Dear Friend and Reader:
The ongoing government shutdown drama was punctuated by the shooting of a woman who led police on a high-speed chase from the White House to Capitol Hill Thursday afternoon. She was shot and killed by police near the Capitol Building. Though she was unarmed, she injured two police offices, and had a one-year-old child in the car with her.
Authorities are saying nothing about her motives, if they know anything. We are being told that she had no criminal record or history of violence, that she was suffering from postpartum depression and that she recently fell down a flight of stairs.
She’s identified as Miriam Carey, 34 years old, and from Stamford, CT. She was the same age as Aaron Alexis, the named perpetrator in the Navy Yard shooting just over two weeks ago.
Witnesses and the police say she tried to ram a barricade at the White House, and was ordered to stop and get out of the car. She then struck an officer with her car before leading the police and the Secret Service on an 80 mph chase down Pennsylvania Ave. to the White House, where she was shot. A second officer was also struck by her vehicle.
Meanwhile, the conspiracy websites are running with this seemingly true fact: Thursday, Oct. 3, was the final day of aninteragency training exercise “hosted by the Joint Force Headquarters — National Capital Region. It brings federal, state, local and municipal agencies together to realistically test interagency operability during a crisis impacting the District of Columbia.” There does seem to be a pattern of training exercises coinciding with nearby events of a similar nature. That kind of detail only serves to instill doubt that the event in question actually happened the way we are told it happened.
The second shooting in Washington, DC in as many weeks did a good job of shaking up Congress. The Capitol was put on lockdown and a shelter in place order was issued. At that time, it was not known whether the gunfire was a shooter or from the police.
Yet the shakeup apparently did little to get the contingent of congressional members who are holding the country hostage to change their game, at least so far.
We know that story by now: since Tuesday morning, per mainstream liberal news word of mouth, a group of fringe Republicans, aided by John Boehner, have been throwing a tantrum over the possibility that a lot of uninsured people will suddenly be able to get medical insurance coverage. They’ve issued a series of demands including defunding or delaying the Affordable Care Act (because it’s so terrible, the very week that its public access services opened up), claiming that if this does not happen, they will not allow Congress to pass what’s called a continuing resolution (CR) to allow the government to do business.
The current crises may soon be followed by another: the federal government reaches its borrowing limit, called the debt ceiling, in two weeks. Congress must raise this, a routine action, so that the country can pay its past bills. While some Republican pols are getting on TV and saying this is about a balanced budget, actually it’s about the U.S. having the borrowing power to pay its old bills.
Many are concerned that the same contingent currently enforcing a government shutdown will also push the country into default on its obligations, something that has never happened before in American history.
The twisted part is that the shutdown is being enforced not by a majority of the House of Representatives, but rather by the use of a procedural rule being invoked by Speaker of the House John Boehner, preventing the issue from getting to the floor for an up or down vote.
There is apparently a majority of congressional reps willing to end the showdown, when you add the Democrats to the few remaining moderate Republicans — but Boehner is blocking the issue from getting to the floor. Then if you watch cable news, you will see a parade of Republicans turning this around and claiming that Pres. Obama is the one who is not negotiating.
This complicated high-tension legislative drama — to which was added a police chase, and the suspect killed at the foot of Capitol Hill, the very spot where the government shutdown is happening — unfolded with absurd precision as the Sun squared Pluto when the government could not do normal business, and as the Sun opposed Uranus on Thursday as the shooting took place.
It is tempting to see these incidents as separate, but they are joined by the astrology — the aspect between Uranus and Pluto, with which the Earth and Sun are now aligned. The New Moon will happen within this alignment later Friday (today). We don’t know the woman’s motives and we may never, yet on the most basic symbolic level, her attempt to bash through the barriers can be interpreted as an expression of the rage and frustration that many people are feeling toward government.
Pluto in Capricorn Rising, The Sun opposite Uranus
The chart for the shooting is rich, and seems to provide a map to the whole scenario unfolding in DC at the moment. Ultra slow-moving Pluto in Capricorn was rising to the degree at the moment shots rang out. That kind of ominous placement makes me think we got a mitigated version of the karma involved — something a lot worse could have happened.
Pluto in its current sign placement is about the inevitability of change to society’s most established institutions; we have seen plenty of this since 2008 when the transit began. Where there is inevitable change, there are people who resist change, and that creates tension, and can cause fear to spread. And Pluto was the planet rising to the degree (which lasts about four minutes out of every 24 hours) — that is emphasis.
Meanwhile, the Sun was exactly — within 11 arc minutes, a small fraction of a degree — opposite Uranus. It’s challenging to think of a way to place greater emphasis on the Uranus-Pluto square in one chart. Sun opposite Uranus is high-voltage, it can be erratic and there is the surprise element.
This happened just one day ahead of the Libra New Moon opposite Uranus and square Pluto (exact Friday evening in PDT/EDT and early Saturday morning in Europe). Also in the mix is Typhon, another ultra slow-mover (in Libra, close to the Moon and the Sun) and Jupiter (in Cancer), which is providing protection, emotionalism or both, depending on how you look at it.
Making things more interesting in the shooting chart is Mercury in Scorpio snugly on the 10th house cusp — the government angle, in the sign of death and taxes — exactly what was happening at the time.
Mercury is about to make a conjunction to Saturn in Scorpio. That Mercury-Saturn conjunction can be frustrating, but amidst plenty of chaos and confusion, it is demanding inner attention.
In particular, it’s calling for emotional maturity of a kind that we don’t see very often. Being spiritual will not substitute (if we are looking for an answer on the level of human relations, honesty about sex, vis a vis Scorpio, would be a lot more valuable).
Being intractable will not substitute. The government angle in the chart for an attempted attack on the government reveals what I can only describe as a parent-child dynamic — Mercury in Scorpio, the inquisitive, astute child, coming up against Saturn, the emotionally frozen parent.
What is necessary in this situation is some form of actual communication and adult behavior. But the Scorpio alignment is so cloaked in secrecy or veiled in taboo that it’s going to be challenging to find that patience and maturity or go through the layers to get to the underlying issue.
All Republicans are Not Necessarily Crazy, but They are Scared
The Uranus-Pluto square is, if nothing else, a harbinger of change. When people are scared of change, the sensation of all that is moving, developing and crumbling around them is exaggerated.
One documented expression of Uranus-Pluto aspects is the desire for radical change. We might be wondering where the activist spirit is; at the moment, most of it is coming from those who cling to the past — we are witnessing a passionate desire for the liberation from progress.
When Bob Dylan wrote the line, “There was music in the cafes at night and revolution in the air,” he was describing the sensation of what it was like to go out during the peak of the 1960s, when there was a Uranus-Pluto conjunction happening (this happens less than once per century).
Yet the revolution is not always waged by those who would set humanity free. Under Uranus-Pluto aspects there’s always a mix of influences. In many ways the Sixties were full of breakthroughs and liberation; and in the same era, the Kennedy brothers were shot, as were Malcolm X, Medgar Evers and Martin Luther King.
This really is not about the pendulum swinging one way or the other; Uranus-Pluto is always a blend of elemental forces operating in society. This is described to some extent by the sign or signs involved. Uranus is in Aries and Pluto is in Capricorn. These are high-energy signs, both on the cardinal cross of the zodiac, which is like a vast crossroads of the private and the public (associated with the Aries Point).
On the Uranus in Aries side of the square, we have the illusion of a ‘we’ (Uranus can represent groups, but that’s unlikely in Aries, the sign of ‘I am’). But it’s easy to pretend that you’re with others, or speaking on their behalf. Uranus is, more often, presenting itself as the erratic individual, willing to stage an ambush and/or use a group for its own private purposes.
One pitfall of Uranus in Aries is the obsession with glamour and attention. Another is militancy. Both Uranus and Aries can be willing to get things done by any means — and there will be fewer exceptions when the two are in the same place.
Another potential issue with Uranus in Aries is the willingness to cheat or connive. At its best, Uranus in Aries could bring a spirit of inventiveness or self-recreation.
Many people are feeling that and don’t know quite where to go with it. Pressure from society has forced so many people to become so stiff, the concept of “personal reinvention” can feel like their head exploding. Better to opt for a makeover.
The shadow element of that is a kind of bipolar narcissism, similar to the shadow element of Pluto in Leo. So we have a personal dilemma here: how to express one’s existence, one’s sense of ‘I am’. Is this going to be in a purely self-serving way, or a way that is inclusive and co-creative?
On the Pluto in Capricorn side of the square, we have an image of the inevitability of change, in particular, enforced changes influencing the kinds of institutions and organizations represented by Capricorn — corporations, banks, governments, religious institutions (a form of corporation). Pluto does not determine the direction or quality of change — only that it will happen.
Depending on how it’s directed, Pluto can be reactionary and destructive, or it can be evolutionary and creative. You might say that Pluto presents people with the evolutionary dilemma, including the opportunity for people to use what they know, and to act as if they know it — or the opportunity to seize power in what looks like an unconscious way but which is in fact fully sentient.
Today there is an event that brings the whole story together — a conjunction of the Moon and the Sun in Libra. This is potentially an image of harmony and, at least, an image of human contact. There is a quest for fairness — in relationships.
But those relationships are set in a context: the New Moon is opposite Uranus in Aries (illustrating the glamorous egotism that makes actual relating impossible).
The New Moon is square Pluto (demanding authentic inner vision and the willingness to shift and evolve emotional patterns). Pluto in Capricorn is making it nearly impossible to be beholden to the past, no matter how much someone tries to cling to it, obsess over it or inflict it on others. The more one clings to the shore, the more one feels the rushing of the river. The more you cling to the past, the more violently you will feel the passage of time and the progress that it can bring.
The Moon and Sun are also square Jupiter in Cancer (a reminder that you have to do more than wish to get what you want; and that emotional presence is about giving and receiving). There is a reminder to keep your sense of scale.
And finally the New Moon is conjunct the Pluto-like minor planet Typhon, which in this expression is the inner storm blowing inside everyone, or perhaps the inner monster we harbor who is always on the prowl — think of this as the impulse to fear.
Put this all together and we get a real wake-up call. And that, cousins, is where we stand at this particular here-and-now.
Lovingly,
Weekly horoscope for Friday, Oct. 4, 2013 #969 | By Eric Francis
Aries (March 20-April 19) — Look closer at what seem to be contradictory demands within a relationship, whether they’re being made on you, or you figure out you’re making them on someone else. Your chart suggests that you want perfect freedom for yourself and perfect fidelity from someone else. This would work in a perfect world where we understand that fidelity and honoring freedom are the same thing. It works less well when those you care about have to compensate for your position, make allowances and ultimately put up with some hypocrisy because they love you. However, sooner or later their goodwill may run out, and you may be seeing signs of it wearing thin already. To solve this, listen to what partners and loved ones say about what they need — and take the initiative to provide that. If a request or desire leads you to feel threatened or hemmed in, consider the specifics carefully, and by that, I mean in a way that is fair — as they see it, not just as you see it.
Taurus (April 19-May 20) — On the outside you appear to be in a “get serious” moment, yet what you’re doing internally is trying to resolve a paradox. Taking things earnestly will help resolve the part about exterior boundaries and mutually agreed-upon rules of conduct. To work out the inner level will call for some subtlety of self-observation. You’re likely to see various unconscious patterns show up in your relationships — even things you thought you addressed years ago. The fact that they are showing up now does not mean that you’re back where you started. It means you get a new opportunity to look at them and make a decision about what they mean and whether you want to let them go. The theme once again is who has adult power in your life — and whether you’ve taken this authority in a meaningful way. As you do all of this, Friday’s New Moon in Libra is a reminder to keep things on the practical level. Look for real things you can do that are designed to get a noticeable, useful result.
Gemini (May 20-June 21) — Don’t overthink a work- or health-related problem — use your intuition (there is such a thing, and you have access to it) and your creativity (it’s good for more than making collages). I know there are many jobs, and tasks within those jobs, that seem routine — seemingly subject to no form of inspiration. There are plenty of bosses who want things done in the most straightforward way. The end product, therefore, must match what the task requires, but how you get there is your own process. One thing your charts are suggesting is your having access to information you might not be in line for, especially with the help of someone in a position of authority. If you’re taken into someone’s confidence, treat that as a sacred honor and protect your source. For you who already have considerable responsibility on your hands, the solution may come from someone younger and less experienced who just happens to know something or who can see the problem in a way that it can be solved.
Cancer (June 21-July 22) — Someone wrote to me recently and said there’s been too much mention of sex in the Cancer horoscope. Sex relates to just about everything, especially the things that people come to astrologers for the most often: money, creativity and relationships. Your chart is becoming increasingly focused on the topic rather than less so. Mercury is now in Scorpio (sex, emotional depth and transformation), which is your 5th solar house (erotic play and creativity). Soon it’s going to be retrograde in that sign, meaning it’s going to spend close to two months in one of the most sensitive regions of your chart. There are many messages here, especially this: what you think has nothing to do with sex is all about sex. And this: get ready to learn some things about your past that might surprise you. The most pressing question is: what do you need to feel safe, as a lover, as a member of a family or household, and as a person making your contribution on the planet? In two words, the answer is: no secrets.
Leo (July 22-Aug. 23) — The astrology of the moment suggests you could get involved in nearly anything with anyone — so use some discernment. The same astrology is also granting you leverage to open doors and the insight to look through situations, figure out what information is relevant and make decisions that have actual impact on your world and the world around you. It would help if you tuned in to the scale of your situation — to see what you’re working with, who and what is influencing you, and who you’re influencing. You seem to be walking a fine line, though you’re on much more solid ground than you may imagine, with many more options than you may think. The main asset I suggest you cultivate is flexibility. Start in small ways. Change your routines a little. Travel home a different way than you went someplace. Look from side to side instead of straight ahead. There is interesting and even useful information coming from all directions. Where any one task, project or commitment is concerned, you have many more options than you think.
Virgo (Aug. 23-Sep. 22) — Think of self-worth as human currency that you can trade for other experiences and opportunities. Well, you don’t really trade it, because you’ll end up with more of the stuff when you’ve accomplished something meaningful to you. Yet it is similar to credit in that the ability to ‘pay’ for an experience (which means to come through for yourself, to stand up to a challenge or to learn something that enriches your life) is what keeps you in the game. Start with the strength to dare. Allow yourself to experiment with something you think is over your level of talent or ability, or that you might not have the confidence to try. Then go for it. I don’t mean to say that all self-esteem is based on what you achieve, but I will say that a significant dimension of it is. This is especially true if you achieve something you thought you couldn’t do or didn’t have the guts to dare. Then you allow that to become a life lesson — or said another way, something you learn about yourself.
Libra (Sep. 22-Oct. 23) — You stand at a crossroads, on a scale that you may not even dare imagine. It’s an inner intersection that joins together where you’ve come from with where you are now, and several potential realities that you have the option to manifest. Yet lately you may feel like it’s more of a crosshairs than a meeting of avenues. That sense of impending risk, danger or challenge is a slightly veiled sensation of your potential coming into maturity. This doesn’t necessarily arrive with the promise of how wonderful life will be when you step into a dream. It might arrive with a hint of how daunting it is to confront the truth of your own talent, or the potential to realize a desire. Whether you’re confronting a question, embarking on a mission or freeing yourself from a commitment that no longer works for you, your astrology is describing a sense of awe at what is possible. Now the key is to see this as something inside yourself rather than external to you.
Scorpio (Oct. 23-Nov. 22) — Mercury in your sign is a wakeup call, which means an invitation to use your intelligence. You might be thinking that the mental and emotional challenges you face are beyond your ability to handle them, though this seems to be more about the influence of something from the past rather than a proven truth about who you are right now. How you handle this is a matter of psychological perspective. If you feel overwhelmed, you may be feeling like a child who is being asked to stand up to an adult, or who’s being expected to grow up too young. In a sense that is (or at least was) true, though the ‘adult’ is something that you’ve internalized. One of its messages is that change is impossible. Yet while that voice is whispering to you, you seem to be secretly dreaming of revolution. It is indeed when change seems impossible that revolution is the most necessary.
Sagittarius (Nov. 22-Dec. 22) — I am sure you’ve had the insight that the world would be a happier place if more of us were as interested in what we could contribute to a situation as what we could get out of it. With Jupiter, your ruling planet, coming under focus in Cancer (the sign of nurturing) and in your solar 8th house (that of exchange), the question of what you offer and receive in your relationships is a top priority. Jupiter is suggesting that you have a lot to offer, and that at the same time, if you’re open, plenty is coming your way. You can therefore afford to be generous. Yet if you’re feeling resistant to sharing yourself in some way, I would propose that it’s the result of a deeper anxiety: something hinting at your relationship to existence. It’s difficult to get access to the source of this kind of issue, though you have it now, and will have increasing access over the next few weeks. You can understand this, and you can work it out.
Capricorn (Dec. 22-Jan. 20) — Come on like a storm. Refuse to hesitate, to second guess, to equivocate. Present yourself at full strength and with your full intent. But let beauty and refinement be your camouflage. Set your goals, focus on what you want and actively take the steps to get there. Yet make sure everything is presented elegantly, diplomatically and in a way that honors the aesthetics that one might expect under the specific circumstances involved. Yes, there is a way to be radical and tasteful; revolutionarily beautiful. You can say just about anything you want, as long as you say it well, and proofread your copy. You can present any idea you want, as long as you make it easy for people to understand. You can do nearly anything you want, as long as you do it with some finesse. Beauty, finesse and clarity offer credibility, by demonstrating that you really do care about others. Perhaps it’s a trick of the mind, or a trick of astrology involving a magnificent Libra event in your chart. What matters is that you will get results, even if you think that’s unlikely.
Aquarius (Jan. 20-Feb. 19) — There is a spiritual solution to what you’re facing, which is to say that nothing is impossible and nothing is beyond the reach of healing. Yet two things are necessary. One is focusing on your relationship with your inner Source, wisdom and intelligence as a higher priority than focusing on a human relationship. This is not an either/or situation but rather an order of priorities in a moment when you are trying to work out something that may seem beyond human power. Allow the light to work through you, and then stand back and allow it to work through the situation. Ask for a change of perception, that is, to see the situation a different way. I suggest you not focus on the results, but rather on how you see things and how you feel. Your willingness is the essential ingredient. So be willing, state it to yourself out loud, take a breath and know that your next steps are guided.
Pisces (Feb. 19-March 20) — You may find that unresolved circumstances and hanging questions progress rapidly over the next couple of days. I suggest therefore that you make no investment in what you don’t want, or in solving problems that have resisted your best efforts, and focus on affirming what you want. If you’re unsure of that in the ultimate sense, focus on what is working in your life by doing more of it. Emphasize the positive, and people who keep you in a life-affirming state of mind, if only to increase your chances of feeling good. If you find yourself resisting something, focus on something that is easier, more fun or more personally relevant. I would remind you of one other thing: you may be the missing presence in any situation that requires a catalyst, spiritual boost or infusion of energy. This is less about what you do and more about the fact that you show up with an open mind and consciously choose to allow the situation to unfold.