By Len Wallick
Standin’ at the crossroad / risin’ Sun goin’ down…
– Robert Johnson “Cross Road Blues”
Our week starts off with a Taurus conjunction of Venus and Mars. On the surface, this aspect would appear to be exclusively earthy and sensual. This interpretation is part of the picture, since the energies of the divine feminine and masculine are clearly merging in the fertile fields of self-possession. As with all things aesthetic, however, that perspective will do for the day but it does not satisfy for the long term. In the big picture, there is something more going on.
In the longer and wider view, this conjunction of Venus and Mars is a tipping point. In our public and private lives, it finds us at a crossroads. This intersection has to do with the issues of power and gender in relationship, as current events verify.
The former chief of the International Monetary Fund and the previous governor of California are finding themselves being called accountable. In their respective legal and public arenas, both of these male humans (one hesitates call them men) are facing consequences for sexual behavior taken with impunity and out of a sense of entitlement. Having been so invested in their power, both Mr. Strauss-Kahn and Mr. Schwarzenegger are undoubtedly surprised that things would have come to such an awkward pass.
By the same token, no one of us can foretell with certainty the outcome for these two representatives of the patriarchy. It is meaningful but still largely symbolic that both are being called onto the carpet they thought they owned. While many are clear in their opinions, there is no clarity on the eventual resolution. Whether or not Strauss-Kahn is subject to just process and how the Governator’s prolonged indiscretion will affect his status and earning power will go a long way towards helping us to evaluate where we all are in our collective social evolution.