"Thank you very much, you answered all of my questions and offered me great insight into my life and any future issues as well as potential issues that may arise. Your reading was phenomenal!"
"The natal chart is like a seed and progressions are the unfolding in time of that into the plant it is to become. Transits, are like a daily weather report. In political astrology, these three factors have to be taken into account!"
Recent NewsScope Articles
Jan. 6, 2014 - Mayor-elect Bill de Blasio; Colorado legalizes marijuana; Sean Penn's love life.
Jan. 13, 2014 - Jeff Bezos and Chiron-Pluto; is Chris Christie a bully? West Virginia's eco-disaster
March 3, 2014 - Ukraine's 12th house; Putin's stars; Philip Seymour Hoffman, Sirius, Grand Cross.
March 10, 2014 - Tracking Mars and Pluto; Obama's Part of Fortune; Grace Kelly and Nicole Kidman.
March 17, 2014 - Charting Flight MH370; East Turkestan separatists; Nicole Kidman, Part 2.
March 24, 2014 - The pilot of MH370; April's Top Five Astro-Events; Shailene Woodley stars in Divergent.
March 31, 2014 - Henry Waxman vs. Big Pharma; conscious uncoupling; Russell Crowe as Noah.
April 7, 2014 - The rise of America's Plutocracy; the first of four "Blood Moons"; Anja Niedringhaus.
April 14, 2014 - Russia flexes its muscles; Wal-Mart goes organic; Stephen Colbert.
April 21, 2014 - Astrology rising; "you don't believe in astrology, do you?"; Susan Miller, pop astrologer.
April 28, 2014 - The U.S. progressed Mars; May's top five; DWTS's Meryl Davis and Maks Chmerkovskiy.
May 5, 2014 - Obama relocated to Kiev, the tech sector's swoon, NBA owner Donald Sterling banned.
May 12, 2014 - Mars turns direct on May 19; Rob Ford, mayor of Crazy Town; George Clooney to marry.
May 19, 2014 - Narendra Modi, India's new Prime Minister; Hillary Clinton's double whammy; Beyonce.
May 26, 2014 - Pope Franics in the Middle East; June's top five astro-events; the Lindy Hop Revival.
Unless otherwise stated, all data is rated A or AA from AstroDataBank
re: Israel - You said Israel's progressed moon is at TWELVE DEGREES CAPRICORN????!!!! Isn't that where transiting Pluto is right now? geesh... Couldn't you squeak that in there somehow? It just seems noteworthy. I know how much rage I felt when my progressed Moon was conjunct transiting Pluto a few years ago.
A. Yes, you're absolutely correct. Actually, there are quite a few items I could have added to the narrative, but I try to avoid getting too much astrologese in. Anyway, I'm glad you noticed.
re: Germany - I have six different charts for the German nation--including the Weimer Republic and the Reunification. Have you worked with the German chart? What chart do you recommend?
re: Elizabeth Warren - Glad you brought up Elizabeth Warren and her possible presidential run but really, do you have to join the Anybody But Hillary Bandwagon? I have yet to understand the hostility which both right and left wing pundits seem to hold towards her. It is not a product of her political actions but seems personal and malicious. I know of no other politician who has such critical, and pointless, scrutiny of her every action. You could at least try to maintain a veneer of civility towards her.
re: Elizabeth Warren - You didn't mention how much of a damned LIAR Elizabeth Warren is and how she lied to get freebies by saying she is a Cherokee.... It has been proven that her ancestors actually helped to massacre the native americans.... i really wish you would be a little more fair and stop showing your desire for socialism to destroy the country.
re: First Trade charts -I know you have written some things about first trade charts in your NewsScope column, but they seem contradictory. For YHOO you use 9:30 AM even though Michael Munkasey's Companies Database has 9:48 AM. For FB you used 11:30 AM. For BIDU you used 11:40 AM. Do you mostly use the actual time of the trade? Why one instead of the other? Have you tried researching the issue with many stocks? The problem with making predictions with FT charts is their complexity. Not only do you have to look at the natal chart, but both the P2 and P3 charts.
A.Your observations on FT charts are on target. I've been studying these charts for at least three years, but not until I got Munkasey's database did I realize that so many FTs are not set for 9:30 am. I analyzed YHOO and wrote about before I got his database, but have been using 9:48 since then. It's a real challenge to understand how the transits and P2 and P3 charts interact, but worth the effort. When the same message appears on all three levels, you get a strong indication of a big move and the direction.
re: Hillary and Neptune - You wrote about the physically weakening influence of Hillary's upcoming Neptune transits, but isn't it the case that Americans do kinda like Neptunian leaders? Isn't it also the case that she can come across as being too tyrannical? Couldn't Neptune softening her be a benefit...make her more appealing?
A. Yes, Neptune softens, and may have other effects. A prominent Neptune may be associated with deception, poor advice from her lieutenants, misinformation, and most likely, promising more than she can keep.
re: Donald Sterling - Your evaluation of Donald Sterling is outstanding. I live here in Southern California and have been glued to the coverage of Sterling and the Clippers since the news broke. Underscoring the generational and cultural impacts of Sterling’s Pluto in Cancer era makes the analysis more meaningful. We can we can “see” Sterling through his own historical lens and thus comprehend the origins of his belief system more readily. Too many astrologers neglect the importance of this.
re: Obama relocated - Your analysis of Obama’s relocated Kiev chart coupled with what an ACG map can and cannot reveal is spot on. You’ve made a clear and convincing case as to why we need to use rely on both techniques for a more accurate assessment. This week’s column is one of your best ever.
June 2, 2014 - Pluto opp the U.S. Sun; overhauling the Vets Admin; Steve Ballmer and the Clippers.
June 9, 2014 - Mars in the danger zone; Ukraine's Petro Poroshenko; JG's "The Fault in our Stars"
June 16, 2014 - ISIS seeks world domination, Eric Cantor's defeat; Subtext in Angelina Jolie's Maleficent
June 23, 2014 - World Refugee Day, July's top five astro-events; Howard Schultz, coffee King.
June 30, 2014 - The U.S. plutocracy; Uranus in U.S. 6th house; Jurgen Klinsmann, U.S. soccer.
July 7, 2014 - Lilith on the U.S. MC; Elizabeth Warren's rising star; Kim Kardashian, #1 trendsetter.
July 21, 2014 - Global hotspots heat up, is Malaysian Airlines cursed? the Planet of the Apes.
July 28, 2014 - Three air disasters is a coincidence? August's top five; is Charlize Theron engaged?
Aug 4, 2014 - Obama's 2014 solar return; Israel's Pluto; Robert F. Kennedy Jr. gets married.
Aug 11, 2014 - Mars activates Solar Eclipse; Russia's empire memory; Diamond Dallas Page Yoga.
Aug. 18, 2014 - Missouri militarizes police, Robin Williams and Lilith; Rachael Price, jazz vocalist.
Aug 25, 2014 - The Saturn-Uranus dilemma; Sept.'s top five; Piper Kerman's "Orange is the New Black".
Sept. 1, 2014 - NATO awakens, Angela Merkel at the frontiline, Jack Ma's Alibaba is coming.
Sept. 8, 2014 - Virginia's Bob McDonnell; Joan Rivers; Brangelina's wedding, good timing?
Sept. 15, 2014 - Chiron, how much weight? Nasdaq's top ten gainers; Teddy Roosevelt on PBS.
Sept. 22, 2014 - Alibaba, the biggest IPO ever; October's top five astro-events; FDR's blessing.
Sept. 29, 2014 - Neptune trines U.S. Ascendant; Eleanor Roosevelt; Derek Jeter, a class act.
Reader feedback
re: Regulus - In November's astro-event #5 you said that around November 22 there would be news about celebrities and royalty because Lilith was conjuncting the royal asteroid Regulus. I notice that Marilyn Monroe has her natal Lilith at 29 Leo and she has been in the news lately because of her letters being auctioned. So it was spot on in regards to Marilyn who is American royalty. And the news came out that William and Kate are heading to New York soon.
re: Bill Cosby - I would also add that transiting Saturn in Scorpio has passed over his Mars in Scorpio in the 7th and now transiting the 8th house has also brought all those 8th house hidden sexual/rape/criminal activities to light in a big KARMIC way.... I’ll leave black moon Lilith out of the equation because my ex-husband has Venus in Gemini, and I know just how much men with this placement think that the grass (the girl) is greener on the other side because they can’t make up their mind who they love or why until they’ve lost it! FICKLE FICKLE FICKLE! And remember what they say in Astrology: SATURN is KARMA.
re: Jessica Alba - She is most impressive. You didn't say anything about Ceres in her chart. I wonder if it's also relevant.
A. Ceres trines Uranus, which is angular and near the 4th house cusp. She's revolutionizing home life, with special attention to baby products.
re: Scott Walker - When doing Scott Walkers chart wouldn't you do a relocation chart from Colorado to Wisconsin instead?
A. It's certainly possible to look at a politician's chart relocated to his current residence, but that depends on having an accurate birth time. For Scott Walker, his birth time is unknown, so we don't know his Ascendant or Midheaven, and relocating the chart won't change that unknown.
re: Princess Charlotte - She has an interesting chart...I wonder, could this little one become a Legal Eagle or Judge one day!?! ;)
A. Yes, the strong, elevated Pluto and Libra planets do indicate that as a real possibility.
re: Stephen Collins - As an astrologer I have been watching the alleged fall from grace of actor Stephen Collins (10/1/1947). Is this something (child molestation) in his chart or is this part of the drama from his current divorce with wife Faye Grant (7/16/1957)? He's a fine actor and I'm sad to see this surface. Will this get resolved or change his reputation/life forever?
re: NCAA upsets - Should I just attribute all the NCAA football upsets on Saturday to Mercury turning retrograde? I don't remember ever seeing so many upsets happening together on one weekend like that. There must have been some general cosmic influence. Do you have a theory about that?
A. Ideally, one would check the NCAA chart, but the Lunar Eclipse aligned with the U.S. Sun-squ-Saturn which in itself can mean an upset of the status quo. Notice the simultaneous major upsets (extreme volatility) in the stock market as well.
re: Neptune - In your discussion of transiting Neptune and the U.S. Ceres, I was surprised you never discussed water and farming at all. I've heard that some in California want to break the state up into 4 states to govern water because of the drought.
A. Yes, you've spotted another manifestation of this dynamic, and there will certainly be more. Keep your eyes peeled and let me know what else you find.
re: Teddy Roosevelt - We've been enjoying the PBS series on the Roosevelts too. Another aspect of Teddy's life that is very sad, but causes one to question the role of fate, is that he lost his first wife and mother on the same day. I have to wonder what the astrological factors behind that were. Also, did this loss have anything to do with his Uranus in the 12th house in Gemini (etc.)? This is the kind of biographical information, along with the story about him getting wounded yet surviving, that makes one wonder about the "fated" aspects in such a famous/history shaping person's life.
A. The date this coincidence happened was February 14, 1884. Transiting Saturn was in fact conjunct his 12th house Uranus at the time, suggesting the duality, difficulty and surprising nature of this loss. However, there were quite a few other major transits and progressions taking place at the same time. Especially relevant is that the preceding Solar Eclipse on October 30, 1883 took place on his Scorpio Sun and was activated by transiting Mars when his wife and mother died 3 1/2 months later.
re: Susan Miller - Gee, that's terrible--Susan Miller's fans getting angry at her for being sick. I receive 3 or 4 Astro-Newsletters. Whenever the Astrologers complain of being "stressed out," I email them telling them to "take a break!" from our receiving Newsletters--"We'll live" I tell them. Who are these people to complain about Susan?!
re: Susan Miller- That was a nice shout-out in support of Susan Miller. I've seen some of the comments on-line and they are shameful.
re: Rob Ford - We were told by the lead doctor at a news conference yesterday at 5:00 that Rob Ford has malignant liposarcoma--essentially cancer of the fat. It's metastasized to his left buttock. They'll figure out how to proceed based on how he responds to the chemo. As an astrologer, does this surprise you?
Oct. 6, 2014 - U.S. security breaches; Hong Kong's Umbrella Revolution; Princess Charlotte.
Oct. 13, 2014 - Ebola and Lilith; What happened to Kim Jong Un? Juno, Clooney and marriage.
Oct. 20, 2014 - Saturn urges Obama forward; the stock markets' wild gyrations; James Risen.
Oct. 27, 2014 - Barbara Boxer and global warming; Nov.'s top five astro-events; Gigamon surprises.
Nov. 3, 2014 - Tim Cook's historic declaration; remembering Joan Quigley; Renee Zellwegger.
Nov. 10, 2014 - Lamar Smith on the political frontline; re-thinking Lilith; DWTS Janel Parrish.
Nov. 17, 2014 - Neptune's station; Obama's executive action; Jessica Alba, CEO of The Honest Co.
Nov. 24, 2014 - Hillary Clinton's Ceres and the 2016 campaign; December's top five; Bill Cosby scandal.
A reader asks, “When looking at politicians' charts, what orb do you suggest for contacts to the U.S. Moon?" For candidates running for national office, having a tight connection to the U.S. Moon at 25º28’ is essential to connect with the voters, and 1/2º orb or less is best. Hillary Clinton’s Uranus at 25º55’ Gemini makes a harmonious trine to the U.S. Moon with an orb of 0º27’ and is just within this range.
Obama makes the grade with his Uranus at 25º16’ Leo, giving an orb of only 0º12’. In 2008 the candidates ran against each other, when nominating either one would have brought an exciting, historic change (Uranus) from the status quo. Obama’s Uranian connection to the U.S. Moon is much tighter, and this may have been the critical factor in pulling off the upset.
McCain’s birth time is unknown or suspect, but he does have Ceres at 25º09’ Scorpio. And during the 2008 campaign, his Jupiter had progressed to 25º13’ Sagittarius. Romney’s Pallas at 24º00’ Aquarius is really too wide to count, but during the 2012 election, his progressed Sun was at 25º30’ Taurus. The challenging aspects do not negate the candidacy, but suggest the changes they bring to the American landscape.
About the 2016 campaign, if the candidate has no link to the U.S. Moon, he or she won’t make the cut. Chris Christie is a prime example, since he has no planets at 25º of any sign, either natally or by secondary progression. Jeb Bush (February 11, 1953; 8:50 pm; Midland, TX) has no natal planets at 25º, but in 2015 his progressed Midheaven is at 25º Leo and his progressed Sun is at 25º Aries. Unfortunately, these progressions advance one degree in 2016, and lose their connections to the U.S. Moon, making him a false hope.
Firestone’s Deal with Liberia
Frontline’s documentary “Firestone and the Warlord” revealed the secret history of Liberia and its partnership with the giant rubber company. In West Africa, the practice is widely referred to as “neo-colonialism”, but in the United States, many Americans watching the sad but gripping story realized for the first time how much an international corporation can control the destiny of an entire nation.
Firestone was incorporated on August 3, 1900 (12 noon; Akron, OH) when the Sun in imperious Leo was supported by trines to Jupiter and Uranus in the adventurous, expansive, cosmopolitan sign of Sagittarius. Mars plays the key role in this chart: it’s the co-ruler of the Scorpio Ascendant, and placed in the transportation sign of Gemini. Firestone makes the tires that carry American automobiles.
Mars is under tremendous developmental stress by conjoining Pluto and Neptune, opposing Saturn, and squaring Black Moon Lilith. Mars is also exactly trine the U.S. Moon, indicating how its products meet consumer demands. On December 7, 1926, it forged a contract with the Liberian government that gave it control of 10 percent of the nation’s arable land to make rubber plantations. Transiting Uranus was exactly square natal Mars at the time.
Also, transiting Pluto was conjunct progressed Mars, with both conjoining the U.S. Sun. The lucrative deal gave birth to the corporation as a neo-colonial power. The deal arrived in the form of a 99-year lease, essentially securing a long-term partnership with a foreign power as transiting Saturn conjoined natal Jupiter in Sagittarius. Now that transiting Saturn is returning to this same degree, Firestone’s practices in Liberia are coming under increased scrutiny and criticism.
The Force Awakens
Last week the teaser trailer for Star Wars VII – The Force Awakens was released, setting the twittersphere abuzz with nostalgia and excitement. With John Williams’ soaring score, the iconic Millennium Falcon, a cute robot, and a mysterious villain with a lightsaber, the brief trailer both enthralled and harkened back to the original Star Wars, which debuted on May 25, 1977 (Manhattan, NY; noon).
The Stars Wars debut chart features the Moon at 28º Leo where it conjoins the political asteroid Pallas and the royal star Regulus. This combination immediately connotes the pivotal role of Princess Leia who plots to destroy the Death Star. The magnificent scale and profitability of the franchise can be seen in the exact trine between Jupiter and Pluto, while the revolutionary forces gathering against the Galactic Empire are clearly depicted by Uranus squaring Saturn in Leo.
Uranus happens to be located at 8º Scorpio, exactly conjunct the U.S. Scorpio Ascendant. The revolutionary nature of Uranus thus resonates with the 1776 Revolutionary War against the British Empire. And what of the Force? Obi-Wan Kenobi teaches Luke Skywalker about the power of his own mind in harnessing the Force. Astrologically, we can see this in the qualities of the Gemini Sun conjunct Black Moon Lilith.
Just as Black Moon Lilith tempts us with the power of the Dark Side, Star Wars heroes and villains learn about the Force. At the climax of Star Wars, Obi-Wan speaks to Luke through the Force (Lilith in Gemini), helping him to destroy the imperial station. The Force Awakens debuts on December 18 when transiting Uranus and Pluto are squaring each other, which promises to bring a frenzied public response. Also at this time, transiting Lilith in Virgo will be exactly squaring the original Star Wars Lilith, emphasizing the mysterious nature of the Force.