There are those who believe in the old school way of doing
things and those of us who believe in a new way of doing
things.

Unfortunately for Montana's forests and the people who depend on
them, the old school way of doing things hasn't worked out so well.
Years ago, even mainstream conservation groups like the Montana
Wilderness Association were at war with the timber industry.
Because of years of fighting, neither side got what they wanted.
Nobody won. And everyone paid the price.

Thank goodness we, the current members and supporters of the
Montana Wilderness Association decided to rise above the old school
way of doing things. We put aside our differences with Montana's
local timber mills and recreation enthusiasts, and realized we had
much more in common. Working together, we came up with a new plan
that will actually move us forward instead of keep us in the past.
That plan evolved to become the Forest Jobs and Recreation
Act.

Some folks are blinded by ideology and want to keep on fighting
until the last man is standing. So it's no wonder some of the old
school extremes - from the Wild West Institute on the left to
Citizens for Balanced Use on the right - seem to be singing from
the same sheet. Sadly, for these folks the truth seems
optional.

But most Montanans are smarter than that. They want solutions. They
like to know that their favorite hiking spots and elk hunting
haunts won't be ruined by traffic and machines. They are also
concerned that the bottom is dropping out of our timber industry,
just as an unprecedented outbreak of pine beetles is killing great
swaths of pines and firs.

News reporters are naturally drawn to the fights around the
fringes, but we all need to look at the consensus in the center.
The groups who do support the bill represent tens of thousands of
Montanans.

From many different viewpoints this bill is not perfect. The
democratic process requires negotiation and compromise to be
successful; but working together, we're all better off.

We have a choice to protect our forests. We can keep on doing what
we've done too long, pounding the table, refusing to compromise,
and getting nothing done. Or we can work together with our fellow
Montanans on a new way, and actually accomplish something.

The Montana Wilderness Association has a 50-year history of
protecting the best of Montana. MWA is not content to sit on the
laurels of the old school. There is too much at stake. We know that
our mission of protecting our wild country and healthy ecosystems
requires the complicated and messy work of finding solutions. It's
easier to stand back and lob rocks, but that would be a dereliction
of our duty. And besides, there are plenty of folks on both
extremes who are happy to play that role.

Daphne Herling of Missoula is the volunteer president of the
Montana Wilderness Association