As if the world didn’t have enough to worry about CNN floated the notion of Ivanka Trump for USA president in 2024 as a solid possibility.

Born 30 October 1981, she is a determined Scorpio with a pushily-confident Jupiter Pluto conjunction in Libra conjunct Mercury. Her Jupiter Pluto is catching the tr Pluto square this year and next which will stoke up her enthusiasm and belief in herself, though it could exacerbate her tendency to assume rules don’t apply to her, which can backfire into arguments with authorities. Tr Uranus will oppose her Sun this May and on and off into early 2021, which suggests a radical shift in her direction, perhaps forced by outer circumstances.

Tr Uranus will zig zag across that opposition before during and after the election and Inauguration of 2021; with tr Jupiter in Aquarius square her Sun in late January 2021, but rapidly followed by tr Saturn in square – so quite a muddle of influences, some good, others not.

2021/2022 don’t look easy years with a panicky, disaster-strewn tr Pluto trine her Mars/Saturn midpoint picking up in late January and a discouraging tr Pluto square her Sun/Saturn midpoint following from late February, both repeating on and off till late 2022. Late 2021 she has the car-crash Solar Arc Mars conjunct her Saturn which will see a significant setback and shock. In 2022 she has her Solar Arc Jupiter Pluto square her Mars which will bring huge frustrations and an equal amount of determination perhaps pushing her into risky decisions. By the time she gets to the 2024 election she’ll have picked up the failed-plans tr Pluto square her Mars/Neptune, exact at the election; plus a major confidence dent and paralysis from tr Neptune opposition her Mars/Saturn.

Heavy aspects to that Mars/Neptune midpoint are generally a no-hoper for wins and successes.

Her relationship with Jared is undergoing a massive upheaval between 2023 and 2026.

Chelsea Manning is recovering in hospital after a suicide bid at a Virginia detention centre where she has been held since last May. She was remanded for contempt of court for refusing to testify before an inquiry into Wikileaks and was due to appear before a court in Alexandria, Virginia, on Friday.

Born 17 December 1987, she has a truly difficult chart with a tormented Mars Pluto in Scorpio conjunct Moon and a highly-strung Sagittarius Sun conjunct Saturn, Mercury and Uranus trine Jupiter in Aries. Innovative certainly with Saturn Uranus and do-or-die-determined with Mars Pluto, but at times lacking in common sense and too stubborn for her own good.

Her Solar Arc Mars is catching the tr Neptune square at the moment and through this year which produces feeling of panicky failure. Plus an emotionally intense and conflicted tr Pluto conjunct her Venus on and off till late 2021.

Sadly for her it isn’t going to get easier with tr Neptune starting several years of undermining her Sagittarius planets including Sun by square from 2021 onwards – and worse from 2024 as her Solar Arc Mars Pluto (Moon) start several years in conjunction to her Sagittarius planets.

Both her parents were alcoholic and she appears to have had fetal alcohol syndrome. She had a very troubled childhood which is certainly reflected in her chart. Not an easy hand of cards the fates landed her with, for sure.

Pic: Tim Travers Hawkins

Prince Harry and Meghan made a final and slightly awkward farewell to their official duties at a full Royal turnout event at Westminster Abbey. Meghan radiated a Hollywood smile throughout while Harry looked downcast and out-of-sorts.

In reality both are less confident about what lies ahead than their gung-ho Instagram posts would suggest. Both have their respective Progressed Moons going through their 8^th – Harry for about another fifteen months and Meghan almost two years. This can be a draining time, tends to be emotionally charged, a time of endings or losses, with financial problems looming large.

Meghan has tr Saturn moving above her Descendant suggesting she’s getting into gear for an ambitious push ahead; though relationships of all varieties, work and personal will be stressed with both Saturn and Pluto moving through her 7^th for the next two years. Harry has tr Saturn descending below his horizon so he’ll want to run away and hide in a comfortable bunker out of sight – though he’ll find unresolved psychological issues will surface to be addressed and financial shortages may be more obvious come 2021 onwards for two to three years. Meghan could also feel the pinch come late 2022 to 2024 as tr Saturn moves through her 8^th, throwing her back on her own resources.

Harry is having an irritable and insecure patch through this month, turbulence and anxiety in July to September this year and on into 2021; with jolting changes as tr Uranus opposes his Saturn in 2021. has all manner of hitches, glitches, setbacks and downs over the years between now and 2025; with a domestically and emotionally confused Solar Arc Moon opposition his addictive 12^th house Neptune in 2022, a blocked Solar Arc Sun conjunct Pluto in 2023 along with an emotionally upsetting Solar Arc Uranus square Venus; followed by another a disruptive Solar Arc Pluto conjunct his Uranus; and a downbeat Solar Arc Saturn square his Sun in 2025.

Meghan is less blighted by difficult Solar Arcs but the tr Saturn in Aquarius square tr Uranus in Taurus will hit on her Leo Sun in 2021/22 for a major shake up with perhaps economic difficulties. She looks short tempered as does Harry in 2021/22 with tr Pluto hitting on one of their Mars midpoints respectively.

Their relationship will clearly be under major strain given everything that’s going on ahead. But her Sun/Moon midpoint ( the marriage significator) at 8 degrees Virgo won’t be much affected by any influences immediately until tr Saturn in Pisces in opposition in 2024. Harry’s Sun/Moon midpoint at 22 Cancer has only a few more months to run with the stressful tr Pluto opposition. Which might point to it being less likely that they’ll separate instantly. Though the relationship chart will take a considerable pounding between now and 2025/6 with tr Pluto hitting on the composite Moon square Saturn Pluto and then tr Neptune opposing the Mars.

Just as a personal aside, what strikes me as strange is how boot-faced Kate is, almost as if she had been hurt or insulted and wasn’t about to forgive and forget.

Max Von Sydow, the renowned Swedish-French actor has died at 90, having had a sterling career – bookended by 11 Ingmar Bergman movies including The Seventh Seal and latterly playing the Three Eyed Raven in Game of Thrones for which he received an Emmy nomination.

Born 10 April 1929 in Lund Sweden, he was a Sun (maybe Moon) in Aries with Mercury Uranus also in Aries, all squaring onto Mars Pluto in Cancer, with Uranus square Saturn in Capricorn. It’s a hard, determined, self-sufficient and go-getting chart. He wouldn’t let much stand in his way. His Sun and probably Moon were trine filmic Neptune which was also trine his Saturn. A fairly formidable personality – with Jupiter and Venus in indulgent Taurus.

His relationship with Bergman, 14 July 1918, Sweden, would be high-octane with Bergman’s Cancer Sun and Jupiter Pluto in Cancer picking up Bergman’s Mars Pluto. But their relationship chart had a confidently expansive and enthusiastic composite Sun Jupiter Mercury conjunction which would help to foster mutual support.

‘Vulture capitalist’, ‘rogue creditor’, ‘uniquely adversarial’, ‘thuggish’, ‘uses distasteful tactics’ are all epithets ascribed to hedge-funder Paul Singer who appears to have Twitter’s co-founder and CEO Jack Dorsey firmly in his sights. A billionaire, Singer’s Elliott Management has bought a chunk of Twitter and seemingly objects to Dorsey sharing his attention with the mobile payments company Square, of which he is also co-founder.

Singer is immensely profitable and impervious to public disapproval, infamous for buying sovereign debt from countries nearing default like Argentina, Peru and the Republic of Congo and pursuing full payment through the courts. Critics says such tactics interfere with a country’s ability to return to the financial markets, exacerbating the poverty and suffering of its citizens. When he takes on a battle he usually (always, they say) wins. Last year he bought into ebay and eight months later the CEO resigned, having refused to accede to Singer’s demands.

Jack Dorsey 19 November 1976 1.43 am St Louis, will be a formidable and unbudgeable adversary with his Sun Mars in Scorpio opposition Jupiter in Taurus; and Uranus also in Scorpio square Saturn in Leo. Not an easy man to push out of the way. Except that he does have his Solar Arc Pluto conjunct his Sun at the moment and conjunct his Mars by next year; as well as Solar Arc Sun Mars square his Pluto over the next two years, all of which look frustratingly trapped. So it’ll be a mighty tussle which he may not win. Though he will get a confidence and success lift from tr Pluto trine his Jupiter in 2021/22.

Singer, 22 August 1944 New York has a late Leo Sun which squares Dorsey’s Sun Mars and Jupiter so quite a clash; and Singer’s Pluto in Leo is square Dorsey’s Uranus North Node and conjunct D’s Saturn. They are both strong-minded in the extreme so will be a battle royal.

Their relationship chart has an outright-dislike Saturn square Mars Mercury which tr Saturn is elbowing this year; and worse in 2022/23 when tr Pluto hits those planets.

Dorsey does look up and down over the next few months with a catastrophic tr Uranus opposition his Mars/Pluto midpoint in April and on and off into 2021.

The two twitter charts – 21 March 2006 1.02 pm San Francisco, and the IPO 7 November 2013 10.52am New York both indicate 2021 is the more problematic year; with the foundation chart indicating surging confidence and major hiccups this year as well.

Singer and his cohorts sound like the kind of guys who could give money men a bad reputation. Greed is gecko.

https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2018/08/27/paul-singer-doomsday-investor

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-03-02/dorsey-absent-as-twitter-s-activist-talks-focus-on-ceo-s-future

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Italy, worst hit in Europe at present by coronavirus with nearly six thousand confirmed cases and 230 plus deaths, has placed up to 16 million people under quarantine. The lockdown affects a quarter of the Italian population and centres on the rich northern part which powers its economy. So far stats for confirmed cases for other countries: France 949; Germany 795; Spain 441; the UK 209; the Netherlands 188.

The 17 March 1861 Italy chart has the road-blocked and deprived Solar Arc Saturn square Pluto exactly now; with a disruptive tr Uranus conjunct the Italy Pluto come late May, on and off into 2021. Oddly there is an even more uncertain and epidemic-associated Solar Arc Neptune conjunct Saturn in 2022.

The modern Italy 10 June 1946 4pm chart is also labouring through heavy seas with tr Pluto opposition the Saturn this year; and tr Neptune in an undermining and panicky square to its Gemini Sun and Uranus now and into early 2021. With further nerve-strain from Solar Arc Neptune opposition Uranus in 2021 and the Sun in 2023. With Solar Arc Saturn conjunct Neptune in 2022, Solar Arc Pluto square Saturn in 2023, and Solar Arc Mars square Pluto in 2024 which looks like a longish run of uncertainties, catastrophes and significant setbacks.

The Bank of Italy chart, 10 August 1893, looks highly unsettled this year with similar upheavals and disruption over the next three years, so the after effects (or other) will linger.

The EU itself was always going to hit massive financial turbulence this year from this July onwards with tr Uranus conjunct the 8^th house Moon and square its Uranus affecting future plans and neighbourly relations. Even before then tr Uranus opposition the 2^nd house Neptune from this coming week onwards to late month will be nerve-stretched and panicky; plus the discouraging, belt-tightening tr Saturn exactly square the 2^nd house Jupiter now, repeating on and off through the year. And tr Neptune in a highly neurotic square to the 3^rd house Saturn from late March, on and off till spring 2021 – this latter could suggest disruptions to communications and transport.

Like Italy the after effects or some other economic effects will linger, with a car-crash Solar Arc Mars square the 8^th house Moon and opposition Uranus in mid to late 2021; and an undermining, dissolving Solar Arc Neptune conjunct the EU Sun in 2022.   The tr Saturn in Aquarius square tr Uranus in Taurus, in ripple effect from later this month and biting more obviously in 2021 will affect the EU particularly badly with its Moon, Uranus and Neptune in the line of fire.

There’s no elastic left in the EU financial system to cope with another seismic economic shock, lessons not having been learned from the 2008 crash and aftermath. The ECB, 1 January 1999 chart, has a confused, indecisive Solar Arc Sun conjunct Neptune now; an explosive, high-insecurity Solar Arc Mars square Uranus in early 2021. And a deprived, aggravated, stuck tr Pluto square the Mars/Saturn midpoint this year and then square the Saturn in 2021/22 for two years of hardship. With a bubble-bursting tr Neptune conjunct Jupiter in 2021/22.

Batten down the hatches.

Shades of the 15th Century War of the Roses and the Tudors, or more recently North Korea. The recklessly impetuous, power-hungry and autocratic Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed bin Salman (MBS), has arrested his uncle, the King’s brother, and two cousins accusing them of treason, for which they could face execution.

Prince Ahmed, 5 September 1942, now 78, had criticized MBS’s running of the destructive war in Yemen but had thought it was safe to return home. Prince Mohammed bin Nayef, 30 August 1959, one of the USA’s close allies, was Crown Prince before being removed and placed under virtual house arrest. Both had been critical of MBS’s rise to power and the radical changes he made to governing the country, concentrating power in his own hands rather than including the wider family.

MBS consolidated his power early on by arresting 200 Royal relations and wealthy businessmen and imprisoning them in the Riyadh Ritz on corruption charges, with allegations of torture.

Born 31 August 1985 he does have a control-freak Pluto in Scorpio on the point of a T Square to Jupiter opposition Venus, which gives him tremendous staying power and a disinclination to shift from any course of action he starts; or share the driving seat with anyone. Plus Jupiter Pluto which will tempt him to think rules don’t apply to him. On top of all that he has a cruel and short-tempered Mars in flamboyant Leo square Saturn in obsessive Scorpio. Since coming to power, he has hashed and crashed through various flare-ups, not the least of which was Jamal Khashoggi’s grisly murder.

His elevation to the Crown Prince role on 21 June 2017 reflects his temperament with a ruthless Mars opposition Pluto square Jupiter.

Oddly enough MBS and his uncle and older cousin are all Virgos – with Mohammed bin Nayef’s Sun Pluto conjunct MBS’s Sun and Prince Ahmed’s Uranus Saturn in Gemini square MBS’s Sun – not good chemistry for an individual who clearly dislikes being criticized.

The relationship charts between MBS and Nayef – a composite Sun Mars square Neptune Saturn; and MBS/Ahmed – a composite Saturn, Mars, Sun opposition Uranus – both look exceptionally competitive and argumentative.

MBS will run into blocks and obstacles in 2021 when his Solar Arc Pluto squares his Sun. His relationship with his bro-romance Jared Kushner is under a cloud exactly now with tr Saturn square the composite Pluto; with jolts and jangles come late May into June, and on – which is when MBS’s chart is revving up for another forceful gesture.

The two Saudi charts, 1902 and 1932 indicate heavy pressure through to mid decade; with panics and insecurity as well as financial over-confidence on the other.

East meets West in a culture clash as Sheikh Maktoum, the ruler of Dubai, and friend of the Royals and successive Brit governments, is exposed in a family court ruling in London. The judge found he orchestrated the abductions of two of his children and subjected his youngest wife to a campaign of “intimidation” – behaviour which, on the balance of probabilities, amounted to potentially breaking English and international law.

In 2000 one of the daughters who tried to escape the gilded cage, Shamsa, was kidnapped from the streets of Cambridge and hasn’t been seen since. According to reports, the UK Foreign Office stopped the police investigation. Another daughter, Latifa, fled in 2018 only to be picked up by Indian coastguards and forcibly returned home where she alleges she was beaten and tortured. All of which has come back into the spotlight with the sheikh’s sixth and youngest wife, Princess Haya, daughter of the late King Hussein of Jordan and half-sister of King Abdullah, fleeing to London last April with their two young children, one of whom she alleged her husband was trying to marry off to Mohammed Bin Salman of Saudi Arabia.

Sheikh Maktoum, 15 July 1949, is known for developing Dubai into a global city and for his racing interests in the UK though his horses have been dogged by doping concerns. He was also criticised heavily over the enslavement of young boys acting as camel jockeys; and also for the conditions of immigrant workers in construction in Dubai.

He is a Sun Cancer in an expansive opposition to Jupiter; with a possessive Venus Pluto in Leo. It’s not a particularly hard chart but the lifestyle there despite pretensions to being a Western tourist hotspot is about two hundred years behind the times. He’s in for a shock in 2021 with Solar Arc Mars conjunct his Saturn which could be financial or health issues. With serious setbacks in 2023/24. That latter is a time when the Dubai chart is under major strain as well.

Princess Haya, 3 May 1974, is a stalwart Sun Taurus with a hard-edged Mars Saturn in Cancer square Pluto, so despite her opulent lifestyle she’s known some hard times. Her Uranus squares the Sheikh’s Sun so it was always going to be an arms’ length affair with her freedom-loving instincts finally breaking through.

Shamsa, 15 August 1981, is a Sun Mercury in Leo trine Neptune; with her Sun in a needs-independence square to Uranus; and her Mars in Cancer in a trapped and scared square to Pluto.

Latifa, 5 December 1985, is a rebellious Sun Uranus in Sagittarius sextile an enthusiastic Jupiter. Although Mary Robinson, former President of Ireland, recently sat beside her for a staged photo op saying all was well, Latifa looked drugged. Latifa’s chart looks beyond horrific for the next several years with a chained-down tr Pluto square her Mars for two years; then several blocked, angry, explosive Solar Arcs running to mid-decade.

There’ll come a day of reckoning (maybe) for the Royals who home in on the obscenely wealthy like wasps to a jam jar, and the real-politickers in successive UK governments who have cosied up to these Gulf allies, with their Sandhurst-trained rulers and turned a blind eye to anything that didn’t and still doesn’t sit comfortably with Western sensibilities – while selling them weapons by the yard.

And why anyone chooses to holiday there, let alone buy a second home, given their archaic laws and dodgy legal system is beyond me.

See Previous post August 18 2018.

An unfortunate title and a delayed release due to the virus are only the latest in a line of mishaps to blight the 25^th James Bond movie. Production was put back when director Danny Boyle baled early on over script differences and was replaced by director Cary Joji Fukanaga and new writers. Daniel Craig, back reluctantly for his final Bond outing, injured an ankle during shooting and a controlled explosion damaged the stage at Pinewood and left a crew member with minor injuries.

Principal Photography finally got under way on 28 April 2019 in Jamaica on an incident-prone Sun Uranus conjunction; and a sticky Mercury square Saturn Pluto; plus an over-hopeful and confused Mars opposition Jupiter square Neptune.

When it launches in the UK on November 12th (if it does) then tr Neptune will be square the Mars till late month which although it could boost filmic matters given that Neptune rules the movie business, could also suggest failure. And that is around in 2021 as well. Plus tr Uranus will be exactly conjunct the Sun for a jangle and more surprises.

Daniel Craig, 2 March 1968, a Pisces Sun with a hard-edged Mars Saturn in Aries is equally into a Neptunian slump over the next two years, so not too vibrant.

Producer Barbara Broccoli, 18 June 1960 9.55am Santa Monica, CA, is understandably nerve-stretched, gloomy and off-balance through most of this year though from late November, coinciding with the USA release, she picks up a lucky tr Pluto square her Jupiter/Uranus midpoint for a few weeks which might point to a reasonable box office.