SATURN-NEPTUNE AND THE INTERNET

On the 26th July I looked at the upcoming Saturn-Neptune Opposition from the point of view of a check on consumer debt levels (due to a Venus-Jupiter involvement with the moment of the 1st Opposition at the end of August) and an oil crisis (because that was what happened before, around the Opposition of the early 1970s, and looks likely now). Actually, it's not necessarily an oil CRISIS that we'll be having - it may be more a sustained upward pressure on prices due to increasing consumption, but which may still have the effect of changing the nature of western economies, and with any luck towards something more sustainable.

How we deal with the gradual decline of the oil based economy is to my mind one of the big questions of our time, that is now at last virtually upon us. I hope it doesn't lead to too many wars; I hope it doesn't lead us into the 'hair-shirt' option of a drastic decline in our living standards; and I hope it leads us away from the mad dogma of perpetual economic growth: ideas can sometimes be accepted collectively that in an individual would be treated as pathological.

Anyway, it occurred to me that I haven't yet looked at the Saturn-Neptune Opposition by SIGN - i.e. Saturn in Leo vs Neptune in Aquarius. The 1971 opposition was from Saturn in Gemini to Neptune in Sagittarius, which doesn't seem to have much to do with oil, but it was around the beginning of what we might call the Age of the Gurus (Neptune in Sag) as well as the 'Global Village' - the breaking down of boundaries (Neptune) due to long-distance air travel (Sag) expanding. The 1989 conjunction in Capricorn kicked in the collapse of the Soviet Empire, and the arising of a whole host of independent countries. Uranus was also involved here, and the astrological symbolism is fairly clear. So what might the upcoming Opposition be about?

INTERLUDE ON PREDICTION
I learnt my astrology through talking to astrologers and looking at charts, and I was surprised to discover, when I started going to the odd formal gathering, that prediction is treated as a bit of a no-no by the modern western astrological establishment. I'd always assumed prediction was an inherent part of astrology, and I continue to treat it as such. Used intelligently and with appropriate caveats, it can be very helpful to people. Maybe I'm a bit arrogant (and I think a touch of arrogance can be a good thing), but I tend to assume that this suspicion around prediction is rooted in some kind of capitulation to Science, and a lack of whole-hearted acceptance of the implications of the fact that astrology actually works. Let me just add that I think that Science is in many ways a wonderful thing.

Anyway, Neptune in Aquarius vs Saturn in Leo. I think that Neptune in Aquarius is associated, amongst other things, with globalisation. Aquarius is about groups and brotherhood, and Neptune breaks down boundaries. Neptune entered Aquarius in Jan 1998, with Sun, Moon, Uranus and Jupiter also in Aquarius, so it was a powerful ingress, at a time when the electronic (Aquarius/Uranus) brotherhood (Aquarius) of the internet was getting established, and the dot-com bubble was starting to kick in. The internet has been one important level of globalisation.

Leo vs Aquarius is about the struggle between individual and collective needs/ aspirations. On the internet, we can see this currently in the struggle by individual countries/cultures to maintain their identity - e.g. in the censoring of the internet by China - against the freedom of information on the internet. Freedom is a value-laden word, and it is not my place as an astrologer to defend or attack China for what it is doing - my role is simply to describe what is happening. So I think that a very plausible prediction for the upcoming Saturn-Neptune Opposition is that generally we shall see more crystallisation of rules around what we can and cannot do on the internet, and more specifically we shall see individual countries establishing particular laws/boundaries around internet use that are commonly accepted by other countries.

The internet began under a wave of anarchic idealism, and no doubt we all have our own judgements as to where boundaries should be set - in the UK, for example, the use of the net by paedophiles is currently a big issue. Each country has its own issues, which we may or may not agree with. But human nature being what it is, and society needing laws to survive, it is inevitable that the internet will need regulating, and I think that the current Saturn-Neptune period may in future be seen as the time when the internet, in a certain sense, came of age.

SATURN-NEPTUNE (AGAIN)

OK, so Saturn will actually oppose Neptune in a month's time, so as a transit you will be feeling the effects by now - particularly if you have Sun, Moon, Angles or a stellium between 15 and 25 degrees of the fixed signs. Or if you have a Saturn Return coming up. Which is probably quite a lot of us. I have the Sun at 24 Aquarius, so this transit - which is a double whammy, so to speak - will affect/is affecting me personally.

Here's one take (among many) on the transit. If you've been round the block a few times, and you've got to know both Saturn and Neptune, it will be a time for putting some new idea or inspiration or even vocation into action. It is a strongly vocational transit. There will be a bit of challenge around it, as Saturn is opposite Neptune, but you should find yourself well able to handle it. Part of the challenge will lie in the fact that it is a fixed element in your chart that is being activated and transformed. Fixity finds change quite difficult, it would much rather carry on in the ways that it is used to. So it may take some time for this transit to do its work. You may spend much of the next year gradually letting go of old ways of being/thinking - maybe without even realising it - in order to leave room for this new calling/vocation. Sometimes change is about working on ourselves (Saturn) and sometimes it's about getting out of the way so that something bigger and wider and deeper can manifest (Neptune). This transit is about both those principles, and requires a degree of sensitivity so that we know when to do one and when to do the other.

If you're not used to working with Saturn or Neptune, then this transit may well function as a strong reality check. If you're up for the struggle of self-awareness, it will be a very good time for identifying that which is real and that which is fantasy in your life. This is quite likely to come through outer events which may leave you feeling let down, betrayed or just foolish, but these sorts of experiences can be extremely valuable - under this transit, you can guarantee that there is a lot to learn from such experiences. It is a time for learning that invaluable quality of 'appropriate mistrust'. It is a time for losing your naivety. If you have some sort of dream that you want to put into action, then do so, and be prepared for it not to work. And then reflect on it. "If a fool would persist in his folly he would become wise" (Blake).

Neptune and Saturn are natural opposites, with opposite notions of what is real. It is easy to see Saturn as the reality check on Neptune's dreams. But it also works the other way round, because both planets are equally real in their own way. Which, for example, is more real, the life of the imagination (Neptune) or the achievement of respectability (Saturn)?

So, yes, this transit might require you to stop living so much in a dream-world. But if you are inclined the other way, and place too much emphasis on financial security, a safe career and the good opinion of your neighbours, then you might find yourself getting depressed and filled with yearnings for some other kind of life. This year's crop of Saturn Returns is going to be an interesting one! Including, of course, those aged 58/59 who are having their second return.

Though Saturn will move on after next year, Neptune will be hanging around 20-25 Aquarius for a few years yet, with Chiron coming to join it in a year or two. So for many of us (including myself) that dissolving, inspirational quality of Neptune will continue to make itself felt, creating a receptive context for Chiron to come in and heal old wounds.

SATURN-NEPTUNE

Saturn and Neptune will oppose each other 3 times between 31 Aug 2006 and 25 June 2007. The Conjunctions and Oppositions between Saturn, Uranus, Neptune and Pluto are the biggest transits that the Collective goes through. The last big one was Saturn opposite Pluto in 2001/2, the 'heaviest' of transits, and this of course kicked off the so-called War on Terror (amongst other things).

The first Saturn-Neptune crossing happens at 11.35 BST on 31/8/6, with Venus-Saturn in a t-Square with Jupiter in Scorpio and Neptune in Aquarius, which perhaps tells us something about the particular flavour of the transit.

As a predictive method, we can compare the 1st Saturn-Pluto opposition on 5 Aug 2001, where Pluto was conjunct Mars in Sagittarius, which was itself conjunct Chiron. I think this kind of proves the point. Religious war, or what?

So we have Venus in Leo square Jupiter in Scorpio as an indicator of the particular flavour of the upcoming Saturn-Neptune opposition. Naturally we will be wiser after the event, and all I can do is hazard one level of prediction within a multi-layered transit.

One issue that is starting to come strongly into the news in the UK is the level of debt that a lot of people are getting into, ostensibly through the irresponsible practices of the credit card companies, but of course also through the economic policy of the goverment, which relies on ever-increasing consumer spending to keep the economy growing. It is taken as read that the economy has to keep growing. And we can't just blame the goverment, because they wouldn't get elected if they couldn't keep the economy growing. And we can't leave the responsibility of the individual consumer out of the equation either.

Venus-Jupiter sitting with Saturn-Neptune suggests to me some kind of reckoning, some kind of realism emerging around this issue, in the UK at any rate. I'm sure you can all work out the symbolism, or you wouldn't be reading this blog. There is a wider issue which may help kick it in, which is the strong likelihood of some kind of oil crisis around this period.

For all sorts of reasons, commonsensical and astrological, it is clear that the era of ever-increasing consumption of oil is gradually coming to an end, and that it is almost upon us as a reality. Far from wondering how we can keep growing the economy and the amount we spend, we are going to be faced with a survival issue. I think the upcoming Saturn-Neptune Opposition will come to be seen as the beginning of the end of the laisser-faire use of oil.

So this idea that, because of the oil supply, we cannot rely on the economy and our incomes growing indefinitely in order to solve our debt problems may be part of the strong reality check that changes our attitude to spending. 'Reality Check' is a good way of describing Saturn opposite Neptune. Back to Venus-Jupiter: if the ability to buy more than we need is no longer a measure of life's worth, then what is? Values will need to change.

MERCURY RETROGRADE (AGAIN)

Astrologically, I'm inclined to look for psychological reasons behind outward events, and I'm reluctant to go, "Such and such happened because Mars was in Taurus and there's an end of it." The current Mercury retrograde, though, is pushing me in that direction. I bought my 5 year old son his first bike (as opposed to trike) last Saturday, little things kept going wrong with it, I brought it back to the shop twice, and now I've got my money back on it. I'm going to wait till Saturday, when Mercury Retrograde is over, before I replace it.

There is no reason I can think of that this happened except for Merc Retro. I actually like 'superstitious' astrology, it's just that I don't believe that strongly in it, and I'm pleased when events nudge me to - in a way nudge me to take astrology more seriously in particular ways.

I mean, let's face it, there is no 'scientific' reason why astrology should work, and never will be. Putting a reasonable overlay of 'psychology' around my astrology, while very valuable, is in some ways a concession to modern, 'advanced', rational thinking, but it remains ultimately unscientific. So why not go the whole hog, interpret my astrology literally, stop walking under ladders and rejoice at living in a connected, omen-ridden universe?

MERCURY RETROGRADE

Mercury has been retrograde for about 2 weeks now, and will go Direct in 6 days time. I'm never quite sure what to make of Mercury Retrograde. I started this blog under it about 12 days ago, and it has gone very smoothly (up until today, when at 11am I have had no visitors yet!) On the other hand, I have been trying to arrange a holiday for the past 2 weeks, and whatever I have tried isn't working out, which is classic Mercury Retrograde. So I'm going to give up until Fri/Sat!

So all I can say is that some things go well (like starting this blog) and some just will not sort (like my holiday). Which is how life is anyway. Except for that particular quality of refusing to sort whatever one does, and when that happens it's time to announce "Mercury Retrograde."

On the other hand, I have regularly found that Mercury Retrograde is a positively GOOD time for underlying problems and difficulties getting revealed and sorted, with the idea of then moving forward once Mercury goes Direct again. And that's how I'm viewing this blogsite: it's giving me an idea of what I want to write about in this format, what will work and what won't, as well as the idea that since I started it under Mercury Retrograde, it may be the precursor to say a website (rather than a blogsite). Or it may just fizzle out (I hope not!)

At any rate, tell me your thoughts on Mercury retrograde. I will publish succinct extracts. Let me know you're out there!

THE IRAN NUCLEAR CRISIS

If you've ever doubted that astrology works (and I think we all need to, from time to time), then take a look at what's going on in Iran's chart right now.

IRAN: 1st April 1979, 3pm, Tehran, Iran (See Nick Campion's Book of World Horoscopes for this and later charts)

(1)T (transiting) Pluto is squaring Natal 8th House Mars-Mercury conjunction in Pisces (25-27 degrees), which is itself square to natal Neptune.

(2) Progressed Mars is applying opposite within half a degree of Prog Pluto, and will soon move on to oppose natal Pluto.

(3) T Neptune is conjoining natal DESC at 17 Aquarius.

(4) Prog Moon is at 6 Gemini, and Prog MC is at 7 Gemini, both about to start crossing the nuclear axis at 8-10 Gemini-Sag.

This can leave us in no doubt (if we had any) that Iran's pursuit of nuclear technology is not just for peaceful means. It also leaves us in do doubt that there is bucketloads of secrecy and deception going on. Which means that we CANNOT rule out the possibility, given the level of deception involved, that Iran may be a lot closer to having a nuclear weapon than we think (t-Neptune conjunct Desc -confusing the enemy; Mercury conjunct Mars in 8th House Pisces square Neptune, being activated by t-Pluto - say no more!) This is a purely astrological conclusion, but it is one of those times when the strength of the astrology forces us to re-think. Furthermore, the US was profoundly wrong about Iraq's WMD, so why not about Iran as well?

The crisis over Iran has been overshadowed recently by the Israel-Hezbollah fighting. But it will soon be back on the agenda, because the transits and Progressions around Mars-Pluto are not due to let up just yet.

I think the crisis will move into a new phase next spring due to (1) the Pluto Mars transit having finished its crossings, but still being well within orb (2) the Prog Mars-Pluto opposition being no longer in its applying phase, but still within orb, while Prog Mars moves on to also oppose natal Pluto.

So the threats and counter-threats are due to continue right through next year, even though the form will change in the spring (into what I cannot say). Iran has recently said that they will take seriously as a basis for negotiation a package prented by the EU, but in the light of the astrology it is hard to see this happening.

It is interesting that Iran's Prog Moon is approaching the nuclear axis. It shows how much the desire to obtain nuclear weapons is of the Iranian people (the Moon) and not just their leaders. Extreme and demagogic as he might seem, President Ahmadinejad is expressing the will of the people, Khamenei's fatwa against nuclear weapons notwithstanding.

With Prog Moon moving onto the nuclear axis (in Sept 2006) and Prog MC moving there next April, it is hard not to see Iran's efforts to obtain nuclear weapons intensifying in the short-term.

As I understand it, once you have enough enriched uranium, it is relatively simple to make a bomb. The hard part is the time-consuming process of separating out, through centrifuges, the very slightly heavier uranium from the lighter. So for Iran to be deceiving the west, it would probably have a lot more centrifuges going than we are aware of, and have been doing so for longer than we have been led to believe. This doesn't seem completely implausible. Ahmadinejad's announcement a few months ago that Iran at last had enriched Uranium may have been a clever ploy to conceal the true advancement of their programme. This is all speculation on my part, in which I'm trying to flesh out the possibility of deception.

And if the above were true, then it gives a clear interpretation to Iran's Prog MC hitting the nuclear axis next Spring. It would mean Iran actually having a weapon.

But we don't know. Nor do we know if Iran's programme will come under military attack. We CAN feel fairly confident from the astrology (as well as common sense), however, that the programme is due to continue and to intensify, and that it will continue to be seen as a crisis right through next year, at least.

What about a surgical attack by say the USA or Israel?

The US Prog Mars has been stationary (for the 1st time ever) for the last year or so, and is due to retrograde (for the 1st time ever) next spring. The US military dominance on the world stage since WW1 is due for a setback (which doesn't mean they won't still be the strongest player for a long time yet). The US had a setback in Vietnam, but it still decisively won the larger war against Communism when the USSR collapsed in the early 1990s. What we may be seeing now is that the problems - hopeless problems - in Iraq are part of a larger war against terrorism that the USA is clearly not winning, and may even be losing. This has not happened to modern America before, and combined with Prog Saturn having gone retrograde in 1997, America's standing in the world seems due for a knock. And George Bush may well reap the anger of ordinary Americans for having humiliated the USA in Iraq (see earlier blog 'Is George Bush back on the Bottle?').

Having, so to speak, gone for the 'wrong' target with Iraq, the USA may well be too weakened to go for the 'right' target, which is the Iranian missile programme.

What about Israel? It's hard to know who started and for what reason the current fight between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon. It seemed to start with the capture of an Israeli soldier by Palestinians in Gaza, which Hezbollah then thought was a good idea due to Israel's 'disproportionate' response, and so they did it themselves, and it seemed to go on from there. What could be said to suit Israel in all this is that Hezbollah are using weapons that are of Iranian (as well as Syrian) origin, and this could help give Israel a justification for eventually attacking Iran's nuclear sites (as well as the Iranian President's comment some months ago that Israel should be wiped off the map.) Sharon is well known to have ordered detailed planning for such an attack on Iran. And of course Israel took out Iraq's nuclear weapons programme back in the 1980s.

ISRAEL: 14 May 1948 4pm Tel Aviv, Israel

Anyway, my knowledge of Middle East politics is fairly shaky, and my job here is to comment on some of the astrology. Israel's Progressed Moon conjoined it's Progressed Mars 2 days ago, on the 18th of July. So it's in the mood for a fight, and it has got one. Maybe also, therefore, it engineered it.

Also, Israels Prog ASC is at 8.42 Sag. Sound familiar? It's on the nuclear axis, has been for a year or so, and has another 2 years to run. It suggests an involvement with nuclear weaponry. It's had its own for years anyway, so its probably not that. It's probably Iran's nuclear programme.

Let's look at the Israel/Iran composite chart. What do we find 2 degrees off the nuclear axis at 12 Gemini? Composite Mars! And Uranus has been squaring that Mars all of 2006, and will make its final crossing in Jan 2007, but will remain in orb most of next year. A surprise attack on Iran by Israel to take out its weapons programme is a distinct astrological possibility, and remains at its most probable until January, though still quite possible throughout 2007. And this fits in with what is happening with Iran's Mars, which could just as easily involve Iran being attacked as well as being the attacker.

So there is my astrological take on the Iran crisis. One more point about something else. It's easy to complain about America's behaviour. But they are behaving like an empire, and it would be unrealistic to expect anything else. They act with self-interest in the Middle East, but that's what empires do. I'd much rather America was the dominant superpower than the Chinese.

NUCLEAR ALERT

The basic chart for all nuclear issues, whether peaceful or military, is the chart for the 1st controlled nuclear chain reaction in Chicago in 1942. This was the 1st time that a nuclear reaction controlled by mankind had occurred. The most significant part of the chart is around what has become known as the nuclear axis: Saturn at 9 Gemini conjunct Uranus at 2 Gemini opposite the Sun at 10 Sagittarius.


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This conjunction is very symbolically apt: the splitting (Uranus) of form/matter (Saturn). (The sign of Gemini perhaps suggests a 'light' and a 'dark' side to nuclear energy). This fits well with the equally apt Chart for the 1st man-made fusion reaction (an H-Bomb on 1 Nov 1952), which has a Neptune-Saturn conjunction: the fusion (Neptune) of form/matter (Saturn).

8-10 degrees of Gemini-Sagittarius is what has subsequently become known as the nuclear axis, and it has proved very sensitive to transits. The chart for Hiroshima, for example, nearly 3 years later, has Mars at 9 Gemini. Say no more. (For more on these transits, see 'The Nuclear Axis' at StarIQ.com)


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To get perhaps a bit mystical about it, the largest cycle we are living in is the 500 year Pluto-Neptune cycle, whose last conjunction was at about 8.37 Gemini in 1891, on the nuclear axis. This suggests that nuclear matters are central to the 500 year era that we are still only a century into.

Back to the transits. Transiting Pluto at 8-10 Virgo squared this axis in the years 1960-1963, at the height of MAD, or Mutual Assured Destruction, which involved the advent of ballistic missile submarines that ensured a 'second strike capability'.

MAD suggests that Pluto transits to the nuclear axis can concern the balance of nuclear power. In 1998/99 Pluto conjoined this axis at 8-10 Sagittarius, indicating a new phase in the nuclear balance of power. This was the period when India and Pakistan both 'came out' as nuclear powers. Since 1998/99, the astrology is therefore suggesting, the old 'safe' world, in which certain states had nuclear weapons but didn't use them, IS OVER. It is extraordinary that these weapons have not been used for over 60 years, but it is also easy therefore to be lulled into a false sense of security. The old order is over, and has been over for 7 or 8 years. We are now in a phase where new states are gradually acquiring nuclear weapons, but it is not yet clear what this means in practice.

I was idly looking at the Progressed Nuclear and Hiroshima Charts just before writing this blog, and I was startled to find that they both have Progressed New Moons in the next 6 months! How come I haven't come across this bit of information before? It seems to me to be crucial, and hence the title of this piece.

The last time they had Prog New Moons was in 1977. At a Prog New Moon, a seed is sown of a whole new 29-30 year cycle, but it usually takes a year or two to germinate. In terms of nuclear power, what happened 2 years later (in 1979) was the Three Mile Island accident in the USA, in which part of a reactor core melted, and support for nuclear power plummetted in the USA. No new nuclear power stations have been begun in the USA since that time (though ones being constructed at the time were completed).

The current Prog New Moon (on 1 Jan 2007, at 15 Aquarius) is coming at a time when there is a renewed commitment to nuclear power emerging across the western world, due to concerns about energy shortages and greenhouse gas emissions. The astrology seems to work pretty well here.

[Ignore this paragraph if you want. The significance of the above Prog New Moon (at 15 Aquarius) for nuclear power is backed up by (1) the moment of the Prog New Moon at 14.14 on 2 Jan 2007 in Chicago, where the MC is also at 15 Aquarius, 11 minutes off the Prog New Moon (2) The fact that the current Saturn-Neptune opposition catches this point of 15 Aquarius.]

But the nuclear chart is a chart for all uses of nuclear energy, including military. And in the Prog nuclear chart there is also a Yod, with Mars at the Apex, and Saturn-Pluto at the base. This Yod lasts from Sept 2004 to Oct 2006 if one allows one degree orbs, and through to the New Moon if one is slightly flexible with the orbs. This Yod could hardly be more war-like, and suggests something fated and pretty ghastly around the use of nuclear weapons being seeded right now.

Over to the Prog Nuclear Weapons (Hiroshima) Chart. Again, the last time there was a Prog Moon here was in 1977, and the next significant event around nuclear weapons was 2 years later, at the conclusion of the SALT II talks, which were designed to limit the stockpiles of weapons held by the USA and the USSR. So again, 2 years were needed for the Prog New Moon to show itself.

The last Prog Moons in 1977 showed a pulling back of both nuclear energy and nuclear weapons that took 2 years to manifest. With the upcoming Prog New Moons, both are expanding again. It will probably be at least a couple of years before the next generation of power stations are even begun to be built, and it may be a couple of years before the implications of the current period of nuclear proliferation become clear. But they are due to become clear, living as we are in the aftermath of the 1998/99 Pluto transit to the nuclear axis.

The future regarding nuclear power seems fairly predictable: there will be a major phase of building power stations in the near future. Regarding nuclear weapons, it is much harder to foresee. What we do know is that while the old dispensation seems largely still in place - with 4 or 5 countries 'legally' having them and not using them - there is a whole new order developing, with India and Pakistan still unproven in their ability to restrain themselves, and Iran and North Korea doing their best to become nuclear powers. Then there is Israel, a long term possessor of nuclear weapons, whose very survival is always under threat. In a couple of years time, after the Prog New Moon has had time to germinate, and after Uranus has finished its current squaring of the nuclear axis, we should be able to see - for better or for worse - what are the practical implications of all this.

One final point: that sinister yod in the Progressed nuclear chart combined with the Prog New Moons. In a way it is quite straightforward to interpret, though I am reluctant to say it. It is confirming that sooner or later the use of nuclear weapons is inevitable - 'fated', and that we are entering such a period. If a Mars, Saturn, Pluto Yod isn't saying this, then what would one look for instead?

SHOULD GORDON BROWN BE LEADER?

Gordon Brown's birth details: 20 Feb 1951 8.40am Giffnock, Scotland.

Gordon Brown quickly gained himself a reputation as a competent Chancellor of the Exchequer in the UK, but what he is perhaps best known for is his desire to have Tony Blair's job, and his ongoing frustration at not having it. I was pleased a couple of years ago when David Blunkett announced that Ministers shouldn't covet other Ministers' jobs. To my mind, Gordon Brown's continual power struggle with Blair over who should be PM disqualifies him from being PM - the man is too obviously and childishly obsessed with power (and one has to forgive a certain amount of it) to be trusted as leader. Unfortunately, we won't get a say in the matter.

On to his astrology. Gordon Brown has 5 planets in 12th House, 4 of them in Pisces, including Sun and Mars. The 2 'masculine' elements in his Chart - Sun and Mars - could hardly be less masculine. Then he has a Moon-Pluto conjunction in Leo, hidden below the horizon, and opposite 12th House Mercury in Aquarius.

Moon-Pluto conjunction in Leo - how about 'The Power behind the Throne'? I think that GB's astrology, which in some ways is quite easy to read, suggests that he is very well suited to the position he has been in - including the grumbling about wanting more power! He is like a power-hungry Queen who can never be King, but whose character the position suits.

Someone pointed out the other night (at an astrobabble gathering we have in Glastonbury) that Pisces is a sign of power, in the sense that a greater Will can flow through it. (And, come to think of it, Pluto is the esoteric ruler of Pisces.) I think this is GB's way: he wants power to come to him. Sun and Mars in 12th House Pisces. Moon - not Sun - in Leo, conjunct Pluto. He is not going to fight for it. He did not fight Blair for it in the first place. Rather, he has managed to create the impression that it is his by right, that it should come to him by virtue of who he is.

As a leader, I don't think he has what it takes - he is far too 'passive aggressive', too obsessed with power (which isn't to deny his ideals)and too hidden (Sun in 12th House Pisces) to present himself effectively to the public - although, paradoxically, he is probably very well tuned-in to what the public wants - in some ways, therefore, he has probably been very effective as a power behind the throne. From a biography of him I partly read, he seems to think too much in terms of people being either for or against him, and too pettily vindictive and grudge-bearing, to hold a Cabinet together effectively.

Nevertheless, I think he will be PM before too long. As I suggested in yesterday's blog, when we are dealing with collectives, or with people whose choices are to a large extent determined by the need to respond to the desires of the collective, the astrology can become quite mechanical and predictable.

GB has Sun at 1 Pisces, sextile to Chiron at 1 Capricorn and MC at 5 Capricorn. Pluto will exactly sextile his Sun in 2008, and will be close to doing so in 2007. Mechanical astrology tells us that this is favourable to him becoming leader in 2007/8, and so he probably will.

He also has Moon at 13 Leo conjunct Pluto at 18 Leo. Neptune opposed his 5th House Moon a couple of years ago (when he became a father for the 1st time) and maybe some sort of secret binding deal was struck with Blair around that time. What power does Brown hold over Blair, what secrets does he know? At any rate, Neptune is opposing Brown's Pluto (Power) this year, and will be completing the transit next year. Blair has the same transit coming up, which I think in Blair's case will mean loss of power, and in Brown's will mean accession to power (just as Neptune kicked off Blair's term in office, but will soon signify its end.)

Like Blair, Brown has a Chiron-MC conjunction in Capricorn. With Capricorn MC, both men are probably very concerned about their 'legacies'. And they are damaged. Blair, for all his efforts with the NHS and the education system, has not changed things radically, and will probably be remembered as much for his 'lies' over Iraq as for his efforts to improve public services. (I think Blair did lie, but as a lot of politicians would have done with the same leanings towards America. The trouble is, Pluto was in Sagittarius, which suggests a public that demands the truth. As the US novelist Philip Roth said recently, you expect politics to be 50% lies, but it has become a lot more than that under Bush - and I think under Blair as well.)

Brown may well also have damaged his own reputation already. He may be just a short-term PM, who will be remembered for his childish attitude towards not being PM during Blair's term in office. At any rate, Pluto will conjoin both Blair's and Brown's Chirons in a couple of years time, and it is maybe then that the damaged aspects to their legacies will become more apparent - as well as perhaps the 'healing' aspects, such as the efforts to improve public services and relieve Third World debt. Both men have Chiron conjunct MC in early Capricorn, and so their legacies are inextricably linked.

I expect Brown to become PM sometime next year, as Neptune finally finishes off Blair by opposing his Pluto (Loss of Power). In 2010, Pluto will conjoin Brown's MC at 5 Capricorn. Either in 2009, as Pluto approaches his MC, or in 2010, he will be forced to have an election.

The astrology doesn't clearly tell us who is going to win. However, I would put my money on Brown over Cameron in 2009/10, for purely astrological reasons. The big astrology coming our way is a Cardinal t-square between Uranus in Aries and Pluto in Capricorn. This transit will demand major change across the western world as it hits hard the charts of all the western powers. Sensing these changes, the public will demand a leader who is in tune with them - whose chart, in other words, is also involved with the Uranus-Pluto t-square.

As Uranus-Pluto finally finishes with Brown's MC at 5 Capricorn around 2013, it will be moving within a few degrees of hitting his ASC at 15 Aries. Davis Cameron does not have such a strong involvement with Uranus-Pluto (David Cameron: 9 Oct 1966, 6am, London). His ASC is 1 Libra, which Pluto hits in 2008, and then there is a big gap before it hits his Sun at 15 Libra.

Like it or not, Brown would seem to be our man until around 2015. But that does not mean he will do a good job!

One caveat: David Cameron's birthtime seems to be rounded off to 6am. If he was born 15-20 mins later, then his ASC moves to 4-5 Libra, and suddenly his chart has the necessary continuous engagement with the Uranus-Pluto zeitgeist for him to be PM from the election after next.

AN INTERESTING ASIDE: The combined chart of Brown and Blair has a yod, with Mercury at the apex at 21 Pisces, and Neptune and Pluto at the base. Yod's are 'fated' anyway, but with Neptune and Pluto at the base, the fatedness is doubled or tripled. There has been a dynamic in the communication (Mercury) between these 2 men, that has involved power struggle (Pluto) and deals that never were or might have been (Neptune) that has been at the heart of Government and that, it would seem, neither man had any choice but to be involved in. Each was the other's fate.

I mentioned earlier that when Neptune opposed GB's Moon a couple of years ago, there may have been some sort of secret deal that finally assured Brown of eventual power. We also had Pluto squaring this combined and fated Mercury a couple of years ago, reinforcing my point. This also coincided with Blair's extraordinary announcement that he would only serve one more term, in order, as he put it, to stop the speculation about him - which of course it hasn't. All it did was to finally guarantee Brown a chance at the leadership before a certain date. Was there another reason Blair made this announcement, to do with some sort of hold Brown had over him? There is ample room in the astrology for this, and if we ever know, it may not be for 30 years.

WHEN WILL TONY BLAIR GO?

Tony Blair: 6 May 1953 6.10am Edinburgh, Scotland

In early 2004 I wrote an article (see Transit Magazine from a couple of years ago) in which I predicted that Tony Blair would leave office in late 2007/beginning of 2008. This was before he had said anything about serving a full third term in office. I think I have now to relax that prediction to anytime next year. It is/was for good astrological reasons.

A few years ago, around the time of the Iraq crisis, I kept thinking "Tony Blair's got a big Neptune transit (conjunct his 10th House Moon), he's gonna go!" But he didn't, and I realised that actually it was Neptune that had put him in power in the 1st place (it conjoined his MC at 26 Capricorn in 96/97, as he came to power), and that he would stay in power until Neptune had finished with him.

It has provided an interesting comparison with the astrological trajectory of Margaret Thatcher's time in power (she was the first ex-party leader Blair invited to Downing Street after his election in 1997, before Kinnock, Callaghan etc). She, as might be expected, had a series of Pluto transits while in power, and as these came to an end in autumn 1990, so did her time as PM.

Tony Blair has natal Sun at 15.22 Taurus square to Pluto at 20.48 Leo. Neptune has finished with his Sun, but hasn't quite started on Pluto. Transiting Neptune opposite natal Pluto - literally, loss of power. We have seen his power leaching away since Neptune conjoined his Moon during the Iraq crisis, and then the election he won with a much reduced majority in 2005 as Neptune squared his Sun. Once Neptune has opposed his Pluto, the transits will be over, and he will be out of power. My prediction is simply based on him leaving during the Neptune-Pluto transit. It could be during the transit, it could be after the crossings after over. One never quite knows. So it could be anytime next year.

With Neptune having finished with his luminaries, we could say that Tony Blair will no longer be able to implement his personal vision. All that is left is Neptune-Pluto, the politics of how long he can hold on to power.

All this seems a bit like clockwork, in a way that it rarely is when dealing with an ordinary individual. But I think that when one is dealing with collectives, or with individuals whose actions are to a large extent determined by the demands of the collective, then the outcome becomes a lot more predictable. It is ironic, given that these people are given god-like celebrity status, that astrology should reveal them to be more determined, and less free, and therefore less human, than the man on the Clapham Omnibus.

IS GEORGE BUSH BACK ON THE BOTTLE?

George Bush's birth data: 6th July 1946, 7.26am, New Haven, Connecticut.

There are plenty of rumours going round that GWB is back on the bottle, or taking anti-depressants that suppress mood swings (natal Sun in 12th House Cancer) but also suppress mental clarity. A report, for example, by Capitol Hill Blue (in 2004!) is quite convincing that this is what is actually going on. What impresses me about some of these US websites is that they are clearly not politically slanted - you can read assessments of GWB that are professional, informed and compassionate, drawing conclusions based on his behaviour that we have all observed.

GWB is not a strong man, and how the hell could he cope with the pressures that come with being President of the USA? Particularly when it is all going wrong for him?

Anyway, time for some astrology. Incidentally, I like to keep my astrology simple, if only because I stop believing it when it gets too complicated. I can do transits, and I can just about do Progressions, and I don't like to stray too far from the Sun, Moon and Angles.

George Bush gave up drinking in 1986. This was the year in which Pluto in Scorpio squared his Ascendant at 7.07 Leo, and the year before Pluto squared itself at 10.35 Leo (also important, as he has Pluto Rising).

In 2001, Neptune opposed his Ascendant, beginning a new phase of the cycle that began in 1986. This was the first year of his Presidency, and the extraordinary pressures that come with it. For purely astrological reasons, we have to suppose some sort of dissolution of the transformation that 1986 had brought about.

For some people, this would be positive. In Bush's case, given that he did not seem to have dealt with the underlying problems that had caused his alcoholism in the 1st place, but had rather replaced them with a rigid belief in 'God', I think he would have found the personality he had constructed not equal to the pressures he was now under. Hence, under Neptune's influence first on his Asc in 2001 and then on Pluto in 2002, there would have been a gradual dissolution and, because it was Neptune and because that was his history, a return to drink and possibly other drugs.

The reports are that it is Condoleeza Rice who is holding the show together, there are very few aides he will now speak to, he won't speak to his father, his language and temper become violent very easily.... the list goes on. His lack of connection to Hurricane Katrina was something we could all see, and indicates someone who is no longer quite with us.

He has had what I think has been a very painful transit for him this year, between about March and July: the Saturn-Chiron opposition sitting along his Asc/Desc axis. This axis, as we have seen, is associated with his struggle with alcohol (probably because of natal Pluto's presence), and natally Chiron is conjunct his Moon and square to his Sun. So Chiron transits would hit him hard, and in this case Chiron is hitting the addiction area, and being brought into manifestation by Saturn. If he was in a situation of less pressure, you could see some kind of an awareness as a possibility. But with the natural pressures of his job, and with the hopelessness of his dream project, Iraq, and with his low standing at home, this transit can only have made things a lot worse for him.

I think we have probably moved on from the early years of his Presidency when he was a danger to the world. He now seems unequal to the real danger that Iran poses. He is no longer a figure of fun in the way that he was. Rather, we seem to have a President who is personally unable to cope with the job, who is probably back on the booze in a big way, and around him a massive and continual cover-up operation is going on.

GWB has Chiron conjunct Jupiter, both conjunct Moon and square Sun. Jupiter has in some ways made his life easy for him - privileged upbringing, sidling out of National Service, an easy ascent in politics. But Chiron can often mean one is some sort of sacrificial scapegoat (like Clinton who, with a Venus-Jupiter-Chiron conjunction, was scapegoated around his relations with women.) I think that GWB has firstly been a sacrifice to his family's ambitions, and this is where a lot of his problems stem from - the fact/rumour that he is no longer speaking to his father is very significant.

But he may yet become a sacrifice on a wider scale, particularly with natal Jupiter conjunct his Chiron. He still has 2 and 1/2 years of a lame-duck Presidency to get through. If during this period Iraq becomes widely acknowledged for the disaster that it is, it will be GWB who gets the blame. Because Chiron is so central to his Chart, he could get hammered much worse than ever happened to Clinton. And with reason. I don't rule out the possibility that he may not make it through his second term in office.

Neptune is also associated with sacrifice. On the US Gemini Rising Chart, the upcoming Saturn-Neptune opposition will hit the US Moon (at 18 Aquarius) as well as the MC (at 14 Aquarius). The conditions do seem set for the sacrifice of George W Bush.

George Bush Astrology

JUPITER-CHIRON AND THE SUPERHEROES

I'd been wondering for some time what the charts for the American Superheroes - Superman, Batman etc - might look like. So I looked up on the net their 1st publications. Superman was first published in the June 1938 issue of Marvel Comics. So I did a noon chart for 1st June 1938.

You can stop for a moment and check it out yourself. But it works rather well. Sun square Neptune and Moon conjunct Pluto. Well he did lose both his parents when his home planet blew up. Sun in Gemini - well there's 2 of him, Clark Kent and Superman, one a bumbling not-yet-man, the other a superhero, the 'dark' and 'light' twins. Sun square Neptune - Superman as Redeemer, saving the world from Evil. Moon in Cancer conjunct Pluto - his homeland was destroyed.

Here's the interesting bit: Mars is Trine Jupiter and conjunct Chiron. Mars trine Jupiter is the Superhero fighting for the Good. But Chiron: his superpowers (Jupiter) are connected to his wound: being orphaned as a baby, not just from his parents or his country, but from his PLANET! His exile to the realm of the gods is complete. His other wound is his vulnerability to Kryptonite (contact with his roots 'grounds' him - same theme).

This is where it gets even more bizarre. Krypton is an inert gas that was discovered on 30 May 1898. This Chart has Neptune at 21 Gemini, conjoining - and dissolving -Superman's superpower stellium of Mars (at 26 Gemini) conjunct Chiron trine to Jupiter.

I did charts for Spiderman (1 Aug 1962) and for The Incredible Hulk (1 May 1962) and both have Jupiter-Chiron conjunctions. They both have superpowers (Jupiter) but, like Superman, these powers originated in apparently incurable wounds (Chiron): Spiderman was bitten by a radioactive spider, and the Hulk was exposed to Gamma Rays. (The Hulk has also Moon conjunct Mars in Aries - angry so-and-so.) So on an archetypal level, someone at Marvel Comics knew what they were doing.

This configuration puts me in mind of the archetypal shaman's journey, where the novice becomes in some sense 'ill', and the path of recovery involves acknowledgement (sometimes reluctant) of his/her vocation as a healer, which involves the ability to talk to spirits and travel to other realms - in other words, 'superpowers'. So the writers at Marvel Comics were keying in to an age old human story.

Back to the Superheroes. Batman first appeared on 1 May 1939. He has Sun in Taurus trine to Mars, which is good for physical strength, but he DOESN'T have a Jupiter-Chiron aspect. Which is as we would expect, because Batman doesn't have superpowers, nor does he have a 'wound' that we know about.

Given the function of Jupiter-Chiron with the Superheroes, it would also be interesting to see how this aspect plays out in the charts of us mere mortals. The person I have in mind is George W Bush, who has a Moon-Jupiter-Chiron conjunction in 3rd House Libra, square to his 12th House Sun in Cancer.

Bush's birth details: 6th July 1946, 7.26am, New Haven, Connecticut.

So what we might call the Superman Complex (Jupiter-Chiron) (or in his case a Simplex?) is central to his personality through its aspects to the Sun and Moon. Particularly with that square to the Sun, it does not sit easily. But it does suggest the capacity to be an exceptional healer, if only he could face his problems, and stop trying instead to heal the world through his battle against 'The Axis of Evil'.

Another way of putting a malfunctioning Jupiter-Chiron would be someone who tries to behave like he/she has superpowers, is 'larger than life', but drags some sort of wound or shadow with him/her that everyone else can see, and which spoils everything. I think of GWB's 'Top Gun' moment, when he appeared in military gear in 2003, proclaiming victory over Iraq. Superman George, holder of the most powerful position in the 'free' world, conqueror of Iraq - but the military gear was a pretence, he had flunked his National Service, the war proved unwinnable and he exacerbated divisions in the world, while facilitating long-term carnage in Iraq.

I know of two other Jupiter-Chirons (off the top of my head), one a businessman, the other a 'shamanic' teacher, both have/present a 'larger than life' quality, needing to appear the 'best' at what they do, and both clearly being fuelled by some sort of inadequacy that sabotages other aspects of their lives.

Bill Clinton has a Jupiter-Chiron-Venus conjunction in 1st House Libra, and this one is really clear. A 'larger than life' sexuality - a 'gifted' seducer of women - that got him into big trouble. In my book he hadn't done an awful lot wrong, but that's not the point: his Chiron demanded some sort of trouble, some sort of stain on his character (no pun intended), some sort of scapegoating, if only to force him to look at his own compulsions. As with GWB, half the world has to be dragged through it as these guys work out their neuroses (or not!)

What about a 'healthy' Jupiter-Chiron? Is there such a thing? I think that one thing we can't avoid as humans (apart from taxes) is having difficulties and neuroses. A healthy Jupiter-Chiron would have the unusual, god-like gifts that Jupiter bestows, but nourished and grounded by an awareness of, even an appreciation of the shadow-side that is Chiron. This is one sense in which Chiron is 'incurable': we NEED our shadows, we need our neuroses - the shaman needs his illness - they give us humility in the face of our gifts, their pain keeps us embodied and grounded, they are a source of wisdom.

Off the top of my head, I can think of one relatively healthy Jupiter-Chiron, a gifted teacher who is very well known ('larger than life'), who clearly, like the rest of us, has his/her own neuroses, but which don't get too much in the way - this person's pupils are a little bit cult-like at times, but it could be a lot worse. Can one hope for more?

I am just left with one question: why do Superheroes wear their underpants outside their trousers? (OK, except for the Incredible Hulk.)

FIRST POST: USA: GEMINI OR SAG RISING?; SATURN-NEPTUNE AND IRAQ; SATURN-NEPTUNE AND OIL; THE 'TROUBLE' WITH DEMOCRACY

I've been comparing what seem to be the 2 main astrological charts used for the USA -the Gemini Rising Chart and the Sibly Chart (which has Sagittarius Rising). They both seem to work well in different ways, particularly by transit. The classic example was the Saturn-Pluto opposition which was occurring in Gemini-Sag on 11th Sept 2001, and was aligned with the ASC-DESC axis of both USA charts. Pluto in Sag - fundamentalist terrorism. Saturn in Gemini - the twin (Gemini) buildings (Saturn) representative of America's achievements (Saturn). Isn't astrology eerily literal sometimes?

Before my 5 year old son was born, his mother got thrown off and trodden on the ribs by a horse. They were both all right, but he was born with Moon (mother) opposite Chiron (Centaur/Horse).

Back to the USA Charts. Though both work for 9/11, I think the Gemini Rising chart is more symbolically accurate, as the attack was by others (Pluto in Sag on the Desc) directed at the USA's expression of itself (the Twin Towers), rather than the other way around.Incidentally, the Sibly Chart is set for 5.10pm, and the Gemini Rising Chart for 2.17am, on the 4th July 1776 in Philadelphia. Both charts were derived symbolically, though there appears to be a certain amount of historical evidence for each. We will never know! Anyway, surely an entity as complex as a country may have more than one chart?

As a natal Chart, I am more convinced by the Gemini Rising Chart. (The symbolic derivation of this chart comes from the old idea of placing on the Ascendant the planet that seemed to be ruling the event - the Declaration of Independence - in this case the newly discovered and revolutionary planet Uranus). Gemini seems to me to describe that split in the American psyche which I won't pretend to understand, but which expresses itself in the nearly 50-50 split between Republican and Democrat. (Incidentally, I am from the UK). Though the 2 parties have changed what they stand for over time (remarkably, the Democrat party was once the pro-slavery party), at the time of the US Civil War the geographical parts of the country that tended to vote Republican or Democrat were virtually identical to what they are now.

So it is an enduring division in the US psyche. It does not readily lead to a country that is at ease with itself (nor does the natal Sun square Saturn.) But it also leads to a country in which genuine debate can occur. The Sag Desc reflects the USA's desire to convert other countries to its own political system which, combined with Uranus Rising, leads to the USA - at least one part of the country - treating Democracy as an Absolute, God-given Truth. Yes, it has its strengths, but it is worth bearing in mind Churchill's comment that Democracy is the worst possible form of government, except for all the others! Anyway, I'm in danger of getting preachy here (I have a Moon-Saturn conjunction in Sag), and nor do I wish to offend anyone!

11th July 2006

MORE WEIRD SYNCHRONICITY

If we progress the US Gemini Rising Chart to 9/11, we find that the ASC/DESC axis was almost precisely inverted. Symbolically, the fundamentalist terrorist without (transiting Pluto on the natal Sag Desc - the 7th House is the House of 'Open Enemies') is also within (Prog Sag ASC) - which is precisely what happened: Al Quaeda members were operating from within the USA.

Anyway, enough about that. I have not 'proved' the case for Gemini Rising (see yesterday's posting). The Sibly Chart, with its MC at 1 Libra, does a much better job of describing the crisis over the Presidency when Nixon resigned in 1974 (Pluto conjunction) and America's reluctant claiming of its place as a world power, when it entered WW1 in 1917 (Pluto Square).

TIME FOR ANOTHER SUBJECT: The Saturn-Neptune opposition in Leo/Aquarius.

These 2 planets came within 4 degrees of Opposition last November. They will finally cross at the end of August, and will do so again in Feb and June 2007.

The US Gemini Rising Chart has Moon at 18 Aquarius (and MC at 14 Aquarius). The series of Oppositions will hit this point HARD. It is difficult not to foresee a crystallisation of the sense of hopelessness (Neptune) on the part of the American people (Moon) around the attempt to create order (Saturn) in Iraq. (And perhaps a sense of despair towards the Presidency itself.) This sense of hopelessness is already strongly present - how could it not be? - but it has not yet been properly acknowledged.

As the novelist Philip Roth (author of "The Plot against America") was saying recently on UK TV, there has been no protest against what the Bush administration is doing, in the way there was against Lyndon Johnson and Vietnam, not even in Congress. It may well be, as the Saturn-Neptune Opposition progresses, that protest develops. Let us hope so (whoops - my Moon in Sag speaking again!) Mind you, we haven't got the benefit of a Uranus-Pluto Conjunction like they had in the 60s. On the other hand, a Saturn-Neptune protest may be more deeply felt and considered, without the gratuitous rebellion against authority that can characterise Uranus-Pluto.

The basic chart for the Bush Presidency is for 12 midday, 20 Jan 2001, in Washington. This chart has a Mercury-Uranus conjunction from 17-20 Aquarius, square to Mars at 16 Scorpio. The Neptune-Saturn Opposition will clearly hit this set of planets quite tightly as well (Neptune on its own has been conjoining for a couple of years, beginning with the errors/lies around Weapons of Mass Destruction coming to light.) This configuration and its transits lends weight to the idea of some kind of widespread recognition of the Iraqi situation, and Bush's part in it, between now and next June.

OIL

The obvious prediction around Saturn-Neptune is a squeeze on oil. This was what happened around the last opposition in the early 70s, when there was an Oil Crisis, and this time we have already seen the beginnings of a squeeze before any actual crossings of Saturn and Neptune have occurred.

Will this be just another squeeze, for whatever reasons, and then afterwards everything can return to normal, albeit at higher prices and a few geo-political shifts? It is possible, with the Neptune-Chiron conjunction following hard on its heels, that we are seeing the beginnings of something other than a short-term squeeze. Saturn can be 'worked through'. Chiron cannot. It asks that we recognise an inherent limitation in the nature of things - in this case, the obvious limitation that oil is a limited resource that we have been treating as unlimited.

We all know this. But Neptune-Chiron may be indicating that we are moving into a time when we act on it. The first Oil Strike was in 1859, with Neptune at 26 Pisces. Oil will have its Neptune Return in 2023, so that is perhaps the time we will see the ending of the Oil Age.

12th July 2006

THE 'TROUBLE' WITH DEMOCRACY

Back to the US Gemini Rising Chart. Gemini is known for liking a fight - with it's mythological division into 'light' and 'dark' twins, that is not surprising. The US also has Mars in First House Gemini. So it likes a fight, just like Tony Blair does, who has Mars Rising in Gemini.

The trouble is, the US also has Uranus Rising, reflecting its democratic ideals. If you want to win a fight, you can't shilly-shally, you can't have 'debate', you can't have the media exposing your wrongdoings. You have to completely believe in your cause, and be ruthless in following it through. And perhaps Gemini isn't very good at this either - much better to have Sag, which believes in the One Truth.

So I think that the USA has the wrong chart for ruling other countries - which is a compliment. Yes, it can conquer them, like it did Germany and Japan, but in those days it had what was called a 'plan' about what to do next, and it exited with honour. If you want to rule another country, you have to be brutal and ruthless in putting down the local opposition - like the Nazis were, or like the Chinese have been in Tibet - or like Saddam (a Sunni) was to the Shias. There was a reason Iraq had a ruler like Saddam - or Afghanistan had rulers like the Taleban.

So what I am saying is that the reason the USA is failing in Iraq is because they are not brutal enough to succeed there. I am not saying that Bodybag Bush hasn't got what it takes - I would not want to question his manhood, and with Pluto Rising, death naturally accompanies him, as he proved while Governor of Texas. The trouble is, he is ruling one of those silly democracies which has certain 'values', and which will only allow a certain amount of the truth to be concealed.

OIL AGAIN

Yesterday I said I reckoned there was a good chance that the upcoming Saturn-Neptune Opposition (first crossing, end of August) would be about more than just a short-term squeeze on oil, and I cited the ensuing Neptune-Chiron conjunction as evidence of this.

There is much more compelling evidence than this, and it is to do with the upcoming Uranus-Pluto Square, the BIG transit coming our way, which will be within an 8 degree orb in just under 2 years time. As it moves into Aries-Capricorn in the following years it will hit the 2nd House Saturn of OPEC (11 Capricorn), the ASC of the 1st Oil Strike (13 Cap), and the charts of ALL the major powers, all of which have significant points in the first half of the cardinal signs.

E.g the USA has Sun at 13 Cancer, the UK's is at 10 Capricorn, Germany's is at 9 Libra, France's is at 13 Libra, China's is at 8 Libra and Russia's is at 3 Capricorn. To some extent this reading depends on which chart you take for those countries.

All this suggests a paradigm shift coming our way in a few years time, and this is beginning to become clear from the seriousness with which politicians are starting to take energy and climate issues. Even George Bush said recently that new energy technologies are necessary to reduce the US dependence on foreign oil. At least something has been learnt from Iraq!

So the Saturn-Neptune Opposition may LOOK like just another oil squeeze because we are using more, and the answer is therefore to produce more. But the wider astrology of the next 10 years strongly indicates we will be forced into a re-think of our technologies - and maybe even our attitude to wealth and 'progress'.

It is easy to damn America for using so much of the world's oil and for being the world's biggest polluter and for refusing to take climate change seriously. And it is a serious and merited criticism. But America is also enormously resourceful and productive and 'can-do', and it wouldn't at all surprise me that when we are finally forced into developing new energy technologies, it will be America more than any other country that will lead the way.

Saturn-Uranus is associated with technological breakthrough, and the USA has a Trine. In the Gemini Rising chart, Uranus is on the ASC in Gemini (trine to Saturn). America is naturally innovative and inventive.