The Astrology Of 2012

It's the big scary year you were warned about... are you ready? Probably not. None of us ever really are. But here's what to expect from the next twelve months of your future!

"Conquer The Universe With Astrology" returns!

Tonight at 8:30 PM Eastern (5:30 Pacific)

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...not yet... not yet... waaaaaaiiiit for it...

Check out my show! If you like what you hear... there's more to come in the future! Please feel free to drop by and visit my Donations Page. It's what keeps me going and, and you might just get a surprise...And yes, I still send free stuff to everyone who writes me!

If you're new to this blog, here's a sample of my previous shows and blog entries. Enjoy!

Astrology, Bad Transits, And Avoiding The One-Eyed Pomeranian Of Fate

Astrology works. Objectivity though? That's the hard part.

I don't look at my own personal transits every day. As a matter of fact, I do it about as often as I get around to shaving... which, being a self-employed work-at-home type with naturally slovenly tendencies, isn't as often as it should be. But it does happen, and when it does I freely admit to suffering the same flaw that any other astrologer will admit to (if they are human and honest about it): it's pretty damned hard to be objective about yourself.

Or, as I used to tell my students on the subject: "Even the world's best surgeon probably shouldn't try to take out his or her own appendix."

Nonetheless, this Christmas Eve I sat down to check out my own transits before commencing with my day. I admit I was troubled to see as many difficult aspects happening that day as I did.

My original plan had been to attend the Christmas Eve fund-raising event run by Muttville Senior Dog Rescue. They do good work, and besides... a $1.00 Senior Dog Kissing Booth? Holy cow, does it really ever get better than that?

A typical Muttvile Dog description: "Bumper is a 12 year old corgi mix, possibly with some Shepard or Jack Russell terrier. He was rescued from a high kill shelter by Muttville and has nothing but love for other dogs and people. Despite being completely blind and partially deaf, this little guy gets around very well."

C'mon. Seriously. If that doesn't have you ready to scream with some combination of small-child glee and full-to-bursting Buddha compassion, check yourself for a pulse.

So before heading out, I had a look at the astrology of the day. And my thought processes were a little like this:

"Hmmm. Uranus is square my Jupiter, but that's been going on for a long time, so let's not worry about that just this second. The North Node is conjunct my Sun, but... yeah, well, that has a whole bunch of karmic implications that are kind of hard to nail down practically. And this morning's New Moon was conjunct my Mercury-Venus midpoint, which is, umm... kinda karmic too, so God knows what that could mean. But: Transiting Mars is conjunct my natal Uranus-Pluto conjunction, and square my Sun, so.... hmmm... violently unexpected Ego upsets? A sense of either being denied my destiny, or finding it and getting screwed by it? Maybe."

Naturally, I put that together with my plans and figured that perhaps I'd go there, see a dog I wanted but could never keep in my place, and I'd be devastated. Or maybe I just wouldn't care but couldn't afford the fee, and I'd get caught smuggling some three-legged terrier out under my jacket, or something like that. So I decided to avoid the whole matter entirely, and I changed my plans and went and did something a lot more emotionally safe.

***

This is why at 1:28 PM on Christmas Eve, while I was walking to the grocery store, my right foot was run over as I crossed the street, breaking four metatarsal bones like they were kindling. And of course, in hindsight, that incident fit the astrological symbolism of the time far better than any imaginary screaming fit over a dog.

Astrology doesn't lie... but if we let our expectations do all the talking, we'll never accurately hear what Astrology is actually saying to us.

(And yes, for those of you still wondering, I'm alive enough that sometime in the next week "Conquer The Universe With Astrology" really WILL be back, starting with the 2012 Forecast Show. Here's an excitingly non-specific preview. Now hand me the Vicodin.)

The Astrology Of Charlie Sheen, Part II: More Tiger Blood And Adonis DNA

On Tuesday, we discussed the fascinating and weird world of Charlie Sheen and his birth chart, from goddesses to career to drugs. Today on "Conquer The Universe With Astrology" at 1 PM Eastern (10 AM Pacific), I'll be going even further into Charlie's chart (if you missed part one, the archive and the chart are both HERE). Plus, as usual... I'll be taking calls and answering your questions at (323) 443-7252! It'll be revealing, educational, and chock full of Adonis DNA... with more on "the goddesses" and the astrological transits that push a person over the edge from "jerk" to "guy who shoots his girlfriend while high."

Check out my show! If you like what you hear... there's more to come in the future! Please feel free to drop by and visit my Donations Page. It's what keeps me going and, and you might just get a surprise...

And yes, I still send free stuff to everyone who writes me!


If you're new to this blog, here's a sample of my previous shows and blog entries. Enjoy!

Let's Learn Astrology With Charlie Sheen!

Today on "Conquer The Universe With Astrology": I'll not only be answering your questions (as usual) when you call (323) 443-7252... but I'll also look at the chart of the best-known celebrity train wreck du jour... Charlie Sheen. If you know a little about astrology and have always wondered "what the heck does he mean by 'transits" anyway?" this will be your chance to play along at home. I'll be describing major life events from Charlie's career, the times he's gone off the rails, and not only telling you astrologically why these things happened... but showing you as well. It's astrology, it's educational, it's scandalous!

4 PM Eastern (1 PM Pacific)

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN LIVE, OR TO THE ARCHIVE, OR SET A REMINDER

And, here's the chart... keep it open in a separate window while the show is on. Click on it... it gets bigger!

Check out my show! If you like what you hear... there's more to come in the future! Please feel free to drop by and visit my Donations Page. It's what keeps me going and, and you might just get a surprise...

And yes, I still send free stuff to everyone who writes me!

Boiling Your Own Eyeballs: The Aries-Libra-Capricorn T-Square

(My regular blog is HERE... read, join, find romance for free... and I can be contacted about a reading HERE.)

Whatever the specific details are, your life is being subjected to the powerful ongoing T-square happening in the sky right now. Saturn squares Pluto, which in turn squares Jupiter and Uranus. It's been a long time since the Zodiac provided that kind of tension... and this weekend, the Moon and (more dramatically) Mars are joining in the fiasco. No matter what the specifics of the challenges you're currently facing, here's a metaphor that will hopefully help:

***

No one knows for sure what would happen if you jumped out of a spaceship without a helmet into deep space. No one has been stupid (or homicidal) enough to try. Everyone agrees it would be fatal though, whether in 15 seconds or a minute and a half, or something in between. Your head won't explode, like some movies have shown. But your eardrums will rupture. The tiny blood vessels in your face will burst, making you look like an organic jigsaw puzzle. The fluid in your eyeballs will likely begin to boil in a few seconds.. And of course there's no air, so if you don't instantly freeze solid and/or get char-broiled (depending on your distance from the Sun) the excruciating pain will soon be followed by death.

Why would anyone do that to themselves?

Imagine for a moment that your safe, well-ordered life is suddenly and dramatically revealed to you to be the thing that is trying to destroy you. And when I say "suddenly and dramatically," I mean "you've willingly strapped yourself to a ticking time bomb for the entire journey, and are only now realizing it."

Imagine that the Supreme Intelligence running your universe appears to be out to get you. And you beg It/Him/Her to save you. And the answer you receive is...

"I'm sorry, Dave. I'm afraid I can't do that."

And when you get right down to it... it's jump, or die. And you didn't bring your helmet. And this time, there won't be Angels waiting to catch you. All Angels can do, after all, is try to show you what's right and then hope you'll play along. But with luck, and skill, and (above all) bravery... you'll know what to do. And you'll do it. And maybe...

...you'll make it.

It's either that, or carry on with the situation as it stands, knowing that it will be a much slower and more familiar death.

Remain calm. Assess your options and resources without fear. And then...

...jump.

Astro-Singalong: Lingering Doubts As Saturn in Virgo Quincunxes Neptune In Aquarius

(Find my regular blog entries HERE, for free!)

Father look in my eyes
See me as I really am
You made me
Now take me...


Tell me how it feels now
Behold you flesh has come of age
Forsake me, you break me...
Father!

Putting Transits Together: LeVar Burton's Car Crash

(LeVar Burton: born February 16, 1957, time unknown, Landstuhl, Germany)

-Transiting Jupiter and Neptune are conjunct your natal Sun, and transiting Mercury is quincunx your Sun.

"This is a time when you feel a little dreamy and expansive. Your mood and self-awareness will both be affected by this transit. However, make sure that you are paying attention to detail: your otherwise cheerful mood may affect your concentration."

-Transiting Mars is trine your natal Mercury, but quincunx your natal Neptune. Transiting Mars is also in trine to your natal Jupiter.

"Today you will feel bold and impulsive. However, be cautious: your thought processes and urges to daydream may distract you from mundane details. Overall, your mood will likely be positive, and rather than question it, you're more likely to go with that mood."

Translation: Hey, LeVar Burton! Careful with that left-hand turn...!

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The Amazing Recession-Buster Astrology Experiment CONTINUES, new and improved, and still no obligation! Click HERE for details!

Venus And Mars Conjunct In Taurus, Square Jupiter And Neptune: The Movie!

It's all there: sex, love, rebellion, sex, rebellion, love, sex... and, um, the sinister preachings of the Communist Puppet??

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The Amazing Recession-Buster Astrology Experiment CONTINUES, new and improved, and still no obligation! Click HERE for details!

Sun Conjunct Venus, Square Pluto: The Musical!

Tired of the lack of progress in your love life? Take charge.

And, consequences be damned. here's a little inspiration from "Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog":

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Could An Astrologer Have Warned Liam Neeson?

Unfortunately, probably not. But that's probably because of a lack of data rather than any inherent limitation to astrology.

In my previous article on the death of Natasha Richardson, I only really scraped the surface of the various astrological warning signs that an attentive astrologer might have seen. There were, in fact, more... and the comments on that entry pointed out more techniques yet that indicated the possibility of physical hazard.

One lesson I learned from practicing the techniques outlined in The Astrology Of Death is that if you are going to die, and you are of great importance to someone... your death is going to register as an important event in their birth chart. Unfortunately, we don't have a time of birth for Natasha's husband, Liam Neeson. And without it, his transits at the time of his wife's tragic accident are surprisingly... bland.

Liam Neeson was born June 7, 1952 in Ballymena, Northern Ireland. Without a time of birth, his transits are hard to read. Of course, the ongoing Saturn-Uranus opposition has been squaring Liam's natal Sun-Mercury-Venus conjunction off and on for over a year now, which undoubtedly has made trouble for him in one department of his life or another. But in all my tabloid gossip reading (a professional hazard for astrology bloggers) I don't recall ever hearing of any marital trouble with Liam and Natasha Richardson. Certainly, given the connection between Venus and one's love life, it would be a natural area of inquiry for any astrologer doing a reading for Mr. Neeson.

What this all raises with me is not so much an astrological observation, but two philosophical questions:

1) Have you ever noticed how many times, when someone loses a loved one suddenly, the story goes like this:

"We had been arguing, and he/she (ran out, had to go, got a call on the other line)... and the next thing I knew, the police were at me door telling my he/she was gone..." ?

2) Is there someone you should be talking to today?

And what about YOUR future? It starts HERE. Give it a click and send in your info... no obligation.

Could An Astrologer Have Warned Natasha Richardson?

The short answer: yes.

Of course, there is another (at least as important) question this raises: could an astrologer have actually saved Natasha Richardson's life?

The other short answer: probably not.

Natasha Richardson, wife of Liam Neeson and daughter of Vanessa Redgrave, was born May 11, 1963 in London, England. There's a time of birth going around for her of 5 PM, which I can't confirm but I tend to believe... to me, she looks like a Libra rising with the ruler in Aries.

Natasha remains in serious condition after a skiing accident at Mt. Tremblant, Quebec. Although there's nothing official yet, rumors are circulating that she has been taken off of life support and that her friends and loved ones are awaiting the inevitable.

At the time of the accident, transiting Mars at 2 degrees Pisces was opposite her natal Uranus, secondary progressed Uranus, and secondary progressed Midheaven, all clustered at 1-2 degrees Virgo. Any transit from Mars to natal Uranus (but especially the difficult squares and oppositions) are naturally a time when accidents are much more likely to happen. Furthermore, Mars was passing through her Fifth House... recreational activities.

Certain features in the Vedic chart also stand out as a warning. At the time of the accident she was in a period known as "Rahu-Mars"... her major Rahu (North Node) period, Mars sub-period. This is a time that is relatively hard to predict for, and where even ordinary things can go wrong. But among other things, it is a time to beware Mars issues... which includes sporting accidents. Further: Venus is one of the two maraka ("death-dealer") planets in her birth chart, and her natal Venus is closely square the Nodal axis. So given the rulerships in her chart, a really good astrologer who was taking a good detailed look at her transits could have warned her specifically about the risk of a potentially fatal injury occurring during a recreational activity, and (with just what I've laid out here) he could have spotted the Danger Time within a few days.

So if Natasha Richardson had sat down with an astrologer before the accident, the astrologer could have very easily said something about "be really careful with that skiing lesson you have scheduled for next week." The astrologer might have even been concerned enough to tell her to take a pass on any new athletic activities.

But of course, no one runs every last detail of their by what their astrologer says... or hardly any do, anyway. And they shouldn't. Even the best astrologer can make mistakes.

So: suppose Natasha had spoken with an astrologer a week before the accident. The astrologer finds all the warning signs I've delineated above, and explains them to Natasha in detail.

Most people are going to do what they are going to do anyway, despite what any astrologer tells them. Ask any astrologer yourself how many of his/her clients come to get readings about bad relationships and whether or not they should leave... and when the client leaves the astrologer, he or she goes right back to the bad relationship.

In all likelihood, Natasha would have listened to the warning and still gone skiing, except maybe she would have been extra cautious to stick to the beginner's hill and gone out with a qualified instructor.

Which is, of course, exactly what she did anyway.

I believe that when all the details are released, we are likely to find that Natasha Richardson had an underlying, pre-existing circulatory issue: perhaps a weakened blood vessel in her brain that had been there for years like a time bomb, just waiting for the right nudge at the right time to go off.

Just like everything else in a birth chart, come to think of it...

And what about YOUR future? It starts HERE. Give it a click and send in your info... no obligation.

(See also: See also: "Could An Astrologer Have Warned Liam Neeson?")

Saturn Strikes Back: Bernie Madoff And Dr. Phil McGraw

Two cases of Saturn Gone Wild are in the news today: one is getting a lot of attention, the other isn't... yet. But the second case is a definite matter of "stay tuned."

First, hypermegacrook Bernie Madoff has pleaded guilty to eleven charges related to his investment scheme that defrauded people of some 50 billion dollars.

Stop and think about that for a second. One man's scheme... 50 billion dollars. That's a full time, operational moon base. Or two hundred and fifty Mars probes. Or if you prefer to think of these things in slightly more down-to-Earth terms... lunch, for every man, woman, and child in Africa. For a month. With a fortune cookie. With a dollar in it. Each.

Bernie Madoff was born April 29, 1938 in Queens, New York. The time of birth isn't known (so I won't speculate in great detail), but his Moon is in either late Aries or early Taurus. It's tempting to leap to the conclusion that it's Taurus (based on the nature of his life's work), but let's be honest... Aries can be greedy too.

Two things about his transits really stand out. First of all, Neptune is rolling into a conjunction with his natal Jupiter, and a square to his natal Venus. In anyone's birth chart, this would automatically raise questions about the financial and material situation. Neptune has a tendency to bring delusion with it... but it also has a tendency to dissolve things.

Don't expect this story to go away any time soon: even with the guilty plea, there is still a small matter of "where the hell did fifty billion dollars go?" And given the Neptunian nature of the transits... although Bernie doesn't appear to be fighting the charges, don't expect any easy or sensible answers.

Second: Saturn is now exactly conjunct Madoff's natal Neptune. Just as Neptune can bring delusion and confusion, Saturn has a tendency to drag your delusions into the cold light of day. Bernie is 70 years old, and it's probably not too much of a stretch to say that he will likely spend the rest of his life being punished (Saturn) for the delusions he spun (Neptune).

On a more personal note, I suspect part of the reason why Bernie was able to get away with so much for so long was because for the last 20 years or so Western Culture seems to have become obsessed with a culture of what I am now calling "Greed Porn."

If we had a time of birth for Bernie Madoff, we could be more exact about what happened and what is to come. We don't. However, we do have a time of birth for another case of the Saturn Blues. It's one you haven't heard nearly as much about yet. But I believe you'll be hearing more about it in future.

***

Six months ago I wrote about Dr. Phil McGraw, the loud and annoying relationship expert, and the largest spin-off from Oprah Winfrey's media empire. At that time, Dr. Phil was going through a tough stretch at work.

At that time, I noted that Dr. Phil wasn't out of the woods yet as far as his transits. And I ended with this: "Phil has Saturn smack on his Seventh House (marriage and partnerships) cusp. And who is that stern little gimlet-eyed woman staring at him from the audience all the time? Yup. That's Mrs. McGraw."

Although Dr. Phil is currently getting a lot of attention for his work with Octomom, there is a story brewing about a four million dollar lawsuit against Dr. and Mrs. Phil regarding an alleged breach of promise, where Mrs. Phil apparently convinced a cosmetics company that Dr. Phil would hype their products on his show.

This story hasn't gotten too much attention... yet. But Phil is having his Saturn Return, and Saturn is on the 7th House cusp... marriage and partnerships. And in his birth chart it is ruled by Mercury, in Libra, also in the 7th... and it is being squared by transiting Pluto. And his secondary progressed Saturn is still in his 7th, and is rolling into a conjunction with the South Node... the Dragon's Tail, which tends to digest your plans and crap them out.

I wouldn't necessarily predict the end of Dr. Phil's marriage, but I can say this much: I believe Dr. Phil's marriage is running less smoothly than we've heard, and it's going to get worse. And all of this is happening while the ongoing square from transiting Saturn to Dr. Phil's Midheaven (career) is just starting to kick in.

Phil, if you're listening: there is no shame in asking for help... even if you yourself are a member of what is called "the helping professions." And if it turns out you need someone with experience and a solid track record... I know a guy who does good work.

As Bernie Madoff's clients discovered, not all deals are as good as they sound... but this one is.

Yub Nub. Ee Chop Yub Nub.

I have no further thoughts on the recent US Presidential election... You can look here if you like and decide for yourself whether I was right or wrong. But it does, after all, appear have been a struggle between Saturn (security issues, fear, the "old guard") and Uranus (change and novelty)... and as I pronounced earlier... Uranus won.

As for my personal opinion of the outcome? Well, I don't know that this is the place for my personal feelings.

Having said that... here's what's been stuck in my head since last night:

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Thirteen Days Before The Exact Saturn-Uranus Opposition...

The ongoing Saturn-Uranus opposition becomes exact on November 4th... Election Day in the United States. And I know that astrologers sometimes have the reputation (and sometimes rightly so) for being prophets of doom. Myself included, when it comes to the subject of the upcoming US Election. So, let me reassure you that everything is just fine, and will remain so. Other than a few minor glitches, of course.

Like in California, where Mark Jacoby... the owner of a firm hired by the California Republican Party to register voters... is arrested for fraudulently registering to vote in California himself, in order to legally be able to be register other "California" voters. This, after dozens of complaints to local police by people claiming they were tricked into registering as Republicans.

Also, the politicians in New Jersey are insisting their voting machines are safe from potential hacks, despite a report from Princeton University to the contrary. What do eggheads know anyway? Besides, New Jersey is legally obligated to modify their system to provide a verifiable paper trail of votes. Current deadline: January 1st, 2009... after missing the last two deadlines.

And in Florida, where all this nonsense started in 2000? Well... two elections later... everyone in an official position sounds very optimistic that their new optical scan ballot system will work just fine. And oh, by the way... Florida recently turned up 3,500 missing ballots from a recent judicial vote. Good news: they were found perfectly safe in a warehouse, in mint condition, safely uncounted. This probably explains why advance polling with good old-fashioned paper ballots appears to be so popular in Florida. Too bad that the unusually large, heavy paper ballots require extra postage, jeopardizing up to 95,000 votes.

Other than that though, American votes look secure... except in West Virginia, where the dreaded voting machines are switching votes from Obama to McCain. And in North Carolina, where advance voters are being heckled and harassed. And in Ohio, where the governor is accusing the Republican Party of legal harassment tactics of Democrat voters. And in Tennessee, where voting for Obama means hitting the Obama button several times until it selects the right candidate. And...

Then there's the ACORN business. The Republican Party has been trying to link the Obama campaign to a voter-registration sweep that has been responsible for signing up (it seems) both convicted felons and outright fictional people. However, given that US Federal Law requires all first-time voters produce official ID in order to vote, this is unlikely to have any effect at all... unless there's a factory out there somewhere cranking out official-looking driver's licences for Mickey Mouse, Abraham Lincoln, and Tony Soprano. Of course, even that is being disputed now, as the Democrats are in court in Georgia and Indiana, claiming the voter ID laws there are a form of voter suppression.

Strange thing about the planets... and not just Saturn and Uranus: it's a beautiful, elegant system... but it sure as hell isn't a democracy. The sky left that sort of thing up to you and me.

Sarah Palin, Astrology, And The Art Of Public Speaking

Like many, I have just finished watching the biggest and most important speech of Sarah Palin's political career. I'm making an effort to weed out my political opinions here, so bear with me. I want to have a look at the actual astrological transits she was having at the time, and comparing them to what appears to be the initial reaction across the Internet... again, attempting to filter out political bias.

Part of the problem with this subject is that we still do not have a time of birth for Ms. Palin. It was announced only last Friday that she would be John McCain's running mate in the 2008 Presidential Election (more on the strange astrology of Election Day here), and since then it's been pretty much non-stop shenanigans around Sarah Palin. The issue of the parentage of her son/grandson Trig Palin still hasn't gotten any closer to resolution (my astrological comments here.)

(Strange thing: you'd think that producing birth records would clear up the motherhood issue fairly quickly. Why hasn't that happened yet?)

Since then, there has been even more craziness, including an investigation into a misuse of her powers to get her former brother-in-law fired, and allegations of a connection between Ms. Palin and/or her husband and the Alaska Independence Party, which promotes secession from the country Ms. Palin wants to be Vice President of now.

Talk about pressure!

Even though we do not yet have a time of birth for Sarah Palin, it's always possible to do a rectification. It would be a mistake to do this based on just one event... tonight's speech included... but her performance could give us some vital clues.

Here were the transits as of speech time (9:30 PM, St. Paul MN):

Transiting Sun and Saturn are conjunct Sarah's natal Uranus-Pluto conjunction
Transiting Moon square natal Mercury and quincunxing natal Venus
Transiting Jupiter trining natal Uranus-Pluto, but squaring natal Jupiter
Transiting Uranus is weakly trining natal Neptune
Transiting Neptune (retrograde) conjunct natal Sun almost exactly
Transiting Pluto square natal Venus

Interesting note: Transiting Venus-Mercury-Mars at 5-10 degrees Libra aren't aspecting anything in her chart, other than a very weak opposition to her natal Venus. But without a proper time of birth we can't be sure they weren't doing something to her Ascendant and/or Midheaven, or Moon for that matter. Either way, it's quite a heady mix of transits, as one might expect.

In addition, the transiting Ascendant was at 3 Taurus (squaring natal Mercury) at the beginning of the speech, and the transiting Midheaven was at 16 Capricorn (squaring natal Jupiter).

AFTER THE SPEECH:

The expected digs at Obama were delivered as anticipated, as was the cheerleading for John McCain. And Palin's speechwriters don't seem to have heeded Democrat criticism that the Republicans have had nothing much to say about the economy so far. Initial response on the Internet seems mostly divided along partisan lines, which to me indicates neither great success or failure.

I know that if I express any personal opinion on her performance, I'll be criticized for my political viewpoints... whatever those may be. Here goes anyway: I think Palin generally acquitted herself well, but still needed to make a stronger impression than she did. There were no major stumbles or screw-ups, though.

Based on the transits happening at the time, I would hazard that Palin has a Aquarius/Leo Midheaven/IC. The squares to the natal Mercury didn't help any, and under the circumstances she could very well have done worse. But given the Jupiter support to Uranus (ruler of Aquarius)... that's another vote for an Aquarius Midheaven.

So, my educated guess? I suspect a morning birth for Sarah Palin, giving her moon in late Capricorn. Quite possibly Taurus rising, which would move Saturn into a nice place house-wise, in Vedic terms. And whether you like her politics or not, you have to admit she's got nice skin and cheekbones, implying a well-placed Saturn.

There. Was any of that too political for you...?

Republican National Convention, Day One: An Astrological Sneak Preview

(Predicting the future is inherently tricky, especially when there's a heavy Uranus involvement. This blog entry was written Sunday afternoon, and was finished literally minutes before the announcement that George W. Bush would not be attending the Republican National Convention due to the looming hurricane situation. Or maybe Bush has an astrologer who warned him about speaking in public tonight. Oh well... the article is written and I did predict weirdness for Bush this evening, so I stand by that. He may still very well appear at the convention via satellite or something, so keep an eye on the Bush situation tonight anyway. )

The 2008 Republican National Convention starts today in Saint Paul, Minnesota, and (like all political conventions) will likely be light on substance and heavy on cheering. Sure, there will be all kinds of talk about Vice Presidential candidate Sarah Palin, whom I don't want to speculate too much about without a proper time of birth or birth chart. All I know for sure is that, as mentioned in that blog entry... it looks to be a very Uranian election day.

(As of Sunday afternoon, the GOP convention web site still listed Sarah Palin as a speaker Tuesday, and "Republican Party's Vice Presidential Nominee" as a speaker Wednesday. Unless the Party decides that Ms. Palin has achieved full rock star status, I really doubt they're going to have her deliver two speeches two days in a row. Now that would be Uranian.)

I found myself looking at the transits for Day One, and noticed some very interesting things happening with George W. Bush. He's scheduled to be the keynote speaker tonight. Although I don't have a precise schedule, it seems likely he'll be speaking at about 8 PM local time. In a previous entry, I discussed the possibility that President Bush was drunk at the Beijing Olympics. There are similar things happening with President Bush astrologically today, with some interesting additions around 8 PM (St. Paul local time) specifically.

The major transits in place:

-Transiting Moon and Mars will be sextiling the natal Ascendant/Mercury conjunction in Leo, tending to make for a certain feistiness on George's part.

-Transiting Jupiter is opposing the natal Sun. Given the 12th House placement of the Sun, this can be a time of overindulgence in vices... much as was going on in Beijing. In addition, the secondary progressed Moon is almost EXACTLY squaring the natal Moon, making (once again) for emotional volatility. And remember... the Sun is the ruler of Bush's Ascendant, thus likely having an effect on visible, public behaviour.

-Transiting Saturn, now joined by the Sun, is still conjuncting the President's natal Mars. Mars is the ruler of Bush's Midheaven... his career and public image. Had you noticed that Bush's public appearances are down (and not terribly Presidential either) the last couple of months? The addition of the transiting Sun is likely to amplify this. For bonus points, Saturn is also conjuncting the secondary progressed Sun.

But now here are the transits happening for Dubya specifically in the 8 to 8:30 PM range tonight:

The transiting Ascendant starts at 17 degrees Pisces and moves into a conjunction with Uranus at 21 degrees. In the course of a half hour, the transiting Ascendant will square the President's natal Uranus, secondary progressed Uranus (at 21 and a half degrees Gemini). The transiting Midheaven will be at 24 degrees Sagittarius, opposing Bush's Uranus, secondary progressed Uranus, and secondary progress Midheaven in short order. In addition, the transiting Moon will be conjunct Bush's natal Neptune, and exactly conjunct the secondary progressed Neptune.

All of this makes for a fairly heady, emotional mix for President Bush this evening. Politically speaking, he's pretty much done. It's not like he could run again even if anyone  wanted him to. But as far as passing the torch to John McCain, tonight's speech is important. And given the President's personally stressful transits, I'd be a little worried if I was on McCain's team.

Now, I'm not predicting that George W. Bush will stumble on stage drunk or anything. But by the looks of it, his keynote address for the evening is likely to be... interesting. The kind of "interesting" that Fox News will likely gloss over and/or treat like it's The Gettysburg Address.

Other, more independent observers, are likely to have a different take on the matter.

Is Paula Abdul About To Be Voted Off Of "American Idol"?

Paula Abdul (born June 19, 1962, 2:32 PM, San Fernando California) is reportedly "thrilled" at the hiring of Kara DioGuardi as a fourth judge for American Idol.

Is she really thrilled? Or rather... should she be?

I've never been a regular viewer of American Idol, but I've seen enough of it to know where the rumours come from that Paula often shows up drunk and/or stoned. Her comments and observations are often of the fuzzy, affectionate, incoherent kind one expects to hear from someone who enjoyed a Scotch and Oxycontin cocktail or two before showing up at the party. And it's more than a little suspicious that the Idol format everywhere else in the world seems to consist of three judges, not four. What will they do if there's a split decision?

I could see it if Kara DioGuardi were a major star before this... ratings are what drives this thing, after all... but seriously: did YOU have a Kara DioGuardi poster in your locker in high school? Had you even heard of her before this?

The new season of American Idol will begin in mid-January, when the transiting Sun will be squaring Paula's ascendant (public appearance), Mars will be approaching the opposition to her Midheaven (career), Jupiter will be opposing her Venus (which often stimulates the urge to drink and/or do drugs), and Saturn will be freshly entering the psychological funhouse of the 12th House (and rolling into square range of her natal Sun). For bonus points, the transiting North Node will be conjuncting her natal Saturn/South Node conjunction and squaring her natal Neptune. Note that natal Saturn-Neptune square: it's one of the things to watch out for in the chart of a drunk/addict.

So, Paula: things aren't looking all that brilliant for your future on American Idol. Sorry about that. It's a shame, really... I've always been a huge sucker for you. Drop by some time for a drink and we can discuss this.

You bring the pills.

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House, MD: Astrologer

(SCENE: The conference room at Princeton-Plainsboro Hospital. DR. GREGORY HOUSE stands leaning on his cane at the whiteboard at the front of the room. He addresses his assistants: DRS. FOREMAN, CAMERON, and CHASE.)

HOUSE: Patient is a 42 year old male. Was admitted yesterday complaining of short-temperedness, lack of direction, diminished self-confidence, and ennui. He's unresponsive to the usual stimuli.

FOREMAN: Easy. Saturn opposition.

HOUSE: C'mon Foreman... if it was really that straightforward, would it be our Case Of The Week?

CAMERON: The test results indicate that transiting Uranus is also squaring his Sun, and conjuncting his Midheaven. There's probably a lot of stress around his career and vision of himself in life.

HOUSE: True. But let's not get all psychological about this. I hate that sort of thing.

CHASE: But sometimes these things are psychological! Besides, he's having his Neptune square now.

FOREMAN: Natal Neptune in the Fifth House, Transiting Neptune edging into his Ninth. That's got "philosophical crisis" written all over it.

CAMERON: Plus depression. Let's not forget that transiting Pluto is opposing his natal Jupiter.

CHASE: Treatment should be obvious then.

HOUSE: Right. Put him in a freezer for another six months, thaw him out when the transits are over, and he can get on with his life. Okay, next case --

CHASE: You can't do that!

CAMERON: He needs to work through these things!

FOREMAN: It's obvious. The patient is undergoing a number of bad transits, Uranus is conjuncting his natal Chiron... a planet the patient himself admits he often neglects in his own chart. He could work through this by understanding his basic internal symbolic composition.

HOUSE: I hate that Jungian crap!

CAMERON: But if the patient is able to find philosophical meaning in it, that will keep him alive until these transits pass. It's a lot better than freezing him, anyway.

CHASE: Maybe some form of creative outlet would help.

FOREMAN: Maybe... writing a blog entry about it!

CAMERON: That's brilliant!

CHASE: Chiron really can be useful in a practical way, you know.

HOUSE: (Waving his cane angrily) You give me that "wounded healer" crap one more time and I swear I'll use this thing on you!

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Was President Bush Drunk At The Olympics?

Time to roll up our sleeves and dig into a little tabloid gossip.

It's no secret that President George W. Bush (Born July 6, 1946, 7:26 AM, New Haven, Connecticut) used to have a drinking problem (and an alleged cocaine issue as well) up until 1986. And of late, there have been reports in the tabloids around an alleged return to the bottle.

Tabloid journalism may not have a great reputation, but tabloids also don't like being sued, even unsuccessfully. And after all, they were the most reliable source of public information around such ugly matters as the Monica Lewinsky affair, Rudy Giuliani's fling, and (more recently) John Edward's extramarital shenanigans before those stories hit the mainstream.

Astrologically, can we tell how likely it is that the President was sloshed at the time? Maybe not definitively: after all, the planets are where they are, but there is still a small matter of free will. But were the conditions for being drunk... very publicly, at that... in place?

Alcoholism and/or drug abuse is frequently associated with the 12th House of a birth chart, and the condition of Neptune. Further: although not a sure-fire indicator, such issues are also often associated with a "wounded ego"... difficult aspects to the natal Sun.

George W. Bush has his Sun in the 12th House, being (weakly) squared by Neptune in the 3rd House (which represents, among other things, the everyday mundane workings of the mind). Right there a consulting astrologer should be keeping an eye out for drug and alcohol issues. But we already know Bush has had his issues in past. What about recent conditions?

Looking at the transits during the big Michael Phelps win, we see the following;

-The transiting Sun and South Node were conjunct natal Venus in the First House. This can be interpreted as a temporary tendency to outgoing public behaviour (1st House) involving "pleasurable consumption" (Venus), with an involvement of deep psychological processes from the past (South Node). And transiting Neptune was opposite this Sun/Venus/North Node pileup. Once again, this would be a factor pointing towards neurochemical excess.

-The transiting Moon was opposite the natal Uranus/North Node conjunction. If there was ever a time a person is going to rebel against what the public hopes and expects of them... that's the day it's going to happen.

-Transiting Jupiter is exactly opposite natal Jupiter. Jupiter (from whence we originally get the word "jovial"). Think of it as a person's natural tendency to excess being amplified by a general mood of excess.

Although there's no way to tell for sure via astrology that The President was publicly drunk at that time, it would seem that all the factors for it were in place. Now, here's a picture of Bush, at that time, stumbling to get out of his seat:


Note the reddened, flushed features in both pictures of Bush accompanying this post.

Of course, if I were the President of The United States... there'd be no hiding my bad behaviour. Thank God I was quietly drunk by myself at home that day!

Pet The Goat: Be Nice To Capricorn

I've been looking at the upcoming planetary transits for the next few months. There's the usual mix of peril and opportunity out there, but I think I've already drawn one important conclusion:

Capricorn: you guys are going to get stiffed in the empathy-from-others department. Again.

Sure, the Sun, Saturn, and Uranus are all in helpful places for Capricorn right now. And even if they weren't, no one has a talent like Capricorn does for making things take root in the worst soil. But I've noticed over the years that if there's one Sun Sign that can get stiffed by transits and doesn't yell about it half as much as they should, it's the Goats.

Mars is going retrograde in Cancer... Capricorn's seventh house, ruling relationships. So while everything else appears to be working more or less on schedule, helping Capricorn build a solid, more reliable Tomorrow for Pluto to star screwing with next year... the love life appears to be lagging behind. This makes me a little sad, because I've always thought Capricorns were cute little things, like goats at the petting zoo. People generally agree with this assessment at first, until someone mentions bringing a goat home as a pet.

Seriously, though: I love you guys. Your just a sensitive as your opposite, Cancer, but manage to function in a dignified, orderly way... or at least you maintain the appearance of it, which is almost as good. On the inside, though? You're as messy as the rest of us... maybe a little more, because being a Capricorn is a little like being born wearing a pinstriped suit. You have the same needs as everyone else, but based on appearances, everyone assumes you showed up knowing how to change your own diaper. Efficiently.

Come to think of it, a lot of you out there look like you've got it together on the outside a lot better than you do on the inside. And that of course, is why I'm here.

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