Spring is in the Air?

New Moon in Aries

Thursday, March 26, 2009; 12:06 PM EDT

Spring is about new growth, rebirth, hatching eggs and fresh starts.  It's a sudden rush of activity, with incentives, and enthusiasm.  This is Aries, the warrior, ready to fight for beliefs, for what is right, even in the face of insufferable odds, and obstructive forces.  And a total lack of cooperation this month from ruthless forces trying to get the upper hand.  Any tensions that have been festering, either with adversaries abroad, or within, will no longer be tolerated, and will be forced into the open.  Partnerships that are based on sound principles will survive, but agreements with others that seek to gain power in their own right will be strained beyond endurance.  

If we are drawn into some sort of power struggle, it is bound to be with entities that are particularly mean, destructive and under-handed, and will do anything, anything, to achieve their ends.  In their eyes the end justifies the means, and for whatever reason they feel particularly threatened by the apparent strength of the present administration.  People who are normally aggressive, are stressed to go way out of control, not hesitating to use any recourse, primarily because they feel that their back is against the wall.  This can be dangerous for the stability of the administration, as well as the stability of the country.

But these are volatile and changing times.  And this month is no exception.  And with the energy of the New Moon in Aries, we are being given the impetus to make a fresh new start.  Yet we are held back.  Saturn continues to stand apart in the sign of Virgo, in the house of the opposition party.  Staid, conservative, Saturn, fearing the changes that are inevitable.  Clinging to party values, wanting to maintain the status quo, and to consolidate power in their corner.  Even in the face of the necessity for change, there is this stubborn resistance.  Governors refusing stimulus money on principles that have no substance.  Republican legislators resisting the necessity of reinstating governmental oversight over the banking industry and Wall St.  But change is inevitable, is in the works, and is being implemented.  The impetus has already been initiated, and the conservative, resisting forces are just going to be reluctantly dragged along, whether they like it or not.  

This administration is strong, and taking the bull by the horns.  There's no stopping Obama now.  He is taking advantage of his strength and popularity, and rushing to get his proposals approved as soon as possible, before the honeymoon flags.  But there are indications that many parts of the proposed budget are going to be pared down.  Even so, Obama is going to push for his priorities to be given special status: education and health care included.  He is pushing for innovative legislation, and quick and immediate implementation. The sooner, the better.  

So, this month, the priorities are in pushing through the necessary legislation that will help to initiate changes that are long overdue, and to pray for well thought out, diplomatic solutions for any power struggles that may ensue with corrupt, and/or ruthless adversaries, either here or overseas.  Sounds like a lot of work.  The sort of work that only a courageous New Moon in Aries can tackle.  

Aries Ingress 2009

March 20, 2009; 7:44 AM EDT; Washington, D.C.

The Aries Ingress is the beginning of the New Year for astrologers.  It always begins with 0° of Aries.  The first day of Spring.  What is happening on this day, sets the trend, not only for the quarter, but for the full year ahead. With Pluto in early Capricorn, it will continue to be closely aligned to the Sun in all of the quarterly charts for several years, including this Ingress.  Whenever the outer planets enter a cardinal sign, they will influence the ingress charts in this way, heralding in changes, new ways of doing things, new inventions, new perspectives.  New eras.  

This relationship is particularly strong in the US Ingress chart because Pluto stands high at the top of the chart, the part of the chart that specifically has to do with the administration, the leadership and the government.  Pluto's entrance into Capricorn is a signal for change... a change in circumstances, a change in perspective.  While in Sagittarius, there was a free market party, without regulation, without oversight.  Capricorn revealed the errors of the excesses and immoral crimes that resulted, and is now striving to make the necessary changes.  

We know that this present administration inherited a huge financial deficit, horribly exasperated by unnecessary tax cuts to the wealthy, and borrowing at extraordinary rates in order to finance wars of choice.  This is reflected in a full 12th House, the house of the past, hidden enemies and the enemies within, that undermine the effectiveness of the country.  Mercury and Uranus sit in the 12th, representing the laissez faire attitude and lack of control and oversight that also helped to contribute to the economic crisis, as these both continue to sit in opposition to Saturn, which in this chart, represents the present administration, now trying to regain control.  

Pluto in Capricorn eras are times in which political control, becomes heavy fisted, precisely because of a weak and floundering economy.  And this Pluto in Capricorn comes to light in this Ingress after a square to Venus, the planet of money and desire, and is now reapplying to that square due to the fact that Venus in Aries is now retrograde.  Venus is considered weak in the sign of Aries, a self-preoccupied sign, because it lacks cooperation, and tends to look out for its own interests.  The separating and applying squares to Pluto imply a somewhat ruthless disregard for the rights of others.  Even Madoff-like criminal behavior on a grand scale.  That Venus sits right on the Ascendant of the US chart, if nothing else symbolizes the state of the union more than anything it's this Venus.

When Venus is Retrograde, as it is now, we are encouraged to think about what it is that we really value, what it is that we really want.  And perhaps it also endows a certain amount of avariciousness, based on feelings of vulnerability, and recognizing that ours is a fragile economy, motivated by greed.  So in a sense, an 'every man for himself' attitude has resulted.  People are not spending.  They're not willing to sacrifice.  And they want their money back!

A prime example of this Venus Retrograde in Aries atmosphere is the story on all the air waves as we approach the Ingress: the disclosure of the fact that over $200 million in bonuses were awarded to executives at AIG.  This is reflected in this chart by the separating Venus sextile very generous Jupiter in the 11th House of Congress.  A very generous Congress that gave $170 billion of our money to AIG, without any strings attached, without any stipulations.   Without any oversight.  That's Jupiter in the 11th.  AIG was slithering towards Chapter 11 bankruptcy due to the poor choices, recklessness and ineptitude of those same executives, who are now receiving millions of our tax dollars for what they call retention bonuses.  AIG claims they had no choice because of previous contracts, that they needed to pay these bonuses in order to retain talent (?)... but these people are actually pretty lucky to even have jobs at this time, considering their evident talent.  At least that's the opinion of the American public, who at this point, suffering from joblessness, homelessness and a dismal future, want that money back!  And that's Venus Retrograde.

Retrograde Venus is applying to the square to Pluto at the top of the chart: empirical, controlling, rejecting, taking back, Pluto.  President Obama came out with his statement:

"(A.I.G.) is a corporation that finds itself in financial distress due to recklessness and greed.  Under these circumstances, it's hard to understand how derivative traders at A.I.G. warranted any bonuses, much less $165 million in extra pay.  I mean, how do they justify this outrage to the taxpayers who are keeping the company afloat? I've asked (Treasury) Secretary Geithner to use that leverage and pursue every single legal avenue to block these bonuses and make the American taxpayers whole."

It is believed that if we were to peruse A.I.G.'s books, much would be revealed.  Even though the government essentially owns the company, it was left in the hands of those who had every incentive to hide any possible accounting fraud that would have justified their past bonuses.  State Attorney General Cuomo is investigating just this sort of surreptitious fraud.  Previous investigations of top management and accounting practices at A.I.G. have been kept under the lid, without any repercussions.

As I write this, Congress is devising all sorts of means to get that money back (Venus Retrograde!) one way or the other.  My favorite Venus in Aries Retrograde strategy is to tax the bonuses given to those executives, who are working in companies that are held in the majority by the government (some even specified 79% - the AIG percentage- of government ownership).  This tax has been proposed to be any where from 60-100% of the bonus.  

This is an interesting chart.  It is what we call a bucket chart, with all the planets, but one, clustered in one quarter of the chart.  That one singleton planet is Saturn, Retrograde, in Virgo the sign of the workers, unions, health care, in the house of the same.  This Saturn is in close trine to the Moon in the 10th House, the public, the people, despondent and frustrated and not feeling very optimistic, in the sign of Capricorn.  Despite this pessimistic outlook, the government continues to have the support (trine in Earth) of the people, who are developing a much more pragmatic and realistic outlook about what needs to get done.  This Capricorn Moon trine Saturn aspect favors public works, and the practical application of financial programs, that favor workers, and that will also rebuild the infrastructure.  Along with an exact sextile between Mars and Pluto in the Ingress chart, we will, indeed, be seeing a great deal of restructuring, and building things up again.  It is a long term goal,  one that can be achieved through steadfastness and determination.  Working from the bottom up, and against insufferable odds.  But there is great determination on the part of the administration ruled by both Pluto and Saturn in this chart, and we will see a lot accomplished towards achieving specified goals this year.  This restructuring will require a lot of resources and man power, but these will be made available.  And if so, finally, in true Pluto in Capricorn fashion, we will be able to lay the foundation for a stronger economy, and an infrastructure based on a solid bedrock of truth, and strength.  Perhaps we will then have something we could all really rely on after all.

The 6th House is not just about workers, and health, and service industries.  It is also about perfection of skills.  Skills that can be of service to humanity, or the environment, as well as our economy, and that will be a necessary component in creating jobs.  Skills that will make health care more available.  Creating a skilled work force of Americans, here on American soil, who are our best and most reliable resource.  Saturn Retrograde says that this should have been done a long time ago.  It's about re-instilling stability.  And it's about time.

Healing Moon of Positive Transformation

Full Moon 

Tuesday, March 10, 2009, 10:38 PM EDT

Washington, DC

The Full Moon in Virgo is a culmination of the New Moon in Pisces which was encouraging us to realize our connection to each other, to the least of us, as well as the great. Virgo is about healing, and finding constructive and practical means to do this, by passing realistic policies and laws that will benefit all of our citizens, including the disenfranchised, the neglected, the invisible and the forgotten, as symbolized by the Sun in Pisces with Uranus.  

Virgo is about finding fixes, finding solutions.  Faced with a very harsh reality, Congress can no longer pretend that solutions are not necessary, and that some of these solutions will have to be drastic.  This Full Moon brings, through the lights of the Sun and the Moon, the opposition between Saturn and Uranus into relief.  Even though they are not exact, the stress between the conservative, controlling factions, as represented by Saturn, will be digging in their heels, resisting what appear to be revolutionary, and liberal changes.  The resistance by these conservative factions will cause delays in the implementation of important and necessary legislation.  It may even cause a stalemate over the next few weeks, until the New Moon on the 26th. 

One type of legislation is being brought before Congress, which would make it easier and faster for workers to form unions.  Virgo rules workers and unions.  But once again the conservatives are trying to prevent this legislation from passing, and are doing so by misrepresenting the facts.  They're trying to make it look like this legislation would harm the workers' chances of forming unions.  Since when do Republicans support unions?

The conservative forces are going to be nit picking and highly critical of anything that they perceive as 'change', or liberal ideas. Mean while there is the potential for truly great and beneficial reform, which is supported by the people, who are positive, optimistic and hopeful, at the same time becoming more pragmatically aware of the situation.  The people are willing to make adjustments, the administration is looking for creative solutions that will benefit everyone, but there are those conservative stalwarts, who fear the impending changes, and only see these as "Socialist" reforms, making us more like "like Europe".  This Full Moon in Virgo heralds a necessity for change, a necessity for healing, and if changes are not made when they are needed, then we will be forced to adjust later on, when it becomes even more difficult to do so.  Conservative forces feel that they must hold on to what they have, even as it becomes more and more apparent that what they once believed to be true, that the values that they continue to try to hold on to, are outworn, proven to be unsuccessful, and therefore no longer valid.  In fact, their view on life, and economics, and society, is preventing us from growing as a country, and holding us back.

Virgo is the sign of healing, the necessity for healing.  We can no longer ignore the necessity of positive change and reformation.  This is a time for throwing out the old and greeting the new.  It's a new perspective and a new attitude that is being nurtured in our new fledgling society.  Pluto is exactly sextile the Scorpio Ascendant in the Washington, DC chart.  The very way that we think, and believe is being transformed.  A lot of this is because of information that is becoming available, and disclosed.  Scorpio is about revealing and uncovering that which had previously been hidden.  It also is about solving puzzles, figuring out a problem, solving mysteries. Like Sherlock Holmes, or through the auspices of an ace reporter, we may become enlightened at some point over the next few weeks.  It will be interesting to see what unfolds....