Monthly Archives: November 2005

Who’s Really at War with Religion? Pluto in Sagittarius

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Sometime soon I’ll post a link to a new article about Pluto’s travel through Sagittarius, which is about two-thirds completed. Pluto is all about destruction and transformation, and in Sagittarius Pluto has been creating havoc in the religious arena. Meanwhile, the Green Knight’s posts today are all about the conflicts (Pluto) that are erupting over religious ideas (Sagittarius), beginning with a great tale of the current “War on Christmas” in a suburban neighborhood and moving on to Bill O’Reilly’s paranoid rantings about left-wing moonbats coming after Christmas supporters. I couldn’t find the quote online, but heard O’Reilly on the Stephanie Miller show say “Retailers should get on their knees and thank Jesus for Christmas.” Is THAT what Christmas is all about?

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Mercury in Scorpio Draws Out the Secrets

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Scorpio dislikes superficiality, and Mercury in Scorpio dives deep into the underworld to expose the dark underside of events and our own psyche. As Mercury passes back through Scorpio, lots of secrets are coming out into the open. For example, Jill writes about the exposure of Randy Cunningham that is the tip of the domino that is the Abramoff fiasco. Hundreds of Alito’s papers were released today revealing the passionate opinions that lie behind that mild-mannered facade. European investigators will delve into reports of secret CIA prisons across the continent, including Poland.

And today it was revealed that Abramoff and Scanlon siphoned $80 million dollars from Indian tribes to purportedly buy influence with the Bureau of Indian Affairs, over $60 mil into a “public relations” corporation with no reporting requirements. We’ll see how that gets spun by the Fox News team.

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Happy Birthday, Jon Stewart

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Blow a candle out for everyone’s favorite fake news anchor, Jon Stewart! To me, Jon Stewart is the most trusted name in news, fake or not, aside from my sister Jill. His humorous yet pointed skewering of political figures has done more to keep the media on the straight and narrow path than any other public figure, in my humble opinion!

Jon’s sun sign is Sagittarius, the sign of the philosopher, the humorist, and the adventurer, and his Sun is conjunct Mercury, the planet of information and communication. Sun/Mercury people are mobile, rarely stand still, and adept communicators and Jon is no exception. Jupiter in his chart is in Pisces, showing that his longing for meaning in life (Jupiter) is closely tied to a sense of compassion for others (Pisces), and that his religious experience (Jupiter) must be tied to a genuine experience rather than mere theology (Pisces). With Jupiter making a square to Sun/Mercury, though, he can be somewhat dogmatic about his beliefs but with several planets in lighthearted Sagittarius he does not take himself all that seriously

Pluto (power and transformation) and Uranus (rebellion) both make a square to Jon’s Sun (identity and personal spirit), showing a person who makes his own way and dislikes being told what to do (Uranus/Sun) and constantly reinvents himself (Pluto/Sun). His Mars (drive) in Leo (self-expression) shows a strong flair for drama and a desire to be on the stage. Born Jon Stuart Leibowitz, Jon dropped the Leibowitz at an early age and created a new identity (Pluto/Sun) for himself as a comedian (Mars/Sag).

Jon’s Venus (relating to others) is in Scorpio, showing a passionate nature where others are concerned, but the fact that it is retrograde shows that he may be shy about expressing his feelings, or desires his relationships with others to be hidden. Certainly he appears to enjoy keeping his private life private!!

Saturn, the god of goals and achievement, is simultaneously making a trine (harmonious aspect) to Jon’s Sun and opposing (challenging aspect) natal Saturn in Jon’s birthchart this fall and next spring. His second child will be born during this period, and he is likely to feel overworked (Saturn/Saturn). We may see him introduce changes in the show that will afford him more freedom as his attention is drawn more into his private life when Uranus (freedom) transits his Venus (relationships) late next spring. Hopefully, though, he will keep bringing us his own unique brand of humor and political zingers!!

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Tales From the Trenches: Mercury Retrograde

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I thought I’d share just a few fun things that have happened over the past few days:

A document that I was waiting for from Switzerland arrived late, and the post office lost the slip for me to pick up the document with. I went to the post office to straighten this out, and their computer crashed so they couldn’t locate the document. Today I went to the post office when the computer was back up, whereupon they discovered that the document wasn’t where it was supposed to be and spent most of the morning looking for it.

A friend of mine who lives in Germany had mailed her electric bill, but it was erroneously posted to the wrong address and her power was turned off. Because she didn’t live in the house she didn’t know that the power was off, and wasn’t aware of various repair problems that occurred as a result.

Today my Outloook program suddenly decided not to collect my email.

This morning I drove 30 minutes to a neighboring town to appear as a witness in a friend’s divorce case. I waited 2 hours in a local coffee shop, waiting to be called. When I received no phone calls, I returned back to my office only to find a message from earlier that morning that I was needed to appear.

What’s been going on in your world?

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Predicting the Future

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When I was young, I went to psychics for everything. Should I take this job? Should I stay with this man? Hampered by my Libran indecision, I longed for someone to just tell me what to do. Yes, THIS will be the right path to walk, not THAT one.

Over the years, psychics have told me many things. I would be selling condos at the beach (I live in the North Carolina Piedmont). I would marry the man that left me seven times (I didn’t). I would have three children (I have none). Very few specific predictions about the future come to pass exactly as predicted.

Astrology can predict the upcoming climate, but the specifics of what will happen remain unknown. Personally, I now believe that we are unable to predict the future because there are some things we are not supposed to know. Life is a process, an unfolding and a journey. The horoscope is a map that we’re given at birth, but we’re not given directions and a plan. That is our free will — to make our own decisions and follow our own roads.

Looking at upcoming planetary patterns provides us with a weather report that tells us what the climate will be for certain events or decisions, but whether or not we move forward is up to us. Examining how two birthcharts interact can tell us a great deal about the relationship those two people will have, but not whether they should be together. However, we ARE given the way to answer those questions and make those decisions! The answers really lie in the small voice that speaks within us when we are quiet enough to hear it–the voice that says YES! when the question is asked. We only need to learn to trust it.

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A Look Ahead by Looking Back

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No one can really explain how astrology works, but anyone who has had a chart reading by a competent astrologer will verify that somehow the planets do possess certain energies that affect us in various ways. Because each of us has a very different birth chart makeup, we are affected by planetary movements differently. For some, a challenging Mars transit can be exhilarating and energizing, and for others it can cause great stress and conflict. Still, the dance that the planetary bodies move through day to day creates energy shifts that affect us on a global scale.

The harmonious aspect (trine) between Jupiter and Uranus of the past week has opened the door to a new way (Uranus) of finding meaning in life (Jupiter), and perhaps the beginnings of a revolution (Uranus) in established religions. (Jupiter). Expansive Jupiter trines tend to bring investor confidence and improve the stock markets, and Uranus tends to require a more utopian view of life. In harmonious aspect like the trine (120 degrees), Uranus calls on us to leave the past behind in order to create a new way.

Over the past few months of retrogrades (with Mars, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune and Mercury all retrograde for at least part of this period), global politics seem to have become stuck in recriminations and retributions. There have been short outbursts of conflict calling for change, but the momentum for change is lacking. During retrograde periods, we tend to re-view the past and find it difficult to move forward. The positive aspect of the retrograde periods is that in this perpetual review we are able to discover new ways of solving problems so that when we finally do begin to make progress, it is with real clarity and power. By mid-December most of these retrograde planets will have turned direct (moving forward) towards a Grand Cross configuration and we will begin to see some real movement on the world stage.

Over the next few days I’ll be giving you a preview of what we are likely to expect over the next few months as we move into December’s Grand Cross. Meanwhile, please feel free to email me any time with any questions you may have.

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George Clooney’s Worst Year

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I love George Clooney, he seems like a truly genuine person with real ethics and political awareness. Plus, he has a great sense of humor. So I was sad to read that the past twelve months have been the worst year of his life. Planetary cycles can have a huge impact on us, so I thought I’d look into George’s chart and see what whether he was undergoing some evolutionary pressure from the planets.

George’s Sun is in Taurus, the sign of earthly delights, stability, security. Taureans crave a peaceful and serene environment and typically do not like change, but because his Sun is conjunct Mercury (the messenger god and ruler of communication and information), there is a part of him that will also crave a variety of experiences. His Moon, representing our need for emotional security, is in Capricorn and it is conjunct Saturn, the planet that rules Capricorn. This is what we astrologers call a “double whammy,” indicating that the Saturn/Capricorn principle of hard work and solitude is fused with his emotional needs. Saturn/Moon people need lots of alone time–often in their childhood they can be extremely lonely and unable to connect, and in later years this becomes a need for solitude in order to refresh one’s sense of safety.

Mars (personal drive and will) is in Leo in George’s chart, and this is where we find his prankster nature and love of practical jokes for which he is well known. Venus (relating to others) is in Aries, showing that George likes to take the lead in relationships. He in fact has been quoted as saying that he likes to be the one that pursues women, and not the other way around. With Mars and Venus both in fire signs (Leo and Aries), he has a natural exuberance. But I suspect very few people are able to get close to George because of the Saturn/Moon conjunction. This conjunction could also be responsible for George’s constant digestive/ulcer problems, since the Moon rules the stomach.

Chiron is a recently discovered planet or planetoid that shows where we have been imprinted with a deep wound that doesn’t heal, but which motivates us to change and evolve. George has Chiron right on the ascendant or rising sign, and it is opposite Pluto, the god of endings and transformation, which falls in his sixth house of health and is conjunct the descendant. These are powerful influences for George which have a tendency to create repeated periods of crises that force change and evolution. They have been impacted by the transit of Uranus (the awakener, the revolutionary), challenging his sense of himself as an individual and in relationships (ascendant), and sparking this crisis period. It is not uncommon for death to occur during transits of or to Pluto, and during this period George saw the loss of his dog and his brother-in-law, along with the ending of a five-year relationship.

Transiting Chiron as it moves through the sky has also made a challenging aspect to the Saturn/Moon conjunction in George’s birthchart. During this period George suffered severe spinal injury (Saturn) while filming Syriana and as the result was in great pain for months.

The expression “That which doesn’t kill me makes me stronger” was probably invented by an astrologer. Difficult planetary cycles can be painful, but the end result for the individual can be a powerful deepening of our understanding and a renewed respect for life. Still, it looks like George’s worst year is over for now: the transit of Saturn to Jupiter over the past six months will be coming to a head until May which usually brings success to our endeavors. Fortunate Jupiter will transit his Sun beginning in mid-January, bringing opportunities and good luck to him. Jupiter and Uranus began a cycle with Neptune last year that continues throughout 2006, increasing creativity (Jupiter/Neptune) and bringing new ideas (Uranus/Neptune) and possibly an increased sense of spirituality and one’s place in the world.

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Mercury Retrogrades Back into Scorpio

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As it continued its apparent backwards travel (as viewed from Earth), Mercury changed signs and moved back into Scorpio. The sign that Mercury is in colors the way that communication patterns evolve for everyone, and because Scorpio is a sign that relishes intensity and depth in thinking and expression events while Mercury is in Scorpio often reflect that intensity. Scorpio also likes to uncover hidden secrets, and during the transition from Scorpio to Sagittarius we saw the indictments in the CIA leak case, the fall of the Harriet Miers Supreme Court nomination, and the eruption of brutal name calling in the race for Governor of Virginia and New Jersey. Mercury turned retrograde on November 13, and attention now turns back to issues that may not be resolved. Mercury retrograde periods are often difficult times to move forward since communication can be confusing, but they are excellent times to look back and clean up lingering past events that were never finalized. They are also great times for writing and introspection.

Mercury moved into high spirited Sagittarius on October 29, but today it is back in Scorpio where it will stay until December 12. Expect an added level of intensity in interactions with others, and in the news.

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Why Jack Murtha, and Why Now?

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Rep. Jack Murtha is an unlikely hero for the anti-war movement.

Of all the Democrats calling for an end to the Iraq war, Rep. John P. Murtha is an anomaly. Unlike Sens. John F. Kerry (Mass.) and Russell Feingold (Wis.), he doesn’t want to be president. He’s no liberal, like his House colleagues Dennis J. Kucinich (Ohio) and Maxine Waters (Calif.). He’s certainly the only one to call Vice President Cheney a friend.

The About-Face of a Hawkish Democrat (WaPo article)

Rep. Murtha has been a hard worker and loyal follower since his early days as an Eagle Scout in Pennsylvania. He quit college in 1952 to join the Marines during the Korean war where he earned an honor medal. He became a drill instructor and worked his way up to become an officer, taking control of the 34th special infantry. He volunteered for active duty in Vietnam where he received more medals including two Purple Hearts, and retired as a colonel in 1990. (Source: Wikipedia).

Mr. Murtha is a Gemini, a mutable (flexible) sign that is adept at moving through life at quicksilver speed, experiencing as many different lifestyles as possible. Geminis are typically not born with their identities fully formed; they experiment with personalities like some people try on coats. They tend to be bright and intelligent and learn easily and quickly. Mr. Murtha is not a typical Gemini, however: he has been married to the same woman for 50 years and has demonstrated a stubborn resolve and commitment in service to the country. We can see this in his Mars (aggression, defense of boundaries) which is in the fixed sign of Taurus. Taurus is an earth sign signified by the image of the Bull whose main focus is on physical security. Mars in Taurus is the brave soldier (Mars) who marches on relentlessly and does not deviate from the prescribed path (Taurus). Mars in Taurus is the perfect emblem for wars (Mars) to protect national security (Taurus) and also shows someone who does not like change in their personal life. Taurus is antithetical to changeable Gemini, and no doubt Mr. Murtha experiences a fair amount of inner conflict between his desire for continual change (Gemini) and the need to establish that deep-rooted security.

Murtha has both Mercury (thought process) and Venus (relating to others) in sensitive Cancer. This is someone to whom family ties is very important, and someone who will always take care of the needs of others (Mercury), sometimes at the expense of caring for himself. This would make him an excellent military officer who cares deeply about the troops.

Like McCain, Saturn (self-doubt and hard work) is retrograde (turned inward) in his chart, showing a person whose inner critic speaks loud and clear and fairly consistently. Saturn retrograde people are driven from an internal need to prove themselves as a result of their relentless self-criticism, and they are difficult to influence because their motivation is so internalized. As a result of this intensified focus, they often become very successful in their fields and develop an extremely strong conscience, but they will not change their course unless absolutely forced to by external events.

Back in the spring of 2004 when Saturn (discipline and hard work) made a square to Uranus (liberation) Mr. Murtha began feeling some conflict in many areas of his life. Under this transit, we feel hemmed in by Saturn’s restrictions, and the part of us that longs to be free (Uranus) begs for expression. At that time he began expressing his concern about poor planning in Iraq and raising the unpopular opinion that the war was unwinnable. This influence remained in play through May of this year and was facilitated by Saturn’s concurrent harmonious transit of Mr. Murtha’s Mars, helping him to begin to put his goals (Saturn) into action (Mars).

In addition, Pluto (transformation and rebirth) has been making a trine to Uranus in his chart (opening to new possibilities) throughout this year. This is an exhilarating and highly energizing transit that would help someone like Mr. Murtha, who is tightly wound and highly controlled, to more comfortably begin to change and liberate areas of his life that are stagnant. In addition, the harmonious transits of Pluto bring a greater sense of personal power, and we often find the courage to do things we normally would not be able to do .

Luckily for us, Mr. Murtha’s personal transformation has given him a voice. In early 2006 Pluto will oppose (180 degree aspect) his Sun. This can be a challenging time that is fraught with tension over issues of power. Watch for him to take a larger role in the battle to end the war, and possibly be put forward next spring as a presidential candidate.

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Happy Pre-Solstice Holiday!

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I still have trouble with the concept of celebrating a holiday that honors what is basically the beginning of the annihilation of Native Americans, but still I am thankful for the many gifts that life has to offer, and even more for the ability to be grateful for what I have instead of envious of what I have not.

The Sun conjuncts Mercury today, facilitating communication despite the famous difficulties of Mercury Retrograde. The Sun will illuminate matters of thought and information, and sure enough a South Korean cloning expert admitted and apologized to “shameful ethical lapses,” the Chinese government admitted to a Benzene spill that caused the poisoning of drinking water for millions of people, Jessica Simpson and Nick boy singer finally admitted their long-rumored separation, and it was discovered that yes, Iran actually is working on nuclear warheads.

The Sun moves quickly and this influence will have passed by tomorrow afternoon. This is a favorable aspects for all kinds of negotiations since hidden agendas come to the forefront, so if you’re involved in this sort of matter it will help to facilitate your situation.

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