The Queer Frontier

Dear Friend and Reader:

I had a great time listening to the arguments surrounding both same-sex marriage and the Defense of Marriage Act (or DOMA) last week before the U.S. Supreme Court. It was like the "personal is political" World Series, hearing some of the most intimate human topics being debated in what is arguably the most powerful court in the world.

Photo by Eric Francis - Blue Studio / New York.

I loved hearing some of the justices make truly illuminating points and hearing others squirm around having to discuss something they wished they didn't have to deal with. You might say that was sex, or the idea of gay sex -- or you might say that was progress.

They're all closely related. The essence of the discussion was: is sex actually a moral issue? We're told it is so often, and we're so thoroughly conditioned to treat it like it is, that I think many people would rather discover their kid playing with explosives than walk in on them playing doctor.

Treating sex as a moral issue has a long history, though looked at another way, it is the story of history. This has its origins in religion, which predates our modern concept of law or government. Yet the two are closely related. The purpose of both is less about an orderly society, a trustworthy economy or meeting the needs of the people, and more about social control. 

There was that stunning moment during the DOMA arguments when Justice Elena Kagan quoted the House of Representatives report on why it passed the law. In that report, we discover that Congress, under the stewardship of serial polygamist Newt Gingrich, felt that marriage needed to be defended in order to "honor a collective moral judgment" reflecting "moral disapproval of homosexuality." 

Rep. Henry Hyde, then chairman of the House Judiciary Committee where DOMA was brewed and fermented, said at the time that "most people do not approve of homosexual conduct ... and they express their disapprobation through the law." And now that law, or rather the whole tendency to place moral judgment on normal social behavior, is up for question.  

Photo by Eric Francis - Blue Studio / New York.

We don't know what the Supreme Court is going to do with these cases, though we know that there is a discussion happening on the highest level of government. For many reasons, that's truly encouraging. What was once deeply hidden, denied and treated with disgust and rage is now household conversation, in a sense, sanctified by the blessing of the court.

Yet that could only happen were there some movement on the deepest level of the psyche. Which brings me to the astrology involved.

We're in the midst of a generational event -- the Uranus-Pluto square. This is the latest step in a cycle that turned over in the mid-1960s; that was the Uranus-Pluto conjunction. To some extent we all utter the words "The Sixties" with some reverence -- it was a profound, tragic, sometimes beautiful, often wrenching time in history. A force for change had been let loose, and that was described by the Uranus-Pluto conjunction.

Now we are at the first quarter phase of that cycle -- the square. The force of evolution and that of revolution are meeting at a 90-degree angle, which technically spans from 2012-2015, but which in retrospect will have a story arc that goes from around 2008 through around 2020. We're now in the peak of the astrology. 

But with the exceptions of some uprisings in 2011 -- prior to the exact square, and which either did not persist, or which ended badly -- we're not seeing demonstrations in the streets, or a social uprising. But what we are seeing are these developments in our concept of relationship; and that is a development in our concept of what a person is. Plenty of that concept is related to sex.

Many, many centuries of "disapprobation" directed at homosexuality in particular have left a compounded injury in our collective and individual psyches. One way that manifests is as homophobia, by which I mean anything from subtle annoyance to deep, abiding disgust. When you combine that with the natural primate tendency toward same-sex relating, the result can be a lot of chaos and pain, or a society that often seems to be unraveling.

Looked at one way the Uranus-Pluto square is about some kind of upheaval, change or progress in society. Looked at another way, it's an introspective process that each person is experiencing individually. That, I believe, is where the real progress is happening.

I would offer a perspective on the spiritual significance of embracing the whole notion of 'homosexual'. Primal sex is sex with oneself. Very nearly everyone masturbates, which I've observed is a kind of core level of sexuality. It's not about reproduction. It's about the pleasure of existence or perhaps the mere fact of it, it involves feelings related to the self, from the self, in a reflexive way -- and it's true blue homo. 

Photo by Eric Francis - Blue Studio / New York.

The sex we have with ourselves is a form of gay sex; it is a same-sex experience. That, I believe, is one reason for the fuss over masturbation that has persisted more than 400 years (it can actually be historically traced to the early 1700s). There are other reasons; one is that sex alone with oneself has a way of opening up the full potential of fantasy, which does not always follow the fantasy that starts with a bridal shower. 

I used to think that a sexual revolution would happen after AIDS was cured. It's not really cured but it's not what it used to be. Yet as time and my writing portfolio have collected, I've reconsidered. In my view, we don't need a sexual revolution. We need conscious sexual evolution, which means many people individuating and living lives of authenticity, transparency and awareness (the opposite of hypocrisy). Sexual evolution is about being real. 

The core of sexual evolution is that you are an independent person and so is everyone else. Then you do what you want to do in an ethical way. Part of that ethical way involves honoring independence and sexual choices, and understanding that nearly all of us exist on a continuum with each of our lovers, as they do with us -- there are (for nearly everyone) those who 'came before' and those who will 'come after'.

That leaves plenty of room for deep exchange, safe containers for family, and longterm or even lifelong commitment. 

Now that monogamous lesbians and male homosexuals and the things they do are on the way to acceptance in society, it's time to open the discussion that sexuality exists on a three-dimensional continuum (not the Kinsey scale), and that every person has a different sexual orientation with every different person we encounter. I guess that makes us a different kind of queer with everyone and anyone.

My sense is that Uranus-Pluto has nudged us out to the Queer Frontier. Yes, many pioneers have been here for a while; I am talking about the preponderance of momentum in our society, social movement that has the ability to carry many with it.

Photo by Eric Francis - Blue Studio / New York.

Here are some ideas about who deserves full inclusion in our ongoing conversation of what is possible rather than what is moral.

People who are open and positive about sex. There are many; those who are willing to speak up are a rare breed. They're the people who admit the whole thing, stating who they are, who they like and what they do. They are the people who can carry on a conversation and create the spaces where nothing is taboo.

Self-sexuals, which includes everyone part of the time, and many people much of the time. Many people otherwise engaged sexually have their best sex with themselves. This includes people who choose to be sexual exclusively with themselves; if we were to hear from them we would find out there are a lot more than we thought. 

My sense is that this is where the real change -- claiming pleasure and releasing guilt and shame -- will start or may have already started. I understand conscious self-sexuality to be an easily accessible, pleasurable, socially interesting path to sexual healing.

I have noticed that many people are reluctant to speak up and claim this. I am doing my best to set a different trend. (I may hold the World Internet Record for mentions of masturbation in my articles, as of today, I get 6,060 Google returns on the topic). I know there are a LOT more people who have something to say -- who I have yet to hear from (happily anticipating your emails). 

People who choose themselves as a sex partner, whether 'one on one' or in the context of other sexual relationships, have the right to not feel shame about this, and we need to educate one another how to do this.

I took a little surf of my 6,060 Google hits a few minutes ago and found this quote, apropos of self-sexuality that I wrote a few years back:

"I would propose that masturbation is about a lot more than masturbation -- and that's the reason it's still considered so taboo by many people, and in many places. First, I would say that masturbation holds the key to all sexuality. It's a kind of proto-sexuality, the core of the matter of what it means to be sexual. I mean this in an existential sense. Masturbation is the most elemental form of sexuality, requiring only awareness and a body. Whatever we experience when we go there is what we bring into our sexual encounters with others -- whether we recognize it or not. Many factors contribute to obscuring this simple fact."

Photo by Eric Francis - Blue Studio / New York.

Polyamory and nontraditional forms of relationships, which includes most people some of the time and nearly all people at some point. The awareness that some people actually admit to this is starting to increase, though at the moment polyamory seems to be wanting for idea-based leadership and coordination, in the midst of its biggest PR boon ever. The press has never been better and we're not really taking the opportunity to build on it. I would remind polyamorous leaders that it was two sci-fi writers who got your movement going; you might want to give out book lists at your mixers, and have writing workshops at your conferences. 

Single people. Not poly. Not mono. Not cheating. Not 'asexual'. Single -- those whose primary partner is 'perself' to use a Marge Piercy word (from Woman on the Edge of Time) for 'him or herself'. Many people are single because that's what's available, and a good few are because they want to be that way. 

Single people are discriminated against structurally by everything from the tax code to the dentist office application to you name it. The tax break for married couples is stunningly discriminatory, literally paying some people to have one specific kind of relationship. Single people are often considered a threat to the sanctity of coupled people. I could go on and on. Check out a blog called Onely.org for more info. Note, I would recommend to the Single's Rights Movement that it could help matters by being more open and honest about masturbation.

Bisexuals and gender fluid people whose identity is not fixed and committed like registering with a political party. The official queer movements still have a hard time with this, no matter how many letters they add to their collection. I am speaking about people in harmony with their diversity of potentials, desires, choices and options for how they can feel and express themselves. When we look carefully at this and at ourselves we will find out that many, many more people fit this description than the previously existing political parties 'allow'. Gender and sexual orientation are indeed fluid. The sex organs secrete liquid, which is designed to mix with others, in case we need a biological metaphor. 

Asexual and non-practicing (apparently there is such a thing as asexual, with 1% of the population reporting this). Having no sexual feelings or not wanting to act on them is as queer as anything else in a world where sex is considered normal. From what I have read in my inbox, they feel left out when the conversation turns to sex and relating. They would do well to find one another and talk about who they are and what they do. There are many reasons for this choice, and we need to consider it as valid as any other.

That is the whole point. We all have a right to choose who we are and what we want. The ability to do this, I believe, needs to be about ability and volition rather than about privilege. The core idea is consent: the freedom to say yes or no, to yourself and to others; the freedom to decide who you are today.

Lovingly,




Invocation of Spring: Your 2013 spring sex and love astrology reading is now available for purchase. The eclipses approaching this season are on the sensual, passionate Taurus-Scorpio axis. Beltane (the Pagan holiday celebrating fertility and sexual union in early May, at the peak of spring) is right around the corner.

Your 12-sign reading includes an introduction plus a 40-minute audio reading for each sign. Listen to your Sun, Moon and rising sign for added depth as you start tuning up your sex and love vibrations. Consider these audio readings a kind of a road map for your relationships -- and some inspiration. Order instant access for $24.95 here.


Quite the Aries New Moon

The sky is currently building toward the Aries New Moon. Astrologers don't usually describe the New Moon as a building process -- usually it's more like closure, resolution and completion. Yet this is an unusual New Moon, with the sensation of something building to a point of release, much more like a Full Moon.

Chart section showing planets in Aries at the New Moon April 10, plus Mercury at the top in Pisces, safely out of its echo phase. Uranus is in early Aries; the Sun and Moon are conjunct at 20+ Aries, with Eris, Mars and Venus nearby within about three degrees. Glyph legend.

It's exact at 5:35 am EDT on Wednesday, April 10. Several smaller but meaningful events lead up to this, though it's worth noting that we have this landmark on the immediate horizon. It's actually a grand conjunction involving five planets, which are the Moon and Sun (as with any New Moon), the new planet Eris, and then Venus and Mars.

Additionally, Uranus is a longterm visitor in Aries, and while it's slightly off to the side of this New Moon, it's close enough to add energy, a creative factor and a hint that there's a lack of predictability involved in the events that develop.

Yet that is also described by the presence of Eris in the middle of the five-planet alignment. Eris, a Pluto-like planet with a much longer orbit than Pluto, is serving as a kind of threshold -- between the familiar and the unfamiliar. That can include your familiar concept of yourself and the one you don't know so well; it can include your familiar concept of relationships and the one that perhaps you are being drawn into as if by gravity.

Between what I'm calling the 'familiar state' and the 'unfamiliar state' is a kind of threshold. You might say that threshold is a direct encounter with the unknown, and the fact that there even is an unknown. (One of the first things denial denies is the fact that there's anything else.)

While you take the ride of this New Moon, remember that on the deepest level it's about an encounter with your evolving self, and your relationship to that self -- which sets the tone of every other relationship. Eris can add the element of chaos. I would note that there are two kinds: toxic and fertile. I suggest a bit of meditating on the difference between them. Toxic chaos is self-serving. Fertile chaos inspires creativity, and can be a release from the entanglements of the past.

Between now and Wednesday, several other things happen. One is that on Saturday, the Mercury shadow phase ends; the Mercury retrograde we experienced in February and March is fully resolved at this point. Mercury enters new territory for the first time in many weeks, and is getting ready to enter Aries on April 13.

The next day (this Sunday) is the exact Venus-Mars conjunction in Aries. This is an interesting conjunction because we have Venus and Mars in a sign that is ruled by Mars. That seems like a competitive situation of some kind -- those are usually pointless. Who is competing for what? That's the question to ask, if things ever get testy. The more competitive person is most likely to lose the game that THEY are playing, so if you want to win the game you're playing, I suggest you avoid competitive people and find the cooperative ones.

They are most likely to be the ones who know what to do with a mystery, with the unknown, and who are comfortable making changes.


Gun Control Progress: State by State

Congress may have failed to move forward Dianne Feinstein's assault weapons ban a couple of weeks ago, but lawmakers in individual states are proving better able to make progress in the face of the NRA's big-money lobbying. Connecticut -- where the horrific Newtown school massacre occurred this winter -- is the latest state with one of the strictest gun-control laws in the U.S.
 
The measure, which Gov. Dannel Malloy was expected to sign into law Thursday, requires universal background checks for all gun sales, increases gun registration, expands the state's ban on assault weapons, and bans any new sales of magazines with more than 10 bullets.
 
A little further south, Maryland is likely to follow suit. That state's House of Delegates approved a bill on Wednesday that includes the fingerprinting of gun buyers and banning assault weapons and magazines with more than 10 bullets. The measure now returns to the state Senate, which passed a similar version of the bill last month.
 
In related news, the Center for American Progress has released a new report showing that states with the nation's most lax gun laws also suffer the nation's worst rates of gun violence. Eight of the states with the most gun violence were among the 25 with the weakest gun laws. Indicators included gun homicides and suicides, gun deaths of children, and fatal shootings of law enforcement officers.
 
Colorado, another state that has recently passed stricter gun regulations in the aftermath of gun violence, hosted President Obama this week.
 
"I believe there doesn't have to be a conflict in reconciling these realities," said Obama on Wednesday, as part of his efforts to get a gun control law passed in Washington. "There doesn't have to be a conflict between protecting our citizens and protecting our Second Amendment rights. Aurora is very much a purple city. It's got a majority Republican city council; a majority of its state legislators are Democrat. But they came together understanding that out of this tragedy there had to be something that made sense."
 
It sounds great -- but Obama still needs to confront members of his own party standing in the way. That leaves it up to individual states, although Connecticut has a lot to lose if it pisses off the gun industry.
 
At least three major gun manufacturers call Connecticut home, and they're threatening to leave. The small New England state can't afford to lose the thousands of jobs represented by those companies. Yet it seems leaders there have chosen that possibility over losing more children to gun violence.


Arkansas State Attorney General to Investigate ExxonMobil Oil Spill

In the aftermath of last week’s spill of up to 5,000 barrels of crude oil in Mayflower, Arkansas, state attorney general Dustin McDaniel announced he will look into the causes and impacts of the spill from the ExxonMobil Pegasus pipeline.

The pipeline spewed oil onto lawns, roadways and wildlife, and almost into nearby Lake Conway. No one was hurt, but the spill led authorities to evacuate more than 20 homes.

A river of tar sands crude flows through a Mayflower, Arkansas, subdivision. Photo by evacuated Mayflower resident Warren Andrews via the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette.

"There are many questions and concerns remaining as to the long-term impacts, environmental or otherwise, from this spill," McDaniel wrote to ExxonMobil executives Tuesday. He asked ExxonMobil to preserve records pending his investigation.

Also on Tuesday, federal pipeline safety officials issued a corrective action order to ExxonMobil. The cause of the rupture is still unknown, but the corrective order states ExxonMobil reversed the system flow of the pipeline in 2006, and that a change in direction of flow can affect the hydraulic and stress demands on the pipeline.

The company cannot restart the failed segment of the pipeline until officials are satisfied that it is safe. A longstanding cause for concern has been that the Pegasus pipeline is located in an area that drains into the main source of drinking water for hundreds of thousands of customers. A Central Arkansas Water official said the water system plans to formally request that ExxonMobil move it out of that region.

The spill in Arkansas comes as the Obama administration prepares to issue a decision on whether to approve the Keystone XL pipeline. That controversial project would expand the transport of Canadian tar sands oil on a massive scale; the Pegasus pipeline was carrying western Canadian Wabasca Heavy crude at the time of the leak.
 
"It’s almost as if nature was trying to send a message that it might be best to just leave this stuff underground in Canada, where it’s been safely for the last few million years, instead of trucking it, piping it, training it hither and yon across the countryside," said Bill McKibben, co-founder and director of 350.org, on Democracy Now! this week.


Who's Responsible for the Monsanto Protection Act Anyway?

Food activists are looking askance at the White House, after Obama last week signed the "Monsanto Protection Act" into law, as it rode on the back of the larger spending bill that is keeping the federal government in business. The rider says the government must allow the planting of genetically modified crops even if courts rule they pose health risks.

Because it was passed as a rider and not as its own legislation, it expires in six months, and the food justice movement is already gearing up for a fight if it comes up again.

One mystery is who introduced the bill in the first place. Republican Senator Roy Blunt of Missouri, Monsanto's home state, was one of its biggest supporters. Blunt reportedly crafted the bill's language with Monsanto's help, according to Democracy Now!

Democrat Jon Tester of Montana, the Senate's only active farmer (and an organic farmer, at that), would sure like to find out. He opposed the rider, saying the provision would undermine judicial oversight and hurt family farmers. Tester said last month in Senate hearings that the source of the bill is unknown.
 
"I don't know who authored this provision," he said. "Maybe someone in Washington knows, but no one is willing to put their name to it. And that's a shame."

He's not the only one who wants to hold someone accountable. One activist group, Peaceteam, is "demanding a hearing of the Senate Appropriations Committee to determine who is responsible for putting it in there, and to demand their immediate resignation, regardless of party affiliation, so that this kind of anonymous graft can never happen again," it said in an email.

You can add your voice by visiting the Monsanto Reckless Release Action page here.



Nuclear Saber Rattling on the Korean Peninsula

North Korea and the United States have once again traded escalating rhetoric and tactics in the past few weeks in the wake of a vote on tighter UN sanctions on North Korea and joint war games by the U.S and South Korea. While most of the language and tactics are similar to years past, there is always the possibility that the smoke here could turn to fire.

The latest round of bravado seems rooted in a UN Security Council vote for stricter sanctions on South Korea after a third nuclear detonation in February. This was the first such test conducted under new leader Kim Jong-un and in direct defiance of China, South Korea's biggest backer. China responded in March by joining the other 14 Security Council voting nations in these tighter economic sanctions.

North Korea then threatened to end the armistice agreement that ended the Korean War and has since threatened nuclear attack on South Korea, Japan and United States territories and mainland. The expression of threats has so far escalated up to late Wednesday night with North Korea stating that they were cleared to engage in an attack on the U.S. using "lighter and diversified nuclear" weapons.

This all happens amidst the backdrop of joint military exercises by the United States and South Korea. The U.S. has flown stealth bombers plus B-2 and B-52 bombers over the Korean Peninsula, and has deployed war ships to the region.

While many experts and analysts agree that a nuclear attack from the north is unlikely, there are tactical moves on the part of both nations that could easily escalate the crisis.  So far though, South Korea and the U.S. have been following a typical, although volatile, script.



Ready or not, someone may be coming out

Are National Football League players and their fans ready for an openly gay player? Quite a few vocal supporters think so and appear to be preparing for just that. The bigger question may be, will this be harder for the players or fans?

A CBS News report followed by an announcement from the players union indicates that a player is preparing to come out in the next few months with the intention of continuing his football career.  This would be a landmark event in the world of professional sports. It's one of the remaining popular national institutions that has remained on the sidelines of sexual orientation / gender identification equality issues.

NFL Players Association president Domonique Foxworth explained that the union, in conjunction with outside organizations, has had meetings to educate players for the "inevitability" and "unavoidable" circumstances of a player coming out. He believes that the time is ripe for a player to take this step and that there are more gay players in the league, so if one comes out, others may follow.

Meanwhile, CBS News sports correspondent Mike Freeman indicated that despite negative, homophobic comments made by two current NFL players (Chris Culliver and Chris Clemons, both in response to questions about having a gay teammate in the locker room), the player in question is more concerned with the reactions of fans than of his teammates.

Minnesota Viking punter Chris Kluwe, ambassador for the group Athlete Ally that works to end homophobia in sports, agrees with that assertion. Kluwe suggests that the fundamental principles of "don't be a distraction" and "team first," drilled into NFL players' psyches, may become a source of strength for the openly gay player and the team. The enormous amount of media scrutiny and fan attention is what could keep the issue contentious.



MSNBC's Chris Matthews: Truthers Are Nuts, Too

In Wednesday night's edition of Hardball on MSNBC, Chris Matthews gave a rundown of paranoid political theories circulating among the American population, including how many people think that Barack Obama is the antichrist, how many people think that the country is run by reptilians (evil ETs disguised as humans), how many are sure that Obama wasn't born in the United States and so on. Most of these are right-wing conspiracies.

Then he said that there are some loonies on the left as well -- such as the people who believe that George W. Bush took down the World Trade Center "with a plunger" (meaning a detonation device). He described these people as fringe elements, despite the fact that a 2006 Zogby poll revealed that "less than half of the American public trusts the official 9/11 story or believes the attacks were adequately investigated."

Larry Silverstein, owner of WTC 7, said in a PBS interview that he told the Fire Department that, '"The smartest thing to do is pull it." Screen shot from PBS.

That means more than half of American adults do not trust the official story -- now that the fog of war in Afghanistan and Iraq is starting to clear. Matthews asked incredulously what motive Bush and Co. might have had to knock the buildings down and make it look like the work of terrorists, answering his own question -- hypothetically, to start those wars -- but pretending that was a ridiculous theory.

Besides being prejudiced, the problem with Matthews's objections is that they are ignorant of many basic facts.

After 11 years of dissecting how exactly two massive towers could crumble from airplane strikes without the help of explosives, attention has focused on the building that crumbled without being hit by an airplane -- WTC 7 or the Salomon Brothers Building. I covered this in the Planet Waves article History, Turning on a Phrase. This article covers the astrology, the science and the psychology of the event.

Oddly not investigated in the official 9/11 report, WTC 7 collapsed onto its footprint at near free-fall speed at 5:20 pm on Sept. 11, 2001. There were numerous reports of a police radio countdown, witness testimony reveals the area was evacuated prior to the collapse, and the building had sustained only minor damage. 

Office fires are cited as the usual reason that WTC 7 collapsed, despite the landlord, Larry Silverstein, admitting on PBS that he told the Fire Department that "the smartest thing to do is pull it." That phrase is a term from the demolition industry, which "pulls" buildings (formerly with a crane, now with explosives).

Yet the real issue with Matthews's characterization of the 9/11 issue is science. How can a skyscraper collapse at anything near free-fall speed with all that mass between the top of the building and the ground? Maybe he doesn't know that 1,500 professional engineers and architects have agreed that from a scientific standpoint, the official explanation is impossible. There is evidence of explosives. That's not their opinion; it's based on the calculations of the engineers who design this kind of skyscraper, and whose job it is to make sure it stands up. You can visit the website and explore a diversity of videos there.

Of course, paraphrasing Einstein, proving that WTC 7's spontaneous collapse violated the laws of physics would require the calculations of only one engineer, though just in case, we have a few more.




Um, Are You Sure About That One, Evolution?

If you think you have a hard time staying motivated, upbeat and creatively juiced on the job, imagine trying to do so for 3.8 billion years! Chances are, you'd have as many ‘misses' as ‘hits' on your project resume. Maybe you'd occasionally confuse a really weird idea for pure genius. Perhaps spite and self-pity might get the better of you, after eons of being made fun of for some of your more experimental work. Sometimes the solutions you come up with to ‘fix' your ‘mistakes' might strike others as, um, less than obvious or logical. And let's face it: almost everyone has done something stupid while drunk at least once in their lives.
 
This seems to be the basic idea behind the hilarious nature blog, WTF, evolution? Created by Mara Grunbaum, an editor for Scholastic Science World and a science writer for other publications, the blog imagines evolution as a sentient being who just seems to be winging it sometimes. The conversations with evolution are the best -- revealing a rather sensitive soul whose feelings are easily hurt when people laugh at its favorite creations.
 
It's okay, evolution -- we know how you feel. Surely somebody out there appreciates you.




Aries New Moon, North Korea, Elisa Novick on Tour

Thank you to my listeners for participating in our spring membership drive. As promised, I'll leave the $49 for one year membership offer available through the end of the week for those who have not yet signed up.

In this week's edition, I cover the current astrology: last quarter Moon, Jupiter square Chiron, Mercury conjunct Borasisi (here is the article I reference, With Love from Borasisi). I also speak for a few moments about Elisa Novick's European tour -- here is that itinerary, which takes her through London, Paris, Brussels and Amsterdam over the next few weeks.

In the second half of the program, I check out the situation in North Korea, and take a new look at a chart called The Nuclear Axis. North Korea shows up as a wannabe nuclear country, though it may have a significant role in how we resolve the nuclear dilemma. Here is the best chart we have for this elusive country.

I reference my earlier interview with Karl Grossman, who gives a detailed history of nuclear power and nuclear bombs. Here is the link to that interview, which is in two parts, and is worth listening to (and worth playing for students of any age, who will benefit from knowing this history).




Your Monthly Horoscopes -- and our Publishing Schedule Notes

The April monthly extended horoscopes were published Friday, March 22. Inner Space for March was published Tuesday, Feb. 26; there will be no Inner Space for April due to scheduling issues. We published the Moonshine horoscopes for the Libra Full Moon on Tuesday, March 26. Moonshine for the Aries New Moon will publish on Tuesday, April 9. Note that the longer monthly horoscope is being incorporated into the Friday issue after the Sun has entered a new sign; a new Inner Space is generally emailed on the following Tuesday.




Weekly Horoscope for Friday, April 5, 2013 #944 | By Genevieve Hathaway

This week, Genevieve is standing in for the weekly horoscope. I will be back next Friday with your weekly horoscopes. -- Eric Francis.)

Aries (March 20-April 19) -- You've spent the past month doing a lot of work behind the scenes and below the layers of your psyche, shifting and moving material out of the way that no longer serves you. This process of de-cluttering the corners of your mental and emotional space has clarified who you are. Sharing this side of yourself may feel deeply personal -- that's a good indicator that you are showing the authentic you. As you share with others the 'you' no one knows, remember that how people react is independent of your inherent value. Presenting yourself unfiltered will challenge those around you to do the same. Some people may find this difficult to match, but enough people will follow your lead and answer with their own authenticity. -- by Genevieve Hathaway




Attention all Aries: Your 2013 Birthday Reading is ready -- just in time for the Aries New Moon on April 10. Your sign is loaded with planets right now, making this New Moon the ultimate in cosmic reset buttons for you to get your solar year started Aries-style. If you have already ordered, you may now access using the login and password you received when you placed your order. If you have not yet ordered, what are you waiting for? You're an Aries -- the zodiac's initiator! This birthday reading includes two 40-minute segments of astrology, plus a tarot spread using the Voyager Tarot by James Wanless. You may purchase instant access to this affordably priced reading here.

Taurus (April 19-May 20) -- You are working through a question regarding desire. More specifically, what do you want and what desires bring a sense of deeper meaning for you? This may come with the feeling of an expansiveness that makes the answer hard to pinpoint, like trying to determine where a voice came from as the sound echoes through a large cavern. The discernment you are looking for is available to make some decisions regarding what you want. It involves a slight stretch in belief: that you can create in your life what it is that you want. I suggest trusting your intuition as you follow a feeling that is pointing you toward some important answers. You will make contact both with a greater sense of focus regarding what you want, and the large amount of resources at your disposal to bring what you want into your life. -- by Genevieve Hathaway


Gemini (May 20-June 21) -- You are reworking an idea around 'relationship' and what it means to you. At the moment, you have a strong drive to be fully authentic and present in all you do. This energy can come with the feeling of pushing a round peg into a square hole. I suggest you first get clear on what a relationship that supports you as an individual would look like, then carefully and thoughtfully convey this idea to a close partner. For relationship structures to fit you, they need to give you room to be you -- with all your idiosyncrasies, beliefs, dreams and curiosity -- as you give the same to close partners. As you express your desire to make changes to a relationship, hold space open for a close partner to do the same. In reworking relationship dynamics, I propose you consider applying two things you know well: your curiosity and an open sense of experimentation. -- by Genevieve Hathaway


Cancer (June 21-July 22) -- Your astrology highlights a busy career angle, with a number of seemingly rapid changes lately. A door you thought would open has seemed a bit stuck. I suggest you view change less as a derailment of where you want to go, and more as an opportunity to pause and examine what you want and what that would look like manifested in your life. Desire is the starting place of any path -- it informs how you move, the intention you apply, and the actions taken. How that desire manifests can often come down to your vision. You have quite a few options available at the moment, and as you work through whether you want to try the previous path or create a new one, I suggest working with the attitude that it's always a good thing to have options. At your disposal are the resources to re-open an old door or begin a new path; the key is to proceed with a vision that is aligned with your authentic self. -- by Genevieve Hathaway


Leo (July 22-Aug. 23) -- A recent financial investment is challenging an old concept around resources, particularly financial resources. What you are discovering is that money is not just useful in making more money or sitting in a bank account. How you use your resources has a distinctly service-oriented component. It’s not just about writing a check, but rather knowing what your investment is creating -- as well as who is impacted by it. Think of this approach as a socially aware allocation of your resources. I’m not referring to giving away all your financial wealth. Instead, notice the power your financial investments and donations have in making a difference in your community. You’re in a position to make a big impact in many lives; it will take less of an investment than you may think -- though it will take targeting the right groups and people for the greatest results. -- by Genevieve Hathaway


Virgo (Aug. 23-Sep. 22) -- A current agreement requires something you know well -- attention to the details. I suggest taking extra care to shape, craft and fine-tune an agreement before acting on the contract or arrangement. The energy at the moment is pushing for action; in this climate you could move too quickly and miss an important piece of information. Slowing down the process enough to notice the intricacies will give you a chance to fully understand the entire landscape you are working in. Take it slowly enough to collect all the details, then double check those details and facts. You possess enough creativity and ingenuity to come up with an arrangement that is beneficial to all involved. Trust that you are able to make a good decision involving a particularly tricky part of the negotiation. -- by Genevieve Hathaway


Libra (Sep. 22-Oct. 23) -- You are negotiating your way through a somewhat complex relationship situation. This may feel like navigating a maze blindfolded. I suggest using your intuition to feel your way through the situation. As you would use your hands to feel along the walls of the maze and build a mental image of what’s around you, tap into your intuitive body to collect information that can move you through partnership dynamics. What you are making contact with has more to do with material you're working through internally than an actual relationship problem or difficulty. As you work through this material I suggest you not project your internal state and struggles on a partnership; instead, involve the person in an open dialogue about what you are working through. Holding the space open for yourself to heal and another person to walk this journey with you will also strengthen an existing partnership. -- by Genevieve Hathaway


Scorpio (Oct. 23-Nov. 22) -- Your work life is in a moment of rapid change that may come with the sensation of someone hitting the fast-forward button on the scene changeover in a theatrical production. One structure has rapidly replaced another. Events are occurring quickly, which may make you feel off kilter. I suggest you not get distracted by any seeming disorientation around your work routine and its evolving structure. You tend to like to maintain control in all aspects of your life, but at the moment you are being called to move with the changes rather than trying to steer them. A creative opportunity is presenting itself, allowing you to work with these changes in a way that lets you expand farther into your workspace. It’s about creating a work structure that facilitates your creativity flourishing. Start with an openness to try new structures and then allow inspiration to guide you. -- by Genevieve Hathaway


Sagittarius (Nov. 22-Dec. 22) -- For you, a healthy component of emotional and spiritual balance is enjoying sexual fantasies. They allow you to explore many of your sexual needs that may be logistically challenging to experience directly in day-to-day life. Currently your fantasies are quite vibrant, being stoked by some hot and passionate astrology. Your core essence of self and your energetic sexual self are merging and mixing, stirring up a particularly rich fantasy life that is spilling over into your physical sexual experiences. Take the time to mentally and emotionally explore these fantasies. As you do this you will make contact with an important aspect of yourself, learning more about what makes you unique -- and also tapping your well of creativity. The more sexually honest you are, the deeper you will be able to push into yourself, bringing you a stronger sense of feeling good about who you are as a whole being. -- by Genevieve Hathaway


Capricorn (Dec. 22-Jan. 20) -- A home is not only about the house, yard, trees, grass, shrubs and neighborhood where you live; it's also about a sense of grounded security coming from it being 'yours'. You can think of this as the place where you can be fully yourself, expanding into a space that is all your own. At the moment, you are working with a calling to redecorate or make changes to your home, which in essence help you further claim this space as yours. An opportunity will arise to make a few important changes to your surroundings, going a long way in helping to make the living space and surrounding environment resonate within you on a deeper level. As you consider the adjustments you make to your home, I propose you approach your living space as an extension of your inner world by focusing on increasing the nurturing nature of the space. This may be as simple as rearranging the furniture or sweeping -- or as involved as taking out a wall. -- by Genevieve Hathaway


Aquarius (Jan. 20-Feb. 19) -- We tend to think of our thought processes as part of our conscious self; something we have control over. Yet, how often does a thought enter your mind and then you mentally correct yourself or have an internal debate with yourself over that thought? How often does this internal dialogue seem to go on for far too long, reaching surprising levels of complexity? Lately many of your mental processes are coming up for review -- these are the thoughts you seem to have before you have a chance to think them. These mental patterns contain many of the themes you inherited from your parents, which have been passed down for many generations. You have the tool of perspective at your disposal to see the patterns for what they are and make changes. You can see your thought patterns laid out, not only their structure, but also where in your family they came from. As you work to restructure how you think, I suggest requiring that all mental patterns must support your sense of feeling good about your existence. -- by Genevieve Hathaway


Pisces (Feb. 19-March 20) -- You've recently been through some potent and meaningful astrology in your sign, bringing you into contact with both the complexity of who you are and any blockages to your ability to exist fully as your whole self. You've been learning what you can and cannot do, and who you can and cannot be. During Mercury's recent retrograde in Pisces, important information came out that is now up for examination. Think of this process as being like washing clothes on an old-fashioned washing board. You lather, scrub, rinse and repeat. Through each scrub against the washing board a new layer of denial is peeled away. As you hang up each freshly scrubbed concept about who you are, you'll be able to inspect it thoroughly without layers of issues getting in the way. In this process of examination, notice the connection between these concepts of 'you' and your sense of self-worth. The first step to reconciling these ideas is drawing a line between the two. -- by Genevieve Hathaway