Saturn Return: You Will Survive

Right on cue: The Saturn/Pluto Square at the Movies

2009-11-08T15:01:00.004-05:00

Once again the stars seem to be aligned with the cinema. Just released, a new film called Collapse profiles Michael Ruppert, a former Los Angeles police officer turned independent reporter and purveyor of doom.

Thom Powers wrote the following about the soon-to-be-released film for the Toronto International Film Festival:

Americans generally like to hear good news. They like to believe that a new President will right old wrongs, that clean energy will replace dirty oil, and that fresh thinking will set the economy straight. American pundits tend to restrain their pessimism and to hope for the best. But is anyone prepared for the worst?

Michael Ruppert is a different kind of American. A former Los Angeles police officer turned independent reporter, he predicted the current financial crisis in his self-published newsletter “From the Wilderness” at a time when most Wall Street and Washington analysts were still in denial. [Filmmaker Chris] Smith has always had a feeling for outsiders in films like “American Movie” and “American Job.” In “Collapse,” Smith stylistically departs from his past films by interviewing Ruppert in a format that recalls the work of Errol Morris and Spalding Gray.

Sitting in a room that looks like a bunker, Ruppert recounts his career as a radical thinker and spells out the crises he sees ahead. He draws upon the same news reports and data available to any Internet user, but he applies a unique interpretation. He is especially passionate over the issue of “peak oil,” the concern raised by scientists since the 1970s that the world will eventually run out of fossil fuel. While other experts debate this issue in measured tones, Ruppert doesn't hold back at sounding an alarm. He portrays a future that resembles apocalyptic science fiction. Listening to his rapid flow of opinions, the viewer is likely to question some of the rhetoric as paranoid or deluded; and to sway back and forth on what to make of the extremism. Smith lets viewers form their own judgments.

The film also serves as a portrait of a loner. Over the years, Ruppert has stood up for what he believes in spite of fierce opposition. He candidly describes the sacrifices and motivators in his life. Clearly, he believes that a dose of bad news can do some good.

You might find this film more enlightening than some of the other pessimism porn at your local theater, but before building your own bunker, remember that panic only makes the crisis worse. Saturn/Pluto calls for composure and compassion in equal measure.

Breathe Deep, because the Saturn/Pluto Square Seems to be Officially Here

2009-11-06T13:28:00.007-05:00

Between the violent rampage at Fort Hood yesterday, and the still unfolding events in Orlando, Saturn Square Pluto has announced its imminent arrival. The glue that bonds these events together is darkness. A combination of fear and rage fuels what has happened in the last twenty-four hours, and all we can do is our own inner work; we must take care of the people that we love. Some of us can handle it and some of us can't; the ones that can't are the ones that have psychotic breaks. We all have to carry each other during the next few months; so if someone you encounter seems to contain this dark energy, send them light. The time has come for us to reach deep into our inner resources, to breathe slowly and intentionally, and to recognize that with all transformation comes pain. It may get worse before it gets better, but panic won't solve it; only love can keep us together now.

Updates to come...

Saturn, Pluto, 2012, and the Shape of Our Fears

2009-11-04T10:28:00.005-05:00

During a recent trip to the theater to see the exquisitely inspiring This Is It, I was a subjected to a promo for the upcoming destruction-porn flick 2012. (I am intentionally not linking to it, because I don't want to promote this meme in the collective unconscious.) This film, opening within days of the exact Saturn/Pluto square on November 15th, stars John Cusack as an action hero in the midst of massive chaos and upheaval on planet earth. Imagine constant tsunamis, earthquakes, collapsing bridges, exploding ships, and other hysterical sequences of doom. I sometimes wonder if film studios hire astrologers, because they seem to have timed this to tap directly into the fear that is rising in all of us as a consequence of Saturn and Pluto's upcoming clash.

In 2001, Saturn and Pluto were locked in an oppositional aspect just as 9/11 shook our world to its core. We're in a similar energetic pattern now, but this time Pluto is in Saturn's sign -- Capricorn. Saturn/Capricorn embrace and understand the nature of fear better than any other planet/sign. And the reaction to fear in Capricorn land is usually military. The fear of failure is the great motivator here, that's why the big guns come out when there is a threat. Pluto is the ruler of the underworld and has its closest relationship to the energy of Scorpio. Death, rebirth, and annihilation are just a few of Pluto's favorite themes. The makers of 2012 discovered the concept of the "end" of the Mayan calendar (when in reality it's really the end of one phase and the start of another) and ran with it, all the way to the bank. I predict that this movie will be huge and infect the unconscious of all of us, just when we should be embracing Santa Claus and drinking eggnog.

We live in interesting (and scary) times. It's true that the energy of the Saturn/Pluto square could bring some bad things into the real world. It could be pandemic flu, it could be another economic meltdown, and although it's impossible to predict, it could be another natural disaster. But if we feed into our fear and nourish it with images of massive destruction, are we serving our highest potential? You know the answer to that. I'm not saying we should bury our head in the sand and make like ostriches, I'm just saying that sometimes "death" just means "change". Maybe it's that our way of life is going to transform, and considering where we find ourselves now -- wouldn't that be a delightful event?

The Saturn/Uranus opposition was exact a year ago, when we had our historic election and ushered in the era of the first Black president of the United States. Uranus came to symbolize the hope and change of the Obama era, and Saturn showed us the old, bad habits we were leaving in the dust. Now the Cosmic Taskmaster is tangoing with Pluto, a much more intimidating planetary force. There is no winning a duel with Pluto -- the energy of this planet plays to win, and it will change you no matter the power of your fight. Ask anyone who has experienced a Pluto transit to one of their personal planets. They know what's up. (Right now, this would be people with planets in early degrees of Capricorn, Cancer, Aries and Libra.) Think of a tank rolling in and then over you -- that's Pluto coming to town to change your life forever.

The entire world is caught in this crucible of evisceration right now, and the aspect is just applying at this moment. After November 15th, it'll dissipate a bit, only to kick back up again on and off between now and 2011. Mark your calendar for February, April and August 2010, and again for April through August of 2011. This is a long and dire transit, and by the end of it, planet Earth could be quite a different neighborhood. But if we invest in a positive vision of the upcoming change rather than a dark, destructive, obsessive and terrifying nightmare, maybe it won't be so bad. So next time your friend, lover, or the clerk at the store suggests that he or she is feeling quite frightened by the unfolding events, offer your compassion. Our thoughts matter, and when they're all negative, they glom together and create a soup of doom that we all have no choice but to swim in. Why not choose to create a tranquil, blue, fish-filled tropical sea instead?

(And at the movies, please choose Michael Jackson over John Cusack.)

RIP: Saturn in Virgo 2007 - 2009

2009-10-27T08:57:00.005-05:00

Bet you're more than ready to say goodbye already, aren't you? Especially those of you born with Saturn in Virgo. Pull out your party hats because this little sucka is leaving on October 29th and turning out the lights on his way out. It's now time for the Saturn In Libra folks to step up to the plate and deal with their karma. (Note that Saturn will briefly return to Virgo in a retrograde phase next March; more on that in a few months.)

But before we part ways with this two-and-a-half-year phase, let's review what we've been through. After all, we're not going to make progress if we don't process, right? Food has been Saturn in Virgo's favorite topic. We've endured endless food scares, including E coli outbreaks, listeria rampages, and the most deadly food-borne, life-wrecking story of all: the saga of Stephanie Smith. She ate a hamburger and now she's paralyzed for the rest of her life. If that wasn't a Saturn in Virgo wake-up call, I don't know what is.

Virgo rules not just the food on our tables, but also our health. The health care debate, especially during the summer of '09, has roared on full of myth and distortion, fueled by manufactured rage from corporate lobbyists shilling for the health care industry. And as Saturn pushes for its last bit of justice on the way into Libra, it was just announced that we may yet get our public option.

Here is the upside of all the anguish, where Saturn's work gives us consciousness and moves us forward. Locavore was the word of the year in 2007, the first year Saturn was in Virgo. We had the amazing work of Michael Pollan and the ubiquitous repetition of his quote from The Omnivore's Dilemma: "Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants." And tomorrow night, the very night before Saturn leaves Virgo, gorgeous vegan celeb Natalie Portman (who is about to have her Saturn Return) will appear on Top Chef - for a vegan cooking challenge! And just a few days later, we'll see the publication of Jonathan Safran Foer's Eating Animals.

If you've survived your Saturn Return, you know that Saturn doesn't allow short-cuts, cheating, or going backwards. If Big Agra doesn't get that it's time to fundamentally turn the beat around, the industry will fail in the next few years. As they say at Farm Sanctuary, "A compassionate world begins with you." Let that be the epitaph for the Saturn in Virgo years.

The Sugar Blues: Strike 1 For Saturn in Libra

2009-10-16T09:02:00.002-05:00

Saturn may not be going into Libra until October 29th, but we're already getting a taste of what the next few years might be like. Libra is the sign of sweet things, including sugar. Sugar prices have been at an all time high and it looks like they're going to stay that way. An early cold snap (Saturn rules winter) has damaged beet crops in Montana, affecting the sugar harvest. Just like in 1980, when the price of sugar hit the roof, it looks like our sweet treats are about to get very expensive. Stevia, anyone?

Second Saturn Return Superstar: Cornel West Embodies the Higher Power of Saturn in Libra

2009-10-15T12:33:00.003-05:00

Libra is a sign long associated with justice; most think this has to do with the traditional scales that represent this balance-loving sign. But if you listen for a while to the poetry that is the voice of Dr. Cornel West, Princeton Professor, philosopher, writer, civil rights activist, speaker and self-proclaimed "blues man", you get a far deeper understanding of this sometimes superficial sign. Dr. West is a Sun sign Gemini, but with his Saturn placed in Libra, he walks his brilliant talk every day of his life. In his new memoir, Brother West: Living and Loving Out Loud, the prolific, progressive, soulful story of his life is told with a intellectual fervor and a heartfelt, deep honesty. He is unafraid to reveal his deepest demons and his incredibly profound love of learning and letters.

Libra is thought of as the sign of love and romance, as one of the two constellations connected to Venus, goddess of love and beauty. Many astrologers see Libra as the esthetic, analytical inquisitor of all things beautiful, as opposed to Taurus, the sign that feels beauty in its bones and wants to eat it for dinner or roll around in a meadow of lush flowers. As for all signs and symbols, there is a higher octave and lower, demonic and unrealized energy. In Libra, the lower, darker and fearful expression of the sign is that which lives for vanity instead of substance and that which prefers superficial status (social climbing) to real relationships. Dr. West, however, shows us why Saturn is exalted in this sign: it's because when you LOVE someone "out loud", you will go to the ends of the earth to make sure they are protected. This is why he's dedicated his life to helping the poor and the oppressed. If you're a Libra or a Saturn in Libra, you'd do well to take your brilliant skills to the street to make the world a better place. That's the fastest way to survive your Saturn Return (or Saturn on your Sun.)

Dr. West is about to face his second Saturn Return, but his should be a success story. People that run from their problems, live lies, refuse to face their inner lives -- those are the ones that break down during the Saturn Return. Whether it's the first of the second, it can be a time of ugliness, doubt, fear, and crisis. But if you do it right -- that is, with a fearless ferocity and intense inner focus, the world will open to you in a myriad of ways.

I had the honor and pleasure of meeting Brother West in New York last night, and let me tell you, the man leaves a powerful impression. I have never encountered a scholar whose deep and abiding passion for education equals his fierce love of humanity. Such a beautiful and deeply balanced understanding of art and life is the essential embodiment of the energy of Saturn in Libra.

Now THIS is the Revolution that Pluto Planned For

2009-09-25T21:16:00.005-05:00

A few weeks ago we blogged about the "revolutionary" direction the country seemed headed in. The teabaggers and their lot were (and still are) ranting about god knows what, led by their Moron in Chief Glenn Beck. But thank the stars that we have Michael Moore, whose new movie Capitalism: A Love Story, tells the truth. In the chart of the USA, Pluto lives in the 2nd house of money and income. Pluto rules obsession, dark lust, underground power and coercion, amongst other issues polite people prefer not to discuss. Put the energy of Pluto into a second house framework and you can see clearly why the American financial system is so corrupt. Why do we lust after material objects with such ferocity? It's not because greed is human nature, as rabid capitalists will tell you. It's because we're imprinted with an unhealthy hunger for the things that money can buy. This is why our political system, better known as a "democratic" system, is so deeply intertwined with capitalism. But here's the good news; we now have a grand opportunity to transform it once and for all.

Oligarchy is a simple concept. In it, a tiny elite hold most of a society's power, and because wealth equals power -- the rich own the poor. (Right now only five percent of Americans own ninety-five percent of the country's wealth.) And in a system born with Pluto in Capricorn in the 2nd house, it's not surprising that oligarchy would end up being our middle name. It is in the best interest of the elite to keep the status quo going -- otherwise they'll have to give up the private jets and other accoutrements that the super rich believe are their birthright.

The American Pluto return, started in 2008 and ending in 2024, is the best opportunity to revolutionize our ugly, unfair oligarchic system from the ground up. Now that Pluto is in Capricorn, "regulation" is the new buzzword. But we need more than regulation, we need a total restructuring. So let's choose the right leaders -- men like Michael Moore who understand that we don't need to be led by lust, greed, fear and darkness. Our beacon of hope, Barack Obama, has been sadly hamstrung by the system in which he must exist, not to mention the legacy of his predecessor. But that doesn't mean we pull out our pitchforks and abandon him -- it simply means we must push him in a progressive direction and release him from the grips of corporate power. We'll have to transform the electoral system as well. People like Obama need to know that they can win because the PEOPLE want him in office, not just because Wall Street has his back.

The teabaggers claim that their "revolution" is a grassroots effort, a laughable idea, as it's quite easy to trace the lobbyists behind all the signs, and the Fox News reporters massaging the crowds into hysteria. We need to get it right this time. Pluto wants to fix us -- he wants us to get over our issues and mature into our power. Not power created by nuclear arms and billions of dollars in the pockets of the few. Power equally distributed to all the people across social strata and ethnicity. We have about fifteen years to make it happen. Will we answer the call with more rage and ugliness, or will we create a people's revolution built on hope, love, equanimity and fairness for all? Now that's something Pluto can get behind.

Coming Soon to a Constellation Near You: America's 8th Saturn Return

2009-09-18T22:52:00.004-05:00

This is just a preview of coming attractions. Saturn enters Libra on October 30th, 2009. The Cosmic Taskmaster hasn't visited this region of the zodiac since the early 1980s. Before we look forward, let's review some of the historical events and cultural themes we experienced back then.

The last Saturn in Libra era saw worldwide regional conflicts, unemployment, inflation, recession, the dawn of AIDS (Reagan wouldn't mention it in public until 1985), assassination attempts (Reagan, the Pope, Sadat), Reaganomics, Thatcherism, Cabbage Patch Kids, MTV (which was born on August 1st, 1981 with Video Killed the Radio Star), strikes (air traffic control workers, baseball players), the Falklands War, conflict in Northern Ireland, Lebanon, Libya, Syria, and South Africa, the first test-tube baby, wild weather extremes, debt crisis in Latin America, the Tylenol murders, Michael Jackson's Thriller, and Madonna at New York City's Roxy.

Needless to say, the world was in crisis, but at least we had our music and our fashion to fall back on. Escapism was all the rage with Dynasty and Fantasy Island on television. In the coming years of Saturn in Libra, things may get much more serious. A T-square involving Uranus, Pluto and Saturn will put us all in a major crucible during this trying time. The USA, born with Saturn in Libra and wearing its sense of justice on its sleeve, is already being tried mightily by events and circumstances. If this Saturn return is anything like the last seven we've had since 1776, we'll experience trade wars, isolationism, and military skirmishes.

When it all goes to hell in a handbasket, at least we may have an art scene like we had in the early 80s, with music and fashion to match. That's the stuff that Libra lives for.

This Isn't the Revolution Pluto Planned For

2009-09-11T20:11:00.006-05:00

As our country commemorates the 8th anniversary of the darkness that was 9/11, Pluto, himself the prince of darkness, goes direct in Capricorn. During a week that saw President Obama heckled during a congressional address, the gap between reality and insanity grows ever wider. Glenn Beck's "grassroots" 9/12 movement, actually sponsored by lobbyists, is populated by radical right-wing elements that embrace neo-Nazi politics. We will see these people take to the streets on Saturday, September 12th, in what Bill Maher calls the "Million Moron March". We can sit back and laugh at their ignorance, or we can stand up and face them. Under the influence of Pluto in Capricorn, we are dealing with a meme called "revolution". The people who don't believe that Barack Obama is legitimately our president are attempting an overthrow. Watch them wave their guns through the air, listen to them throw the word "fascism" around without understanding what it means, and hear then use the term "socialism" to describe something not even close to a system of shared wealth. It's just another slur for Obama these days. These people are quite dumb, but an army of dummies is still an army.

The strain of this movement worthy of our greatest fears is the bit that was born of the doctrine of John C. Calhoun, the father of the secessionist movement that ignited the Civil War. In 1832, when Calhoun declared that Congress couldn't restrict slavery in the territories, Pluto was in Aries, squaring the chart of the American Revolution. Now that it's in Capricorn, these dark energies are being stirred once again. It's called "Calhoun Conservatism" and it's something we cannot ignore. The birthers, the deathers and all that have been beating the drum for Obama's downfall are all racists; that is what drives them. Health care has nothing to do with it. Some are open racists, and many of those types will be on parade at the 9/12 march. Some may not even know they are racists, because fear of their own shadow is what drives them. They will stop at nothing to destroy not just Obama, but all of us that believe in social justice, equality, and compassion for the huddled masses yearning to breathe free.

And the corporate media is finally catching up with what many bloggers have been talking about for a very long time:

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/13/opinion/13dowd.html

Whole Foods Boycott: Saturn in Virgo's Last Days

2009-08-25T09:11:00.003-05:00

Have we learned our lessons under the tutelage of Big Daddy Saturn in the constellation of Virgo? Only time will tell. If we can pass quality, equitable health care legislation, the answer may be a resounding yes. But it's not looking very promising, especially when those we thought were on the right side of the argument are turning out to be enemies to the cause. The current boycott of Whole Foods, a supposed bastion of progressive thinking in the age of Food, Inc, is interesting to watch as the last days of Saturn in Virgo unfold. Whole Foods is often the only game in town when you want to find clean, pure food in a sea of processed garbage. But the CEO of Whole Foods recent Wall Street Journal op-ed shows that his real motivation is closing in on the niche that is owned by eco-moms and others that can afford to buy their organic produce. The truth is that poor people need access to healthy food as much as they need access to affordable health care. Until those at the top of the wealth pyramid recognize that every human being deserves equity on planet earth, Big Daddy Saturn will smite us. If not now, do we have to wait another thirty years to get it right? Selfishness is a pre-existing condition, but hopefully it's one that we can cure with enough commitment.

Pluto in Capricorn at the Movies: Michael Moore's Latest

2009-08-22T08:20:00.004-05:00

Michael Moore's latest film is called Capitalism: A Love Story. With Pluto moving back to direct motion on September 11th, 2009, the October release will come just in time for us to properly analyze the full measure of the current moment in history. "Green shoots" or not, oligarchy must loosen its grip in the next decade, or Pluto will make our lives very unpleasant. Michael Moore will surely make us laugh as he makes us look squarely into the face of an increasingly frightening reality. His view will be an antidote (hopefully) to the ever louder chorus of fearmongering right-wing zealots whose singular aim seems to be bringing down the current administration. Saturn will move into Libra this fall, and art will be a potent force offering healing to us all. As the US enters it's 9th Saturn return, it'll be time for us to take a good, hard look at what we've created here, and to reassess whether or not it's sustainable. Pluto in Capricorn will square Saturn in Libra during 2010. It may bring down some metaphorical towers, but it will show us exactly how to rebuild.

Birthers and Deathers in a Dark Plutonian Dance

2009-08-11T19:36:00.002-05:00

Pluto in Capricorn is awakening the darkest fears in the hearts of the ignorant. Pluto, as the god of the underworld, rules death and rebirth. The "birthers" have given birth to the "deathers", a new cult of Obama-haters spewing lies about his health care plan. Fox News and Sarah Palin and the lobbyists working for the big corporate health entities have one agenda: to block change and keep people chest-deep in a sea of stupidity. The nutbaggery of the birthers has been thinly-veiled racist bile -- but now that Republican members of Congress realize that they can't continue to perpetuate the myth, they've stepped back a bit.

The "deathers" have taken up their call, spreading disturbing lies about "death panels" that have no relationship to reality. And yet the hordes, the mobs, the unwashed masses are getting more and more out of control. Listen carefully to the language coming from these groups and from the media in general. Seething hatred, birth and death are symbolically and inextricably linked to Pluto.

“I have been told there is a clause in there that everyone that’s Medicare age will be visited and told to decide how they wish to die,” a woman named Mary hailing from North Carolina asked the president. “This bothers me greatly, and I’d like for you to promise me that this is not in this bill.” These people are being whipped up into a frenzy. We almost can't blame them -- they are merely pawns in the game that the right wing plays with a vicious, cold and for-profit hand.

Is the US on the Brink of Fascism?

2009-08-09T19:21:00.002-05:00

Pluto was in Cancer in the 1930's, when the Great Depression was in full force and Naziism started its noxious creep through Europe. Now Pluto is halfway around the zodiac, opposite where it was in those dark years, and triggering the same energies that coursed through Hitler's monstrous mind. According to Robert Paxton, there are five discernible stages of fascism, and we are right about to enter the end stage.

From the Alternet article linked to the title of this post:

Either way, our fascist American future now looms very large in the front windshield -- and those of us who value American democracy need to understand how we got here, what's changing now, and what's at stake in the very near future if these people are allowed to win -- or even hold their ground.

Don't You Forget About Him: John Hughes Dies During His Second Saturn Return

2009-08-06T20:31:00.006-05:00

The legendary director John Hughes has died of a heart attack in the midst of his second Saturn Return today. Death during the Saturn Return is rather rare -- there are usually other transits involved. For Hughes, Wednesday's full moon lunar eclipse played a major role -- it hit his sun and opposed his Pluto. With Michael Jackson and now John Hughes gone, the eighties feel ancient, and for a generation of puellas and puers, fully and finally dead.

Just a smattering of the movies he either wrote or directed:

The Breakfast Club
Weird Science
Ferris Bueller's Day Off
Sixteen Candles
Pretty In Pink

His Neptune (ruler of film) was in artistic Libra, trining his Jupiter in forward-thinking Aquarius. He put the words in our mouths before we knew we wanted to say them. John Hughes defined a generation of awkward, geek-loving, Atari-playing, Depeche-Mode-loving soon-to-be Gen X'ers. He will be missed.

Dear Mr. Vernon: We accept the fact that we had to sacrifice a whole Saturday in detention for whatever it is we did wrong, but we think you're crazy for making us write an essay telling you who we think we are. You see us as you want to see us: in the simplest terms, in the most convenient definitions. But what we found out is that each one of us is a brain, and an athlete, and a basket case, a princess, and a criminal. Does that answer your question? Sincerely yours, The Breakfast Club

More Dispatches From the Pluto in Capricorn Era: Could the Global Meltdown Spark a Great Revolution?

2009-08-04T20:13:00.004-05:00

Just another example of life imitating astrology here (via Alternet).

If you've been following this blog since late 2007, you know that we've been talking about such issues since before the economy went bust. Everyday there are new memes in the universe and on the web, ones that support our hypothesis. As America experiences its 9th Saturn Return starting this fall, think about what you really need, not about what you think you want. Life is changing, and the pace of change may be faster than we're ready to deal with. When Uranus goes into Aries in 2011, it will square Pluto, setting up a transit that will last until 2015 -- one that will have a major impact on the world we inhabit. Although we certainly don't think that the world will end in a fire and brimstone event sometime in 2012 as some followers of Mayan astrology do, we do think that that some major, potentially cataclysmic events are afoot. They don't have to be gut-wrenching if you're ready for them. It takes a wide open heart and a curious mind to wrap itself around the big issues of our day. Have you examined yours lately?

Be Very Afraid of the Birther Movement: A Scary Sign of Pluto in Capricorn

2009-08-03T18:03:00.002-05:00

The ugly, dark, and bitter heart of the so-called "birther" movement is a frightening thing to behold. Because what's beneath it is pure, unbridled racism, the kind that created the segregated South, the KKK, Jim Crow, and all the other detritus of the legacy of slavery in our country. These people cannot accept that Barack Obama is our president, in simple terms, because he's Black. Pluto in Capricorn, as we've mentioned, is likely to be a time of rising fascism. With the governor of Texas threatening secession, Southern Republicans totally losing their minds and trying to make healthcare Obama's "Waterloo", and the birther movement getting actual traction in the media, we are clearly in dark times.

As a totally personal aside, I have never in my lifetime been so demoralized and ashamed to share my heritage with another human being than the crazy rightwingnut Israeli who is also the de facto leader of the birther movement. May she be dragged over the coals and exposed for her disgusting racism. How DARE she invoke Nazi Germany in this wholly imaginary farce of a "movement" whose motivation is paper thin hatred. It's clear that she's completely and totally nuts, off of her meds, and in need of desperate psychiatric assistance. But the fact of her heritage is a clear and present danger for other Jews. The Glenn Becks and Rush Limbaughs and Lou Dobbs of this world are gunning for a race war, and with Pluto in Capricorn, they just might get one. Thank god we at least have the Jewish genius Jon Stewart lay it on the line for us.

Second Saturn Return Setback: Annie Liebovitz Faces the Cosmic Taskmaster

2009-08-01T19:34:00.003-05:00

With her sun in Libra making her one of the major arbiters of beauty in our culture, Annie Leibovitz's gifts can't be denied. But now that she's caught up in the challenges of her second Saturn return, her life seems decidedly less glamorous. Born in 1949 with her Saturn in perfectionist Virgo, Liebovitz has made a career of creating shocking but elegant images of famous people. Although she is one of the best paid photographers in the biz, with a seven-figure salary from Vanity Fair, apparently Saturn didn't lend her money skills. We don't know her birth time, but we can safely assume that her Saturn (or another malefic planet) resides in her second house of income or her eighth house of other people's money.

During her first Saturn Return in 1980, her most remarkable moment was capturing the iconic image of a naked John Lennon curled around a clothed Yoko Ono, just hours before his death. WIll this image now have to be sold to protect Liebovitz from financial ruin? This is a sad, albeit instructive story for women dealing with money, and dealing with Big Daddy Saturn. Make sure that you have your affairs in order, whether you're struggling for every penny or making money hand over fist.

The First Casualty of the Saturn in Libra Era

2009-07-25T14:48:00.005-05:00

Dash Snow, Enfant Terrible, addict, artist and all-around crazed dreamer, has joined what's come to be known as the 27 Club, just another euphemism for a very deadly Saturn Return. He died right on the cusp of his 28th birthday, just months before his official Saturn Return was about to begin. The coming Saturn in Libra years will be all about art, beauty, love, partnership, justice, and the way we choose to see ourselves through the eyes of others. Snow was immersed in both beauty and ugliness, exposing the grit of our world through his art.

As Saturn in Virgo comes to a close this fall, those of you born in the early 80s are getting a glimpse of what it means to come full circle. You are in the crucible, in the purification ritual, and you have the opportunity to come out alive, a new and better version of yourself when you're all done. Take extreme examples like that of Snow's life and death as grand metaphors for what not to do during your Saturn Return.

Our Take on The Total Solar Eclipse, Sign by Sign

2009-07-23T16:24:00.002-05:00

Read our most recent article on Lifescript.

Revolution 2.0: Brought to You by Pluto in Capricorn

2009-07-04T18:08:00.005-05:00

We've talked about the implications of the Pluto in Capricorn era since 2008, when it began by gutting our economy and altering our cultural landscape. The important piece to remember between now and the early 2020's is that Pluto, planet of total transformation, is moving through a constellatory space it hasn't occupied since the 1770s. That's right: we are now revisiting themes, emotions, and challenges reminiscent of the American Revolution. Unless you're a history buff, you may not know that the original revolution was eerily similar to what we're going through at this moment, down to the roots. According Gordon S. Wood, a professor at Brown University, it was the economy, stupid. Adding astrological intrigue is the fact that it wasn't just the economy, but SPECIFICALLY A HOUSING BUBBLE that made the American Revolution unfold the way that it did.

From a recent piece in the New York Times:

For the colonists, as for us, first came the boom. During the height of the French and Indian War, which lasted from 1754 until 1763, money flooded into the colonies, especially New York, where the British Army was headquartered. At the same time, the New York Legislature issued large numbers of bills of credit.

All that cash sloshing around resulted in lavish displays of wealth — notably by British officers, whose opulent living was emulated by the locals, especially in New York.

Housing prices soared during the war. But when credit tightened afterward — thanks in no small part to a prohibition on the issuance of paper money by the colonies under the Currency Act of 1764 — real estate owners who could not pay their debts lost their land.

Pluto lives in the second house of the natal chart of the USA -- the house ruling money, income, and material possessions. Our obsession with stuff was written into the DNA of our country. But Pluto is now taking us to task for overvaluing what we own, and not recognizing how much we have in our hearts and minds. It started with the obscene materialism of banks and corporations and then moved into our homes, forcing tens of thousands into foreclosure. We can't know what comes next, but we do know that it's time to get serious about what we value, or Pluto will force a reckoning. In the next fifteen years, denial is just another word for disaster.

Happy Birthday, America. It seems that bootstraps are the new black.

Why Michael Jackson Hated the Man in the Mirror

2009-06-28T09:33:00.003-05:00

Michael Jackson was a classic Virgo. His life, from the very start, was dedicated to serving up a constant source of catharsis for those of us that watched him dance and sing. He gave every single ounce of his energy to perfecting his art and then sending it out for public consumption. Over the last few days everyone has been talking about his precision, his work-ethic, his drive, his perfectionism. Barry Gordy, the head of Motown, remarked on Larry King that of all the Jackson Five, Michael was the most focused -- even as the youngest, he was always "studying" everything around him, trying to get it right. With his sun (life force) conjunct Pluto (fear, darkness) in his fourth house of home, his father Joseph was the demon patriarch who drove Michael to work as hard as he did, or face a beating. He literally had to dance for his dinner, or he'd be blamed for his father's failings. The immense guilt and responsibility Michael felt as an innocent child was transmuted into his relentless drive to get it right, and his drive to be the King of Pop. You don't manifest what Michael did without wanting it more than anything else in the world. The truth behind Michael's Plutonian, Virgoan striving is that he probably did it all to please his father. The unconscious is a powerful force and Michael, with his Plutonian signature, was completely driven by its longings. If it is indeed true that MJ sexually abused young boys, one can lay the blame directly at his father's feet.

Although his birth time is disputed, the Gemini rising chart seems the most accurate. Gemini is the sign of youth, the Puer Aeternus, of ambiguous sexuality, of never wanting to grow up, Peter Pan complexes, media savvy, trends, and a wiry, flexible body type. His ascendant is most evident in the videos that he made for the 1979 record Off the Wall. Check out "Rock with You", where his costume of silver sequins, with vertical stripes on his pants looks almost court jesterish, perfectly fitting the Gemini rising persona. In "Don't Stop Til You Get Enough" he wears a tux, floating over a moving background of stars like a sprite. MJ bought the Neverland Ranch during his Saturn return -- an overt admission that he never wanted to grow up. This was also around the time that things started to shift for Michael after his career apotheosis with Thriller in 1983. (Note the lyrics to "Thriller" - "It's close to midnight, and something evil's lurking in the dark." This is a deeply Plutonian line.) During his Saturn return he let his freak flag fly, practically giving the finger to the media while at the same time courting it. He was rumored to attempt to buy the bones of the Elephant Man, and his addiction to plastic surgery began. When his SR was almost exact, Bad was released. People found it rather hilarious that this gentle-voiced shy singer would be compelled to tell the world that he was "Bad" as if he was trying to compete with gangsta rappers. But what he was really saying was that inside, he felt like he was a bad boy -- probably because that's what his father told him over and over again, no matter how hard he tried. "Man in the Mirror", one of the most popular tracks on that record, is in many ways an acknowledgement that Michael understood what the universe wanted for him.

The lyrics include these lines:

As I, Turn Up The Collar On My
Favourite Winter Coat
This Wind Is Blowin' My Mind

I'm Starting With The Man In
The Mirror
I'm Asking Him To Change
His Ways
And No Message Could Have
Been Any Clearer
If You Wanna Make The World
A Better Place
(If You Wanna Make The
World A Better Place)
Take A Look At Yourself, And
Then Make A Change

Everyone in their Saturn return needs to heed these words if he or she wants to survive the transition and thrive. For Michael, the Saturn return was the beginning of a downward spiral that ended in his death. Because he could not find any kind of real, personal one-to-one love in his life due to a warped sexuality and damaged trust, Michael turned to the love of his fans for succor. In the months before his death, transiting Saturn was opposing his moon, squaring his natal Saturn and opposing his ascendant. These on their own are not signatures for death, but most certainly signs of exhaustion, depression, alienation, and desperation. And in the end, as he prepared for a comeback, Michael finally succumbed to all those challenges. The quintessential Virgo can finally rest; may he do so in peace.

Neda's Saturn Return -- Meet Iran's Joan of Arc

2009-06-22T14:43:00.002-05:00

By now we've all heard about Neda and watched the graphic, wrenching images of her death by Baseej snipers over the weekend. She has become the face of the new revolution in Iran, her bloodied image affixed to flags waving in protest all over the world. Neda was 27, born in 1982. Although her actual birthdate is still unknown, her Saturn Return would have begun this fall. The country of Iran is in the midst of a collective transformation. As Ahmadinejad's violent rhetoric increased, so did the intensity of Iran's Saturn return. Now, as the exact return of Saturn separates, the anger and hunger spills out into the streets. Neda, whose name literally translates to "the call", is no cosmic accident. If she'd lived her life would have been about justice, as her Saturn was in the sign of Libra. When Saturn moves into Libra this October, the calls for democracy will only get louder and more vehement. Neda didn't have a political candidate in mind -- she just wanted freedom for her fellow Iranians.

Father's Day Musings: Big Daddy Saturn

2009-06-21T10:20:00.003-05:00

Saturn is symbolic of the Father -- capital F intended. That's why we call him "Big Daddy Saturn". The actual men that play the role of our fathers -- whether they are our biological fathers, adoptive fathers, or stepfathers, stand in for Saturn in our lives. In an ideal world, "good" fathers teach us about responsibility, gentle strength, and the healthy use of power. Yet many of us are damaged by "bad" father syndrome: when the men who are supposed to protect us abuse their power. Usually this is because these men are still damaged themselves, and no one taught them any other way to be. During the Saturn return women often come to grips with their father's failings. This can cause a lot of rage to bubble up, and often the urge to throw off any and all chains of authority -- boyfriends, husbands, bosses, anyone that stands in for Saturn in your life. This can be incredibly healthy -- especially if you've spent your entire life up to the age of 28 trying to please everyone in a vain attempt to get your dad to notice and love you.

Yet -- the healing balm for all of this is forgiveness. Once you move through that Saturnian rage and find out what's beneath it, you can do almost anything. No matter what your father has done, try to forgive him and see him as a human being, not a failed archetypal hero figure. The Saturn Return teaches you to be your own hero, rather than looking for someone else to save you. So honor your father, forgive his sins, and then forgive yourself.

Dark Echoes of Pluto in Capricorn

2009-06-18T14:28:00.002-05:00

The impulse toward fear and blame of the "other" is a sure sign that Pluto in Capricorn is firmly in place. Conspiracy theory is taking over parts of our society, aided and abetted by the right wing chorus on cable news. In Toxic to Democracy: Conspiracy Theories, Demonization, & Scapegoating, Chip Berlet analyses what we're up against.

Mourning in Iran

2009-06-18T09:37:00.003-05:00

Still following the brilliant Huffpo blogger Nico Pitney, who wrote last night (italics mine):

1:28 AM ET -- The mourning rally. Thursday is gearing up to be a hugely significant day for the Green Uprising. Reza Aslan appeared on MSNBC's Rachel Maddow Show tonight, and laid out the importance of what is going to happen:

What's really fascinating about what's happening right now in 2009 is that it looks a lot like what was happening in 1979. And there's a very simple reason for that. The same people are in charge -- I mean, Mousavi, Rafsanjani, Khatami, Medhi Karroubi, the other reformist candidate -- these were all the original revolutionaries who brought down the Shah to begin with, so they know how to do this right.

And so what you're going to see tomorrow is something that was pulled exactly out of the playbook of 1979, which is that you have these massive mourning rallies, where you mourn the deaths of those who were martyred in the cause of freedom. And these things tend to get a little bit out of control, they often result in even more violence by the security forces and even more deaths, which then requires another mourning rally which is even larger, which then requires more violence from the government, and this just becomes an ongoing snowball that can't be stopped.

That's how the Shah was removed from power, was these mourning ceremonies. And so Mousavi very smartly calling for an official -- not a rally -- but an official day of mourning tomorrow. I think we're going to see crowds that we haven't even begun to see yet, and then follow that, on Friday, which is sort of the Muslim sabbath, the day of prayer, which is a traditionally a day of gathering anyway. This is just beginning, Rachel, this is just the beginning.

Change is the keyword during a Saturn return, and if if doesn't come, there is often metaphorical blood spilled. Let us hope that in the case of Iran, it does not become too literal. There are so many ways in which we're experiencing 1979 all over again. We've got to get it right this time. Pluto returning to Capricorn play a role in this massive upheaval and revolutionary tenor as well. More on that soon...