Starlight News Blog

Tensions are building between Iran and the West. Essentially, much of the world, and especially the US and Israel, is deeply uneasy with Iran’s relentless progress toward nuclear capability. Due to Iran’s ongoing support of terrorist organizations and its fundamentalist and rabidly anti-Western government, global concern over this escalating threat seems legitimate.

Thus far, there have been both covert and direct attempts to thwart Iran’s nuclear development. The Stuxnet worm that burrowed into Iran’s computers and the multiple assassinations of its nuclear scientists, both unofficially attributed to Israel, have slowed but not stopped the advancement of the program. Meanwhile, official Western policy, largely spearheaded by the US, has been focused on economic sanctions, which recently have tightened considerably. Iran, in turn, has threatened to disrupt oil shipping in the Strait of Hormuz and sentenced to death an Iranian-American tourist charged with spying while visiting his grandmothers. Concern is building that a tiny spark in this tense atmosphere could easily ignite an uncontrolled conflagration.

At the moment, we are in that 6-month period that comes every two years when Mars, the planet of aggression, slows down and goes retrograde, thereby intensifying its impact throughout the world. Individuals and countries whose astrological charts are directly impacted by this transit are most susceptible to a dramatic increase in energy in the pursuit of their goals, sometimes leading to violence or confrontation. The Mars station on January 24 will be at 23Virgo05 conjunct President Obama’s Mars (22Virgo35) and square to the US Mars (21Gemini23). This transit alone suggests an increase in agitation and increased assertiveness for the president and country during January and early February.

There is, however, a much more dangerous grouping of configurations during the second half of March with a potential for escalating hostilities. From March 15 through March 22, the transiting Node will be square to the transiting Mars, culminating when Mars is at 7Virgo08. This square will be in a tight aspect to President Obama’s Pluto (6Virgo59) during a month when his progressed Moon will be quincunx to natal Pluto. What this suggests is that in a month when the feeling of a power struggle and distrust is growing for the president (Moon/Pluto), there will be a week (3/15 – 3/22) of extremely angry posturing and aggressive assertiveness, if not violence (Mars/Node), into which he will be drawn.

The week-long Mars/Node square will also be in a minor hard aspect to the progressed Mercury/progressed Mars conjunction in Iran’s chart (21-22 Aries), a progression describing a period of increased belligerence and anger from that nation, building in strength from December 2011 through mid-April 2013. The transiting Node will continue to trigger this progressed conjunction through April 6. Furthermore, there will be a prolonged quincunx of transiting Mars to transiting Uranus, from March 26 through March 31, further extending this period of heightened violence and disruption throughout the world.

The biggest concern about Iran is its existential threat to Israel, a threat which will increase exponentially if Iran develops a nuclear weapon. As the danger to Israel is seen to grow and Israel’s covert actions to diminish that threat increase, tension between these two nations is rising. Thus, it is of great significance that the second half of March also will bring transiting Uranus into a square with Israel’s Venus (4Cancer49) and Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu’s Uranus (4Cancer58), while at the same time transiting Saturn will be conjunct Netanyahu’s Sun (27Libra32). We can infer from these configurations that the last two and a half weeks of March will be a time of surprise upsets and transformative and swiftly-moving circumstances in Israel that are very stressful. With transiting Uranus moving to square the Moon in the Iran/Israel composite chart (5Cancer45) from March 29 through April 16, some significant escalation of the agitation between these two nations seems quite likely.

Although a full-blown war seems unlikely at this time, the rhetoric and the skirmishes may bring us closer to the edge of the cliff. A far more treacherous path lies ahead from 2013 through 2015 when the Uranus/Pluto square and several progressions have the potential to exacerbate tensions to the breaking point, especially in early 2015.  What happens to Iran in 2013 and 2014, however, will be especially significant, with Uranus crossing Iran’s natal Sun (11Aries06) and Pluto squaring its Sun. The Iranian government is likely to undergo a great deal of confrontation and face a strong rebellion. Any future trajectory will depend on the outcome of these battles.

With his administration inheriting the vast swath of destruction left in the wake of eight years of George W. Bush’s profligacy and irresponsibility, President Barack Obama has faced the sobering challenge of rectifying a huge, multi-layered mess. Obama has been working tenaciously to get the nation’s finances in order, rebuild America’s reputation in the world, and disengage us from two costly and mostly counter-productive wars. His efforts have been obstructed at every turn by an obsessively partisan and short-sighted Congress and a powerful right-wing media machine led by FOX News and Rush Limbaugh. In the past few months, however, the president seems to have sharpened his game enough to win some significant battles with his relentless foes.

Beginning in early September 2011, Obama aggressively began to retake control of the narrative, focusing on the need for jobs and other help and protection for the middle class, while the Republicans in Congress have become more and more transparent in their support of policies that only advantage the very rich. This seems likely to be the theme that will run right through the November election. We can attribute this more assertive mood to the president’s progressed Moon leaving the watery and emotional sign of Pisces and entering the fiery and daring sign of Aries, where it will remain for over two years. In addition, his increasing poll numbers and successful initiatives of late are described by his progressed Sun square to natal Venus, triggered by both transiting Jupiter (through 1/23) and transiting Uranus (through 2/1/12).

The Uranus activity, however, also adds an element of unexpected and upsetting events that have the power to alter the political, emotional, or diplomatic landscape. The transit of Uranus square to the president’s Venus (1Cancer47) runs through the entire month of January. Thus far, it has brought several jarring and unanticipated events: the resignation of White House Chief of Staff William Daley; the publication of a book critical about Michelle Obama (president’s Venus); stepped up Iranian rhetoric threatening the Strait of Hormuz and the world’s oil supply; the Iranian death sentence of a supposed US spy, a former marine visiting his Iranian grandmother; and the virally-spreading photo of US marines urinating on dead Taliban soldiers. No doubt this list will grow in the coming weeks.

Another element often found during a Uranus transit is a willingness to break boundaries and act outside the more conventional norms. The president’s recent recess appointments, despite the manipulative Republican pro-forma session, are an example of this.  Moreover, the current Mars station is conjunct Obama’s natal Mars (22Virgo33) from January 8 through February 3, signaling a very aggressive stance and the potential for significant confrontation on a number of issues. The increasingly hostile relationship with Iran, with its attendant threats and military posturing, is one such issue which is likely to escalate further in the next three weeks.

From February 7 through March 5, the planet Uranus will once again come strongly into play, again bringing unexpected events and transformative, upsetting situations. From February 7 through February 29, Uranus (3 Aries) will be square to the US Venus (3Cancer06) for the final of three crossings; and from February 14 through March 5, Uranus will oppose the Ascendant of the US solar return chart (3Libra26) and square the Ascendant of Obama’s solar return chart (3Cancer23). The last time Uranus transited this degree was during the entire month of August 2011. Early in the month, transiting Mars (3Cancer) triggered these charts while squaring transiting Uranus and opposing Pluto (5Capricorn), unleashing the debt ceiling debacle and the downgrade of US credit. Later in the same month, the Mercury station (18Leo45) was in a prolonged sesquiquadrate to transiting Uranus during which the nation experienced the massive flooding and chaos of Hurricane Irene.

The coming Uranus transit of February and early March 2012 will have no major triggers like the one in August, suggesting that the situation will not be quite as extreme or dramatic. Nonetheless, Uranus does cause upsets and tends to shake up the status quo when it strikes, and the inclusion of the Ascendant in the US solar return in this configuration points to something that will directly impact some part of the US population, possibly again with a weather event of some significance.

Some brief, last minute predictions:

Ron Paul is strongest and most popular though mid-January 2012, and to a lesser extent, through February 1. After February 7, he will lose steam. Nonetheless, it seems he keeps fighting at least until August and possibly right up to the election with a potential Third Party run.

Rick Santorum’s best days run from December 25 through January 15, with a special boost just after the Iowa caucuses. There is another bump for him, but not as strong, from January 26 through February 3. March to mid-April brings lots of shifts and changes and bumps and bruises, and from mid-April onward it is all downhill. Any hope of being second on the ticket will be crushed in July and August.

Newt Gingrich may do better in Iowa than expected which will keep him pumped up until his fantasies die in New Hampshire. There may also be a brief boost in Florida (January31) with some renewed vigor and bloviation through February 22. In March and April his candidacy completely disintegrates.

Mitt Romney does well in Iowa but may share the winnings with Paul and Santorum. He has a very strong win in New Hampshire.  South Carolina and Florida are disappointing, but he remains very aggressive throughout January and February and regains his strong momentum from mid-February onward, winning Super Tuesday (March 6) decisively. May is likely to be his official crowning as nominee.

As the world looks on, Syrians are continuing to defy their ruthless president and demand his ouster. The anti-government uprising began in early 2011, along with other manifestations of the Arab Spring, but the clash with government forces has dramatically escalated in the past month, including vicious attacks on protesters with casualties mounting into the thousands. A growing outcry has been building from nations across the globe, including the Arab League, who is sending in observers with hopes of quelling some of the violence. Fears of a Syrian civil war abound.

With humanity once again moving into a Mars retrograde period, we have cause for concern. These several-month periods that come every two years, during which Mars moves very slowly back and forth across a section of the zodiac, often bring with them an increase in conflict and military engagement in numerous countries. The current Mars transit will station at 23Virgo05 in late January 2012 before turning retrograde and stationing again in April 2012 at 3Virgo40. The chart of Syrian President Bashir Assad is greatly agitated by this strengthening Mars activity due to his numerous planets in Virgo and Pisces and the progressions that are activating them.

Born during the Uranus/Pluto conjunction of 1965, with it playing very prominently in his natal chart conjunct the Sun and opposite both the Moon and Saturn, Assad carries within him the profound intensity, obsessive desire for power, rebellious spirit, and strong will of that historical aspect.  Currently, his progressed Uranus (18Virgo05) and progressed Pluto (17Virgo41) have moved into a several-year, one-degree-orb conjunction with the natal Sun (18Virgo24), while progressed Mars (17Sagittarius) is presently square progressed Pluto from September 2011 through February 2013, and soon to be in square with progressed Uranus from April 2012 through August 2013, and, finally, in square with the natal Sun, from September 2012 through March 2014. This suggests significant brutality, aggression, and a fierce hold on power from late 2011 through at least early 2014.

In addition, the three crossings of Mars in late 2011 and the first half of 2012 over these configurations are guaranteed to bring into full flower Assad’s latent ruthlessness and willingness to use all force available to squash any opposition. We have just witnessed the first crossing, roughly from December 12^th to December 25^th, during which the recent savagery probably reached its zenith with Syrian government forces using heavy weapons and tanks against unarmed protesters. The next crossing of Mars over these fateful degrees will come during the second half of February 2012, although the Mars station at 23 Virgo is close enough to keep the pot simmering through January and early February. The final crossing will come from May 31 through June 9, 2012.

Unfortunately, we do not have a birth time for Assad which would help to pinpoint the exact timing of another very significant set of aspects. Assad’s progressed Moon will be conjunct progressed Mars and square progressed Pluto, progressed Uranus, and natal Sun, successively, over a four-month period. This is likely to occur from March through June 2012, plus or minus up to six months. It is certainly possible that we are now in the midst of this four-month period, which will be another huge activation of the very volatile, aggressive, and unrelenting progressed Uranus/progressed Pluto/natal Sun square to progressed Mars.

Due to the fact that there is more than one suggested chart for Syrian independence, using any of them with any certainty is impossible. But we do have the always-accurate Spring Equinox chart of 2011, drawn for Damascus, which offers significant indication of the current power struggle between Assad and his rebellious and oppressed citizens. This chart became active on March 21, 2011, and continues to be potent until the next Spring Equinox in 2012. In it, Pluto (7Capricorn24) sits within 22 minutes of the Ascendant (7Capricorn46), hovering very close to that sensitive point from late March through mid-May 2011 and moving to cross it in December 2011 through mid-January 2012. The Pluto/Ascendant conjunction in this chart describes a fierce power struggle throughout the year, with it being most intense during the times when Pluto is closest to the Ascendant by transit, exactly what we have seen in Syria. We are now in the final ferocious period through mid-January 2012.

Thus, Assad’s chart shows the likelihood of a ferocious aggressiveness through early 2014, not excluding military action (Mars) in some form, to continue his oppression of the Syrian population or possibly as a way of uniting the people behind him against an external foe. This trend is particularly potent between September 2011 and June 2012 due to the Mars retrograde period and Assad’s progressed Moon. Despite some minimal containment of him by the international community due to transiting Saturn sesquiquadrate his Saturn from December 20, 2011, through March 14, 2012, and conjunct his Venus in early December 2011, late March through April 3, 2012, and again in early September 2012, the long-term indications are that he will maintain a tight and brutal hold on his people for at least the next few years.

‘Tis the season to be jolly, according to the song. Alas, neither death, nor political gamesmanship, nor thuggish dictators, nor wild weather are willing to pause in deference to the calendar. This year, in particular, December has brought any number of unexpected jolts to the unfolding of events, each demanding attention.

To begin with, after negotiating a bipartisan compromise agreeing to extend the payroll tax holiday and unemployment insurance for two months, the House Republicans suddenly pulled the plug on the deal just as the Senate was about to adjourn. Although many in the House Republican caucus opposed extending this tax cut only a month ago, now they are demanding that it be extended not for two months but for a full year. Moreover, the House leadership has refused to bring the legislation to a vote, knowing it would pass, and has instead used various procedural machinations to thwart it. Unless this is resolved by the New Year, 160 million Americans will get a tax hike at a time they and the American economy can ill afford it.

Speaker John Always-Seems-Slightly-Drunk Boehner is being pilloried from all sides for his maladroit Yuletide switch engineered to placate the rabid partisans on the Right.  His chart (11/17/49, Columbus, Ohio) is under some stressful aspects this entire week through December 23, with transiting Mars moving slowly across his Saturn (17Virgo50) and transiting Saturn squaring his Jupiter (27Capricorn40). This difficult confluence begins to lift as of late in the evening on December 23. Some face-saving resolution is possible thereafter.

Meanwhile, Christmas Day brings Jupiter back into direct movement, and with it a return back across its square to President Obama’s Jupiter (00Aquarius52) and then sextile his Venus (1Cancer47), thereby giving him an upbeat, optimistic period from December 25 through January 23. This would seem to be another indication that the payroll tax imbroglio will be settled right around Christmas. It also suggests other issues will go well for the president, including strong poll numbers, during this period.

But surprises and sudden transformational events are also on the president’s plate during December and January, indicated by the transit of Uranus square to his Venus, and as already evidenced by circumstances both domestic and foreign. The stunning shift of House Republicans on the payroll tax is one such example. The unexpected death of North Korean leader Kim Jong-Ill and the resultant concern over destabilization in that country is another.  And the growing violence in Syria is a third, as a slow-moving Mars, from December through February, activates the very volatile and aggressive configuration of progressed Mars (16 Sagittarius), natal Sun, natal Uranus, natal Pluto, and progressed Uranus (15 to 18 Virgo) in President Bashir Assad’s chart and stirs up his most aggressive and angry tendencies. This will be especially evident from December 19 through December 25 and again from February 16 through February 23.

Thus, we can expect the holiday for President Obama to be hopeful and enjoyable but with some significant bumps along the way, and we can relax in knowing the Republican Grinches who are trying to steal Christmas will be thwarted.

Happy Holidays!