Everyone has heard of Atlantis, that mythical kingdom of long ago. It was, purportedly, a highly advanced civilization that lost its way and cataclysmically drowned in the sea due to self-inflicted wounds. Whether one believes that this myth has some basis in forgotten history or not, its essential warnings reverberate loudly in today’s world. We live in a highly developed technological society at a critical crossroads, and the choices we make today will echo through the ages that follow us, for good or ill.
The world-wide and growing use of fossil fuel for energy is not only befouling the air and water, but is raising the earth’s temperature. As the oceans warm, more moisture is evaporating, and storms are becoming bigger and more devastating. In addition, the polar ice caps are melting, and the sea-level has begun to rise. If global warming remains unchecked, large swaths of densely populated areas will become unlivable, devoured by the surging ocean or parched by the spreading deserts, another consequence of the shifting rainfall patterns. It also seems likely that more armed conflicts will arise over increasingly scarce resources: potable water, habitable land, and energy sources. Once global temperature has increased by several degrees, there will be no going back, no “mulligan”. We will be in an unprecedented crisis, with limited and troublesome choices available, and possibly our civilization at risk.
It seems clear that an urgent choice faces humankind at this critical juncture. Either we move toward a sustained, bold, and creative push toward renewable energy and away from fossil fuels, or we blithely continue as we have, merely tweaking existing reality around the edges, and ultimately facing the catastrophic consequences when they are upon us. The question is whether we have the will to make the radical changes that are necessary and whether we can sacrifice short-term comfort and gain for long-term, collective goals to ensure our future.
We hear repeatedly that the US is “addicted” to oil. But what does this actually mean? In an individual, addiction leads inexorably to severe health problems and relationship havoc, as well as frequent work and financial difficulties. Commonly, the addict will deny or minimize the existence of his or her addiction, blame others for the situation, and avoid confronting it whenever possible. Unfortunately, it often takes one or several severe crises to jolt the addict out of his soporific cloud of avoidance and denial. This is known as “hitting bottom”.
The full extent of the vicious destruction of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill on the physical health of our nation is yet to be determined. It is the latest, rather resounding, wake-up call. But our ongoing addiction is also having harmful effects financially due to the perennial need to import vast amounts of oil to sate our daily needs. Even our foreign policy has been profoundly and adversely impacted by our gluttonous consumption of oil. It is hard to imagine that our huge military footprint in the Middle East, now including two exorbitantly expensive wars, would exist if the region were not the oil spigot of the world. And, lest we forget, it is this massive footprint that was the original spark for the terrorism that caused 9/11 and continues to seek to do us harm.
One would think that the handwriting would be on the wall and that a radical change in our energy policy would be demanded by all. But one would be wrong. The grip of an addiction is fierce, and the homeostasis of the current reality, even with all of its dysfunction, has a strong pull. We may vaguely wish to import less oil and go solar, but we think we really need that big SUV, we surely don’t want to pay more for gas to fill it, and we don’t really like riding that subway to work. And, of course, our politicians love all that money from the oil companies that helps get them elected. If the BP oil spill is not enough for us to “hit bottom”, what will it take?
In astrology, Saturn is the planet that demands discipline, restraint, and facing the limitations of the reality-based world. Uranus is the planet of sudden awakenings and rebellions, often triggered by unexpected crises, that transform existing conditions in a moment. And Pluto is the planet that describes situations in which the pressure builds up to an extreme before imploding into the next paradigm. It is these three that have a powerful role to play in the very stressful but potentially transformative period of time that extends from 2009 through 2015.
At the moment, the Saturn/Pluto square is in a hard aspect to US Venus, from November 2009 through August 2010, with Pluto’s impact on US Venus (3Cancer06) extending out before and after this period, from January 2009 through October 2010. This is a time of deep and building anxiety in America about our financial security and our collective future. We have seen the Great Recession take its toll in the rising unemployment numbers and the multitude of failing businesses and mortgage defaults. In addition, the ravages of the worst environmental disaster in American history are being broadcast daily into our living rooms, and home-grown terrorist wannabees seem to be proliferating.
Although it is the accepted narrative that a lack of regulation and enfeebled enforcement caused the Deepwater Horizon disaster and the financial meltdown, the underlying problem is the lack of conscientiousness, irresponsibility, and inattentiveness to potential consequences that pervade the culture. These crises, as well as the recent West Virginia mine explosion, were caused by cutting corners for a fast buck and conveniently ignoring the warnings signs. Under a Saturn transit, the perpetrator of any carelessness or inattentiveness or recklessness gets called to account. We learn, often through painful experience, to become very cautious, conscientious, and disciplined moving forward. With Pluto also in the picture, the difficulties experienced under Saturn become part of a larger story of building tensions that eventually force transformation. This is apparent in the financial reform now moving toward completion and the current push toward energy reform. The status quo, which has caused so much harm, is no longer tenable.
In other words, if we don’t do what we should have been doing all along, it will become painfully obvious under Saturn, when we will pay the price for our government, corporate, media, and collective irresponsibility. The Saturn and Pluto transits to US Venus, from January 2009 through October 2010, and the upcoming Saturn transits square the US Sun and conjunct US Saturn, from November 2010 through August 2011, offer the country the opportunity to grow up a notch. The latter Saturn transits to US Saturn (14Libra48) and US Sun (13Cancer19) are likely to shed a harsh light on any poorly considered or over-optimistic aspects of US power in the world – both economic and military – forcing some kind of contraction or consolidation on both fronts. It seems probable that with Uranus moving to square US Venus from April 2011 through February 2012, there will be some sudden and dramatic events that make this theme clear.
Being a responsible adult demands consideration of the long-term consequences of one’s actions and not succumbing to instant gratification or being seduced by short-term gain. That is the lesson that is being pressed upon the nation at present under the particularly onerous three-year combined impact of Saturn and Pluto. It is this principle that must imbue our attitude toward energy use and energy strategy going forward. Otherwise, when we belatedly hit bottom, we will remember the days of the Deepwater Horizon disaster as if it were a summer squall that merely preceded the horrors of a monstrous mega-tsunami.
