Mountain Views News     Logo: MVNews     Saturday, February 22, 2014

MVNews this week:  Page 5

AROUND SAN GABRIEL VALLEY Mountain Views-News Saturday, February 22, 2014 5 AROUND SAN GABRIEL VALLEY Mountain Views-News Saturday, February 22, 2014 5 
This past 

Presidents’ 

Day, my 
family and I were privileged to 
participate in a moving Flag 
Retirement and Dignified Disposal 
Ceremony at VFW Post 2070.

 Why did this happen? A 
very special young lady, Vienna 
Smith-Murillo chose this as her 
Gold Award Project. Vienna, 
a freshman at Mayfield Senior 
High in Pasadena has been a 
Scout for seven years. Less than 
6% of the girls actually achieve 
this most prestigious award. To 
achieve the Gold Award, girls 
must write a plan, their project 
must be community-oriented, 
and they must spend 88 hours of 
their own time in addition to help 
from fellow troop members if so 
desired. Vienna is a member of the 
Mission CamiliaTroop#3531.

 The Ceremony was held outside 
in the courtyard. Clint Stamps, 
Post Commander welcomed us, 
colors were posted by Ron Handy 
and Al Noll, and Secretary Janine 
Coyne led the Pledge of Allegiance 
followed by Post Chaplain Ron 
Wardwell’s Invocation.

 Clint Stamps explained the 
Gold Award and then Vienna 
came to the podium. She spoke of 
the flag as the “honored symbol 
of unity, hope and achievement.” 
She explained that when a flag 
can no longer be used, it must be 
destroyed in a “dignified manner”,
and since June 14, 1777, the flag has been a 
“sentinel of freedom and inspiration”.

 Post Secretary Janine Coyne returned to the 
podium; we learned the meaning of each of 
the thirteen folds that represented the thirteen 
original colonies. The first fold told of our Flag…
the Symbol of Life…the fifth a tribute to our 
country…the seventh a tribute to our Armed 
Forces…the ninth to womanhood…the tenth to 
the father…the eleventh in the eyes of a Hebrew 
citizen represents the lower portion of the seal 
of King David and Solomon…glorifies in their 
eyes, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and 
the twelfth in the eyes of Christians, represents 
an emblem of eternity…glorifies in their eyes, 
God the father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. 
(On line this is explained in detail. It is noted it 
is not “Official” from the U.S. Government, but 
has been used in many ceremonies and brought 
comfort to Veterans and their families.)

 Vienna then returned to the Podium and the 

TRASH (continued from page 1) 


LEARNING TO DOWSE AT LA

“What’s Going On?”

News and Views from Joan Schmidt 

COMMUNITY COLLEGE 

By Christoper Nyerges

GIRL SCOUT VIENNA SMITH-MURILLO 

[Nyerges is the author of over 10 books, including “How to Survive Anywhere” and 
“Self-Sufficient Home.” He has led wild food exploratory field trips since 1974, where 

And a Very Special Project 

– sometimes –he even discusses dowsing. He can be reached at www.SchoolofSelfReliance.
com, or School of Self-Reliance, Box 41834, Eagle Rock, CA 90041 
theories were shared also.

 “The light of dowsing shines 
brightest when helping humanity,” 
Legory would often tell us, meaning 
that we should not use this neutral 
skill to do any sort of harm.

 One of the highlights of the class 
was when Ralph Harris showed up. 
Ralph Harris was maybe in his 60s, 
a Southerner with a red nose, and 
a very out-going and self-confident 
man. Harris didn’t lecture so much 
as he yelled at the class. He said that 
it was not good enough to be 60% 
right as a dowser, or 75% right, or 
82% right. He said it was not good 
enough to be 95% right. Harris said 
that he was the son of a dowser, 
who was the son of a dowser, etc., 
and that it was a God-given art that 
still had to be practiced. Harris said 
you had to be 100% right to call 
yourself a dowser. 

 Harris explained to us one of 
his first public demonstrations at 
dowsing. Harris was a private in 
the Army under Patton in North 
Africa during WWII. They were 
stationed somewhere and needed 
water. According to Harris, Patton 
sent his 8 or so geologists into 
the desert to find water, and they 
reported that there was no water 
there. Harris then meekly went to 
Patton and explained that he knew 
how to dowse, and that he believed 
he could find water if he had a little 
willow twig. Patton had an entire 
willow tree flown in the next day, 
and Harris cut a small Y shaped 
piece of the wood and walking into 
the desert. I no longer recall the 
exact figures that Harris told the 
class, but he located around a dozen 
sites where Harris believed water 
could be found by drilling. The 
first 4 or 5 spots drilled provided 
all the water that was needed by the 
troops.

 Harris had all sorts of letters and 
documentations and maps and old 
newspaper articles as verification of 
everything he’d done, and everyone 
was amply impressed.

 Harris said that when he practiced 
dowsing for people who wanted to 
dig a well on their properties, he’d 
never charge a penny unless water 
was found where he said, and at 
the depth he said. “Show me one 
geologist or well-digger who will do 
that!” bellowed Harris to the class.

 Then, during one of the classes, 
Harris produced many maps of the 
Southern California area, and many 
letters which I never read. He told 
the class that he earned his money 
by dowsing for oil, and not only 
that, dowsing remotely! And he 
didn’t charge a fee, but he asked a 
percentage. No one asked what the 
percentage turned out to be, but 

Harris implied that he earned a lot 
by those percentages.

 I would have liked to get to know 
Harris better and to interview him, 
though he died within about 5 years 
after this.

 It turned out that one could indeed 
dowse with these many devices: 
forked stick, L-rods, pendulums. 
One Saturday, Ralph Harris 
showed us how to remote dowse 
using a long spring with a magnet 
attached to the end. Most of the 
items he showed were purchased 
at hardware stores, and the long 
spring with the magnet was used by 
mechanics who accidentally drop a 
screw deep into some cavity of the 
car’s engine. Harris also had various 
home-made dowsing devices. One 
young man in the class picked up 
the long spring with the magnet 
and it went wild in his hand. I 
thought I was seeing things as the 
spring begun to spin around, yet 
the man’s hand was not moving, 
and he began to laugh at whatever 
was happening. Harris got red in 
the face and began to yell at the 
man: “You’re not focusing. You’re 
not controlling your thinking!” The 
man continued to laugh and was 
flabbergasted and Harris continued 
to yell at him. It was quite a show, 
and the long spring never did that 
in my hand.

 During the L.A. Community 
College class, we went across the 
street from the college to a vacant 
lot to practice dowsing. Our goal 
was to try and detect the metal 
pipes underground. The instructor 
knew where the pipes were, but the 
students didn’t. It gave us a chance 
to see what sort of dowsing abilities 
we had, and I did about average, but 
nothing exceptional. I always got 
the best results with copper L-rods.

In the years that followed, I would 
practice dowsing occasionally, 
trying to see if I could find things 
or even determine the answer to 
things by using a clockwise motion 
of the pendulum for “yes” and a 
counterclockwise motion for a “no” 
answer. 

 Unfortunately, many of my 
queries were of such a nature as to 
be unconfirmable without drilling 
or other extensive excavation. 
However, I did once dowse to find 
lost keys in a large field overgrown 
with tall grass, and I found them.

 Dowsing seems to be one of 
those “lost arts” which skeptics 
love to debunk. I’m convinced that 
there’s more to it than meets the 
eye. It’s not so much about learning 
an external skill as it is about 
developing something within each 
of us that’s been dormant for a very 
long time.

speech she read blew us all away. She read portions 
of the Preamble, spoke of various presidents and 
honored veterans from ALL wars/conflicts. Her 
“History Lesson” about the importance of the 
American Flag reminded each of us what a great 
county we live in, and sacrifices many men and 
women made for us to enjoy these freedoms.

 Ron Handy from the Post Color Guard lit the 
Incinerator. Vienna and her troop began the 
disposal followed by all in attendance. Besides 
the Scouts and members of their families, Willie 
Williams and area veterans from VFW 2070, 
Monrovia American Legion Post #44 Veterans 
Earle Sweeney and Chuck Keen, Mayor Pro Tem 
Becky and husband Chris Shevlin, and residents 
attended. The Ceremony concluded with a 
Benediction by Post Chaplain Ron Wardwell. 
Everyone left with a deeper pride in our country 
and in this young girl who reminded us of how 
fortunate we are to live in the USA! 

The above is a scan of the email from Eric Maundry, a name used by John Crawford, 
in which the troll advocates violence against what is believed to be Former Mayor BartDoyle. This document was obtained through the Freedom of Information Act. 


mass media has used troll to describe “a person 
who defaces Internet tribute sites with the aim of 
causing grief to families.”

Over the years, there have been several residents 
that have suspected that Crawford engaged in thepractice. 

Enter the 2014 Campaign and dirty tactics: 

Crawford’s use of the photos to pronounceGreen unelectable is not the only effort the blogas made to apparently influence the outcome ofthe April 8th election.

 Last year, a doctored photo of Former MayorJosh Moran at a city event with Mathesonappeared on Crawford’s blog along with a rantagainst Moran and suddenly, during the time that 
decisions were being made to run for council,
that photo complete with vile remarks aboutMoran’s character surfaced anonymously in 
mailboxes around town. The original photo wastaken prior to Moran or the public’s knowledgeof the criminal activities of Matheson. Shortlyafter the mailings, Moran announced he wouldnot seek re-election. Moran cited reasons other 
than the blog attacks and hate mail for choosingnot to seek another term.

 And on Thursday, the Mountain Views News 
and the author of this article were also under 

attack for anticipated positions on the 

User Utility Tax Measure. Both are frequently 
subject to misleading, out of context, and often 
downright inaccurate information in an effort to 
discredit the paper and the publisher. That just 
appears to be what Crawford’s blog is all about.

 The kind of hatred and social media foul play 
that has been spread around Sierra Madre and 
beyond via the internet, has made several very 
qualified residents choose not to seek public 
office. They have expressed a willingness to serve, 
but no desire to become victim to the keyboard of 
The Tattler. 

 In a letter sent to all candidates by the 
Mountain Views News earlier this month, all were 
congratulated “for having the courage to step into 
the race for City Council.”. That encouragement 
may not be enough for those who fall on the 
wrong side of issues with Crawford. 

When discussing the issue of hostility in local 
politics these days with people around town, 
Sierra Madrean’s, regardless of their views on the 
issues or their choice of elected representation, 
do have one thing in common. They all want to 
preserve this Village town. The ways in which 
to do so are many and varied, but politics of the 
‘trash and burn’ variety is not one of them. 

Around 1977, a friend and I 
signed up for a class on dowsing at 
Los Angeles Community College, 
which was held over a series of 
Saturdays. We drove over to the 
class which was hosted by the Los 
Angeles Dowsing Society. There 
were at least two teachers and 
several guest speakers. The main 
teacher was Legory O’Loughlin, 
who was an old, skinny and very 
interesting Irish man. One of the 
guest speakers was Ralph Harris. 

Legory patiently explained 
what dowsing was, and how it 
was practiced. Yes, it is a very old 
method for finding underground 
water, but also for finding other 
underground things, like oil. Or for 
finding lost keys, lost people, that 
sort of thing. 

 The old traditional method was to 
hold two ends of a forked Y-shaped 
stick, usually willow, and holding 
it horizontally so that pressure is 
exerted on the stick, walk over an 
area while mentally focusing on 
whether or not there is potable 
water (for example) underneath. 
Another method is to hold two 
L-shaped rods of copper, walk over 
an area, and when the rods cross 
you have your spot.

So dowsing meant a lot of 
things. And then there was 
remote dowsing, where you’d hold 
a pendulum over a map, while 
mentally focusing upon the thing 
you are looking for. “Pendulum” 
usually meant a pointed crystal 
which was connected to a string, 
but it could also be just a rock or 
bolt tied to a string. Then, when 
the pendulum moves in a way to 
indicate a positive answer, you’d 
have to go to the field and verify 
whether or not your remote 
dowsing was correct.

 It probably took two classes to 
explain how dowsing was done 
traditionally, why it was done, and 
the various devices that have been 
used to dowse.

 Legory spent considerable time 
pointing out that dowsing wasn’t 
a religion, wasn’t an “-ism” or an 
“-osm” (whatever that is), but that 
it was simply an ancient method 
which utilizes a latent inner human 
ability. Many theories were shared 
as to why it works, including that 
the human body is a big magnet, 
that either the pineal or pituitary 
gland is what makes the dowsing 
rods work, and that the humans 
possess an unused skill like the 
homing device in birds. Other 


UUT PROS AND CONS 

(continued from page 1) 

proposed water UUT rate of 7% than it collected 
at the 9% rate BEFORE the large water rate 
increase went into effect. 


Don’t be fooled! Starting in July 2015, Measure 
UUT will INCREASE your base UUT to a 10% 
rate from the 8% rate voters approved in 2008 on 
all utilities (except water and sewer).
That’s a 25% increase! 


Do you expect a 25% increase in your income 
in 2015. Of course not. Given the large revenue 
increases already in effect, you can be sure 
the City will see increased income far beyond 
anything you or I will see. Vote NO on Measure 
UUT. 


By Michael Amerio, Cynthia Amerio and 1 
additional opponent who’s faxed signature was 
unclear. 


THE ARGUMENT IN FAVOR OF MEASURE 
UUT 
Vote YES on Measure UUT – 

We respectfully ask that our citizens approve 
Measure UUT which will cap and extend the 
USERS UTILITY TAX (UUT) at its current 10% 
rate to preserve city services and keep Sierra 
Madre a full-service city with its own Police, Fire, 
Paramedics, and Library.
If Measure UUT is not approved, the UUT 
will sunset to 6% by July 2016, resulting in an 
annual loss of approximately $1,000,000 to our 
$8,000,000 General Fund – nearly 13%. It is 

highly unlikely that property tax, sales tax, or 
other revenue sources will increase sufficiently 
to offset this loss. Unlike property tax or sales 
tax, each dollar paid through the UUT stays 
in Sierra Madre and funds local, rather than 
county or state services. Sierra Madre will be 
face with reductions that will degrade services, 
compromise maintenance of facilities, and could 
result in outsourcing of one or more departments 
such as Police, Paramedic or Library.
The UUT comprises approximately 31% of the 
General Fund, from which Public Safety, Library 
Services, Public Works and Community Services 
are funded. We recognize that our citizens 
demand the most value for their tax dollars 
and have successfully implemented cost-cutting 
initiatives since 2010 that have saved nearly 
$1.3 million, keeping the UUT below the voter-
approved rate of 12%. Measure UUT is not an 
enhancement, it will keep the tax at its current 
10% rate, while providing the means to maintain 
services at the present level.
The choice is to continue the UUT at its current 
rate, or face difficult budget cuts where one or 
more of our major departments are outsourced, or 
where public safety, public works and community 
services are significantly curtailed. Any of these 
outcomes would change the nature and character 
of this safe, self-sustaining village.
Keep Sierra Madre the special community that it 
is. Please vote YES on Measure UUT. 

Submitted by: 

Nancy Walsh, MayorJohn Harabedien, Mayor Pro TemJohn Capoccia, CouncilmemberJosh Moran, Councilmember 

SIERRA MADRE FARMERS 
MARKET


 The Sierra Madre Farmer’s Market hours have changed to 3:00pm through 7:00pm 
every Wednesday. Vendors include Dry Dock which has fresh and wild caught fish, 
Rustic Loaf with artisan breads, Cutie Pie with fresh pies and much more!

For those interested in being a vendor contact Melissa Farwell with Raw Inspira


tions at 818-591-8161 ext. 806. 

We’d like to hear from you! 
What’s on YOUR Mind? 
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com/mountainviewsnews ANDTwitter: @mtnviewsnews