands Alliance have joined forces to campaign against Boise Cascade on a number of occasions, such as the April 26, 2000, Day of Action against Boise Cascade Office Products. We find this particularly disturbing as ALA has also been linked to the Earth Liberation Front. According to media reports, ALA staffer Frank Ambrose was arrested in January of this year in connection with an ELF spiking incident in 2000. In addition to the arson fire which destroyed Boise Cascade’s Monmouth facility, ELF has claimed responsibility for more than 30 similar acts of destruction, including arsons at Michigan State University, a Vail, Colo., resort and numerous homes.

. The Ruckus Society, also founded by Mike Roselle, which conducts training camps for activists in the techniques of “direct action,” a euphemism for violent intimidation and aggressive harassment. The Ruckus Society’s role in the violent WTO protests in Seattle and the World Bank demonstrations in Washington, D.C., last year is well documented. Based on media accounts, we also understand that RAN’s Jennifer Krill, who was recently arrested and charged in a RAN demonstration against Boise Cascade, is a Ruckus Society trainer.

. We are very concerned about what these links say about RAN’s own philosophy, agenda, and willingness to use violence and illegal actions. Severing these links and disavowing these practices would go a long way toward showing Boise Cascade and others that RAN is not an extremist organization.”

Although RAN has not responded to our letter, we again call on RAN to stop its affiliations with these groups and its own lawless and radical activities.

Vince Hannity is vice president of corporate communications and investor relations at Boise Cascade Corp. (www.bc.com).