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Another amuse-bouche on the subject of astro-twins. Novelist Dan Brown, now dubbed the Da Vinci Cad was born three days after Boris Johnson and shares many similar chart – and temperamental – features.

Brown, author of the mega-successful if much derided Da Vinci Code novels which generated even more cash as they turned into Tom Hanks blockbuster movies has been condemned by his ex-wife in a legal suit. She claimed that for years unbeknownst to her he “conducted sordid extra-marital affairs with women — one half his age — and to pursue a clandestine life.’ While she believed their relationship was ‘based on mutual trust, respect and honesty’, for years the author ‘engaged in a systematic pattern of deception and lies’, the suit adds.

Brown, born 22 June 1964, dabbled in the music business, became a teacher after he married Blythe who was 12 years older in his early thirties, had little success with his first three novels but his fourth, produced and marketed with his wife’s help, The Da Vinci Code, became one of the most popular books of all time, selling 100 million copies.

Despite public acclaim (much like Fifty Shades of Grey) the critics were uniformly scathing: “his ambition wildly exceeds his ability.” “Complaining that Brown can’t write is like complaining that crisps are crunchy. And you know what? It doesn’t really matter at all. The book is fun in its galumphing way.” “… terribly written book, which is nevertheless a page-turner and will make bucketloads of cash.”

Brown differs from Boris with an early Cancer rather than a late Gemini Sun, but he shares the social-butterfly Venus Mercury in Gemini, and the scattergun Mutable T Square of Saturn opposition Uranus Pluto square Mars in Gemini.  And they both have that super-optimistic, not always realistic Jupiter in indulgent Taurus opposition Neptune. Ebertin describes the Jupiter Neptune combination thus: ‘Visionaries, dreamers, mystics, hypocrites, speculators – scandal which is caused through one’s own instability.’

If anything Brown is even more of a windmill in a storm than Boris with a Sagittarius Moon almost certainly tied in to his Mutable T Square.

The June Cancer Solar Eclipse is conjunct Brown’s Sun and North Node in Cancer and is also in orb to Boris’s late Gemini Sun and North Node – lighting up a crisis path ahead in the coming months.  The December Sagittarius Eclipse will also cause upset to both as it is opposition their Venus Mercury and Boris’s Sun.

A surfeit of Gemini and Mutable does not lend itself to a settled life of ploughing the same furrow endlessly. Venus in Gemini especially with a pleasure-loving Jupiter in Taurus will also incline towards a wandering eye.

What is marginally strange is that both Boris and Brown and indeed Trump, who shares some of the same Geminian traits, have all done spectacularly well despite scorn being poured on their talents and having been found out as fantasists/and or somewhat lax in their relationship with the truth.

How do you budge a defiant and stubborn-the-nth-degree double Taurus with four planets in Scorpio and Jupiter in materially ambitious Capricorn? Use money as a leverage. Facebook’s Mark Zuckerburg who started as defiant in the face of criticism has been making more placatory noises since Facebook dropped in market value as more advertisers joined the boycott of the social network, tired of the inaction over racist and violent posts. To date mainly big name brands have pulled back although they only bring in 6 percent of the company’s total ad revenue last year – $4.2 billion out of the total $70 billion. More than 70 percent of Fb’s ad revenue comes from small businesses and it has yet to be apparent whether there will be a trickle-down effect.  Sceptics of the boycott have suggested that the companies participating are using the effort to deflect attention from how their advertising budgets have been decimated by the coronavirus pandemic.

Facebook said in a statement that it had invested billions of dollars in technology and employees to sort through content, and it had banned 250 white supremacist organizations from its core Facebook site and its photo-sharing site, Instagram.

Zuckerburg, 14 May 1984 Boston, MA, was always going to be facing a catastrophe now with tr Uranus opposition his Mars/Pluto midpoint till early July, repeating in October and March of 2021; with a difficult opposition from the June Cancer Solar Eclipse to his Neptune, hinting that burying his head in the sand and evading issues wasn’t going to work. His Uranus in Sagittarius and Node in Gemini are also going to be triggered by this year and next’s Eclipses, so it’ll be a challenging time, forcing him to rethink his outlook. Tr Uranus is  also this year opposition his Saturn/Pluto midpoint, another disaster-bringer, which will linger around till early 2021.

Nick Clegg, FB’s Communications Director, has also been under attack and his Capricorn Sun square Mars is being triggered by the Lunar Eclipse this week. He’s on a long slide of tr Neptune opposing his Pluto, then conjunct his Saturn and opposition his Uranus over the next three years – at the same time as transiting Neptune is eroding the foundations of his cosy relationship with Zuckerburg with the composite Sun Venus being dissolved by a transiting conjunction.

The FB 4 February 2004 chart is being severely shaken up by Solar Arc Sun conjunct Uranus now and a muddled and evasive Solar Arc Mercury conjunct Neptune. The December and 2021 Eclipses will rattle the FB Pluto with tr Neptune in square in 2021 and then conjunct the financial Venus by 2022 – so it could potentially be a financially damaging time.

However the FB IPO chart of 14 May 2012 looks in robust spirits with Jupiter and Sun picking up the transiting Pluto trine and across the midpoint 2020 to 2023. Admittedly there’s a financially problematic Solar Arc Jupiter square its Neptune in 2021 but it may well survive the onslaught in better shape than some might wish.

Mississippi has dropped the Confederate battle flag symbol from the state flag, the last remaining state to do so.  A statewide referendum in 2001 voted overwhelmingly to preserve it despite 4 in 10 residents being black but opinion shifted after a white supremacist’s massacre of nine black parishioners at a church in Charleston, S.C. His manifesto was riddled with images of the Confederate battle flag. The recent killing of George Floyd pushed the issue to the top of the agenda.

Background for non-Americans (wiki) – the Confederacy existing between 1861 to 1865, was formed by secession of seven slave-holding states—South Carolina, Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana, and Texas whose economy was heavily dependent upon agriculture, particularly cotton, and a plantation system that relied upon the labour of African-American slaves. Convinced that white supremacy and slavery were threatened by the election of Abraham Lincoln to the presidency the Confederate states rebelled which led to the American Civil War. In a speech known today as the Cornerstone Address, Confederate Vice President Alexander H. Stephens described its ideology as being centrally based “upon the great truth that the negro is not equal to the white man; that slavery, subordination to the superior race, is his natural and normal condition”. Lincoln was assassinated by a Confederate sympathizer in 1865.

Mississippi, 10 December 1817, has a stellium of Uranus, Sun, Jupiter, Neptune and Mercury in Sagittarius. With all these planets being opposition Mars in Gemini square Pluto in Pisces, with Saturn also in Pisces. Highly-strung, self-righteous, opinionated, controlling, a malcontent prone to anger and hostility. Although heavily Mutable, it’s not an adaptable temperament with such an afflicted Pluto.

The American Civil War started with the North Node retrograding through Capricorn and was fought mainly under transiting North Node in Sagittarius. That keyed in with the chart of Robert E Lee, Commander of the Confederate Army, 19 January 1807 11.45pm Stratford Hall, VA, a Sun Jupiter in Capricorn whose Node was in Sagittarius at the same degree as the Mississippi Sun. His Sun Jupiter was conjunct the USA 1776 Pluto in Capricorn opposition Mercury in Cancer – so hooking into that fanatical streak in the USA temperament.

Moving ahead, Mississippi has a surfeit of Neptune transits to slog through in square to the Sun, then a financial-bubble-bursting square to Jupiter in 2021 and a devastating conjunction to the Pluto running into 2022 which will be a deflating time. With the additional woe of a confidence-denting Solar Arc Saturn square Jupiter, then a panicky square to Neptune, Mercury and a blocked opposition to Pluto between 2021 and 2023 – perhaps more economic than anything else.

Graham Linehan’s trajectory from much-loved comedy writer of Father Ted and the IT Crowd to a hated and permanently banned Twitter-ranter has bemused onlookers. He’s an outspoken liberal: a self-professed supporter of feminism, opponent of harassment of women in the gaming industry, a critic of Brexit who has spoken out about anti-Semitism. But he became embroiled in the trans debate after a 2013 episode of The IT Crowd was criticised for transphobic jokes and over the years has become more vociferous, some say bullying in defence of his position.

He wrote “I believe trans people – those unfortunate enough to suffer body dysphoria – are having their condition exploited and trivialised by abusive, controlling and authoritarian trans rights activists. And I think women and children are suffering because of it.”  He says trans activism has aggressively shut down debates and is misogynistic and erasing women’s and children’s rights.

Born 22 May 1968 in Dublin, he’s a vocal and argumentative Sun Mars in Gemini; with Mercury also in communicative Gemini in an intense and obstinate square to Pluto and outspoken Uranus. He has a Fixed T Square of Venus in Taurus opposition Neptune square Jupiter in Leo – such a Fixed Jupiter can be self-righteous and intolerant of other views and Venus in Taurus tends to be unbudgeable over emotional matters.

He’s also got a problematic Yod of Pluto Uranus sextile Neptune inconjunct Saturn in Aries which does require maturity and self-discipline to operate at its full potential. Plus another Yod of Mercury sextile Saturn inconjunct Neptune – such a Neptune can be emotionally disorganized and self-defeating.

His Aries Moon may or may not be conjunct his Aries North Node and sextile his Sun Venus but it’s not that well integrated into his chart.

It’s not that I don’t agree with his generally stated views (not having seen any of his twitter tirades) but the mystery is why he has walked himself up a cul-de-sac which will over-shadow his career. It’s not that good fights don’t have to be fought – in protecting vulnerable women’s spaces and ensuring children aren’t pushed into irrevocable gender changes before they are mature enough to decide – but his strategies are clearly not working and volunteering to be in the middle of a twitter tornado is insane.

His Solar Arc Sun is exactly square his focal point Saturn this year which may bring a sobering reality and the need for a rethink.  His Solar Arc Saturn has been moving across the conjunction to his Sun and Mars throughout this past seven-year battle which would tune up his need to argue every point. Over the next two years he’ll be slipping and slithering under Neptunian transits to various midpoints as well as one leg of his Yod. With tr Pluto trine his Uranus, also a Yod leg, from early 2021 to late 2022 – for more upheavals and also more personal insight. He may emerge as tr Pluto moves towards Aquarius to trine his Sun by 2024 a transformed personality.

Inigo Philbrick, the handsome, fast-living Art World Wunderkind with galleries in Miami and London who was making mega-millions double-selling the same artworks to different investors at engorged prices has been found. He fled the USA months ago as lawsuits mounted and was arrested by the FBI on the Pacific island of Vanuatu

“As alleged, Inigo Philbrick was a serial swindler who misled art collectors, investors, and lenders out of more than $20 million,” U.S. Attorney Geoffrey S. Berman said in a statement. “You can’t sell more than 100 percent ownership in a single piece of art, which Philbrick allegedly did, among other scams.” He’s now been dubbed a mini-Madoff after the Ponzi selling financier who was sentenced to 150 years in prison.

Born 23 April 1987 in Connecticut, Philbrick is a Sun Taurus in a controlling opposition to Pluto with his Sun also in a creative and evasive trine to Neptune and trine an innovative Uranus in late Sagittarius.  He has Jupiter North Node in pro-active Aries sextile Mars in Gemini.

Bernie Madoff, 29 April 1938, is also an acquisitive Sun Taurus; both have Mars in Gemini and Mercury in Aries and Jupiter quincunx Pluto.  But Madoff has an Earthier chart with Uranus, Venus, maybe Moon also in Taurus.  Philbrick’s chart leans towards Fire. Both have strong 9th Harmonic charts which tells what brings pleasure and is often notable amongst those inclined to financial scams.

He’s not looking remotely happy at the moment with his Solar Arc Pluto moving to oppose his Mars over the next few months which is scary, trapped and acutely frustrated as his life grinds to a dead halt. Plus tr Uranus has been elbowing his Sun opposition Pluto over the past two years and into 2021, upending his life and forcing him to let go control.

Milton Glaser, the graphic artist forever identified with the I Love New York logo, has died. He was also responsible for the psychedelic Bob Dylan poster and logos for DC Comics, Stony Brook University and Brooklyn Brewery. His artwork is in permanent collections in many museums worldwide and he was the first graphic artist to be awarded the National Medal of the Arts from President Obama in 2009.

When he designed the NY logo in the mid 1970s the city had an escalating crime rate and was on the verge of bankruptcy. “Glaser loved New York so much that he gave his work to the city for free, hoping it would become public property.” The logo earns New York state $30 million each year and has become a pop culture icon and is reproduced on everything from coffee cups to T-shirts and hats.

Born 26 June 1929 in New York he was a patriotic, creative and ambitious Sun Cancer in an innovative square to Uranus; with Uranus in turn in a revolutionary square to Pluto. His Sun was in a hard-working opposition to Saturn. He also had the publicity-attracting, showbizzy Mars Neptune in Leo opposition his Aquarius Moon and trine his Saturn. Cancer is not only associated with creative design as a sign but has its nose on the public pulse so often homes in on the trends of the moment.

His Sun square Jupiter sits neatly with the New York Capricorn Sun square Jupiter for a serendipitous mix. With his marketing-genius Mars Neptune in upbeat Leo square the NY Chiron and trine the NY Mars Venus in Sagittarius; and his communicative Mercury in Gemini was conjunct the NY Pluto.

The Milton/NY relationship chart has a mutually-supportive, morale-boosting composite Sun Mercury trine Jupiter with a creative Neptune trine the composite North Node in Pisces maybe conjunct Moon.

The weird life of Charles Webb, author of The Graduate novella made into the smash-hit iconic Dustin Hoffman Anne Bancroft movie has come to light with his death. He and his wife, both from moneyed backgrounds, gave away their wealth, homes, paintings and inheritances and lived off the grid with their children in poverty, taking itinerant jobs to eat. Latterly he and his wife appeared to be in England supported by state benefits.

“He had a very odd relationship with money,” a literary agent said. “He never wanted any. He had an anarchist view of the relationship between humanity and money.” He did write a few other novels but none clicked in the same way as his first.

He was born 9 June 1939 and was a Sun Mercury in Gemini but what dominated his chart was a truly difficult and hard T Square of Mars in contrary Aquarius in an angry, frustrated opposition to Pluto in an unyielding square to Saturn in forced-to-be-self-reliant Aries. Not a remotely easy or sentimental man.

He had another T Square from Mars opposition Pluto square North Node in Scorpio – which is interesting since that Node can carry with it a pattern of losing everything in order to transform and leave behind an overly materialistic way of life (= South Node in Taurus.) For many with these Nodes it can happen force majeure but he clearly volunteered for it.

His Jupiter in pro-active Aries was sextile Mars and trine Pluto so he wouldn’t be short of confidence. His Pisces Moon may have been opposition Neptune and square his Sun which would add another layer of ‘idealism’/delusion into the mix.

The driving planet of his chart was undoubtedly an afflicted Saturn imposing a harshly ascetic lifestyle on himself and his children. His wife (no date regrettably) appeared to be of a mind with him.

The end of civil war politics was declared the result of a historic governing coalition agreed in Ireland after the recent election produced no overall majority. The three-way coalition of Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael and the Green party is the first time the first two parties – former civil war rivals – have been in government together.

Micheal Martin, the Fianna Fail leader, was sworn in as Taoiseach at 13.58pm yesterday although the role will revert back to Fine Gael’s Leo Varadkar halfway through the government’s term.

The new Government chart has an idealistic 9^th house Cancer Sun with Mercury on the Midheaven so will talk a good talk. The Sun is in a combative square to Mars and sextile a financially unstable 8^th house Uranus. With a publicity-attracting but unrealistic and indecisive 6^th house (health and employment) Mars Neptune opposition a 12^th house Moon. There’s also Jupiter Pluto and Saturn in the 4^th which does suggest a major transformation of domestic issues – a collapse of the older order and after a degree of chaos the growth of a new.  It’s a messy chart and going off in several directions at once.

Micheal Martin, 1 August 1960, isn’t going to have his troubles to seek with frustrations and disruptions this year and 2021 is worse with disasters to handle and an uphill slog till late 2022.

The Bank of Ireland chart, 1 January 1972, has financial upsets from tr Uranus square the Venus from this July onwards into 2021; and hints at major financial disappointments from spring 2021 on and off till late 2022 with tr Neptune square the Jupiter, which is being triggered in addition by this December’s Solar Eclipse and the following June Eclipse, which can lead to over confidence and then a let-down.

The Ireland 6 December 1922 chart has an upbeat tr Uranus opposition the Jupiter this month, releasing tensions and that repeats on and off into 2021; but the Eclipses, both Lunar and Solar do point to critical challenges ongoing through 2021 as well.

The 18 April 1949 chart equally is being pressured by the Eclipses to make changes with the June Lunar Eclipse conjunct the Solar Arc Midheaven, and the December Sagittarius Eclipse being opposition the Uranus – so quite a rock n’ roll phase – with upheavals in 2021 from tr Uranus square the Pluto; and tr Pluto stuck in a frustrating bind as it wades across the Sun/Mars midpoint and then the Sun Venus in 2022/23 – which suggests a time when past certainties and securities will be pulled away and old structures removed to make way – with difficulty – for new ones to be put in their place.

Ireland won’t escape the general economic pain which is affecting virtually all countries and especially the EU over the next several years.

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