I hope everyone has had a Happy Mother’s Day today. My weekend has seen family coming to town from all over to help celebrate my mother’s 95th birthday. It has been wonderful.
Next weekend I will go to upstate New York to celebrate my son’s graduation from college. There is simply no time to be writing right now, so I will be taking a vacation from the blog for a couple of weeks. The information in recent posts will still be relevant for a while.
I will be back soon.
Nancy
Only a few months back, President Obama won a second term in office, somehow triumphing over the opposing tsunami of subsidies from fringey corporate billionaires and the brash attempts at voter suppression from grasping GOP governors. Hope was on the ascendancy once again.
Then came the tragedy of Newtown, and, to squeeze a drop of lemonade from the ashes of that horror, we latched onto the promise of some reasonable gun legislation at long last slipping through the paralyzing clutches of the gun lobby. A fierce momentum built around the country for action, culminating in polls of 90% support for universal background checks.
Then another calamity hit: the Boston Marathon bombing. Despite our profound national distress as we witnessed the destruction and the grief, there was some small solace in how quickly the suspects were found and their brief reign of terror forever terminated.
As we move into May, however, the exhaustive, never-ending Republican obsession with blocking anything touched by President Obama, including even gun legislation supported by an overwhelming majority of the country, make it blazingly clear that the noxious, rage-filled collective psychosis on the Right is sucking the lifeblood out of a once-vital Republic. The increasingly debilitated national mood is suffocating in a morass of hopelessness and vague, pervasive angst. It is not terrorism we most fear but our own flaccid and pathetic inability to simply stand up to the many challenges we face. The Congress elected to do the People’s Business, instead, only does its own, and cedes all of its power to its self-serving corporate overlords and its most crazed, delusional partisan supporters.
The current malaise has been slowly building for years and now spikes for a week here and there when we are not distracted by the latest dramatic spectacle to dominate the news cycle. For decades, the US progressed Saturn has been very slowly retrograding into a trine with natal Venus (3Cancer06). Generally, a trine is seen as a beneficial 
aspect, but disciplined, severe Saturn, even in a harmonious relationship with comfort-seeking and affectionate Venus, can bring a somber, sometimes melancholic quality into the experience. This progression is now almost exact and will reach its most potent expression by the end of 2015. It provides the backdrop of the more serious, cautious, and sometimes dejected mood of recent years and should be watched carefully for triggering planetary activity, in particular in November 2013 when the US progressed Moon will conjunct progressed Saturn (3Scorpio11) and in early December 2013 and briefly during the spring and again in the summer of 2014 when transiting Saturn will thrice cross 18Scorpio06 in a sesquiquadrate with natal Venus. These configurations point to some brief periods of difficult and sorrowful events in the US. The most recent example came at the end of October 2012 during the transit of Saturn to progressed US Saturn which brought with it Hurricane Sandy and the havoc, destruction, and loss that came in its wake.
Over the past month, there have been several minor Saturn transits in the US chart that have cumulatively heightened the nation’s recent irritability and negativity. Saturn was quincunx the US Uranus from April 4 to April 19, acting as a negative trigger to the volatile US progressed Sun square to natal Uranus (8Gemini55), and complicit in the unexpected and shattering terrorist attack at the Boston Marathon on April 15. Saturn crossed President Obama’s natal Neptune (8Scorpio36) at the same time, pointing to the deep distress he experienced from this event. These were some of the same aspects that came in December 2012 during and just after the massacre at Sandy Hook.
From April 26 through May 8, Saturn has been semisquare the US Neptune (22Virgo25), as well as semisquare President Obama’s Mars (22Virgo35). In the US chart, the 9th house Neptune describes the very idealistic and, at times, over- glorified attitude Americans have about their system of government, the meaning of their democracy, and their role in the world. A stressful aspect from Saturn to this point will bring deep disillusionment in the reality of modern America, a struggle to believe in a hopeful future, and an upsetting feeling of angst. Although this crossing lasts less than two weeks, it comes at a time when many have begun to wonder if the American experiment in democracy is unalterably broken. There is a growing despair over the inability of Congress to work with the president to tackle the country’s significant problems. The simultaneous Saturn semisquare to Obama’s Mars also points to restrictions on his capacity to move forward on issues of importance to him. This disheartening aspect returns briefly in late August and early September.
As of May 6, transiting Saturn has begun moving into its second crossing of the square with the US North Node (6Leo36) through May 21, just as Saturn also moves to sesquiquadrate US Mars (21Gemin23), and the progressed US Moon moves into a square with natal Pluto (27Capricorn33) from May 7 through June 7. This combination points to growing and acute stress and anxiety in May and early June about our interactions with foreign nations and about escalating tensions in the world. From the vantage point of today, it seems likely this aspect relates at least in part to the worsening conflict in Syria and the ramifications of Israel’s recent bombing of targets inside of that country. The Saturn/US Mars aspect suggests the US will be extremely cautious in getting more actively involved, although the transit of Jupiter across US Mars from May 14 to May 19 may bring some brief, but heightened military assertiveness.
As noted in previous articles, the Inaugural chart for this four-year term, as well as the aspects impacting the US chart, point to a very tumultuous period of considerable upheaval. Nonetheless, the coming pockets of turmoil and difficulty will bring a great deal of potential for an increase in understanding and growth, as well as for a renewal of purpose toward more healthy goals. Many opportunities will be there to find a stronger, more enlightened, and more vital path forward in numerous areas that today seem quite stuck in the mud. The question is whether we can take our disgruntled mood and the awakening inherent in the rousing events to come and use them to energize a real transformation for the future.
The recent news of sarin gas possibly being used by Syrian government forces has spread alarm throughout the civilized world. If true and left unchecked, it would dangerously shift the boundaries of accepted behavior in wartime and likely encourage Syrian President Bashir Assad to even more harshly brutalize those who would oppose him. If this illegal use of chemical weaponry is confirmed and then responded to by force, it would dramatically escalate the Syrian civil war into a more global confrontation, likely bringing the US and its allies to a more active military role. At the moment, President Obama is working to clarify the situation and get verifiable proof as to what exactly is happening. He will then put forth a plan of action should one be called for. There is a great deal of pressure from allies such as Jordon, Turkey, Israel, and prominent European nations for a signficant intervention on the part of the US, but the war-weary American public is extremely hesitant to get involved in yet another Middle East conflict.
As I have mentioned repeatedly, we are now in the midst of the multi-year Uranus/Pluto square which is bringing significant upheaval throughout the world, forcing dramatic and chaotic change in many nations, and agitating people to push through perceived limitations and fight for a new era. The most recent crossing of this aspect was in mid-September 2012, when the US consulate in Benghazi, Libya, was attacked by militants, and numerous spontaneous uprisings happened across the Middle East and beyond in response to an anti-Islamic video. It is useful to remember the intensity of this Uranus/Pluto energy as the next crossing begins to unfold in a few days’ time. It will be at its most potent from May 4 through May 21, and possibly strengthened as it begins to wane by transiting Mars from May 23 to May 25.
The US chart during May suggests an increase in tension, as well as a feelings of caution 
and heavy responsibility, likely in relation to a foreign power or powers. This is due to the Saturn transit square to US North Node (6Leo36) from May 6 through May 21, which runs essentially concurrent with the Uranus/Pluto square. In addition, the progressed US Moon will be square to natal Pluto beginning on May 7 and waxing through June 7, slowly dissipating thereafter. This aspect points to a build-up of anxiety and upset over some issue among the US population during this time.
Moving on to the chart of Bashir Assad (using noon), we find his long spate of vicious and relentless aggression over the past two years clearly described. Beginning in September 2011 and continuing through March 2014, his progressed Mars (18 Sagittarius) has been successively crossing the square to his progressed Pluto (17Virgo41), his progressed Uranus (18Virgo05), and, finally, his natal Sun (18Virgo24). 
This is an extraordinarily belligerent and explosive configuration that suggests he will not stop fighting, unless he is mortally wounded, until sometime shortly after March 2014, once progressed Mars begins to separate from its square to the Sun.
Of significance in the immediate future is the transit of Jupiter across 18 Gemini which will be triggering this volatile and dangerous configuration from April 29 through May 5. Potentially reckless, initially successful, and extremely brutal attacks are possible during this time. The recent stories of sarin gas haunt us with dark possibilities.
Using July 17, 2000, as the date Bashir Assad assumed office, we find natal Venus (4Leo58) opposite natal Neptune (5Aquarius27). This is significant due to the coming Saturn station that will square this opposition from May 22 through August 3, suggesting a very difficult time for the regime when it is forced to let go of its delusions (Neptune) and feels itself significantly restrained.
Very tentatively using the January 1, 1944, midnight, birth chart for Syria, based on when 
it received full independence from France, we find a long transiting station of Pluto on the Sun (9Capricorn21) from late June through October 2013, which points to a significant power struggle for control of the country. This aspect has been active since February 2012 but will be greatly intensified by the coming station.
It may, however, be that the final coup de grace for Bashir Assad comes in the early months of 2014. The Ascendant in the 1/1/1944 Syrian chart is given as 13Libra19, in exact square to the US Sun (13Cancer19). Both will be hit by the combined force of Uranus, Pluto, Jupiter, and Mars crossing 13 degrees of the cardinal signs in April 2014, with Pluto stationary at that degree in Capricorn from February through May. This highly-charged configuration points to the potential for a huge clash of civilizations and a momentous battle around that time. This is likely to involve the US and also suggests a chaotic and transformative period in Syria. Moreover, the chart for the birth of the Assad family regime, given as November 13, 1970, 6:15 AM, will have Saturn crossing its Sun/Jupiter/Ascendant conjunction between 17 and 21 Scorpio and opposing its Moon/Saturn conjunction at 18 and 19 Taurus, from late November 2013 through mid-January 2014 and again from mid-April through late June 2014. It may be that these aspects, from late 2013 into the Spring of 2014, point to the long-awaited death knell for the House of Assad.
It has been a grueling week: the sudden and brutal Boston Marathon bombing, killing three and injuring more than a hundred and seventy; the Texas fertilizer factory explosion, killing at least fourteen and injuring close to 200; the wild hunt for the Massachusetts terrorists that cost one young policemen his life, while another suffered grave injuries; and the deeply disappointing collapse of gun legislation, after which a disillusioned nation angrily mourned the irrefutable defeat of its democracy in a craven Senate beholden to the largesse of the weapons industry. President Obama has given some inspiring speeches in the face of these tragedies, but the shadows of grief and weariness are etched into his visage. The buoyancy and glow of earlier years is but a memory, replaced by a righteous fury and a relentless courage in response to the unremitting strain of recent days.
The carnage of Sandy Hook in December 2012 came with the first crossing of Saturn to Obama’s Neptune (8Scorpio36), a transit of deep grief and upset. At the same time, Pluto, Saturn, and Jupiter were aspecting US Uranus (8Gemini55), triggering the progressed Sun (8Pisces) square to US Uranus, and bringing sudden, powerful and disturbing circumstances that jolted Americans out of their somnolent attitudes, in that case regarding gun violence. 
The second Saturn crossing of Obama’s Neptune, from April 9 through April 23, has brought with it a host of very stressful and upsetting circumstances that have weighed heavily upon the president. These feelings of grief and burden are being exacerbated by his progressed Moon square to progressed Saturn from April 11 through May 7. In the US chart during this time, from April 4 to April 19, transiting Saturn (8Scorpio55) made its second pass triggering the progressed Sun square to US Uranus, again bringing sudden and upsetting circumstances that rouse the country. The Sun/Mars conjunction from April 13 through April 18 described the exceptionally violent and explosive nature of these days. In addition, during the building dragnet mounted by police, FBI, and the military to catch the terrorists, the transiting Sun and Mars were squaring US Pluto (27Capricorn33), pointing to the intensified focus of US power to defeat an enemy.
There will be one more crossing of Saturn to President Obama’s Neptune (8Scorpio36), 
from September 6 through September 18, 2013. During much of this time, the transiting Node will be conjunct transiting Saturn (exact on September 16 at 8Scorpio35), stressing the feelings of grief likely during that 12-day period for some segment of the population, as well as for the president. Simultaneously, both Saturn and Pluto will be quincunx US Uranus (8Gemini55), forming a very potent yod, and again triggering the progressed Sun square to natal Uranus as that aspect becomes exact and at its peak strength. Thus, it unfortunately seems likely that the middle two weeks of September 2013 will bring another set of sudden and transformative (Uranus) circumstances that deeply stress (Saturn) both the country and the president. It will no doubt be another wake-up call about something we have been unable or unwilling to address, and the price may once again be steep.
A presidential term begins on January 20, every four years. The Inaugural chart is drawn for this moment and depicts the larger patterns that will unfold during a given administration. As the planetary relationships in that chart come to fruition by progression or are ignited by transit, we can often see when the described patterns will most starkly emerge.
During the presidency of George W. Bush, there was a marked difference between the first and second terms. His first Inaugural chart had a tight Uranus/Mercury conjunction square to Mars, and, with a slighter larger orb, square to Saturn. This extremely aggressive and obstreperous configuration described the vicious, unexpected attack of 9/11, as well as the unleashing of the two wars and the brazen domestic policies that came during that first term. The second Bush Inaugural chart, on the other hand, was steeped in very stressful Saturn aspects, pointing to the many failures that came during his second administration, including the handling of Hurricane Katrina, the incompetent prosecution of the wars, and the financial collapse.
In the same way, the two Obama Inaugural charts describe very different circumstances during the two terms. The first Obama Inaugural chart had a Sun/Mercury/Jupiter conjunction which maintained the administration’s popularity despite the ongoing recession and enabled the successful passage of several pieces of signature legislation. The ongoing financial difficulties and the intransigent resistance of Republicans were described by the Venus/Uranus conjunction opposite Saturn. Parallel configurations in the chart of President Obama and in the US chart also helped to define the unfolding situation, but the basic pattern could be discerned in the Inaugural chart.
The Inaugural chart of the second Obama administration incorporates the building 
energy of the Uranus/Pluto square, which is the reigning planetary aspect of this period, itself running from 2012 through 2015. This is a configuration of intense disruption to the status quo and the awakening of shifting, transformative historical currents. It heralds massive power struggles throughout the world. There may be revolutionary fervor or frenzied extremism in these movements, whether led by ardent political factions, zealous radical groups, warring sects, or fanatical terrorists. In any event, intense battles for control of political power, military gain, land, or resources are greatly energized during this period.
In the 2013 Inaugural chart, we find Uranus (5Aries14) square to Pluto (10Capricorn00) and Venus (14Capricorn27). As Uranus moves forward, it comes to the exact square with Pluto three times, setting off the energy of the square. We are currently in the midst of the first crossing of this configuration, from April 8 through April 27, just as the terrorist threat to the homeland re-emerges in a newly virulent form. The next crossing will be from September 20 through October 16, 2013, beginning towards the end of the treacherous two weeks in mid-September mentioned above. The following year, 2014, will bring Uranus into a square with Inaugural Venus, and 2015 will bring Pluto into a conjunction with Inaugural Venus, all of these no doubt directly involving the administration in further manifestations of the potent Uranus/Pluto tensions coming in the next few years.
The 2013 Inaugural chart also includes another potentially violent and disruptive configuration: a t-square with the Moon (19Taurus38), Mars (20Aquarius13), and the Node (23Scorpio44). This already volatile configuration is further agitated and inflamed by Uranus (5Aries14) which sits in an exact semisquare to both Mars and the Moon, and also is at their midpoint. Together, these planets point to anger, aggression, and unexpectedly violent or tumultuous events erupting at various times during the course of the second Obama term. Transiting Saturn will be triggering this configuration, likely in a very stressful way, when it thrice crosses 19-20 Scorpio: in December 2013; and in May and September 2014. The solar eclipse within minutes of the Inaugural Moon on May 10, 2013, adds yet another level of strain to that degree over the coming year. With transiting Saturn also square to Obama’s Ascendant (18Aquarius03) during the same periods, it is clear we are looking at some episodes of increased difficulty and burden for the administration. More on these at a later time.
There are times in human life when the proverbial pot is vigorously stirred, when the tectonic plates of our civilization shift, causing significant upheaval before things settle again into a new pattern. These are times of paradigm shift, when the entire definition of the geo-political reality adjusts. For a while, it may seem like we are collectively riding a runaway horse, but eventually things will calm, albeit after a period of turmoil and with a somewhat transformed institutional and cultural landscape. Personally, I am grateful that President Obama is at the helm in these turbulent times, riding the wild stallion of this Inaugural chart and negotiating the tempestuous twists and turns of the Uranus/Pluto dynamic. At this juncture, I would far rather a leader capable of deliberate and comprehensive thought, caution, and pragmatism than any of the ideologues or craven political operatives that might have been.
The horrors of the shooting at Sandy Hook in mid-December 2012 brought the issue of gun violence to the forefront of American awareness… yet again. But this time, proponents of reform legislation have managed to keep the issue front and center for five months, an unheard of length of time in the attention-challenged USA. Thanks to President Obama, the Mayors Against Gun Violence, and the parents who lost children in that nightmare of slaughter, there has been a fierce push to bring some kind of reform to the legal framework upon which our out-of-control gun violence is based. Last week, the usual right-wing filibuster for all things remotely progressive was broken in the Senate. The coming week will bring a slew of amendments to the legislation tailored to weaken it to the point of uselessness. But at least the “good guys” are not being steamrollered from their usual supine position, and a real battle is being waged.
The biggest astrological indicator of this intensified push for gun control legislation is the progressed US Sun square to natal Uranus (8Gemini55) which began in September 2012 and will reach its peak in September 2013. This aspect brings sudden, unexpected 
events that awaken the country to the need for change, as well as the fervor to throw over restrictions or obsolete forms that no longer serve the common good. The Newtown horror is one example of what will likely be several sudden, transformative events over the course of this Uranian year. Hurricane Sandy, which proclaimed the relentlessness of climate change in late October 2012, was another.
As can be seen from the nation’s current mood about gun control, in addition to dramatic, and often painful, precipitating events, there are periods of building public rebellion against the status quo which also reflect the Uranus/Sun dynamic. At present, after an energetic public relations campaign, various majorities of the country support most of the issues in potential legislation, with over 90% supporting universal background checks. The strengthening of the progressed Sun/natal Uranus square by several transits from early March through April 19 points to this potent effort.
There are, however, concerns about the ultimate success of such legislation despite huge efforts from many quarters. Even if the Senate manages to pass something, the House of Representatives has become a lunatic asylum of paranoid political posturing where sane legislation, however meek, goes to die. Unfortunately, there are numerous Democratic charts, including the president’s, that show stress from Saturn transits (to 8 degrees fixed or 23 degrees mutable signs) during the second half of April. Whether this points to gun legislation being thwarted or immigration reform failing or some entirely other issue is unclear.
Should gun legislation ultimately fail despite the enormous endeavor of so many to rouse the public and the huge majorities that now support this intention, the wake-up call from the progressed Sun square to the US natal Uranus in 2013 may well morph into something far more pressing than even the need to rein in gun violence. If Congress cannot pass something that such a significant majority of Americans support simply because of the power of the corporate gun lobby, what does that say about our supposed democracy? Will awareness of the self-serving control exerted over our government by big-moneyed, corporate interests crystallize into an established fact in the collective psyche? The entire situation sparked by a mass shooting at an elementary school in December may prove to be an irrevocable step forward in a far greater battle. Ultimately, the country will need to decide if it still wants a government of the people, by the people, and for the people to even survive. This may prove to be more serious than even the massacre on that horrific day at Sandy Hook.