The Shifting Ground of So-Called Reality Dear Friend and Reader: Donald Trump is now the presumptive Republican nominee for president of the United States. I only know one person who not only believed it was possible, but said it would happen. Many are looking and listening in astonishment. How was this even possible?
Meanwhile, it looks like Hillary Clinton is the presumptive Democratic nominee, even as the FBI is investigating what crimes may have been committed with her choice to use a private email server located in her home bathroom, rather than an official government system. We might ask, why exactly did she do that? Any investigative or even municipal reporter knows the answer: to keep the data secret, and as far from the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) as possible. Bernie Sanders, for his part, made it further than just about anyone imagined. It's annoying to some people that he refuses to drop out of the race; they cannot imagine why he's staying in. The obvious reason is, when you're running a close second place, you keep going. He has raised a small fortune through direct fundraising, proving that the Citizens' United decision, which allows infinite political spending by wealthy people and corporations, has a workaround: lots and lots of $20 donations. He also knows that many people don't really like or trust Clinton; they merely think she's the only viable alternative. If the race comes down to Clinton versus Trump, we have the apotheosis of a TEA Party Republican versus that of a sell-out, opportunistic Democrat. It really would be the perfect example of what the political parties have become. Hillary may be pro-choice (and that may be the single most important domestic issue), and we also know she's pro-WalMart, pro-Monsanto, pro-Goldman Sachs and a pro in general.
Few are calling him to task: he's running on a platform of genocide (not merely racism) and of dismantling First Amendment protections of free speech and religion, the cornerstones of American society. I have not heard anyone mention that dislocating an entire subpopulation is indeed a form of genocide. I know this becaue all around Paris are monuments to the dislocation of the Jews during the Holocaust. Would we really tolerate the police going door to door, and restaurant to restaurant, hauling off any Spanish-speaking person? How would someone prove they are not Muslim? Speaking of Spanish, would there be an inquisition? Clinton presents herself as a woman of the people, though that's not really possible for someone with her friends, and her ambitions, who generates $27 million in annual income. Trump presents himself as a conservative, but conservatism is about preserving the structure of society rather than dismantling it. In this sense, Clinton is the true conservative: she wants to use and work within the existing system. Trump is a revolutionary; he wants to undo the American revolution. Clinton represents the status quo, not especially interesting as such. The contrast between Trump and Sanders is more revealing. They are promising change and have clear ideas about it. There are many comparisons being made between these two dark horse candidates, both of whom have done better than anyone expected. Most of the comparisons (including the ones I've made so far) involve the figures -- what is Trump saying? What is Sanders saying? However I think that what they reveal about the background of society is more telling.
We might say that Trump is succeeding because he is such a master publicist and knows how to keep the press focused. But the opposite complaint is being made about Sanders: compared to Trump, he's getting much less attention in the media. My unscientific method is, every time I turn on the TV randomly, someone is talking about Trump. So it's not just that. First let's look at some quotes by both candidates, and then size up what they say about the underlying ground on which they are standing. Sanders: "Balancing the budget on the backs of the elderly, the sick, the children and the poor is not only immoral, it is bad economic policy. It is something that must be vigorously opposed." Trump: "You know the funny thing, I don't get along with rich people. I get along with the middle class and the poor people better than I get along with the rich people." Trump makes everything about himself right from the start. It's true that as a political candidate one is always trying to get attention. Politicians are usually masters of this; however, Trump is particularly unvarnished about it.
Trump contrasts this with one of his many statements built around I, me, mine. In doing so, he appeals to anyone who cannot think about anyone but themselves. That, apparently, is a significant portion of the population. He is giving people permission to do what they normally do. Sanders is tapping into an underlying sense of unfairness that affects people generally. He too is giving people permission to feel a certain way, though it's clearly a different feeling. He may be appealing to idealism in some, and for some he is appealing to what is sometimes called white guilt, or people with modest privilege feeling guilty about it (rather than sharing what they have). Let's contrast two comments related to race and equality: Sanders: "An America where every person, no matter their race, their disability or their sexual orientation realizes the full promise of equality that is our birthright as Americans." Trump: "When Mexico sends its people, they're not sending the best. They're not sending you, they're sending people that have lots of problems and they're bringing those problems with us. They're bringing drugs. They're bringing crime. They're rapists." Skipping ahead a little, he added, "Some, I assume, are good people." These statements reflect different visions of society, and they appeal to different self-concepts. Sanders' statement is what I would call a classically American ideal. Most people know that it doesn't work that way, but gradually over the past 250 years we have moved in that direction. Sanders is appealing to a literate person's understanding of our cultural ethos, or one version of it. He is reflecting on something that is structured into the American psyche mainly by way of schoolbooks; though still, in all, it's enlightened thinking oriented on progress.
Trump makes it personal: those people over there are the cause of your problems. This is the oldest tactic of tyrants through the aeons. Further, he is consciously appealing to a dark, racist streak in the American psyche, the one still pissed off about the South losing the Civil War. He is also tapping into something much older, which is the fear of seeming outsiders, and the ease with which politicians can blame all our ills on them. This is called projection. Crime, rape and drugs? Do we know where he's personally coming from on those behaviors? He again makes it about himself: "Some, I assume are good people." He places himself in the role of personal judge. This is de facto permission to do the same thing. It's just that most humans have enough conscience to check that part of themselves. What Trump is appealing to is the desire to suspend conscience, and doing so boldly. Trump is not really egotistical. He embodies what Freud called the id: unconditioned, totally amoral instinct. My take is that Trump is working with the ongoing collapse of the distinction of right and wrong as ground society stands on. Something is only right or wrong because we agree it is so (which varies from culture to culture, era to era and in many ways individual to individual). It's a kind of unspoken contract. If we pretend there is no such thing as right and wrong (this has been going around for a while, from the preemptive strike's revival of 'might makes right', to the groovy notion of 'it's all good') then anyone free to do or say anything, and many people will do, well, anything. Have you imagined how long before mayhen would ensure if the traffic lights all went out? It's true that right and wrong are social constructs. Society is based on a set of agreements and grounded expectations. If you get a job, you agree to come to work and you expect to get paid. If your house is on fire and you dial 911, you expect the Fire Department to come. If someone is arrested for a crime, they have the expectation of certain legal rights.
The 9-1-1 joke extends to people dialing in to report cold french fries or the wrong number of McNuggets in their box, a whole genre on the Internet. What I am getting at here is that there is a dual failure of the 911 system: of the government to respond in many places, and of people to understand what it is. You could assess this as a figure-ground interaction. Many other cultural scripts are being burned, and along the way a presidential candidate can now campaign on the claim that Mexicans are rapists, and it doesn't hurt him. It would have in the past, but not today. Trump's claim may seem outrageous, but it's the lack of interest by the public that is more relevant. To me this may indicate that he's speaking to a widely-held belief rather than trying to propagate one. Sanders: "I believe that climate change is the great global crisis that we face, environmental crisis. I believe that if you're serious about climate change, you don't encourage the excavation and transportation of very dirty oil." Trump: "The concept of global warming was created by and for the Chinese in order to make U.S. manufacturing non-competitive." Does anyone remember the famous Karl Rove quote about the reality-based community? Rove told New York Times reporter Ron Suskind that people like Suskind were part of "what we call the reality-based community," which he defined as people who "believe that solutions emerge from your judicious study of discernible reality," adding, "That's not the way the world really works anymore." Sanders is depending on science (an agreed method of reasoning) repeated so many times it's amazing anyone could doubt it -- unless of course they have a motive (cigarette manufacturers know that cigarettes are safe). What Rove called 'discernible reality' is based on the precept that it's possible to understand and document something factually, to the point of being able to make some decisions based on what you know. Trump is basing his statement on his awareness of a perceived collapse in discernible reality. True, he also wants to give everyone a pass for burning all the oil that they do. Rove's statement is not honest, of course. It's still possible to perform an experiment, or to do research, and come up with a supportable conclusion or at least a useful observation that might describe a path of action.
This represents a profound shift in the background, or underlying ground, of our society and our collective consciousness. This has a long history. In the most esoteric sense it's based on the Uncertainty Principle of quantum physics, and related ideas. While few understand this principle (devised by a physicist named Heisenberg), it's had a way of undermining our previously solid notion of reality. There is a growing understanding that what we see as the world is a kind of metaphysical illusion. Most people who have taken LSD emerge from the experience more respectful of the world based on this idea. Yet it can also be corrupted into ideas like 'there's no such thing as the truth', particularly if someone is a liar. How can you lie if there is no truth? This would also conveniently make hypocrisy impossible, since there would be no such thing as a contradiction. In that world, for sure, climate change could easily be a hoax foisted on us by the Chinese as part of a trade war. Yet the fact that so many people believe the climate change 'hoax' and related frauds suggests that the intellectual ground of reality is what's shifting beneath us. This favors some viewpoints more than others. For example, if there is no ability to discern objective truth, how can anyone claim to know anything, or to keep an agreement? Sanders is certainly a kind of idealist, leading people toward what today seems like some kind of utopia, but which was possible just a short time ago (such as free tuition at public colleges). Yet to take that viewpoint he must tap into an underlying idealism in society or he would get nowhere. Trump is a kind of nihilist. He's saying nothing really matters, except, of course, for him. Hey we all know the world is going to hell anyway, right? So he may as well have a good time and make a lot of money even if sea levels and temperatures are rising rapidly. Next week I plan to describe the astrology underlying this collapse in what we think of as reality, and what we might do with it. Clues: Neptune in Pisces, and Pluto in Capricorn. Lovingly, 
Planet Waves (ISSN 1933-9135) is published each Tuesday and Thursday evening in Kingston, New York, by Planet Waves, Inc. Core community membership: $197/year. Editor and Publisher: Eric Francis Coppolino. Web Developer: Anatoly Ryzhenko. Designer: Lizanne Webb. Finance: Victoria Pomante. Astrology Editor: Amanda Painter. Astrology Fact Checker: Len Wallick. Copy Editor and Fact Checker: Jessica Keet. Outreach Co-ordinator: Victoria Bodge. Client Services: Amy Elliott. Media Consultant: Andrew Marshall McLuhan. Research, Writing and Editing: In addition to those listed above, Planet Waves is produced by a team consisting of Fe Bongolan, Judith Gayle, Kelly Janes, Amanda Moreno and Carol van Strum.  This week's Planet Waves TV [play video here] looks at the Gemini New Moon and the rare grand square aspect that spans from Gemini to Virgo to Sagittarius to Pisces -- and which influences everyone in the process. How do you use your mind? That's the question. This leads into the Uranus-Eris conjunction in Aries, which is influencing how you think about who you are.
Gemini New Moon: At a CrossroadsSaturday we have a New Moon -- a conjunction of the Sun and Moon, this time in Gemini, just before 11:00 pm EDT (02:59 UTC Sunday). It's part of a larger, slower-moving aspect pattern that might have you feeling like you're at some kind of crossroads.
Either way, this New Moon represents an opportunity to see (and feel) a new side to an issue or situation, and then approach it differently from how you have been. The astrological 'crossroads' is a grand cross in the mutable signs. Jupiter in Virgo, Saturn in Sagittarius and Neptune in Pisces have been moving into position for a while now (making a T-square). When the Sun and Moon join Venus in mid-Gemini for the New Moon, they fill in the fourth sign to make the grand cross. All of that square energy can feel like a lot of internal pressure to make a decision and do something already, even if you're not sure what or how. Some people will be able to use the Gemini planets to think their way there. Is the mental level where you get stuck? Perhaps look to retrograde Mars in Scorpio and see what the 'feeling' quality of that sign tells you. For example: How do I feel? I feel angry because I am too cold with the window open. What can I do about it? I can close the window or put on a sweater. I can complain about it and hope that somebody else does something about it for me. What do I want to do about it? I want to close the window. The passive choice is still a choice. But does it make you feel better about yourself in the long run? Choices that empower you with authority over your life do not always look attractive or 'easy' at first. Note that the Uranus-Eris conjunction, exact for the first time since 1928 on June 9, is at full strength -- an opportunity to wake from the distraction of technology and notice who you're becoming. See all your options, evaluate them, gauge how you feel -- and remember that 'mutable' can mean 'flexible'. Yours & truly,  Amanda Painter Planet Waves Astrology Editor   A 'before and after' shot of one of Sonia Singh's re-made dolls; her mother sews and knits clothes for the dolls. Sonia writes on her website, "I am encouraging people to upcycle their own dolls and I hope to remain creative, to collaborate with other creative people, to help get children involved in making their own toys and to work towards helping everybody to look again with fresh eyes at the things we buy and the things we throw out without thinking twice." Image: Tree Change Dolls.
Getting Beneath the Glamour By Amanda Painter Sonia Singh of Hobart, Tasmania, Australia, says she didn't set out to "make a statement" when she began removing the overly made-up and 'adult' faces off of second-hand Bratz dolls, and painting them to have 'average girl' faces. Yet a statement is being made, and people are echoing it, as you can hear in this SBS2Australia video. What began as something to do with her time after Sonia was laid off from her job as a science communicator took off beyond her and her partner John's wildest expectations. He thought the doll photos she posted to her friends on Facebook might get 200 or so followers. Sonia says, "It just started snowballing," particularly after someone posted it to Reddit. Before long, the dolls had gone 'viral', and newspapers from all over the world were doing stories on what has become her new business: Tree Change Dolls. Says John, "She's accidentally sort of tapped into this debate around the hyper-sexualization of dolls and children's toys, and marketing towards children." As one of the young girls in the video remarks, "You can sort of pretend they're the same age as you." Another girl says, "This one kind of looks like my friend Maggie." Eric has remarked numerous times on the 'glamour factor' or Uranus conjunct Eris in Aries; how easy it is to fall under its spell. Not everyone has, and it's possible to choose differently -- as Sonia has shown with Tree Change Dolls and the girls who love them.  This Week on Planet Waves FM Gemini Square Dancing, and the Uranus Eris Conjunction Dear Friend and Reader: Saturday the Gemini New Moon takes shape, amidst a rare grand cross aspect. Jupiter in Virgo, Saturn in Sagittarius, Neptune in Pisces and the New Moon plus Venus in Gemini align all around us.
In the second segment I move on to the Uranus-Eris conjunction, which peaks for the first time on Thursday, June 9, and I make a discovery while on the air: Eris in Aries coincides with the rise of commercial radio in the United States. The "chaos identity" of Eris in Aries runs in parallel with the dominance of a new kind of medium available to the public: the broadcasting of sound. My musical guest is Laurie Anderson, who turns 69 on June 5. I discovered that she once mentioned to an astrologer that she has Gemini rising, so I read that chart, which is great fun. I play several selections from Mister Heartbreak, her second album, presented symmetrically as two pairs of twin compositions (one pair of which features her twin soul Peter Gabriel). Planet Waves is sponsored by your patronage of our business. Thank you kindly. With love,  Video still from an incredible three-minute presentation recommended by Eric McLuhan.
Find Yourself! A New Class by Eric Francis Astrology: A Study in Figure and Background
Dear Friend and Reader: Astrology (or most astrology) has it backwards. First, astrologers begin with the "official" model of the solar system. Then they bring in rules, regulations and stories written by other people. Usually this is based on a reading of your most distant past, the moment of your birth. Only certain factors count (generally, the old ones). I start from a different premise. The photo at the top of the page -- that circular swarm of objects -- is a more honest representation of the solar system, as we now understand it to be. This cyclone of planets knows of no laws (outside of astrophysics), it's changing constantly, and ancient philosophers have never gone near it. It cannot be reduced to personality formulas, and it's in a constant state of flux and discovery. Which more accurately represents your life? Find Yourself: The Astrology of Now is my new class premiering Saturday, June 18. It's the latest in a series of classes designed to bring astrology up to date, and make its relevance obvious. Read more...  Image by bluejewel24.
A World of Choice: The Planet Waves BoutiqueThank you for all you and your team do! I can't remember what life was like before I discovered Planet Waves. -- Cheryl CorsonThe Planet Waves Boutique is a testament to the versatility and thoroughness that makes Eric's work unique. The stunning array of readings, from individually-tailored birthday readings to the gorgeous Vision Quest project, is designed to ensure you can find exactly what you need -- and these readings make perfect gifts for your loved ones too. In addition, we have all our current memberships listed in one handy place; plus, you can sign up for Eric's brand-new astrology class or access past ones. The Boutique gets regular updates, and you're welcome to visit at any time. If you're looking for a product you can't see, please feel free to email cs@planetwaves.net. We'll be happy to help. Get Your Hand-Painted Journal Today
Eric has been experimenting with different types of paints, textures and journals to bring all of you a wonderful gift of passion and creativity right from his fingertips. When you sign up for or extend a Core Community membership for one year, you can receive one of the Planet Waves custom-branded, embossed journals. You have your choice of red, black, blue and purple. Eric will even add a splash of paint on these, if you'd like. Emerge and Grow with Your Gemini Reading "Thank you for this moment of clarity Eric – just one of so many really."Dear Gemini (and those who love them): As Eric describes in this week's Planet Waves FM, this is a big year for anyone with Gemini Sun, rising or Moon. The Gemini New Moon on the mutable grand cross this weekend is just one of the energetic peaks speaking to you and influencing your world -- and it's a strong one.
But where to start? Why not listen to last year's Gemini reading, on us, to help you get perspective on the last 12 months. "Listening to an Eric Francis reading is very much like having an intimate conversation with a valued friend and mentor." -- Nora Connaughton The 2016-17 Gemini Birthday Reading will be a mix of video and audio segments, and will include Eric's one-of-a-kind tarot reading for your sign (shown in video). You can listen and watch as many times as you like -- and this reading will make an incredible gift for any Gemini loved ones who are seeking their true path. "I loved the video format -- seeing you in your lovely studio, with chart in hand. Everything, as always, was totally spot on. And I truly enjoyed watching you, instead of just hearing a disembodied voice." -- Liz Glanville Once the reading publishes, the price will increase. Gemini might be famous for the whole 'twin' thing, but there's no two ways about it: pre-ordering your Gemini reading now is a clear step to give yourself the tools you need to move your relationships, career, creativity, spiritual healing and more forward in a holistic, inspirational and unified way. Yours & truly, Amanda Painter  Your Monthly Horoscopes -- and our Publishing Schedule Notes We published your extended monthly horoscope for June on Thursday, May 26. We published your extended monthly horoscope for May on Thursday, April 21. We published your Moonshine horoscope for the Taurus New Moon, by Len Wallick, on Thursday, May 5. Please note: we normally publish the extended monthly horoscope on the first Friday after the Sun has entered a new sign. Short Monthly Horoscope for June 2016, #1103 | By Eric Francis
           
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