By Judith Gayle | Political Waves
It was 108 in St. Louis on Thursday. It was projected to be 106 in Nashville on Friday. The forecasters thought it pertinent to mention that neither of those cities are located in the deserts of Nevada or Arizona, subject to extreme heat, and that both of them were suffering under hotter skies than even Florida.
It turns out that this has been the warmest spring on the books, breaking some 18,000 recorded highs, and summer is setting out to do the same. This is the kind of thing that makes us anxious; it’s hard on young and old alike, especially in an economy that leaves millions struggling to put food on the table, let alone affording to turn on the air. Last year was record-breaking in Europe; this year, we’re already ahead of the competition.
Heat in the Midwest is vastly different from that of either coast, where climate has its own rules. The random very hot or very cold season aside, we abide as best we can, mid-country. There’s seldom any change to the time-proven ways of dealing with seasons. We don’t even irrigate crops around here, depending on rain to fill ponds to pull from in emergencies, or to water critters in a drought. We’ve had years of warning that the weather was getting more extreme, that we would eventually see the results of ignoring climate change, but — damn it! — we’re still not ready.
Is anybody ever really ready for change? Can’t we just wish it away? Pretend it isn’t there? Well, the answer is, yes, we can, and at least half of the nation has become quite artful at doing so.
I heard earlier this week, for instance, that since everyone knew the Supremes were going to find Obama’s Affordable Care Act unconstitutional, robbing him of his signature legislation and proving him a weak and ineffectual president, Romney’s personal cachet was growing among the undecided. Indeed, without the dreaded tyranny of Obamacare to weigh down the aspirations of the right, the freely-spent assets of the anti-Obama Billionaires’ Club and ongoing efforts at voter suppression were all that was needed to deliver a new Republican era.
Apparently, when the right sniffs the political air to get a sense of things, they can’t get past their own over-amped testosterone. It’s a little early yet for a Mission Accomplished banner, but those of us watching know it’s a tried and true Republican tactic to wave one furiously in an attempt to demoralize the opposition. Now, given the way the right is behaving, it seems a good many of them counted those chickens before they hatched.
If you’re really listening to the universe, you can sometimes get a heads up on these things. Way back at the beginning of the century — just after the Supremes made one of those life-changing decisions of theirs — I got the blinking yellow light. Over the course of a lifetime, I’ve developed an early warning system in my solar plexus: unattended when all is well, it activates when there is danger, flashing an aura distortion that is impossible to ignore.
In the first days of George W.’s reign, for instance, it went off like a fire alarm as I paged through a scant collection of political websites, dumbfounded by GOP hubris and hypocrisy, alarmed at the gutting of standing policy. “How are we going to stop this (expletive deleted) from unleashing an avalanche of damage on the Great Society?” I wrote friends. “Is anybody recording all this so we’ll be able to restore what’s being lost?” I fretted, I stewed, always mindful that I had the High Court, gone politically rogue, to thank.
Twelve years later, the Supremes are still changing the world. The Supreme Court of the United States is one-third of the governing body of the nation, the judicial branch that exists along with the legislative and executive. It has neither the power of the purse, as does the House of Representatives, nor of the sword, as does the Senate, but recent history gives us an illustration of its power to change the course of the nation. It exists as the arbiter of law as it relates to the United States Constitution, and the justices invariably represent opposing camps: the Federalists, protecting states from Federal overreach, and the liberal wing which assumes the Constitution to be a living document, flexible to the needs of a changing culture. SCOTUS has traditionally sought to remain above the fray of sordid politics, cloistered amid its legal briefs and honors, depending upon the respect and acceptance of the American public, and yet historically, it has seldom succeeded. Progressive change brings out its worst. FDR went to war with his SCOTUS; LBJ had his own battles.
Whenever there is a Democratic president in power you will hear the other party cry and whine about the nomination of activist judges who would “legislate from the bench,” i.e., usurp the power of Congress to make law. Both parties play politics, but no one beats the level of projection that the GOP has made into an art form, accusing the other side of what it is either doing itself or planning to do. Even now, after almost an entire term, a sizable number of Obama’s judicial nominations remain unconfirmed due to GOP obstruction of their potential “activism.” This has made life difficult for courts — and citizens — all across the nation, but nothing will sway the radical right from denying Obama a win.
Meanwhile, the Roberts court has turned itself into a branch of government the public now sees as both activist and corporate-friendly. Indeed, just this week they had opportunity to revisit their Citizens United ruling, but instead doubled-down, leaving us with the harsh truth that unless Congress intervenes, big money will remain a ‘person’ with a very loud voice. In fact, these days it’s screaming.
Let’s get back to that happy world that the Pubs live in, unfettered by reality. Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker isn’t going to enforce ACA until November, sure that the wind will change by then. Ditto on Louisiana’s Bobby Jindal. Jindal, by the way, made a slip of the tongue the other day, calling ACA “Obamneycare.” That will quickly be forgotten by his own, who have also forgotten that Romney himself embraced the insurance reform that we’ve cloned, relying heavily on the mandate to make it affordable. Ruth Bader Ginsburg cited the Massachusetts program in her brief this week, making it obvious that no matter how much Mitt squirms, he’s not going to wiggle away from his culpability in health care reform.
Like the call on immigration last week, the decision on the Affordable Care Act is a double-edged sword, cutting both ways. In immigration, both sides declared victory. With ACA, both sides SHOULD be declaring victory but I’m not sure the Pub base — devoted to theocratic ideology as well as simplistic rhetoric à la Tea Party — is aware of the major corporate players pulling the GOP strings. They’ve been given a gift and I wonder if they see it.
Rather than ruling ACA viable according to provisions of interstate commerce, Roberts has decided it can go forward as a function of the tax code. That’s a Tea Party battle cry, is it not? Might as well paint his face blue and show us his bum! Michele Bachmann has already swallowed her tongue twice, declaring that now the government can force us all to buy IKEA(?!). If the demoralized GOP base — unimpressed by their Mormon candidate, whom approximately 20% of Americans will NOT vote for because of religious concerns — can’t get a collective Come To Jesus moment now, it never will!
The radicals have already gone semi-hysterical, calling Roberts a traitor, yelping that he has betrayed Federalism and those who had granted him their unyielding support. But it seems to me that Roberts has served his party well, giving the insurance industry what it wanted: a mandated clientele and cash cow. He’s also given the radical right a B12 booster, while taking the heat off his court, approval for which had dropped to an impressively dismal 44 percent. Judge Roberts has done his corporate best.
Still and all, this is Obama’s victory, even if imperfect. He keeps his legislation, and the American people are without question the winners, solidifying the gains they’ve made in insurance coverage and oversight. And there is no question that should Obama win the election, the benefits that will become available in the next two years will quickly become too popular with the public to overturn. That is a progressive platform to build on, throwing fuel on Obama’s campaign and providing the base what Mike Moore calls a “mandate to act.” Mike’s got a point. We can build on this momentum, bring the populist message into sharper focus, promote the progressive agenda. Nobody is suggesting that we didn’t need this win badly, except …
Except that when I thought about the ramifications of this decision over the last few weeks, there had been no flashing yellow. I pretty much depend on that to ratchet up into a battle stance. On Thursday, I woke up without the out-of-synch feeling that puts me on alert. Considering the amount of coverage on this pending decision, it seemed probable that there would be a storm of some kind, but it wasn’t showing up in my body. I thought maybe my light was out; maybe my alert system had been overridden by the heat, which was set to hit double-digits and make breathing and movement an uneasy exercise.
That morning, Fishin’ Jim and I drove into the big city to visit a friend in the critical care unit at the hospital. Mid-morning, I went to the ICU waiting room to see if the decision had been announced. Family members of one of the patients had put out mattresses on one side of the room, crashing from what had obviously been a long night, so people were tip-toeing, and the television was turned off. I didn’t turn it on. On our way out, no one mentioned politics — busy with matters of life and death — and when we got in the truck, finding news on the radio proved problematic. Lots of oldies, lots of country — no news. I took it upon myself to provide a thorough search, moving by small increments until I heard a voice.
A droning, sonorous voice I recognized, but couldn’t place. It called on the Almighty for protection against inequity, it pleaded for help in hard and dangerous times. It referenced itself in peculiar and egocentric ways, and as it raised itself in condemnation of that vile betrayer, Justice John Roberts, I recognized who was speaking. I take it as a sign that I learned about Obama’s SCOTUS victory listening to Glenn Beck hold forth, calling for heaven to smite the socialist horde, of which I am a member (and in good standing, I might add.) I smiled all the way home,but I’m not counting my chickens.
Roberts decision to approve ACA as an exercise in taxation bypassed the Federalist issue of compelling commerce, which without approval serves as rebuff. If his party was less reactive and more nuanced, they’d recognize his intent and praise his cleverness. Make no mistake, this issue isn’t over. We will face more suits challenging other portions of ACA. The Pubs mean to deal ACA death by a thousand cuts, and they’re good at it.
The only thing that can stop such an assault is an awakening public, and in that regard, R.J. Eskow wrote a good piece about what we must do to capitalize on this win. He’s got a nice section called 10 Lessons for the Battles to Come, and trust me, they’re coming. Probable challenges to voting rights law, affirmative action and perhaps even Roe are all in the hopper in the near future. But for whatever reason, I’m not flashing alarm, I’m not preparing for battle.
And I think that’s about more than the heat. I think it’s the new energies flooding in, changing the way people look at these things, and some of them are breathtaking. News of the day tells us that the big money of corporate sponsors can’t be matched by Obama and his followers, for instance. It’s not going to happen, even as the party clamors for their supporters to send more and more, but somehow that feels like an old paradigm concern. This kind of financial overkill is what my great-grandpa would call “too big for their britches.” Perhaps just staring down the monolith of that kind of financial prowess will have a boomerang effect on a nation that still believes in democratic process.
Perhaps the inequity of such irresponsible power, speculation about an election bought and paid for, will put a bitter taste in the mouth of the voting public. Four years ago, people didn’t know what they were up against. Now they’re politicized, and unhappily, but no longer unaware of what they face. And while I’m not counting my chickens, it’s good to remember that this is only the beginning of the Pluto/Uranus energy, set to give us other shocks and surprises. I can be completely confident in suggesting that, as when it shifted the vision of the nation in the ’60s, everything — even money and what it will buy — will look different on the other side.
If you attend some Fourth of July function this weekend, be safe, and remember: liberty and justice for all is STILL an American dream beloved by the world, well worth defending. When we’re looking at what counts, that’s the sum of it. And that’s a real green light for me this year, the first at-ease moment I’ve felt in quite a while. This is the year that makes a difference. May God/dess bless America and those of our brothers and sisters yearning to be free.
geoff,
Thanks for sharing. Much to comtemplate as we watch him ripen to maturity.
be
It’s certainly an interesting chart for Justice Roberts in 2020, be. As you pointed out, Jupiter and Saturn are almost exactly conjunct his natal Chiron at the winter solstice, while Pluto opposes his natal Jupiter-Uranus conjunction (again, almost exactly in the case of Jupiter). Interestingly, he has no earth in his chart apart from the north node. It will be another election year in 2020, of course, although by then he will be 65. Maybe the fashion will be for more mature and experienced presidents by then.
Apart from his Chiron placement, Brendan, the main factor that drew my attention to his chart was that he and I share the same birthday, although he is 11 years younger than I. Strangely numerological, the number 11. More interesting from an astrological perspective is that while I have Sun opposite Pluto, he has Mercury opposite Pluto – in both cases from Aquarius to Leo. No doubt he has been privy to much secret and potentially dangerous information in his time which has required him to balance the public’s right to know against the interests of its leaders. From his biography on Wikipaedia, it would seem that he uses the American Constitution as the basis for those decisions.
Thank you Judith for your in depth look at this issue and your thoughtful responses. Best to all as we navigate these waters; may we keep our eyes on the horizon and all, somehow, arrive safely on the other side with our health needs taken care of in the most life affirming ways possible.
It is always a pleasure to read you, Jude, and this piece is a good call to action. I’ve actually spent the majority of the time between 1989 and now without any form of health insurance. Out of those years, employers have only covered me for 9 and 1/2 by my reckoning, so any attempt at changing how the system is gamed, er, ‘run,’ is fine by me. I am also onboard with going single payer eventually, as that really works for everyone.
Next year, with a full-time contract in hand, I do have it, and just in time for me to have another colonoscopy. I’ve paid out of pocket for two already, and both times I’ve had polyps removed (it’s a family thing). In the past of course, that family history would be a pre-existing condition, so no coverage for me! Not anymore. Amen and Hallelujah!
Interesting about Roberts’ natal planets: I’m Aq at 22 degrees, and Chiron is also at 22 degrees, four years and a few days after he. Hmmm, lots of room for thinking about that…
We’re amazed too Geoff, although I’ve not seen any polling statistics to back up the “most civilized nation” notion. Have seen poll numbers on the question about whether the U.S. government should look after the welfare of its people (or words to that effect) and it often reads about 45% yes, 40% no and 15 % undecided. (a little U.S. dark humor, not meant to be taken literally!)
be
Cheers, be. Happy to serve, as Len would say. Honours to you, Len. 2020? My word, you’re certainly looking ahead. I’d got as far as Inauguration Day 2013 – the Sun (and Mercury) is conjunct Justice Roberts’ natal Chiron. Is that scary? Then again, Inauguration Day is always around 0 Aquarius, isn’t it?
As a Brit, may I offer you this perspective from abroad? We find it amazing that the most civilised country in the western world doesn’t look after the health of its people. Socialism? What’s in a name? Isn’t it the purpose of government to look after the welfare of its people?
And thank you Geoff; I’d not gone that far to check on Justice Roberts’ natal Chiron. I’m grateful that you did because that is where Jupiter and Saturn will next meet in conjunction, 0 Aquarius, in December, 2020.
Thanks to Jude also for noting that this legislation is a beginning only, and explaining where we need to go from here. Like mystes, most of us here long for insurance coverage of holistic treatments, and who knows, Neptune will be in Pisces for many years so it could happen in our lifetime, especially if we work toward that goal.
starry, Huffy, dawn, thank you for sharing your experiences and I too hope that the future holds good health for you. Like Jude, I don’t carry private health insurance anymore although I do have Medicare (regular and Rx). In many ways my health has improved since I left the workplace.. . less stress being the most likely factor, but I keep one foot in the “system” (healthcare being part of it) and the other exploring the many interesting and earth-friendly modes of operation. As a senior citizen with a Cancer Sun, you just can’t be too cautious, you know?
be
Dawn, I don’t want to take things off topic on this comment thread, but I may be able to point you in the direction of a healer. If you’re interested, email me (louisehope34 at gmail dot com)
You have my empathy, starrynight, and my concern. Unfortunately, your story is fairly typical and is obviously WHY the liberals have pushed so hard to keep ACA in place, even if it is … truly, and reflecting other comments here … not about a health care revolution but rather amendment to the health care DELIVERY system.
We DO need a revolution in health care but my guess is that what has started as a holistic grass roots movement must continue to gain advocacy. When a great idea catches fire among the people, it can’t be denied. More and more of us are there — one of these days we’ll see a focus on health instead of sickness, and herbs and nutrition instead of chemicals. Keep the faith.
As to my stand on ACA and health care, what needs to happen next:
1] health care must NOT be a for-profit proposition, exemplified by the difference between Medicare’s 2% administrative cost and insurance companies raking in 20-30% profit, which makes single-payer [Medicare for all] the only option to control this frenzy of overhead. As long as money is the bottom line, the welfare of the patient is, at best, secondary. And for that, we each spend thousands each year just for the privilege of being turned down for necessary care. What part of insane do we not understand, here?
and
2] American health care costs — configured on the “all the market can bear” philosophy and more than TWICE that of any other country — must be not only controlled but lowered to meet the needs of an increasingly-aging demographic. These costs are arbitrary. Someone at the top “decides” how much to charge and then everyone comes up to meet that standard.
It’s absurd on its face to spend over a hundred bucks for a bottle of antibiotics but as long as insurance companies make theirs, big pharma makes theirs and health care professionals make theirs, nobody seems concerned about how DIFFICULT it is, these days, to come up with that C-note! Many folks do without; others decide between meds and food. Ridiculous in a nation this prosperous and preposterous that we don’t complain, long and loud, until somebody HEARS! We just sigh and move along so of course nothing much happens. The medical industrial complex has to begin to feel some heat!
My son-in-law went through a long period of layoff, finally found an (inadequate) job but was unable to buy into the insurance plan offered him because it was too expensive, leaving his family of four exposed and fragile. Chronically unable to meet expenses and provide necessities in that workplace, he finally quit to pursue side work that was a better use of his time and still left him with options, so I presume they can now qualify for assistance and probably be better off. That story would no doubt work the nerves of hard-core Pubs (who aren’t similarly struggling,) but what’s the answer? As the middle class continues to shrink, I hope we find it.
Meanwhile, as long as the workplace is the “provider” of healthcare, we’re stuck in servitude to whatever slim benefits are offered. The workplace NEVER “gave us” healthcare, by the way, and still hesitates to do so — it was hard won by unions, as were protections from being victimized by long hours and unsafe working conditions. Your story about the young firefighters is so poignant, starrynight. As my dear Fishin’ Jim, the retired union rep sez, they can’t take our liberty but we can sure as hell GIVE it away!
With the power of labor at a historic low, we are once again vulnerable in the workplace. And even though ACA provides tax breaks to small business offering coverage, I think it’s critical that we wrestle healthcare OUT of the hands of employers, and nationalize. But then — you know — I’m a socialist.
Me, I haven’t had health insurance since 1996 and my chronically unemployed son has none either. Like Mystes and others commenting, I depend on alternative methods but I’m not downplaying the need for Western med, reflected by health issues like those described by dawn, for instance. According to info from the White House, what you probably need — insurance exchange, assistance via tax credit, etc. — doesn’t kick in until 2014, and frankly, that delay has been what’s been wrong with this from the beginning, along with the administrations feeble attempts to “sell it.” We should be farther along in accepting that this reform is not only necessary but beneficial. I guess we’re going to have to see it to believe it, so lets keep our wings crossed that we have that opportunity. Until then, kiddo, you and so many other of us will have to hang in, do the best we can and work toward public education and policy relief.
Here’s what the White House sez has been shored up — so we’ll know what we can expect — and this was ALWAYS just a starting point. The coming months will give us a sense of what the public demands. The mantra to deliver single-payer is MEDICARE FOR ALL. Post it on Facebook.
http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2012/06/28/supreme-court-upholds-president-obamas-health-care-reform
Gonna keep you in my thoughts and prayers, starry and dawn — and welcome, Geoff, glad you’re here. Thanks too to be, Len, Fe, Huffy and all for your kind comments and your intelligent conversation. You rock!
Happy 4th, when it comes and remember … with Liberty and Justice for ALL!
I did want to add one more thing just to be clear: for the majority of people here in Mass. that obtain health insurance through their employers, nothing has changed. They are grooving right along as usual. The health care reforms here really help those who are not able to access insurance in the traditional way, either because their employers don’t offer it or because they are unemployed, etc.
As a resident of Massachusetts who has health insurance at the moment solely because of Mitt Romney’s reforms here, I have enormous gratitude for what he did here and equally enormous dismay at his current proposal to roll back health insurance regulations to a pre-1996 world where people with pre-existing conditions will never be able to obtain insurance again if they decide to leave their job after they discover that they have such a condition. (People often forget that Clinton at least made it possible for those with pre-existing conditions to change jobs and get health insurance with their new employer if that employer offers a group plan. Romney is now looking to eliminate even that!)
The program here in Mass. can be incredibly complex and is not without flaws, including a certain amount of “churning” where people might have to shift from one insurance plan to another depending on changes to their income. It does require a certain amount of determination and follow-through to research the best options for your geographical area, especially since in some rural areas it might be tough to find a doctor who accepts certain plans.
Without giving the ugly details, I can say that this program literally saved my life, and it has especially aided all those who are/were unemployed in this challenging economy and all those who have pre-existing conditions. It has been the most wondrous gift for me during one of the most incredibly challenging periods of my life. I would not be here without it.
What I find most fascinating about how the right responds to this health care issue is its total refusal to acknowledge how this program has allowed a spirit of entrepreneurship to blossom in this state. Many people (young ones especially) have been able to get start-up businesses off the ground specifically because they don’t need to rely on being employed by someone else in order to obtain health insurance. Being able to provide insurance for themselves has freed up so many to pursue their own professional dreams and contribute to the economy.
I could go on and on and on about this, but all I will say is that I think this is such an important issue. I believe that about 98 percent of people in Mass. now have health coverage, and the health system itself has made incredibly positive internal reforms to handle the new patient load. Lots of good things happened here, and the system is still adjusting.
I still marvel at my luck that I ended up here when my life exploded!!
Thanks for posting the birth date of Justice Roberts, be. I was intrigued to see that his natal chart has Chiron at 0 Aquarius. Bringing healing to the wounded community? A good start to a new age, I’d say.
Best of luck, dawn! (((( ))))
No, Huffy, I don’t.
The hospital where I had one of the chemo treatments offered visualization to help deal with the treatment, but I did not find it to be necessary, for me.
*Getting* chemo was a breeze, had no reactions to it (until later when the Bleomycin toxicity kicked ina and I could hardly breathe).
2 anti-nausea drugs worked perfectly, tho one would keep me up and wired for 3-4 days, so that I’d crash and sleep for 2-3 days – dexamethasone, a *very* powerful steroid, way worse than prednisone.
I tried meditation when I was young, but always fell asleep, and had an out of body experience, and other psychic experiences, which I did not like at all. I’m an action person, a ram, feet on the ground!, and need to make concrete efforts.
I wouldn’t mind trying a hand-on healer, but as I alluded to – funds shortage, esp. for alternative, is pricey, and iffy in results.
But, though rams may have their feet on the ground, those feet can scale heights quite easily. This mountain, I am climbing!
Dawn – I imagine you already do meditation and visualisation work? Where you sit quietly and visualise your blood cells, body, etc as healthy – using the images that work best for you. It’s really powerful and healing stuff. And what about a really powerful, trustworthy hands-on healer?
Yes, I do hope so, Huffy! And the effects of 22 radiation treatments, which may not show their ugly heads for years yet.
Some modern diseases can be healed through healthier living, but chemo and radiation damage is so systemic, that healing is not a matter of just cutting out sugar and junk food, taking omega 3’s and exercising more. It’s been 4 years and the healing still needs to continue. Oncologists do *not* give you any inkling of what you will be up against, and just how pro-active one needs to be to, not just survive, but heal.
I’m really sorry about that, dawn. Chemo has devastating effects on the body. But if you’ve got this far with your healing already, sounds like it won’t be long before you get to the bottom of it.
Thanks, Huffy, but not quite there yet!
Chemo left me with health issues which 2 cardiologists can’t explain, but I am tenacious and will get to the bottom of it, and am mostly off the meds.
And it’s great that you found your own way through.
Interesting about your son, dawn. It’s so good that you were able to find the cause of his ‘strep throat’. All too often our dependency on traditional medicine gets transferred to alternative treatment, when we find allopathic medicine isn’t working for us. How can we expect to be cured by people who don’t know the first thing about how their own bodies and minds work, let alone others? And as Mystes said, in so many words, less is more.
Huffy,
Much like when my son, now 31, was small, he kept getting *strep throat*, or so the pediatrician said.
He’d no sooner finish one round of antibiotics, then he’d be sick again. The doc thought nothing odd of this, naturally, happy to dispense gut-flora stripping drugs to children.
But then my husband saw a show about lactose-intolerance. We put him on lactose-free milk and he never had *strep throat* again.
And, like you, I’ve found Naturopaths can be just as dangerous as western med docs, so I’ve been relying on myself to heal my health, and doing a far better job of it, not to mention not having to come up with about $135 for each Naturopath visit, and then not have her help me in between visits. Only helping when she was being paid.
At least western med docs will try and help, though they’re strangled by their limited knowledge of nutrition, herbs, supplements and bio-identical hormones.
Health care reform or no, if one really wants to heal one’s body and doesn’t have the funds to lay out to alternative practitioners, we’re it.
And though alternative medicine is infinitely preferable to allopathic treatment, two of these ‘specialsts’ were homeopaths. They took out all the watch parts, but were unable to put them back in again – so to speak. But I suppose that when you’re going through that dark night of the soul, everything and everyone colludes to push you through it, so they played an important role in the process.
Thanks for another great piece, Jude.
And well said, Mystes! I spent much of my adult life visiting various specialists in an attempt to cure chronic migraines and flu bouts. I eventually gave up when I realised it was doing me more harm than good. And then, last October, I discovered, through a dream, that the problem was gluten – and all the symptoms have cleared since I gave it up.
Across the board I guess this is a “good” outcome… most people use and have confidence in allopathic (AMA) medicine, so this works for the vast majority.
But I still wonder if it went through simply because it was sanctioned by Big (actually, the biggest after war) Bidness/Insurance/Medicne, which stands to make a coupla trillion off of the people sickened by our runaway industrial processes.
Me, I’m gonna pass. The moment homeopathy/naturopathy/chiropractic/herbalists offer an insurance program, there I go.
My clients who use *no* pharmaceuticals are the healthiest. And no, it is not an obvious correlation. They are usually doped to the gills by their docs, and then after a few years of Medicare-pushed drugs slowly realize that *no* they don’t actually have high blood pressure, high cholesterol, osteoporosis, depression. They have a raft of conflicting chemicals poured into their bloodstreams by competing ‘specialists.’ Many wise up and dump everything, take walks and give themselves occasional B12 shots.
Voila, all better.
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Jude,
I think you are right about Justice Roberts. There’s even more astrology to back up his fair-mindedness. I didn’t print out his chart (born Jan 27, 1955) but checking the ephemeris shows his natal Uranus is also conjunct his Jupiter in Cancer. He has a Pisces Moon and I found it interesting that his Mercury in Aquarius is opposite his Pluto in Leo.
Starting last December and on through the beginning of April, transiting Saturn was on or within one degree of his Neptune in Libra and will return to it again through most of September. At the end of that month there is a Full Moon at 7 Aries which will be one degree from his Jupiter and transiting Uranus at 6 Aries (and 2 degrees from his Jupiter) will have just made the 2nd square to transiting Pluto. I’m sure he will make news again at that time, be it more about the health care act or some other major decision. Transiting Venus will be conjunct his Pluto at that time.
I hope you are wrong about it being a hunkered-down-in-defense kind of summer, but this weather doesn’t inspire much hope that’s for sure. No garden here, but every 2 hours (at least) I change the birds/squirrels water dishes out on my balcony, otherwise it would be boiling. Adding ice cubes help but pity the poor momma birds who still have youngin’s they are trying to teach to eat for themselves. I’m not much in the way of help for them ‘cept to keep a supply of seed and nuts available during the day.
So grateful to you for keeping watch on the government (and the police!) because it is too sordid for me to follow closely. Thanks too for the note on Bill Maher’s show. Miss him very much since I had to give up HBO. Oh the sacrifices we make to keep our heads above water!
Thanks Len; my pleasure.
be
Beautifully nuanced and just right, Jude. Just right.
P.S. I am self-employed part time. Another decision facing me is whether I need to find a fulltime job with benefits just to pay for health insurance, as even full time self employed I can’t afford it. But if I do work full time, it effects our income taxes negatively. It’s almost humorous. No. It IS humorous!
But I do consider these high quality problems. There are so many in our country in such worse straits.
Jude: Thank you. Wow. A formidable achievement of intellect and writing skill today. Taking global warming, your personal oracular protocol and the Supreme court decision and waving them in a manner what would do Shakespeare proud. Your analysis of Chief Justice Roberts’ probable motivations feels just right (so to speak) and serves as a brilliant companion piece to Fe’s powerfully cogent blog and Eric’s audio civics lesson (as well as his subscriber’s edition feature) earlier this week. i’m in awe of this piece today, Jude, and also taught by it. Never has it been such a pleasure to be so deeply humbled.
be: Thank you for bringing your exciting revelations of Chief Justice Roberts’ personal astrology to the fore. Your reading of the synastry is a touchstone that deserves a more widespread recognition.
Judith,
You are a breath of fresh air (a gulp of clean, clear water.) Let’s make the political personal now. My husband and I are in early retirement. He is a retired firefighter with 30 years under his belt. Given that his union consists largely of younger members, they let health care benefits as part of their retirement package go. Yes, they did. So he retired without health care benefits. We could’ve segued into a group conversion and did for a while, but then we moved to another state that did not carry that insurance and had to purchase much more expensive premiums. I am semi-retired, so I worked for a while and was able to get health care benefits through that job. When I left it, I lost the benefits so we purchased a group conversion at, again, high premiums. Then we left that state to move to our current state, where we are losing that insurance because it will not cover us outside that state.
At this point, I suddenly find myself denied due to “pre-existing” conditions. The irony is that the so called pre-existing condition was a red herring the docs chased down, ultimately concluding that, though I have an abnormal result on one test, it is “clinically insignificant.” The problem is that they had to use diagnostic codes to bill for their detective work and those codes, whilst getting them paid, created red flags for my getting health insurance, should I have to let go of the current insurance (which I do since moving out of that state.)
Our health insurance from the last state expires tomorrow. Having been declined again, we purchased temporary health insurance that is nothing but catastrophic coverage (which by the way is all our current $5000/$10000 deductible 80/20 health insurance was anyway) but will cover us in case of some unforeseen major medical event. We can keep the temporary insurance up to six months while we search for someone who will accept both of us on a family policy.
Because I was declined, I could apply for state coverage, but it will not cover my husband, as he was not declined. To purchase individual policies for both of us is so cost prohibitive (minimum of $1000 total) that we just can’t do it. The plan now is to apply to multiple companies and appeal decisions, etc. in the hopes I’ll get accepted, as the broker advised us that the place that declined me has the strictest underwriters and she thinks I may get accepted elsewhere.
All this, mind you, for health insurance that, should we have a medical event, would cost us a minimum of $17k to $20k up front out of pocket, and about $5k-10k plus copay thereafter and, should we not have a medical event, costs us a minimum (so far) of almost $9k a year just for premiums alone.
My husband btw does not qualify for Social Security, as he has a pension (thank god/dess) but since I do, he can get Medicare in four years. I won’t get it for seven more years. Still, as I understand it, we need coverage in the meantime and need to have coverage when we do beome eligible.
So those are the twists and turns our country’s health insurance have taken us so far. Health insurance has the potential to disrupt our life to the point of deciding where we must live (we moved anyway) and taking a large chunk of our resources even though we are healthy. It could be much much much worse and I am grateful it is not.
But I thought I’d share a bit on how the political is so very personal these days.
Btw, transiting Uranus squares my natal Mars, which transiting Pluto conjuncts. Transiting Mars will soon square my natal Mars and natal Uranus as well. And I, like Roberts, have that Jupiter in Cancer, as well as transiting Jupiter in my sun sign and 6th house this year (and Venus as well for a while). Hope that helps!
You know, be, of all the conservative justices, Roberts seems the most fair-minded to me, in his own way. I’d guess that this decision comes from that inner compulsion, and truly, none of us can know his motives for making this call, although I’d like to think that Cancer Jup gives him the ability to cultivate compassion for the public wellbeing. With Uranus conjunct his natal Mars, I think I’ll keep some Light on him in my meditations; he has a lot of crazy people pissed at him today. Thanks for fleshing his internal goads out for us.
I know the founders put this leg of government in place to balance the other two, but … as with all government entity … it’s impossible to keep political bias out of it, even though we insist that’s the case. Last night Bill Maher complained that SCOTUS has been taking cases that they’ve obviously made prior decision about, and then finding the legal precedents to support their personal bias. Fareed Zakaria was one of his guests, and he laughed, said DUH! These guys are all lawyers, that’s what lawyers do.
It seems to me that when police do that — and they do it all the time — we usually don’t find out that it was done until we ALSO find out that they prosecuted the wrong person. They made up their mind, and then adjusted the evidence to fit the crime. We disapprove of what we think of as targeting, the American people inherently fair-minded and respectful, if naive, of the process of justice.
In terms of SCOTUS, although we idealize their level of expertise, it does not follow that their ethics are equally developed. I suppose we should keep in mind that old story about the scorpion that wanted to cross the river and convinced the frog that he wouldn’t hurt him. When he did sting, halfway across, he pleaded his own case thus: I’m a scorpion, what did you think I’d do? With the Supreme’s — lawyers all, skilled at finding justification for any given premiss — we should respectfully remember that they were chosen by political entities for their records. That makes them political as a matter of fact. We just pretend they’re above it all!
And yes, the watery Neptune and Chiron placements lend us some saving grace, right now — urging folks to feel their way through this. SOOO much more trustworthy than arguing how many angels can dance on the head of a pin. ACIM sez that we’re all insane, here; some days that’s an easier idea to entertain!
Trust you’re managing the Ohio heat — personally, I’m struggling this year. And so is my poor little garden [what I call the “precious weeds.”] I think I may spend much of this summer hunkered down in defense of extremes.
And I think you are so right Jude. . its about more than the heat. It’s hotter than blue blazes here in the Ohio Valley too, but when we think about those new energies flooding in and if we do get a panic message from our solar plexus, we absolutely must remember that Neptune is never what he seems to be. Neptune is powerful baby. He too works in mysterious ways; indirect ways, subtle and emotional ways.
We have and will continue to discuss the motivations behind Chief Justice Roberts’ decision, but the fact is that transiting Uranus is conjunct Roberts’ natal Mars. Transiting Pluto is square his natal Mars. Transiting Neptune is decile his Mars, and Mars is action.
Then there is also transiting Varuna, the old Hindu God of the Waters who once ruled as king of all the gods. Varuna can express his energy by regulating without force and transiting Varuna is conjunct Chief Justice Roberts’ natal Jupiter in Cancer. Jupiter is a bestower of gifts and a Cancer Jupiter bestows gifts on the family, and in this case, the Cancer Sun country of the United States.
It is hotter than the hinges of Hades but there is also the smell. . above and beyond the odor of testosterone. . of water. There is a feel of water, a flood of restorative water just a short distance from here and now. That is the gift of Neptune in Pisces.
Thanks so much for yet again another brilliant and humorous article Ms. Gayle. You never let us down.
be