Terry Anderson, the American journalist who was held captive for six and a half years by Islamic militants affiliated with the Iranian-backed Hezbollah organisation in the 1980s/90s, has died.
He was held longer than any of the several dozen other western hostages captured in Lebanon during the civil war, had to endure many months in solitary confinement, was beaten, blindfolded, poorly fed, chained by his hands and feet, and deprived of sunlight and company. He said he “almost went insane”, banging his head against the wall until he bled, but he never gave up, surviving because of his religious belief, military training and stubbornness.
After his release he met his daughter for the first time, born while he was held captive; his father and brother had died of cancer during his imprisonment. Years of PTSD followed in a restless, troubled life with his multi-million dollar compensation frittered away in bad investments though he did give to philanthropic causes. In his latter years he finally found peace on a small Virginia horse farm.
He was born on 27 October 1947, one day after Hillary Clinton, in Ohio with a police officer father, joined the US Marine Corps, served as a combat journalist in Vietnam and afterwards having gained a college degree joined Associated Press, reporting from Japan and South Africa before being posted to Lebanon in 1982 as the country was sinking into civil war.
Like HC he was a Sun Scorpio with a formidable collection of Mars, Pluto, Saturn in Leo square Venus Mercury in Scorpio opposition a North Node and Algol in Taurus. Very Fixed, utterly determined, he was built for endurance and would cope well in crisis, high-adrenaline-rush situations to which he would be inevitably attracted.
His years in captivity started with tr Pluto conjunct his Scorpio Sun in early 1985 and in the exceptionally tough years thereafter transiting Pluto squared his Mars, Pluto (and midpoints to Saturn) with tr Pluto square his Saturn when he was released. When he was captured he was on his Nodal Return at 38. When he was set free in 1991 the transiting Uranus, Neptune, North Node in Capricorn were square his Neptune with tr Saturn square his Sun.
[Houses would make a significant difference in his fate versus Hillary Clinton’s though she would also be undergoing massive pressures during these years.]
What intrigued me looking at other hostages were the similarities. Terry Waite, 31 May 1939, a Church of England envoy and humanitarian, in captivity for nearly five years, has an extraordinarily tough Pluto opposition Mars square Saturn in his natal chart, with a Scorpio North Node and a Scorpio Moon opposition Uranus. Tr Pluto was conjunct his North Node when he was captured. When he was released tr Saturn was conjunct his Mars and tr Pluto was around the conjunction to his Moon.
John McCarthy, 27 November 1956, a former journalist, has a Sun Saturn in Sagittarius conjunct North Node in late Scorpio square Pluto with Venus Neptune in Scorpio square Uranus – again heavy Scorpio influence. He was on his Saturn Return at 29 when he was captured with tr Pluto in Scorpio square his Uranus. And possibly tr Neptune in Capricorn square his Libra Moon,. When he was released five and a half years later tr Saturn was square his Neptune and then Venus; with the transiting Uranus Neptune in Capricorn somewhere around the square to his Moon; with the transiting North Node inconjunct his natal North Node.
The Scorpio/Taurus North Nodes and Scorpio planets plus heavy Pluto are marked across all three.
Brian Keenan, the Irish hostage, a teacher and writer, 28 September 1950, is an exception. He has a Libra Sun and Pisces North Node – though may have a Taurus Moon.
Tough aspects in a natal chart do give individuals the capacity to endure hardship though they also have a habit of attracting the challenging situations which require those traits.
What is worth noting is that Terry Anderson after years of mental turbulence, which was hardly surprising given his ordeal, found peace on a horse farm – which with a Taurus North Node could not be more apt. Reaching out for nature brings contentment.
His ability to survive that ordeal always impressed me. Reminds me of the book Man’s Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl—a Holocaust survivor who found that those who felt that had something to live for in the future had better chances for survival.
Thank you Marjorie, from a sun Taurus.