On Sunday, Israeli fighters struck a pro-Assad military base used by Iran in Syria, destroying anti-aircraft missiles. Of the 16 dead 11 were reported to be Iranians. U.S. officials told NBC News that Israel seemed to be preparing for open warfare with Iran and is seeking U.S. support. Then with much bravado and chutzpah Benjamin Netanyahu strode onto the global stage to announce that Iran were liars and had been breaking the Obama nuclear deal. This on the basis of a treasure trove of secret documents that Mossad had captured. Except there appears, amongst the half tonne of papers stolen in one night if he is to be believed, to be no smoking gun.  Haaretz, the Israeli liberal paper described it as ‘much ado about nothing.’ But it was clearly designed to elbow Trump into killing the deal in the face of opposition from Paris, Berlin and London.

Trump may hate all things Obama but his campaign promises were all about avoiding getting dragged into foreign conflicts. James Mattis would certainly advise against it but he doesn’t seem to be winning much at the moment looking decidedly undermined with tr Neptune opposing his Sun; as well as aggravated by both Trump and Netanyahu from late May, through June and again in the autumn.

Netanyahu’s Government chart, 14 May 2015 11.05 pm looks precarious over coming months, with a real chance of collapse before the end of the summer; with disappointments galore in May and June.

His personal chart, 21 October 1949 9.30am Tel Aviv, is in a waning phase with tr Saturn now entering the nadir of his first quadrant, facing corruption charges domestically and clearly keen to create diversions. This phase is likely to throw up misjudgments, banana skins galore and failed plans. Plus he has the blocked Solar Arc Pluto conjunct his Sun, exact in 4 months time.

Playing with fire.

Cardinal George Pell, Australia’s most senior Catholic and the third-ranking official in the Vatican, will stand trial on historical sexual offences, starting May 2nd. It’s a critical announcement for Pope Francis, who has been accused of failing to come to grips with the abuse scandals enveloping the church.

Pell, born 8 June 1941, Ballarat, Australia, has a Gemini Sun at the same degree as the Vatican (7 June 1929 11 am Rome). Pell’s Sun squares onto a Mars in Pisces opposition Neptune in Virgo; and he has the heavyweight Saturn Uranus in Taurus trine Neptune. At the moment he has the swampy, panicky-failure tr Neptune conjunct his Mars and from May 7th  the start of the undermining tr Neptune square to his Sun running till late 2019. With a discouraging tr Pluto trine Saturn in 2018/2019 and a disruptive tr Uranus square his Pluto in July, again in 2019; plus a tranche Pluto transits to three of his Mars midpoints in 2018/2019 which are angry, frustrated and trapped.

Pell’s Jupiter Uranus are conjunct the Vatican’s MC so he is a key figure. Tr Neptune is also moving in square to the Vatican Sun from next month, having been square the Moon and Sun/Moon midpoint already and repeating again later leading to lack of will power, indecision and drift.

Pope Francis’s Election chart, 13 March 2013 7.06 pm Rome, has been wobbling precariously through 2017 with the Solar Arc Uranus exactly square the 4^th house Pluto, detonating deep fears. Tr Saturn will soon square the 7^th house Mars for the second time, bringing setbacks, again in the autumn; and into 2019 there’s an explosive Solar Arc Mars conjunct Uranus plus tr Saturn square the Moon – not in a happy place, with sagging popularity, that’s for sure.

A bubbly actress is up on charges of sex trafficking and conspiracy to commit forced labour which could land her with 15 years in prison minimum. Allison Mack recruited for what purported to be a female mentorship and self-help group run by Keith Raniere, now in prison awaiting trial.  Raniere allegedly blackmailed women into becoming sex slaves and had “a rotating group of 15 to 20 women” with whom he had sexual relations.

According to the FBI, he exploited his female acolytes for financial benefit and recent revelations that female followers were branded — seared with hot irons in sadistic rites meant to prove loyalty to their “masters” — finally prompted the authorities to act. He urged women to follow near-starvation diets to achieve the physique he found attractive. Women were required to give female recruiters “collateral” — naked photographs of themselves and other compromising material — that would be used as blackmail if they wanted to leave the group Nxivm. One report says; ‘shockingly, this was women-on-women barbarity. So much for the sisterhood and female empowerment.’

Allison Mack, born 29 July 1982, to an opera singer father, is a lively and showy Sun Leo trine Uranus in Sagittarius and square Jupiter Mars; with a chilly Venus in Cancer square Saturn. What marks her chart out as different is a Mars Pluto Jupiter conjunction with Pluto conjunct Saturn – which is a concentrated pile-up of crusading, dynamic and ruthless energy. Her Moon is Scorpio which can be sexualised. Venus Saturn oddly enough can be promiscuous.

Raniere, born 26 August 1960 (two days before Hassan Nasrullah the Hezbollah leader) is a controlling Sun Pluto in Virgo in a tough-minded, bleak trine to Pluto in Capricorn; with Mars in Gemini opposition Jupiter square Venus in Virgo – Mars Jupiter in hard aspects is often the sign of a chancer, an opportunist who gambles with other people’s money, and likes to appear idealistic as a cosmetic for selfish aims. With a superficially charming and indulgent Venus carrying that energy into a focal point. Virgo in the male of the species can be a good deal more sexually driven than the female.

His Libra Moon is possibly conjunct her Mars Pluto; his Jupiter is conjunct her Neptune and his Neptune conjunct her Jupiter; and his Saturn opposes her Venus. Jupiter Neptune is associated with guru-chasing and also high finance; Venus Saturn can be masochistic.

But it is their relationship chart which is the real eye-opener with a composite Sun, Venus, Mercury, Mars conjunction square Jupiter Saturn in Scorpio  – passionately enthusiastic, highly affectionate, overly-indulgent, very blocked and sadistic.

What a horror story.

Armenia, a former Soviet Republic, has undergone a bloodless velvet revolution with the former long-term leader resigning.  The protest leader Nikol Pashinyan has insisted that only he can take charge, though the present government, voted in on disputed elections and accused of being corrupt, now appears to have the backing of Putin and is likely to reject his demands. He is not anti-Russian but wants change.

Pashinyan, a former journalist, born 1 June 1975, (three days before Angelina Jolie and around the same time as other notables including Marissa Meyer) has a Gemini Sun opposition Neptune and trine Pluto. Neptune Pluto always has a whiff of supreme ambition and talent about it. His Sun Neptune opposition is in a Mystic Rectangle with a formidable Mars in Aries opposition Pluto. His Mars is also conjunct Jupiter in pro-active Aries square Saturn (Venus) in Cancer. He’s certainly not short of courage or determination.

This year looks riddled with setbacks for him with tr Saturn square his Mars Pluto. But he’s in better shape and forging ahead in 2019/2020.

Armenia proclaimed independence on 21 September 1991 and will feel the full brunt of tr Uranus moving into Taurus as it squares the Saturn from mid May till early June which looks tense and likely to lead to more protests; Then in early June tr Uranus trines the Jupiter for relief and celebrations – and that combination of one step backwards, one steps forwards continues through the year into 2019.

Sajid Javid is the new Home Secretary as Amber Rudd departs. The Home Office is known as the graveyard of political careers and Theresa May is the first to step from thence to No 10 since Jim Callaghan nearly 50 years ago.

Javid, born 5 December 1969 to Pakistani parents was brought up in relative poverty by his bus driver father along with six siblings. After Exeter University he joined Chase Manhattan Bank in NY becoming vie-president and moved to Deutsche Bank ending up on the board of directors, working in Asia and London. When he left aged 40 to move into politics his salary would have been around £3 million a year.

He’s a Sun Sagittarius sextile Uranus; with an enthusiastic Jupiter (Moon) in Libra trine Mars in Aquarius, sextiling onto Mercury in Sagittarius – with Mercury in an intense square to Pluto. His Jupiter opposes a workmanlike Saturn in Taurus, so he’ll hate to fail. He’s clearly very capable. Though the sprawling Home Office can be a poisoned chalice.

Tr Uranus is opposing his Jupiter now which brings sudden promotion; though it moves to conjunct his Saturn by July onwards which will provide a jolt or two. He’s got ups and downs this year as to be expected from a taxing job with tr Neptune square his Sun in November/December; but it’s 2019 when he looks most on edge.

His relationship with Theresa May is superficially friendly though with an explosive edge. Their synastry isn’t great, since his Uranus is conjunct her Sun, his Mars opposition her Pluto, and his Neptune is conjunct her Saturn – so she’ll find him a handful, constantly pushing his own agenda, fairly slippery at times and as bullishly obstinate as she is.

May has the discouraging tr Saturn square her Sun exactly now as she loses an ally in Rudd, and that repeats later in the autumn. And her Solar Arc Uranus conjunct her Sun draws ever nearer. An early morning birth could make it soon, or if a later day birth then into 2019. And tr Neptune continues to undermine her Mars opposition Jupiter this year and next.

Michelle Wolf, the comedian, caused sharp intakes of breath with her caustic jokes while hosting last night’s White House correspondents dinner. The WP described her performance as ‘a routine that swerved from raunchy to downright nasty.’ One journalist remarked that “the spirit of the event had always been jokes that singe but don’t burn.’ Hers was deemed as mean.

She compared Sarah Huckabee Sanders to an “Uncle Tom” for white women; remarked of Ivanka that ‘she’s about as helpful to women as an empty box of tampons’. Trump she suggested didn’t have the wealth he claimed and began by saying “Like a porn star says when she’s about to have sex with a Trump, let’s get this over with.” “It’s 2018 and I’m a woman so you cannot shut me up. Unless you have Michael Cohen wire me $130,000.”

Others suggested in the Trump era of indecency, with a press office who repeated his lies, the gloves were off. But for all that it hardly followed Michelle Obama’s dictum – when they go low, you go high.

Born 21 June 1985, Wolf is a last degree Gemini or Cancer Sun conjunct Mars opposition Neptune trine Pluto in Scorpio –abrasive, excitable, keen on showbiz with a ruthless edge. Her Venus in Taurus is in a chilly opposition to Saturn in Scorpio square a clearly over-expansive focal point Jupiter in Aquarius. With a flamboyant, attention-seeking Leo Moon.

She’s not on top form at the moment with tr Neptune opposing her Mars/Saturn midpoint, which may explain her tone-deafness about her jokes and also the critical reception she got from other journalists. Tr Saturn is about to retrograde in opposition to her Mars from mid this week which will throw up a setback or two, so there may be a comeback.

Pic: Erin Nekervis

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A quickie on UK Home Secretary Amber Rudd in deep trouble over the Windrush and immigration scandal with increasing calls for her resignation.

Born 1 August 1963, no birth time, she didn’t look in bad shape this year with tr Pluto squaring her Jupiter in Aries. There is nothing too noteworthy showing up on transits, Solar Arcs or midpoints as a major career catastrophe at the moment.

When in doubt look at the Progressions. Her Progressed Mars is square her Sun around now; and that is certainly enough to cause a major collision of sorts in her life. There’s no start and finish date especially without a birth time. And she could have tr Pluto conjunct her MC for all we know – except we don’t.

Theresa May isn’t a great one for firing ministers and since she was Home Secretary herself when many of these decisions were made, no doubt some of the blame attaches to her. If Rudd hangs on she’ll bounce again in July and late year. Though her Solar Arc/Progressed Sun will conjunct her Mars in 2020 which will be another dose of the same.

Roxane Gay, An American writer and commentator, author of the Bad Feminist essays and a memoir Hunger has announced that she had weight loss surgery this January. She has been super-morbidly obese and has fought against the fat-shaming culture, so she was unsure how her public would react to her news. Talking about it she says ‘The dominant narrative around weight-loss surgery is that it changes your life and makes everything better.‘ But she points out that people who have weight-loss surgery are more likely to commit suicide or get divorced because their spouses cannot cope with the changes. Evidently the first year is the worst and she says she feels miserable and cold most of the time.

Born 15 October 1974 7.48am Omaha, Nebraska to a family of Haitian descent, she was gang raped aged 12 which she says, not surprisingly, changed her life irrevocably. She does have a very challenging chart with a New Moon in Libra conjunct Uranus on one side and Mars Venus on the other all square Saturn in Cancer. Mars Saturn is one of the significators of cruelty, sometimes sexual abuse, and tied into her New Moon would make it all the more central to her life’s experience. Her Mars Venus makes her passionately enthusiastic and she is very prolific with several books out, writes for the NY Times and has various other publishing and writing interests.

She also has a Water Grand Trine which is creative and healing for others, if not for herself – of Saturn trine Mercury in Scorpio trine Jupiter in Pisces.

She’s facing the toughest test of her life as tr Pluto is square her exact Mars, Sun, Moon conjunction from early 2018 to late 2019. Pluto is the planet of transformation but it grinds slowly through, dismantling old structures and old attitudes and can feel extremely bleak and stuck on the way through. In her case it is hitting three planets at once which will make it all the more stressful. And her Solar Arc Mars, Sun, Moon will conjunct her Neptune in 2020, in the middle of the purgatory of  her Progressed Moon going through her 8^th, from this autumn for two years thereafter. So it won’t be remotely easy for her.

One thing weight loss does is face the individual up to the psychological reasons why they gained weight – often as a defence against the fear of being vulnerable. It also removes the comfort blanket of eating, so feels punishing. Poor lady, she’ll need a great deal of support.

Historic talks between the leaders of North and South Korea have agreed to work to rid the peninsula of nuclear weapons. Details of how denuclearisation would be achieved were not made clear and many analysts remain sceptical about the North’s apparent enthusiasm for engagement. Previous inter-Korean agreements have included similar pledges but were later abandoned after the North resorted to nuclear and missile tests and the South elected more conservative presidents.

Kim Jong Un’s Leadership chart, 29 December 2011 11.57 am Pyonggang, certainly indicated a major turnaround now with the Solar Arc Uranus moving to square the 10^th house controlling Sun Pluto exactly. But that apart the astrology is not at all clear.

South Korea, 15 August 1948, does have Solar Arc Neptune conjunct Jupiter exact now but that often accompanies a bubble of false happiness which evaporates.  And there’s an unsettling tr Neptune opposition the Mars/Pluto midpoint from early May, on and off till late 2019; along with some upbeat, more successful influences.

The North Korea, 9 September 1948 chart, looks undercut with tr Neptune opposition the Virgo Sun also from May onwards till late 2019; with jolts, jangles and a few shocks and surprises as tr Uranus hard aspects the Fixed T Square in square to Venus, in an insecure, disruptive opposition to Mars in 2019 and conjunct the Taurus Node.

South Korea’s President Moon’s term chart, 10 May 2017 8.09am Seoul, looks buoyant in June and across the New Year, with major frustrations in early 2019 and on; and panicky uncertainties and high risk in 2020.