Astrology of Today’s News

Actor Tom Hanks – Philadelphia, Forrest Gump, Saving Private Ryan, Castaway – became visibly emotional on Desert Island Discs this week when talking of his lonely childhood.

Born 9 July 1956 9.17 am Concord, California, his parents divorced when he was four and he lived with his father and two elder siblings in a peripatetic life which saw them moving homes multiple times.

He is a Cancer Sun so would miss his mother and the security of a stable home. His Sun is widely trine a 3^rd house Saturn in Scorpio on one side and an exact trine to Mars in Pisces on the other – so a Water Grand Trine, self-protective, private, with a strong inner fantasy life and a good deal of harshness around him. He’s also got a Moon Uranus in Leo pointing to a rupture with his mother. Plus a determined, confident and creatively talented Jupiter Pluto on the focal point of a mini-Grand Trine to Venus MC in Gemini trine Neptune; with Jupiter Pluto square Saturn.

He’s got tr Pluto opposing his Sun in 2016/17 so a challenging and transformational time for him.

A seismologist has warned that that the San Andreas fault in California is “locked, loaded and ready to go” and a major earthquake in the region is overdue. This warning comes just months after Los Angeles Mayor pushed through legislation to make the most vulnerable buildings in the city more secure against major tremors.

Los Angeles was incorporated on 4 April 1850 when the Uranus Pluto conjunction in late Aries was in place conjunct Venus, with Sun Saturn also in earlier Aries.

When the 1994 quake struck the tr Uranus Neptune conjunction in Capricorn was square the Venus, tugging on the LA Uranus Pluto; with Solar Arc Neptune heading for the square with Uranus and picking up the tr Uranus Neptune opposition. With a destructive tr Pluto conjunct Solar Arc Mars. Neptune Uranus is a classic earthquake signature and Mars Pluto is violent and dangerous.

When the deadly 1906 San Francisco earthquake struck there was a tr Uranus in Capricorn opposition Neptune. On the San Fran Inc chart of 15 April 1850, that transiting opposition was a few degrees away from hard aspecting the SF Saturn Mercury in Aries square Mars in Cancer; but tr Pluto was conjunct the Solar Arc Uranus Pluto Sun conjunction.

The LA chart at the moment has tr Uranus moving to conjunct the Venus in Aries exactly now till late May and repeating into 2017 when tr Uranus is conjunct the Uranus Pluto; and Solar Arc Pluto will square the LA Mars, exactly within a few months. So it looks stark enough though it lacks the Uranus Neptune signature.

BAFTA winners took the chance last night to voice their extreme disapproval of government manoeuvrings to curtail the BBC’s remit.

Prime Ministers are typically at daggers drawn with the BBC usually over political matters. In this instance they are going for a more over-arching assault. Which will naturally have the knock-on effect of making the BBC wary of attacking the government when they should.

David Cameron is certainly a very disturbing influence for them since his Uranus Pluto is conjunct the BBC’s 4^th house Virgo Moon, his Saturn sits in the BBC 10^th and his MC on the BBC Ascendant. So it would be no surprise if he felt it his mission career-wise to put down a heavy hand and go in for major reorganisation. His Mars also falls in the BBC’s 4^th square the BBC Scorpio Sun so an aggravated interface.  His Libra Sun is conjunct the BBC’s Saturn and square their Pluto so he finds them rigid and controlling; and his Neptune is conjunct the BBC’s Sun so they find him slippery.

The DC/BBC relationship chart has a hostile composite Mars square Pluto; a suspicious composite Saturn square Neptune; and a Uranus square Jupiter which is under discouraging Saturn transits this year.

John Whittingdale, the Culture Secretary, isn’t as disastrous a mix with the BBC as Cameron but it’s still not great with his Pluto opposition the BBC’s Uranus so pulling against their free spirit; his Libra Sun is conjunct the BBC Saturn and his Neptune conjunct the BBC Mercury. The relationship chart has a tension-erupting composite Saturn opposition Uranus; and a fight-for-control composite Sun square Pluto.

But Whittingdale has his own problems and with tr Uranus opposing his Sun this month, moving onto oppose his Sun/Mars from late June and then in 2017 his Mars – he may not be around for ever in the job.

The second Invictus Games for paralympic armed service personnel and veterans has opened in Florida. It was created in 2014 by Prince Harry, inspired by the US Warrior Games, and now looks set to be an international annual fixture, with the next one in 2017 in Canada. Invictus means undefeated/unconquered.

The first was opened in London at 8pm 10 September 2014, with a special message from Michelle Obama who has taken a keen interest in military families.

This opening chart puts an influential Pluto in the 10^th square Moon Uranus Ascendant in feisty, go-ahead Aries opposition Mercury North Node and Descendant. There’s a Sun Venus in Virgo, in the 6^th house of health, trine Pluto. And adventurous performing 5^th house Jupiter in Leo trine Uranus Moon Asc; and a military and formidably determined Saturn Mars in Scorpio, which is a military astro-signature.

Over the first games tr Saturn was conjunct Prince Harry’s Midheaven making him more serious about his career responsibilities; with his Solar Arc MC conjunct his Mars in Sagittarius so sparking his sporting enthusiasm. Tr Pluto was conjunct his Ascendant and his Solar Arc Uranus – so all a hugely significant turning point for him and his image.

What was serendipitous as well the Opening MC was conjunct his 12^th house Jupiter (conjunct Neptune) which will give him an understanding of others’ suffering and a desire to help.

Sadiq Khan was sworn in as Mayor of London at 11.49am this morning, May 7^th. This puts the expansive, confident and business-oriented Earth Grand Trine centre stage with the Taurus Sun Venus Mercury (and Moon) in the 10^th trine Jupiter North Node in the 2^nd trine Pluto at the end of the 5^th house. It certainly looks successful since Earth Grand Trines often show great resourcefulness and common sense in tackling practical problems. What is marginally worrisome is that the Grand Trine forms into a Kite with Jupiter opposition an 8^th house Neptune – which could be slippery, evasive or deluded when it comes to finances.  Plus that opposition squares onto a 4^th house Saturn Mars – that could be an indication of his manifesto promise to sort out housing, especially low cost housing. But it also suggests a less than delighted local population.

There’s also an entrepreneurial Fire Grand Trine of 9^th house Uranus trine Saturn in the 4^th trine a Leo Ascendant – so innovations can be expected.  An Earth Fire chart has a huge amount of energy, steamrollering over obstacles through sheer persistence.

The Moon is conjunct Algol, the destructive planet.

It’ll be interesting to see how Neptune and the Moon play out. And indeed that bad-tempered focal point Mars Saturn. But there’s certainly oodles of good energy despite the caveats.

The Scottish election threw up one major surprise when the Tories became the opposition having been an endangered species for decades. Much of this is credited to Ruth Davidson the Conservative Leader north of the border who has a refreshing directness and an image a million miles from the detested Maggie Thatcher. She’s ex-army, a former journalist, a kick boxer and openly gay. She’s now spoken of as having, perhaps, a future at Westminster in later years.

Born 10 November 1978 3.15pm Edinburgh, she has a determined, charming and maverick Sun Uranus Venus in Scorpio in her 7^th; with Pluto also in her 7^th – so she comes across powerfully to the general public.

She has a hard-working, meticulous 6^th house Saturn in Virgo square an 8^th house Mars Mercury Neptune in Sagittarius. She has had two life threatening and life-changing accidents in her life – one a lorry accident at 5 from which she nearly died; and a broken back when training in the army. That certainly fits a 6^th house Saturn in an accident-prone square to Mars.

Her sunnily-confident 5^th house Jupiter in Leo makes her a good performer and trine her Sagittarius planets, adventurous and not scared to take risks.

She has a singleton Pisces Moon in her 12^th sitting on its own so she’ll be sensitive to the public mood and singleton Moons do occur for those who choose a career with a wide audience.

Career-wise tr Saturn is heading in the right direction, moving through her 8^th at the moment and reaching her peak from 2018 for eight years thereafter.

Tr Pluto is trine her Solar Arc Jupiter through 2016/17 which is buoyant though she also has tr Neptune opposition her Saturn from this June till October 2017 which will be uncertain on the work and maybe health front.

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Sadiq Khan has won the London Mayoral election to replace Boris Johnson. Born 8 October 1970, he’s a former solicitor, a Labour MP since 2005, member of Gordon Brown’s Cabinet and Ed Miliband’s and he’ll be London’s first Muslim mayor. He’s a centre left social democrat and voted for same-sex marriage, though he was criticised for sharing platforms in the past with radical muslims. There was a hotch up in voting in certain districts and murmurs about legal complaints if it came to a close vote. But his win looks fairly substantial.

He’s a Sun Uranus Mercury in Libra square a Capricorn Moon so a hard working and freethinking Libra.  But he’s also got a formidable Saturn in Taurus opposition Venus Neptune in Scorpio which is trine/sextile a do-or-die-determined Mars Pluto in Virgo. There’s certainly steel in his backbone. He may also have an Earth Grand Trine of Mars Pluto trine Saturn trine Moon; focussed onto Venus Neptune – so he’ll come across as charming but with a fairly hefty undertow of ruthless persistence behind it.

He doesn’t look that chirpy from May 8^th for three weeks with tr Uranus square his Mars/Saturn which looks like quite a setback and risky as well as aggravating. But he’ll be bouncing from late June and across the summer. PS. On second thoughts if he was born early morning then he’s already survived that trial by fire. It was around over the election run up and is lifting from now onwards, though it will return in Nov and Feb 2017.

Zac Goldsmith, the Conservative candidate, was born 20 Jan 1975 and ran a fairly inept campaign. He’s a Sun Capricorn/Aquarius square Uranus; with a head-in-the-clouds Jupiter square Neptune; and Jupiter trine Saturn. He looks edgy this month until the 28^th when he cheers up considerably and will be given a lift from tr Pluto sextile Jupiter through June to mid July and off and on till late 2017. So whatever happens he won’t be too devastated.

Bernie Sanders has tr Uranus opposing his Venus in Libra from May 8^th to 27^th at the same time as tr Uranus square his Sun/Saturn midpoint and Sun/Uranus – all of which look nervy, tense, upsetting. Then tr Uranus moves on to conjunct his Mars from late May till late June which can be insecure, tending to over-react to prove a point, bad tempered. Though Uranus transits can be a wild card and his Lunar Return for May looks good; June less so.

He’s lost the lucky/successful tr Uranus sextile Jupiter which was around up to late March.

His bid chart isn’t any help though the time of 12.10 am may be off. When Ted Cruz withdrew tr Neptune was opposing his Bid MC which makes sense.

Maybe he’s hanging on to see if Hillary gets nailed by the FBI.

Enda Kenny has cobbled together a government finally 70 days after the election. It’ll be a minority government and he was sworn in at 14.22 this afternoon 6 May 2016.

That gives a 9^th house New Moon, Venus and Mercury in Taurus which suggests a focus on international matters, education and communication.  It has the commercially confident, practical and lucky Earth Grand Trine of New Moon trine a 1^st house Jupiter in Virgo on the Ascendant trine a 5^th house Pluto.  So far so great.

But that forms into a Kite with the Jupiter opposition Neptune on the Descendant – which suggests a lack of commitment towards partnership agreements.  The Jupiter opposition Neptune can also be deluded when it comes to high finance and since that squares onto a 4^th house Saturn Mars in Sagittarius – it points to an unhappy, grumbling and exasperated population.

The grandstanding 5^th house Pluto squares a financially-wobbly 8^th house Uranus.

This year the tr Neptune opposition Jupiter square Saturn will run backwards and forwards over the exact aspects causing some anxiety.  From spring 2017 tr Neptune closes the opposition to Jupiter to exact so I’d expect some economic disappointments then.