Could America’s Pluto Return be a hint of a slow moving collapse of global power and prestige? Loss of faith in US institutions could spiral towards a significant decline with the possibility of ‘a series of catastrophic governmental failures following key personnel having been fired and ‘dangerous lack of oversight of critical infrastructure, including nuclear reactors and cyber security.’ Culminating in a tech meltdown in 2030, due to institutional failures and growing concentration in the industry.

 A sobering, well argued piece in the FT by Nobel-winning economist Daron Acemoglu does not blame Trump. The cracks he says were visible long before 2016. ‘He was in many ways a symptom of those troubled times. But ‘ he quickly transitioned from being a symptom to being a cause, repeatedly breaking with democratic norms.’

  Does the astrology back up his economic argument? The USA chart is going through a few seismic upheavals at the moment through into 2026 with the Solar Arc Sun square Saturn colliding with the USA Mars square Neptune. Just after the turn of the decade in 2031/32 transiting Neptune will square the USA Sun and oppose the Saturn for loss of morale and great uncertainty; even before then having been on a long slide with tr Neptune square the USA financial Venus Jupiter and a Uranus Return in 2027/28.

 The USA Federal Reserve chart has considerable hitches and glitches, noticeably from the middle of this year and 2026 with tr Neptune Saturn square the FedRes Saturn Pluto; with an insecure tr Uranus opposition Mars in 2026. But it is 2031 when it is showing most jeopardy with a scary, trapped, catastrophic SA Mars square the Saturn Pluto.

 The ‘magnificent seven’ are also showing stress towards the end of the decade. These are companies commonly recognized for their market dominance, their technological impact, and their changes to consumer behavior and economic trends – Alphabet (GOOGL; GOOG), Amazon (AMZN), Apple, META, Microsoft, NVIDIA and Tesla.

Nvidia is in a disappointing slump from 2028 onwards with tr Neptune opposing their Jupiter and conjunct the financial Venus. 2029 is jangled (SA Uranus opp Saturn), 2030 extremely uncertain (SA Neptune conjunct Saturn) and 2031 sees a calamitous setback with SA Mars opposition Saturn.

Microsoft is sagging in 2026/27 and facing potentially terminal problems by 2031/32.

Meta/Facebook – financially fraught with major setbacks in 2027; 2030 will be devastating.

Apple – a long, disappointing, panicky slide from 2027 onwards with extreme anxiety in 2030  and financial disappointment in 2031.

Google – again 2027 in disappointing financially and 2031/32 are flagged up as calamitous.

Amazon – again same pattern. 2027 is high anxiety. 2030/31 worse than they have known before.

Tesla – insecure jolts 2026 to 2028; with simultaneous uncertainty and disappointment from 2026 to 28/29 courtesy of tr Neptune. Failure in 2028 and major confusion by 2030.  

  Some of the above will be due to internal or disparate causes but there does seem to be a pattern which suggests that Daron Acemoglu might be right.

https://www.ft.com/content/4e3f1731-3d63-4b31-88ce-c3f5157d8170

“What has history said of eminence without honor, wealth without wisdom, power and possessions without principle? The answer is reiterated in the overthrow of the mightiest empires of ancient times. Babylon, Persia, Greece, Rome! The four successive, universal powers of the past. What and where are they?”  Orson F. Whitney

“Look back over the past, with its changing empires that rose and fell, and you can foresee the future, too.” Marcus Aurelius

“America is an empire. I hope you know that now. All empires, by definition, are bumbling, shambolic, bullying, bureaucratic affairs, as certain of the rightness of their cause in infancy, as they are corrupted by power in their dotage.” Felix Dennis

“I love studying Ancient History and seeing how empires rise and fall, sowing the seeds of their own destruction.” Martin Scorsese

“The government, which was designed for the people, has got into the hands of the bosses and their employers, the special interests. An invisible empire has been set up above the forms of democracy.” Woodrow Wilson

“I complain about the United States not being Athens. I certainly say we are a very good Roman republic, and the lies are based upon the most advanced techniques of advertising, which is the only art form my country has ever created—the television commercial—and we sell soap and presidents in the same fashion. Once a country is habituated to liars, it takes generations to bring the truth back.”
Gore Vidal

See previous post in search: Pluto Returns 17 October 2020.

Con gullible victims out of thousands with heart-rending tales of illness, get prison sentence, get Netflix series. The most recent trickster felon Belle Gibson is star of Apple Cider Vinegar. A wellness guru, she falsely claimed to have been diagnosed with multiple cancer pathologies, including malignant brain cancer, which she said she was effectively managing through diet, exercise, natural medicine, and alternative medicine therapies.

  Born 8 October 1991 in Tasmania, Australia, she has a Libra Sun (Moon) exactly square Neptune North Node in Capricorn. Her Uranus Neptune in Capricorn is also square Mercury in Libra. A superficially charming Jupiter Venus in Virgo would make her good at selling her wares. Her evasive, smokescreening Neptune is ultra-strong amplified by the Uranus Neptune tendency to become obsessive. And an unaspected Pluto, according to Tierney can cause the individual to become ‘overshadowed by their shadows.’ Plus she had Saturn in Aquarius which as well as giving a scientific bent can also be emotionally cold. 

  There are several high-profile swindlers born around the same time. Anna Sorokin, 23 January 1991, a fraudster who posed as a wealthy heiress, is a Sun Aquarius in an overly expansive opposition to Jupiter in Leo (= wanting a flash lifestyle without any effort). Plus a seductively persuasive Venus in Aquarius square Pluto. And Uranus Neptune in Capricorn conjunct Mercury; with Mercury inconjunct Jupiter.

 Sam Bankman-Fried, 5 March 1992 9.51 am Stanford, California, a crypto-fraudster, is a Sun Pisces opposition Jupiter; with the Uranus Neptune conjunction in Capricorn on the midpoint of a mini-Grand Trine of Sun trine Pluto. Very much of his generation. He also had a hard Mars, Saturn, Venus in Aquarius square Pluto.

 The three above all had a North Node in Capricorn.

 Simon Leviev, 27 September 1990, Israel, theft and forgery, starred in Netflix’s The Tinder Swindler. He was a Sun Libra trine Mars, and sextile Jupiter in Leo conjunct South Node – charming, confident and opportunistic. His Sun was square Uranus Neptune in Capricorn; and his Uranus Neptune were on the focal point of a yod inconjunct Jupiter sextile Mars. His North Node in Aquarius opposes his Jupiter which might suggest his taste in extravagances pulls him back onto his primitive side.

 Another health confidence trickster Amanda Riley, 24 June 1985, San Jose, California, was a Christian blogger, who attracted money and gifts for her piteous tales of suffering from cancer which she didn’t have and led to her conviction. ABC News Studios has her story in a four-part docuseries “Scamanda. She is a Sun and Mars in Cancer opposition Neptune and trine Pluto. She also has a Fixed T Square of indulgent Venus in Taurus exactly conjunct her North Node opposition Saturn in Scorpio square Jupiter in Aquarius.

 Elizabeth Holmes, 3 February 1984 Washington, DC was a fraud of a different order, a bio-tech entrepreneur who inflated claims about her blood-testing company and ended up convicted. She is a Sun Aquarius square a ruthless Mars Saturn in Scorpio; with a high-finance, overly optimistic Neptune Jupiter in Sagittarius.  With a superficially charming Venus Jupiuter conjunction.

  Not surprisingly Neptune is prominent throughout, and amongst the recent batch, close to Uranus. Neptune is a dream weaver, good at concocting fantasies. Uranus adds inventiveness and perhaps the use of modern technology with blogs etc. Charm clearly helps in cons so Venus Jupiter is not unexpected and heavily aspected Jupiter as well in its quest to gain for something for nothing. There is a recurrence of Aquarius through these charts – perhaps the emotional detachment of Aquarius helps when fleecing others. And I have known several Aquarians who were real hustlers so it is not always humanitarian, one-for-all and all-for-one in action.    

Please add below. Older posts under News on top bar and in search.

  Boris Becker, once wunderkind of the tennis world, is a salutary tale of great success followed by an abysmal fall. At 17 the youngest Wimbledon champion in history, he continued on through six-time grand slam wins, earning £100 million-plus through deals and sponsorships over the years. He retired in 2012, was declared bankrupt in 2017 and in 2022 was sentenced to two and a half years in prison, the culmination of decades of financial irregularities in breaking tax laws.

  He has been talking about his experiences, insisting he blames no one but himself for his decisions and says he has emerged better for his time inside.

 He was born 22 November 1967 8.45 am Leimen, Germany with a 12th house Sun Neptune in Scorpio  sitting on the midpoint of a trine from Mars in Capricorn in his financial 2^nd trine a turbulent Uranus Pluto in Virgo. Certainly ultra-determined from Mars trine Pluto, volatile from Mars trine Uranus and evasive, unrealistic from a visionary Neptune.

    A money-minded Mars in Capricorn plus a not-always-attentive (though can bestow sporting prowess) Sun Neptune and an erratic Uranus Pluto would be part of the problem. 

  A yod of Jupiter sextile Mercury inconjunct Saturn in Aries would be another, since it demands maturity and self-discipline to work, otherwise it turns self-defeating.

 A third factor would be his Cancer Moon in his joint financial 8^th house conjunct Procyon, the star which is both fortunate and unfortunate, often an indication of a rise followed by a fall. Pride can make the individual careless.  It trines his Sun Neptune conjunction and his Chiron and Scheat in late Pisces, formed into a Kite by Sun Neptune opposition Algol and Black Moon.  Aldebaran for those interested is exactly conjunct his Descendant, ruling close relationships.

 That is an astonishing collection of the less upbeat Fixed stars.

  His 10^th harmonic, also indicative of a rise and fall, is marked; as is his sacrificial 12^th harmonic and his needs-maturity 11H.

Interesting chart.

Iraq’s troubled history over the past 100 years starting with British interference after the collapse of the Ottoman Empire at the end of WW1 through various coups and religious schisms culminating in George W Bush’s ‘shock and awe’ carnage in 2003 after 9/11 shows no signs of settling any time soon. Despite ISIS, who had stepped into the vacuum caused by the USA’s ill-thought out and mismanaged assault, being ejected in 2017, there are still ‘increased levels of violent terrorism and sectarian conflicts’ and wide-scale droughts since 2020 driven by climate change. Water flows in the Tigris and Euphrates are down 30-40%. Half the country’s farmland is at risk of desertification with nearly 40% of Iraq ” overtaken by blowing desert sands that claim tens of thousands of acres of arable land every year.”

 There are two charts for Iraq 23 August 1921 6am Baghdad; and 14 July 1958 4 am Baghdad – both of which work well tested against the Iraq Attack of 20 March 2003.

  The 1921 chart at that point in 2003 in addition to a sharp-shock tr Uranus opposition the Sun and square Midheaven; and the war-like tr Saturn opposition Pluto aspect the Solar Arc Midheaven – was a classic example of transiting Mars as a trigger – tr Mars was conjunct the SA Moon, conjunct the SA North Node and opposition the Iraq Pluto – all exactly.

  On the 1958 chart tr Uranus was exactly opposition the Pluto for a major upheaval; with the tr Saturn conjunct the Solar Arc Midheaven and tr Pluto was opposition.

 When the Iraq Attack took place on 20 March 2003 at 5.30 am Baghdad, tr Pluto was conjunct the Midheaven opposition Saturn in the 4^th square a Pisces Sun exactly conjunct the generally-unlucky Scheat. Saturn Pluto is associated with war and deprivation.

The North Node on the 2003 Attack was at 1 degree Gemini which will be rattled by tr Uranus moving into Gemini after this July; and at the moment the Solar Arc North Node is exactly conjunct the Saturn with Solar Arc Uranus square the Saturn; and tr Neptune is conjunct the Attack Sun throughout 2025. [I can’t quite see what repercussions there will be at this stage but that chart is reverberating to some strong undercurrents.]

Relocating the 2003 Attack chart to Washington, DC gave a grandstanding 5^th house Sun; and relocating the London gave a hard-working, under-appreciated 6^th house Saturn. The Attack chart itself lacked Earth with only Mars in Capricorn to look after practicalities.

Looking ahead nothing seems settled for either Iraq chart. The 1921 chart has its Mercury Sun in Leo catching the unsettled tr Uranus square throughout 2025 with a deprived/warlike SA Saturn opposition Pluto in 2028; and various upheavals into the start of the 2030s.

 The Iraq 1958 chart has a tumultuous tr Uranus square the Pluto from the middle of this year with again the turn of the decade giving hints of even more turmoil.

 Baghdad which rose to become the cultural centre of the Muslim world after its foundation in 762 AD has been crushed and risen again several times – and will no doubt do so again. The influence of that region from the time of the Sumerians back several thousand years has always been indisputable.

Riotous, unconventional, reckless lives are entertaining between the pages of a novel but the emotional damage they wreak is undeniable.

 Diana Melly, wife of the flamboyant jazz singer, journalist and libertine George Melly with whom she shared an open marriage that survived for “45 long years” has died aged 87.

 She was born 26 July 1937 in Southampton (no birth time) with a philanderer father and farmed out to a convent aged 4, then a godmother, leaving school early and working as a hostess in a cabaret club. By the time she met George Melly in 1961 she was 24, married to her second husband and the mother of two children. Her eldest son Patrick was sent to a creche each day,  often left at home alone and when he was two, was sent to live with her aunt in Essex and barely saw him again until he was six. He ultimately died of a heroin overdose aged 24.

 George Melly, 17 August 1926 9.15am Liverpool, was bisexual, sexually voracious and an epic drinker with a drug habit. As he tired of monogamy after their marriage he encouraged her to have an affair with a handsome 18-year-old school dropout while on holiday in France. Later in her mid-thirties, she took up with a blond drug addict of 17, amongst many others.

 She was a Sun Leo conjunct Pluto, a hint of a controlling and often absent father over whom she had no sway. Her Venus in frivolous Gemini was on the focal point of a strained yod inconjunct Mars in Scorpio sextile Jupiter in Capricorn. Her Saturn in forced-to-be-self-reliant Aries was trine her Sun.  Her Pisces Moon may have been opposition Neptune.

  There was a hint of passionate attraction in the synastry with George Melly, his Venus in late Cancer conjunct her Pluto and Sun. But her Uranus fell in his 8^th house conjunct his subterranean Mars in Taurus which could stir up difficult feelings and erupt from time time to time in explosive arguments. Her Mars in Scorpio was also conjunct his Saturn which is an aggravating interface.  Her Saturn in his 7^th would produce loyalty and a sense of endurance with a joint interest in business – and she evidently looked after his administration. Her Chiron was exactly conjunct his midheaven so there would be a sense of coming together for each to heal wounds of the past.

 George Melly, had a creative and entertaining Sun Neptune conjunction in Leo opposition Jupiter in his performing 5^th house and square Saturn in Scorpio – the Neptune could explain his drug/drink habits and he would certainly have his down times with a Saturn square. His volatile 8^th house Mars in Taurus was square Mercury and widely opposition his Saturn which would also be a drive of his turbulent behaviour.  His Uranus in his 7^th trine Venus points to a need for emotional freedom; whereas his 10^th house Pluto in addition to give him influence made him controlling. A complicated man.

 Their relationship chart had a boisterous composite Sun Mercury opposition Jupiter Mars; and a harder Saturn (Moon) opposition Pluto square Uranus making for periodic upheavals as well as a sense of being chained together and resenting it.

  Bound together by their dysfunction.

Sweden is reeling from a mass shooting with eleven dead including the killer, a local man in his mid 30s who returned to a school he had attended which provided Swedish language classes for immigrants and adult education for people who did not finish primary or secondary school. ‘There is no obvious evidence of an ideological background or any connection to the gang wars that have driven the vast majority of Sweden’s shootings in recent years.’ Unconfirmed reports suggest he was reclusive and presumably suffering from mental problems.

  At a memorial service Queen Silvia asked “Where did the beautiful Sweden go?”. Sweden already has by far the highest gun murder rate of any rich European country. The blame is being laid on the recent open-door migration policy with no policy to help the newcomers integrate. ‘This has served as an incubator for crime, as gangs take over where society fails.’ About 20 percent of Sweden’s 10 million residents are foreign-born (double the rate in 2000), many of them refugees from war-torn countries including Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan and Somalia and many of the adults are illiterate.

  Denmark has a tougher approach with a requirement that children of migrants learn the local language and values,  the dispersal of migrants to different regions, longer sentences for serious crimes, double penalties for gang members and special prisons for young offenders.

 There are two charts for Sweden.

 The 6 June 1523 JC 11.30 am Stockholm chart was going through its Pluto Return and Neptune Return in the middle of last decade when immigration started to peak with the refugee crisis – and by July this year will be on its Uranus Return as pressure for a less permissive approach is hardening. [For Pluto Returns see previous post in search: Pluto Returns – collapse and rebuild 17th October 2020.]

 The other is Sweden 7 December 1865 3.30 pm Stockholm,  which is heading for a Neptune Return in Aries by 2028.

  Both the Sweden charts are fairly Neptunian. The 1523 chart – Jupiter, Neptune, Saturn, North Node in Pisces square Mercury Uranus. The 1865 chart has Neptune in Aries on the focal point of a Cardinal T Square to Uranus opposition Jupiter Mercury; with Neptune inconjunct Saturn. So their need to be and be seen to be compassionate is obvious.

  If the start times are accurate then they have Moon and Jupiter respectively in the chart area of partnerships with The Other so would be welcoming to incomers. 

  Whereas Denmark, 5 June 1849 12.15 pm Copenhagen, has a harder, less sympathetic chart with Mars Saturn in forced-to-be-self-reliant Aries in their 7^th house. Denmark has some of the toughest immigration policies in Europe, which were initially seen as extreme but over recent years there is a move to follow its example elsewhere.

  Sweden has its own identity crisis to negotiate with outer planet Returns prompting a radical re-evaluation of identity and direction. But the penalties of their lax immigration policies are causing a rethink elsewhere about the dangers of boundless and unregulated compassion with no thought of the likely consequences.

  Thoughtless permissiveness is catching a sharp reality check as the planets redirect their energies.

Add On: The shooter has been named as Rickard Andersson, 10 August 1989 Orebro, Sweden. This makes him an intense, controlling, attention-seeking Sun Leo square Pluto with a Scorpio Moon; plus the can-be-chaotic triple conjunction in Capricorn in a volatile trine to an angry Mars Mercury in Virgo and a confident though mentally up-and-down Jupiter opposition Uranus Saturn.  

  His Solar Arc Mars was exactly square his Saturn for an outburst of anger at frustrating circumstances when he shot and was killed; and his Progressed Mercury was in a confused square to his Neptune.

The Aga Khan who mystifyingly combined the role of spiritual leader and generous philanthropist with astonishing wealth and a turbulent, well-publicised romantic life has died aged 88. Well known for his racehorses, which included the 2016 Derby winner and the kidnapped Shergar, he owned the largest horse racing and breeding operation in France which brought him into regular, friendly contact with Queen Elizabeth 11.

 His charities are famous for their work in poor and war-torn parts of the world, working in over 30 countries with an annual budget of about $1 billion.

  His followers say he was a direct descendent of the Prophet Mohammed and he inherited his title from his grandfather Aga Khan 111 in 1957 aged just 20. His first wife was a British model and his second a German former pop singer.  

  Born 13 December 1936 7.15am Geneva, Switzerland, he had an upbeat first house Moon, Sun in Sagittarius square Neptune in the 9^th which latter may point to his international charitable work; with Neptune in a hope-for-a-better-society opposition to Saturn. His Jupiter was exactly conjunct Ceres  which would also bring a wish to care for others and an interest in nature (horses). He had Pluto in the 8^th, a hint of the intergenerational challenges and influence given to him which opposed Venus in Aquarius. His passionate Venus Pluto plus a 5^th house Uranus would point to a tumultuous romantic life.

  His father Prince Aly Khan, 13 June 1911 2pm Turin, Italy, a socialite, racehorse owner and third husband of actress Rita Hayworth, who did not inherit the title from his father had Saturn in the 8^th with Uranus in his 4^th opposition a 10^th house Neptune; plus a controlling/over-controlling father Sun Pluto in Gemini in his 9^th; and an over-expansive Jupiterian yod. His charming Venus in Leo was in a passionately enthusiastic trine to a 7^th house Mars and a frivolous square to his emphasized Jupiter.

 One generation back, Aga Khan 111 born 2 November 1877 6pm Karachi, Pakistan, promoted Muslim rights in India and like his grandson was keen to improve women’s education. In line with the family tradition he owned racehorses and had several marriages. He had a Scorpio Sun opposition Neptune in Taurus and trine a hard-edged Saturn Mars in Pisces. Pluto in Taurus in his 1^st squared Uranus in Leo on the cusp of his 5^th house so he would be a keen reformer. He had a lucky Jupiter Venus conjunction in his 8^th house.

 Prince Rahim, 12 October 1971 6pm Geneva, Switzerland, who is expected to become the new Aga Khan though it has not yet been announced –  also has Jupiter in his 8^th hinting at luck with inherited wealth, in his case conjunct Neptune  and opposition Saturn. He has been involved for many years with the Aga Khan Development Network, whose remit is to improve the quality of life in different regions of Asia and Africa. It focuses on health, education, culture, rural development, institution building, and economic development and providing opportunities for the poor without regard to faith, origin, or gender.

  Like his father he has a notable Saturn opposition Neptune which has an interest in fostering the weak and disadvantaged; and a full 6^th house with Pluto and his Libra Uranus Sun there which could point to a life of service.

Writer Jane Austen is having a moment with the 250^th anniversary of her birth this year causing a flutter of excitement amongst her fans. Author of Pride and Prejudice, Sense and Sensibility, Emma, Mansfield Park and others, she stands head and shoulders above other novelists having stood the test of time with constant revival TV and film renderings of her works. ‘Her use of social commentary, realism, wit, and irony have earned her acclaim amongst critics and scholars.’

 She was born 16 December 1775 11.45pm Basingstoke, England, with a rector father into a genteel though poor family. She started writing in childhood and never left her family, dying at 41 a spinster, having had little success or money from her books.

  She had a home-loving 4^th house Sagittarius Sun square Neptune on her Virgo Ascendant. Her Mercury in Sagittarius in her communicative 3^rd would give her a quick witted mind and ability to get her ideas across especially since it opposed Uranus and Jupiter in her 9^th house of ideas and publishing. Her Moon Saturn in Libra opposition a 7^th house Chiron hinted at a less than vibrant emotional life, especially since they also squared a frustrated, trapped, utterly determined Mars Pluto in Capricorn on the cusp of her 5^th house.  A Libra Moon conjunct Saturn square Mars Pluto might suggest health problems.

 What intrigued me about Austen’s chart is that modern-day novelist Iris Murdoch, 15 July 1919 8am Dublin, Ireland, also has a Mars Pluto conjunction, in her case in Cancer. She was a professor of philosophy, influenced by Sartre and had a skill for black comedy – “Under The Net,” “A Severed Head.” Very different from Austen but with the same driving determination which started her writing as a child, she wrote 26 novels, four plays, four books on philosophy and one book of poetry and had a long and happy marriage, dying ultimately of Alzheimers in her late 70s.

  Her Sun Jupiter in Cancer were in her creative 12^th house along with Neptune; and her 11^th house Mars Pluto was in a Water Grand Trine to Uranus and her IC. With her Uranus opposition Venus. With her Cancer Sun inconjunct an Aquarius Moon and her Venus in aspect to Mars Pluto and Uranus she would not be emotionally at ease – perhaps the wound out of which her writing came. Both she and Austen had their Chiron in Aries which can be a sign of a pioneer, one who leads the way as a compensation for feeling powerless or wounded in a the area of identity.

  It got me searching amongst other women writers and how many have afflicted Mars – Emily Dickinson, the influential American poet, 10 December 1839 4.50am Amherst, MA was another Sun Sagittarius with a Mars Pluto conjunction in Aries in her ‘entertaining’ 5^th house with her Mars Pluto sextile Uranus inconjunct a 10^th house Saturn.

 Charlotte Bronte was a Sun Taurus with her 10^th house Mars square Pluto and opposition Neptune with her Mars also trine Moon Saturn conjunct in Aquarius. Her sister Emily a Sun Leo had her Mars in Virgo opposition Saturn square Uranus.

 Which is not dissimilar to Doris Lessing (The Golden Notebook) with her Mars Saturn in Virgo sextile Pluto. Also Chiron in Aries as had PD James, the crime writer who also had a Mars in Scorpio North Node trine Pluto trine Uranus with Uranus opposition Saturn,

 Talent comes at a cost.

Add On: Poet Christina Rossetti, 5 December 1830 3.10 am London, was another Mars Pluto conjunction in her case in Aries in her 6^th house trine Venus Sun in Sagittarius; and her Saturn was inconjunct Mars Pluto sextile Uranus in a stressed yod. She had major health problems, spells of depression and a religious crisis.

 Fairly similar was poet Elizabeth Barrett Browning, 6 March 1806 7pm, Killoe, England, she had a Mars Pluto Sun Mercury conjunction in Pisces in her 6^th with her Libra Moon inconjunct Mars Pluto.

 Enid Blyton had an 8^th house Pluto square Mars Jupiter. Anita Brookner a Mars sextile Pluto Sun inconjunct Saturn. Arundati Roy – Sun Mars square Pluto Uranus.

 Agatha Christie had a tough chart with Saturn square Neptune Pluto and her Virgo Sun was square Mars – but no Mars Pluto.

 The rise of 20^th century fascism is credited to Italian ‘Il Duce’ Benito Mussolini, who is noted as an inspiration behind Adolf Hitler’s plans for Germany with the Nazi Party. Mussolini is the subject of an 8 part television drama starting tonight based on Antonio Scurati’s bestselling novel following his path from the founding of Fasci Italiani in 1919, to prime minister from 1922 to 1925, before becoming a fascist dictator. His rule ended in 1943 and he was executed in 1945.

  He regarded himself as an intellectual and after he moved away from an early Marxist socialist approach he studied Friedrich Nietzsche amongst others, becoming convinced that ‘overthrowing decadent liberal democracy and capitalism by the use of violence’ was necessary. He admired Plato’s The Republic, which promoted ideas such as rule by an elite promoting the state as the ultimate end, opposition to democracy, protecting the class system, rejection of egalitarianism, promoting the militarisation of a nation by creating a class of warriors. Biological racism was less prominent in Italian Fascism than in National Socialism, though it had a strong racist undercurrent.

  Born 29 July 1883 2pm Predappio, Italy, the son of a militant socialist blacksmith father and named Benito after a Mexican revolutionary, he had a knowledgeable and ‘visionary’ 9^th house Leo Sun and Mercury with a sociable Venus conjunct Jupiter in Cancer also in his 9th. His freedom-loving, rebellious Uranus in his 10^th was in an innovative trine to Neptune in Taurus in his 7^th.  His 7^th house was packed with a tough minded, argumentative and volatile Pluto, Chiron, Saturn, Moon and Mars there so he would have a powerful effect on other people.

 He is described as having ‘an imposing physicality and rhetorical power’ speaking directly to the populace in his rallies making them feel heard. Like a true Leo he was a consummate actor turning the political arena into a theatre and casting himself as its star. In 1922 his take-over of the Italian government was a blatant bluff when he and his thuggish private militia confronted the king and government without any electoral support or the military strength to defeat the army. He chanced his arm and won.

       His chart is not as overtly brutal as Hitler’s who had an unpleasant Venus Mars in Taurus square Saturn, but Mussolini’s ‘serial killer’ 18^th harmonic was strong.

 Mussolini’s superficially charming Jupiter Venus in Cancer was conjunct the Italy 17 March 1861 12 am Turin, South Node with his formidable collection of Pluto, Saturn, Moon, Mars falling in the Italy 7^th conjunct the Italy revolutionary Uranus.  When he became PM in 1922 tr Neptune in Leo was conjunct the Italy Jupiter for a moment of delusional optimism. Tr Pluto was half way through Cancer which was the most destructive of the early 20^th century influences starting as WW1 began and extending to the late 1930s.

  Mussolini’s Leo Sun was conjunct Hitler’s Midheaven so he would be a shining light for him in what came afterwards. Though they were hardly temperamentally compatible with a composite Neptune Mars Pluto trine Uranus in their relationship chart – ego-clashing, hostile, argumentative.

 When Mussolini was executed in 1945 tr Pluto in Leo was just across the conjunction to his Sun with tr Pluto conjunct his Solar Arc Moon Saturn which was also crossing his Sun for a savage moment in his destiny.

Who said ? – “Democracy is the worst form of government, except for all the others.”

ADD ON: Of other 20^th Century dictators of whom there were an unholy bunch – three like Hitler came out of the Neptune Pluto in Gemini conjunction of the late 19th century – Mao Tse Tung, General Franco and Tito of Yugoslavia.

  Historically Neptune Pluto is associated with megalomaniacs and brutal dictators from Attila the Hun onwards.

 Joseph Stalin, 18 December 1878, no birth time, was born just before when Neptune and Pluto were both in Taurus; with his Pluto exactly conjunct Algol in a ruthless opposition to vengeful Mars in Scorpio. His Sagittarius Sun Venus were square Saturn and Scheat in Pisces; and his Libra Moon may have been conjunct Vindemiatrix (the widowmaker). Fire Earth – a bulldozer.

 Mao Tse Tung, 26 December 1893 7.30am Siangtan, China had his Neptune Pluto in Gemini in a yod sextile North Node inconjunct – a reformer, lawless, defiant, a wrecker of the past, intolerant. He had a 12^th house Capricorn Sun with a Fixed Grand Cross of Mars in Scorpio opposition Jupiter square Venus opposition a Leo Moon.

Josip Tito of Yugoslavia, 7 May 1892 10 am Croatia – a Sun Taurus with Neptune Pluto in Gemini trine Mars in Aquarius with Mars square Uranus.

General Franco of Spain, 4 December 1892 12.30am – a Sagittarius Sun opposition Pluto, Neptune, Moon in Gemini square Mars in Pisces.

N.B. The birth dates above may be iffy.