Rex Tillerson – team spirit at breaking point

   

 

Will he or won’t he? Jump, get pushed? Rex Tillerson, Secretary of State, has never looked happy in the job and according to those in the know, Trump and he are increasingly exasperated by each other’s approach and methods. Tillerson’s more traditional stance on global problems has constantly been contradicted by presidential tweets; and Trump evidently finds him arrogant since he won’t kowtow to the imperial need for homage to his image rather than the country. Despite yesterday’s denials and expressions of loyalty, he could well be heading for a high noon.

Born 23 March 1952, he’s a cautious Aries Sun opposition Saturn with an innovative square to Uranus; plus a relentlessly determined Mars in Scorpio square Pluto. His relationship with Trump has its plus points but is heavy on control with a composite Sun Venus square Pluto; and worse a composite Mars Neptune – if one succeeds the other feels as if he has lost. Trump evidently resents the arguments that Tillerson has won.

Tillerson’s personal chart does have tr Pluto opposition his Jupiter/Saturn midpoint now till late October, which can be a time of job losses. And he’s certainly looking undermined from Oct 10 to early January; at a time when his relationship with Trump is at a low as well with tr Neptune opposition the composite Mars/Pluto.

Both Tillerson and Mattis have their Uranus conjunct Trump’s Mercury, so arguments were inevitable. Tillerson’s unforgiving Mars in Scorpio is also trine Trump’s Saturn which is an aggravating interface. Mattis’s Sun Saturn in Virgo and John Kelly’s Mars (Saturn) in Virgo all square Trump’s Sun Uranus and Moon – so the three ‘grown-ups’ who have lashed themselves to the mast, no doubt out of a duty to the country, are all at odds with their employer.

Mattis has the same problem as Tillerson with a composite Mars Neptune in his relationship chart with Trump, so again the president will feel diminished every time Mattis wins a policy point. Both Mattis and Kelly have chained-together composite Saturn Pluto conjunctions in their relationship charts with Trump, so will be less likely to bale than Tillerson. Though November/December this year look edgy, jangled and flummoxed on all three relationship charts with the great leader. Heaven help the US if they disappear off the scene.

Uranus in Taurus – flashes of insight; surfeit of greed

 

 

Uranus, on its 84 year cycle, moves into Taurus mid May 2018 staying for 7 years, the first time since 1934 to 1941.   Uranus is inventive and experimental, with lightning eureka flashes of insight,  and Taurus is earthy and practical, so no surprises that on previous occurrences there were new discoveries. In the later 1930s there were major advances in technology in aviation, radio, and film. On a previous occasion, in the late 17th Century, street lighting was introduced in London. There was also widespread exploration across the globe and major advances in astronomy, including the first sighting of Uranus (which was mis-named). Taurus being earthy and quite anal, no surprises either that sewage systems and toilets came to the fore.

Taurus is also acquisitive for money and possessions so from past experience trade became a pressing and not always compassionate drive. During the Uranus in Taurus of 1600 England starts trade with Asia; two Uranus in Taurus later it moves into Bengal with catastrophic results for the population; 2 million die in a famine and the East India Company raises their taxes and ships the revenues out of the country! The Same Brit company then takes over the North American tea trade, which leads, due to their punitive taxation, into the American Revolution.

The Bengal famine narrative repeated in a different location during the mid 19th Century Uranus in Taurus in Ireland. The potato crop failed, which starved a million to death and a million emigrated, with the British overlords, who were partly the cause of the population’s reliance on one crop, continuing to send foodstuffs to the UK. And that is a wound which has never healed.

It isn’t easy to extrapolate the effect of Uranus in Taurus from other influences ongoing. The mid 19th Century Uranus in Taurus came on the back of a Saturn Pluto Uranus conjunction in late Aries/Taurus, so was always going to be a time of upheaval and devastation.

The most similar to this one would be the 1767 Uranus in Taurus with Pluto in Capricorn about to oppose Saturn in Cancer, with Neptune in Virgo. Apart from the horrors of the Bengal famine, James Watts’ steam-engine inventions drove the Industrial Revolution into being; and the first mechanical spinning frame for fabric weaving also appeared.

The most recent 1935 to 1941 Uranus in Taurus came on the back of the Great Depression of the decade following 1929, with widespread poverty and unemployment leading to authoritarian regimes emerging in several countries, most notably German with Hitler rising to power from 1933; and Stalin’s Great Purge of 1936-38 with 600,000 being executed in Russia by the state. Territorial greed is clearly one of its manifestations; as well as inhumane methods in the pursuit of power. Though Roosevelt was pushing his New Deal in the USA to alleviate social problems so different countries had different experiences.

In 1935 Uranus was just over the square to Pluto in Cancer, so not dissimilar to now – and it ended with a Saturn Uranus conjunction trine Neptune in Virgo in 1941.

So the overall conclusion would be good and bad. Innovative yes. Power and money hungry not great.

A Royal quadrangle – the aristos at play

   

 

Camilla has a fling with Charles, because her boyfriend Andrew is sneaking off with Charles’s sister Anne. Sounds like a trashy rom-com instead of being an eye-opener into how the upper classes have traditionally conducted their lives. Penny Junor’s The Duchess; The Untold Story has been shining a no-doubt unwelcome light on Royal shenanigans, as the monarchy edges towards a handover .

In the beginning, Camilla, now Duchess of Cornwall, is determined to marry the super-attractive, cavalry officer Andrew Parker Bowles despite his serially wandering ways, but draws the line at his dalliance with the then unmarried Princess Anne. So she embarks on a liaison of her own with Prince Charles, for whom she would at that time have been an unsuitably unvirginal bride. As a Roman Catholic Andrew was equally out of the question as a spouse for Anne and so he gets hitched to Camilla. In the way of all aristo and Royal circles everyone frequently meets socially and at race meetings and so the merry-go-round continues.

Camilla, 17 July 1947 7.10am London, has a hidden Sun Mercury in Cancer in the 12th trine a happy-home Jupiter in Scorpio in the 4th; with Venus Moon in Cancer also in the 12th; and the formidable Saturn Pluto conjunct her Leo Ascendant. So quite defensive and reclusive.

Andrew Parker Bowles, 27 Dec 1939 6am?? London, is a Sun Capricorn in a confident, devil-may-care square to Jupiter in upfront Aries and opposition a Cancer Moon. His Moon certainly connects with Camilla’s Cancer planets. Though his Full Moon will give him an ambivalence about what he wants. Plus he has a seductive Venus in Aquarius opposition Pluto, which sits across Cam’s Descendant/Ascendant axis. He’d make her feel trapped, but his Venus on her Descendant is a good placing for marriage.

Charles on the other hand connects with her 4th house Jupiter which is conjunct his Sun, so he’d bring domestic security and comfort; and with Charles’ Mars Jupiter in her 5th also a good deal of fun.

Anne certainly chimes with Andrew, since his Pluto is conjunct her Venus MC opposition his Venus and her IC. His relationship chart with both ladies has an affectionate composite Sun opposition Venus; though there’s more anger between himself and Camilla with a composite Mars square Pluto.

There’s a good deal of aggravation and competitiveness in Andrew’s relationship with Prince Charles, with a composite Mars trine Uranus trine Neptune, and Mars opposition Pluto as well as Sun Venus opposition Uranus (Moon). Though all water under the bridge now.

What a tangled web they all weave. Marry, produce the heir and spare, then suit yourself.

Vegas shooter’s girl-friend – a Saturnine connection

   

 

Marilou Danley, the girlfriend of the Las Vegas shooter, has now returned to the USA. Born 12 December 1954 in the Philippines she has described herself as a “gambling and casinos professional.”

She has a Sun Sagittarius trine Pluto, with a lucky/gamblers Jupiter Uranus in Cancer, maybe conjunct a Cancer/Leo Moon. And a cool, emotionally repressed Venus Saturn in Scorpio. Paddock’s stubbornly pushy Mars in Taurus opposed her Venus Saturn, so it would be a gritty and not altogether kind connection. Their relationship chart has an emotionally blocked composite Venus square Saturn and in a passionate sextile to Mars; with a controlling Sun opposition Pluto. Evidently he put her down all the time when they were out, saying he paid for her, and she seemed submissive. So some sparky affection but more minuses than pluses.

She was born 3 days after Jean-Claude Juncker, so similarities in energy though her Pluto opposition Mars is a wide 9 degrees.

Brexit progress – paralysis as the Delphic oracle warned

   

 

Jellyfish swims into brick-wall appears to be the state of play in the Brexit negotiations with almost zero progress 16 months after the referendum. Which is much as former Greek Finance minister Yanis Varoufakis foretold in his Adults in the Room, ‘a searing indictment of the anti-democratic, underhand and downright mendacious tactics used by what he calls the EU’s “deep establishment” to make the Greeks grovel. He predicted Brussels would seek to browbeat the UK in the same way and that we would do better just to walk away. Otherwise we would become entangled in the grip of a monster with more tentacles than the mythological Scylla.’ (Philip Johnston, Telegraph). Varoufakis wrote: “Brussels is a democracy-free zone. It is the nature of the beast to treat the will of electorates as a nuisance that must be, somehow, negated.”

The EU does have a 12th house Pluto (dirty dealings behind the scenes) in a ruthless square to Mars in Sagittarius. And both Juncker and negotiator Barnier have Mars Pluto oppositions in their natal charts so they fit the ethos. Sakoian & Acker say of this aspect: ‘The temptation is to use collective power for self-aggrandizement. Must learn to use power correctly. Want to rule and remake others causing resentment and conflict.’

The EU Pluto moves by Solar Arc to conjunct the EU 2nd house Neptune, exact in the spring of 2019, which will create a devastating situation for EU finances; with discouraging tr Saturn moving into the EU 4th from the end of this year and conjunct the Capricorn Sun in late 2018 bringing an unhappy populace; with a panicky and uncertain 2020 to follow as tr Neptune squares the EU Saturn.

The UK chart has its partnership Sun/Moon midpoint at 14 Aries which had been hammered by tr Uranus square tr Pluto in the two years before the Brexit referendum which might have been a hint. No marriage would survive that intact. Tr Saturn is now aiming to square the Sun/Moon midpoint in late Jan/early Feb 2019, which would normally put the last nail in the coffin of an alliance. Though Saturn does sometimes have a timelag. Even earlier over Christmas December 2018 tr Saturn is conjunct the UK and EU Capricorn Suns.

I wouldn’t be entirely surprised if it ended in a No Deal.  The EU negotiator Michel Barnier, 9 Jan 1951 4.40pm La Tronche, France, is muddling his way through a stressful 2017/18 with tr Pluto conjunct his Sun, and worse square his Neptune; with a directionless tr Neptune conjunct his MC in 2019.

There’s an interesting and timely side story this week about a 2003 sweetheart deal struck between Luxembourg, when Jean-Claude Juncker was PM, and Amazon. The EU’s competition commissioner is now poised to land a bill for hundreds of millions of euros in back taxes on Amazon, alleging that the tax deal granted it almost a decade of illegal state support from Luxembourg, the hub for its European operations. This could prove awkward for Juncker though he’ll no doubt shrug it off. But instructive all the same.

Stephen Paddock & Pa – apples don’t fall far

   

 

The father of Stephen Paddock, the Las Vegas shooter, was psychopathic with suicidal tendencies according to the FBI, who put him on their Most Wanted list after he escaped from a federal prison. He was an armed bank robber, gambler and fraudster.

Benjamin Hoskins Paddock was born 1 November 1926 in Wisconsin, one day after Jimmy Savile, the notorious UK paedophile entertainer. He was a Sun Venus in Scorpio opposition Mars in Taurus with a gamblers’ Mars square Jupiter; and a paranoid Saturn in Scorpio square Neptune in Leo. It’s not clear when he left the family since he wasn’t imprisoned until Stephen was 8 years old. The brother Eric is insisting they never knew him but he certainly made an impression on Stephen, whether in family myth or the flesh.

The relationship chart between Stephen and father Benjamin has an affectionate and exact composite Sun Venus conjunction in a controlling/possessive opposition to Pluto, and an idealised trine to Neptune. With a confidence-boosting composite Pluto trine Jupiter; and chained-together Pluto square Saturn. Plus an explosive composite Mars Uranus conjunction. He was pretty psychologically tied into dear old dad.

Both have the heavyweight Mars in Taurus, which has endurance and stamina, is slow to blow a fuse, but when it does a volcano erupts. At its most negative it is greedy and violent. And both have their Mars in aspect to Pluto which can be brutal.

Add on: There are a few different years given for his birth date. His gravestone gives 1920.His Social Security application uses “1 November 1925” and his Veterans Affairs record uses “1 November 1926”. The 1930 census lists him as 3 years old on April 19, 1930. If he was born in 1926 he would have been 3 years, 5 months, 18 days old on April 19, 1930.

Las Vegas shooter – rage-filled and envious

   

 

The Vegas shooting started at 10.08pm on October 1st when the Fire Grand Trine of Leo Node trine Uranus trine Saturn Descendant in Sagittarius, was formed into two Kites by Uranus in the opposition to Jupiter, and the Node opposition an Aquarius Moon (like the USA). So highly emotional (Moon Aquarius, wanting to shock), and one which sought to justify a shocking act by wrapping it up in a moral justification (Jup Ur). Pluto was in the hidden 8th, winding up its power, in an exact and ruthless trine to Mars and Venus in the 4th. With Mars square the Sun/Moon midpoint exactly. Saturn was exactly on the Descendant, bringing separations and a cold attitude to others. Mars Venus opposed a 10th house Neptune, bringing panic.

Reports say the shooter Stephen Paddock was born 9 April 1953 (though to be treated with caution until verified.) This would make him a Sun Venus in Aries opposition a paranoid Saturn Neptune in Libra squaring onto Uranus in Cancer. This can be lived out in different ways but at its most negative it seeks to destabilise, create anarchy, is autocratic and highly neurotic. Worse he had Pluto in a brutal square to Mars in heavyweight Taurus and in a rules-don’t-apply-to-me square to Jupiter in Taurus; perhaps formed into a T Square by Pluto opposition an Aquarius Moon. Emotionally hyper-charged, angry, cruel.

What repeats through his 5th, 10th, 12th and 18th harmonics is an explosive contact between Mars and Uranus; with Pluto added in to his can-be-domineering 5H, and his good and bad 10H. He shares a strong 18H with a raft of serial killers (see post Aug 29 2017).

There’s nothing too specific showing up exactly but he’s had his Solar Arc Pluto (tied into that malefic T square) conjunct his Neptune recently and aiming to conjunct his Saturn, indeed sitting on his Saturn/Neptune midpoint, which suggests a nervous breakdown, heavy depression or illness. Significant life-changing crises usually occur when two major configurations in a chart come together by Solar Arc since it concentrates the energy and not in a good way. I would think his last two or three years would have been fairly horrific since his Solar Arc Mars preceded Pluto in bouncing off his Uranus.

A lonely, enraged man looking down on all these people enjoying themselves. Why couldn’t he just have jumped off a bridge?

King Felipe – rocked by a storm that goes on and on

   

 

King Felipe of Spain took over the throne on 19th June 2014 12am at an exceptionally stressed time, with Mars opposition Uranus square Pluto, hinting at a high-risk, crisis-strewn reign ahead. Although he is largely a ceremonial figure, following the advice of his government, he is also guardian of the constitution and many hope he can help to broker a peaceful resolution to the Catalan breakaway crisis. But he’d clearly be for a unified Spain and the main Catalonian parties are republican.

His Accession chart does have a frustrating tr Pluto opposition the Solar Arc Mars and square Solar Arc Uranus in 2017/18, which looks like rolling upheavals. He’ll face a dip in popularity in Nov/Dec this year with tr Saturn opposition the Sun Mercury. 2019 looks aggravated and discouraging with tr Saturn in hard aspect to Mars, Uranus and Pluto. But where he runs into real trouble is in 2022/23 with tr Uranus opposing the Saturn, then conjunct Venus and opposition the MC, which looks very de-stabilising.

Born 20 January 1968 12.45pm Madrid, he has a 10th house last degree Sun Capricorn which is picking up the tr Uranus square in 2018, bringing tensions and sudden changes. At the moment he has tr Saturn conjunct his Venus, so downhearted, mourning losses. Tr Pluto is conjunct his MC this year and next which could damage his reputation or force him into a more controlling situation.

He wasn’t altogether happy when his father King Carlos stood down; and will from 2019 be kicking over the traces and insisting on more freedom to speak his mind with tr Uranus moving across his Ascendant and into his Ist house for the years thereafter; with radical changes in his life as tr Pluto trines his Uranus and is conjunct his Sun towards 2023. His grandfather Alfonso X111 abdicated when the Republicans won in the election in 1931 with the Saturn in Capricorn opposition Pluto square Uranus in Aries was in place – and it’s not beyond the bounds of possibility that he may go the same way at some point in the 2020s.

The EU are being their usual hypocritical, self-interested selves, and with two minor exceptions have responded with echoing silence to the Spanish policia brutality. Separatist movements run counter to their integrationist ethos.

The relationship charts between the two Spain charts, 1475 and 1975 (see previous post), look jangled and disappointed this year with tr Uranus square Sun Mars on one; and tr Neptune starting a few years of undermining transits on the other. Where it looks to be coming to a head is towards 2020 and onwards till mid decade.

So Brexit may turn out to be way down the list of the EU worries.

Las Vegas – the worst casualty of the gun wars

   

 

More than 50 people have been killed and more than 200 hundred injured in a mass shooting at a Las Vegas open-air concert. The shooter, firing from a nearby hotel, is now dead. Making it more deadly than  the Orlando gay nightclub attack in 2016 which left 49 dead, and the worst ever in US history. More mass shootings occur in the USA, 31% of the global total, despite only having 5% of the world’s population.

There’s no indication yet of the motives behind it, but often they are domestic or caused by mental instability – and made easy by access to guns.

The USA is certainly having a gut-wrenching year and tr Uranus is exactly square the USA Pluto at the moment, which has been inflaming tempers and anxiety all year, exacerbated by the heightened concerns over the August Eclipse, Trump and the devastating hurricanes and flooding. Tr Saturn just off the opposition to the USA Mars is now in a neurotic square to the USA Neptune.

Up in the heavens, Mars is still on the destructive, brutal trine to Pluto, almost exact when the shootings occurred. Late September into mid October was always going to be nerve-stretching and risky.

Las Vegas was founded on 15 May 1905, giving it an indulgent and successful Sun Jupiter in Taurus in an exuberant, gamblers’ opposition to a vengeful Mars in Scorpio; with a highly-strung Neptune opposition Uranus, trine/sextile Saturn. That chart has the Solar Arc Mars conjunct Saturn at the moment; with the Solar Arc Saturn conjunct the LV Pluto – so accident-prone and bleak. Tr Uranus has also been zig zagging across a conjunction to the Venus in upfront Aries, which would heighten emotional tensions, bringing unwelcome surprises.

The NRA which vehemently defends gun-ownership in the US is looking undermined at the moment with the Solar Arc Sun conjunct the NRA Neptune, though that might also double-up on their delusional zealotry. They are under pressure in the next few years; with increasing restrictions on their scope in 2018 with tr Saturn conjunct their Saturn Mars in Capricorn and square Venus all year; but it’ll be 2020 to 2023 which sees the real upheaval for them with tr Uranus conjunct their Pluto and opposition their Sun. Though it is a genie which will be exceptionally difficult if not impossible to get back in the bottle. After mass shootings, gun ownership goes up.