Mountain Views News, Combined Edition Saturday, October 9, 2021

Mountain Views News Saturday, October 9, 2021 

CHRISTOPHER Nyerges 


THOUGHT ON COLUMBUS 

[Nyerges is the author of “How to Survive Anywhere,” “Foraging California,” and other 
books. He can be reached at Box 41834, Eagle Rock, CA 90041, or www.SchoolofSelf-Reliance.
com.] 

Every school child in America has learned that a man named Columbus managed 
to sail across the Atlantic with a ragtag crew and made it to North or 
Central America and back home to tell the queen all about what he found. And 
no one debates that part of the story. 
The new politically-correct posture is to say that, “hey, Columbus didn’t discover America, he just 
shipwrecked into the Carribean, and there were already people there….” Yes, of course, all more 
or less correct. Many now call this Indigenous Peoples Day. OK with me…. 

Every country has dates and years that are integral to its mythology, and in the U.S., the two most 
important years that every schoolchild memorizes in rhyme is 1492 and 1776. So let’s look at the 
Columbus story from a different angle. 

Columbus Day in the U.S. was loosely commemorated since colonial times. It began to be commemorated 
unofficially in New York as early as 1866, and because of pressure from Catholic Italians, 
it was declared an official holiday in 1934. It had a lot to do with Italian-pride because Italians 
were the then discriminated new kids on the block. 

Columbus has always been embroiled in controversy. Did he treat the natives well, or not? Certainly 
his voyages opened the door for a flood of invaders into the New World which eventually 
devastated and obliterated the indigenous cultures. 

In the book “1491” by Charles Mann, the author states that apparently a plague or disease spread 
across north America, in advance of the Europeans. Mann believes that at least 80% of the indigenous 
population of North America died from various diseases, not by an intentional genocidal 
effort. And most of those who died in this die-off never even saw Europeans! 

Plus, Columbus was not the first to get here. He was only celebrated because he was the one who 
went back home and told everyone what he found. Columbus’ own writings talk about “other 
maps” that were made by those who went before him, though he does not name who these others 
are. 

In 1976, author Barry Fell released the first of his bombshell trilogy of books, “America B.C.” 
where he claims to have interpreted writings on stone throughout the Americas in written languages 
from such far away places as the British Islands, various parts of Europe, and Northern 
Africa. When I read Fell’s books, I wondered how it was that such epigraphic evidence could be 
overlooked by so many. In part, this was because the archaeologists weren’t looking for linguistic 
evidence in foreign languages. But Fell sought out such evidence, because he believed – as did 
Thor Heyerdahl before him – that the oceans were not barriers to travel by ancient man, but rather 
the highways where someone traveling on the trade winds could live off the sea and travel around 
the globe. I thought that if even 10% of what Fell wrote was correct, it would revolutionize our 
view of history. 

Fell had many followers, and many detractors, and it turns out that maybe he was very loose with 
transliterations and translations, along with some wishful thinking. Maybe only 10 to 20% of his 
writing is solid. But because he made mistakes in his unique efforts, traditional academic archaeologists 
more or less threw Fell out with the bath water, lock, stock, and barrel, including that 
very solid 10%! 

Fortunately, others following in his footsteps have confirmed via epigraphy that someone with 
knowledge in writing systems that were used in Europe about 2000 to 3000 years ago left spotty 
evidence all over the U.S., but mostly in the Colorado-Oklahoma area, and along the east coast.
Who were these people? You can and should read all about them in some of the research that has 
followed Fell, such as “Ancient American Inscriptions: Plow Marks or History?”, which is perhaps 
the single best book which attempts to approach linguistic evidence on rocks in a strict scientific 
manner. The evidence shows that there were indeed Celtic people here, who were master mariners. 
There were many others too, a little here, a little there, nearly always an extreme minority 
among the Siberian-rooted Plains Indians who were numerous in at least the eastern half of the 
country. 

In fact, according to another controversial author, “Advanced Civilizations of Prehistoric America” 
by Frank Joseph (subtitled “The Lost Kingdoms of the Adena, Hopewell, Mississippians, and 
Anasazi”), not only were there other people here before Columbus, there were four distinct “civilizations” 
in North America that rose and fell long before Columbus was even born. 

Joseph’s book is a bit too much for most people if it’s their first foray into the history of North 
America that you weren’t taught in school. But his book is just the latest in many that have followed 
in the footsteps of Fell and tried to demonstrate that North America was far more diverse 
than we ever imagined. 

I’ll do a review of Joseph’s book another day, but suffice it to say that killing and brutality are all 
too common human traits, and Columbus and his gang certainly didn’t invent that. The Spanish 
who invaded Mexico a century later were far worse than Columbus ever was! 

At the end of the day, do we still want to commemorate Columbus? I guess that’s for everyone to 
decide. He did make a “discovery” for Europe, and no one disputes that, within the full definition 
of what we mean by “discovery.” But he really should be viewed more honestly, in view of today’s 
sensitivities. He was no saint, but he wasn’t the almighty demon either. 

In a similar vein, it troubles me that the current Pope chose to create a saint out of a priest who 
caused so much harm and disruption and destruction to the California natives and their way of 
life. Serra was no saint either, and shame on the Pope for not knowing this. 

(Perhaps the standard is too low for sainthood. I’ve heard that two healing miracles must be documented 
in order for one to be regarded as a saint. Since I believe there were at least two “healings” 
from “praying” to my purebred pitbull Cassius Clay, shouldn’t he be eligible for “dog sainthood”?) 


FRANKIE 

Frankie is a cuddler and a snuggle-
bug who loves to be the 
number one cat in the family. 
He demands your full attention 
and will hop aboard a shoulder 
for a ride to the next destination 
in the household. He would 

purrfurr to be an only cat as companionship is not something 
he was introduced to as a young cat. Once he feels safe and at 
home, he will find a chest to nap on and push himself into his 
person and close his eyes for a long nap. Please provide him 
plenty of moving string and fluffy balls to pounce and play with 
because those are his favorites. He can be entertained for hours 
with a string on a stick that moves like snake in the grass or a bug in the air. He loves his stuffed 
toys, kickers, play mat and springs and can entertain himself as well as be entertained.
He will eat human food if you let him so guard your takeout – especially pizza boxes! He is a 
healthy cat who would be a great companion for a family without other pets or young children. 
He is easily overstimulated and needs a calm environment. He has strong hunting and 
pouncing instincts along with strong territorial instincts that do make him have a difficult time 
sharing the space in a home with other cats. 


From Frankie’s previous adopter: "Indeed he is a great cat and we have fallen in love with him. 
There is no better feeling than when he presses his body into my chest or my belly and snuggles 
up. Or purrs when he gets petted. Or gleefully plays with his favorite pink string and catnip 
toys. 

Pet of the Week

 One-year-old Koni is a little bit shy, but has been makingsuch great progress with our staff and volunteers! 

One volunteer said that although Koni is a bit scared ofnew people, she starts out by giving slow blinks. Then,
with a little bit of patience, along with some treats, she’lllet you pet her soft fur. Once she’s comfortable, she’ll 
even roll onto her back for more pets! Koni just needs acalm and understanding adopter to help her come outof her shell. Seeing her blossom is so rewarding!

 The adoption fee for cats is $100. All cat adoptions

include spay or neuter, microchip, and age-appropriate 

vaccines.

 New adopters will receive a complimentary healthand-
wellness exam from VCA Animal Hospitals, as 
well as a goody bag filled with information about howto care for your pet.

 
View photos of adoptable pets and schedule an adoption appointment at

pasadenahumane.org. Adoptions are by appointment only, and new adoption

appointments are available every Sunday and Wednesday at 10:00 a.m.

 Pets may not be available for adoption and cannot be held for potential adopters byphone calls or email. 

PLEASE STAY SAFE! 
GET VACCINATED! 

SOCIALLY DISTANCE! 

WEAR A MASK! 

WANT TO PLACE AN AD?
CALL PATRICIA AT 626-818-2698 Today!
Mountain Views News 80 W Sierra Madre Blvd. No. 327 Sierra Madre, Ca. 91024 Office: 626.355.2737 Fax: 626.609.3285 Email: editor@mtnviewsnews.com Website: www.mtnviewsnews.com