THE SOOTHESAYER INTERNET NEWSLETTER

August 2011

Points of Power:  Mars is opposed Pluto and square Uranus Aug. 8 – 12 on the July 1 Solar Eclipse, Mercury goes retrograde Aug, 2 – 26, Neptune retrogrades back into Aquarius Aug. 6 and opposes Venus on Aug. 21.     

Lunations:  Full Moon in 20 degrees Aquarius trine and sextile the Nodes on Aug. 13 and New Moon at 5 degrees Virgo trine Pluto on Aug. 29.

Blowback and the Weapons of Mass Deception:

The modern version of the story of William Randolph Hearst depicted in the classic movie “Citizen Kane” is returning in the form of the phone-hacking meltdown of the right-wing media mogul Rupert Murdoch, whose monopoly extends from newspapers to television networks around the world.  Interestingly, astrologers have pointed out that the June 15^th lunar eclipse hit his natal Moon in Sagittarius, a sign associated with international mass communications.  The question lingers as to whether his “elves” will take all the fallout or whether he will take a direct “hit”.  He is a prominent example of monopoly control over the media to an extent he has threatened politicians and thereby controlled governments, influenced elections, and intimidated anyone who would move against him.  I think, because of his advanced age, that he will lose the battle.  The question remains.  Will Murdock’s media conglomerate continue under the control of his son and heirs?

The Debt Crisis, the Social Security Trust Fund Robbery, and the Triumph of the Barons of Wall Street:

Dr. Allen Smith, author of “The Looting of Social Security:  How The Government is Draining America’s Retirement Account” dates the current threatened insolvency to the 1983 “Payroll Tax Hike Legislation” whose monies ended up in the pockets of the super rich in the form of income tax cuts and to pay for the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.  He backs this up by referring to the 2009 Social Security Trustees Report which is as follows:  “Neither the redemption of trust fund bonds, nor interest paid on those bonds, provides any new net income to the Treasury, which must finance redemptions and interest payments through some combination of increased taxation, reductions in other government spending, or additional borrowing from the public.”  The payroll tax we  have all been paying to insure the solvency of Social Security has been co-opted by the super rich and these same people, who have financed mostly Republican legislators, are lobbying for cuts to the system.

The Wall Street Barons’ giant derivatives schemes of credit default swaps, the “financialization” of subprime mortgages and selling them to sovereign nations and hedge fund accounts, and the virtually tax free casino movement of hundreds of trillions of dollars in complex derivatives trades would explain where all the money has gone.  Certainly it has not gone into jobs for Americans or lending money to home-buyers or small businesses.   Meanwhile, European countries are going bankrupt from these very schemes into which American banksters maneuvered them in recent years.  Republicans in Congress are holding the nation hostage with regard to raising the debt ceiling to insure these very same Wall Street barons, banksters, and super-rich multinational corporate mogols like the oil and gas companies continue to get unconscionable tax breaks, which makes this crisis a “revenue” crisis.

With Mercury retrograde, I think that whatever is decided about all this will be a very temporary fix and this will come up again and again in the next several years.  Because Wall Street is having a “fit”, They will likely raise the debt ceiling one way or another, but because of the demeaning fights in Washington, the U.S. government has certainly earned the contempt coming from the rest of the world.

The Economy:

Last month, gold and silver reached new highs, oil began its upward rise again, and uncertainty will contribute to wild fluctuations in stocks and commodities this month.  Even though our recessed economy is using less oil and gasoline, China, India, Malaysia, and other nations are buying more.  The dollar is falling which means we pay more for our oil, most of which is imported.  I am sticking with the same recommendations I have made for years.  Gold, silver, rare earths, farm commodities, energy stocks, and water ETFs will conserve and increase your wealth for many years to come.

August 4^th through 12^th, Mars in Cancer (the sign of the U.S.A.) afflicting Uranus and Pluto would suggest more violence abroad and in Afghanistan.  The ongoing revolutions in Egypt, Syria and Libya and Yemen are making the world very uneasy with respect to Middle Eastern Oil.   August 15^th through 21^st, Venus opposition Neptune suggests a lack of faith in fiat money or currency.  The fluctuations in gold and silver have still resulted in new highs and higher lows.  It would take a stronger dollar and confidence in the U.S. economy to change this trend, and I do not see this at this time.  Last month, there was a catastrophic oil spill off the coast of China.  As if this is not enough, it has now been reported that they are “surveying” the floor of the ocean, planning unprecedented drilling activity.  Oceanographers are truly concerned that there could be a real danger that this activity under the enormous weight of ocean waters, could effect the movement of plate tectonics triggering massive earthquakes and tsunamis and releasing huge amounts of methane gas into the atmosphere.  Have we not had enough of massive earthquakes and tsunamis?  Addiction to oil, as to coal, uranium, and gas, is leading to a collective insanity that could result in major losses of life on our planet.

All the deniers of global climate change will have to travel to another planet this month as records are being broken for weather extremes all over the world.  The drought and ensuing famine in Kenya and Somalia is the worst in over 60 years and last month’s heat wave broke all records throughout the U.S.  This Spring’s tornadoes and floods have done billions of dollars of damage to property and the economy.  Federal money to help with these disasters is running out.  Employment is not happening any time soon. 

The second Great Depression has us in its grip and whatever is going on in Washington is only ensuring that the upper 2% of wealthy individuals in this nation retain control over this nation’s treasure.

 The President and Politics:

Pres. Obama’s birthday is August 4^th, two days after Mercury goes retrograde.  His solar return points to a Mercury sextile Mars, Mars square Uranus, and Venus moving to sextile Saturn.  He needs to “rethink” his approach to governing as the nation longs for somebody to stand up for “the people”.  He would be well advised to channel Teddy Roosevelt.

He has lost the support of the progressive base of his party.  They are disappointed at his seeming to capitulate to the Republicans and the Plutocrats.  He was a great and inspiring orator when he ran for office.  He appeared to represent a real “change” from a society that has spent the last 30 years subsidizing corporations and military operations.  He has, however, seemed to seriously back down when pushed by opponents.  A sizeable number of people think he is an evil “plant” or a “Manchurian Candidate” who is completely controlled by the super rich and powerful; a puppet of those who operate behind the scenes.  I do not buy these interpretations.

My opinion is that when Pres. Obama was elected, he was “terminally uninformed”, a complete novice in the world of finance, banking, and inexperienced at dealing with military and corporate power.  He was “hit” by a potential fall of the national banking system, knew nothing about the fleecing of Social Security, nor understood the complex world of derivative trades and scams.  His great fear, above all else,  was a systemic collapse of the U.S. economy.   In addition, he listened to all the wrong people; those who were previously involved in setting up a disastrous and corrupt system, to somehow help him bail out the banks, etc.  Pres. Obama’s trajectory to “the top” consisted of getting outstanding high marks in academia and, going through the elite’s conventional pathways, i.e. Harvard and Columbia.  He perfected the “art of being non-controversial”.  As a black man in America, if he was perceived as in the least challenging to the system, with racism lurking just beneath the surface of things, he would likely not have gotten to first base.  He developed a charming, cooperative, and diplomatically skilled personality.  Now, he is losing his party’s progressive base by abandoning nearly all the basic things he promised to do.  The Republicans are accusing him of being an “enemy of business” when he has done nothing but support business.  Extremists and Tea Partiers are out to destroy his presidency at all cost, including the solvency of the nation.  He is pleasing nobody by caving in and waffling at every turn.   

With a Sun square Neptune, he believes is a more equal opportunity society, but with Saturn, the co-ruler of his Aquarius ascendant in his 12^th House in Capricorn (the hidden establishment), and inconjunct the other ruler in Leo in his 7^th House (the people-at-large), he seems unable to bridge the gap and is currently sacrificing the interests of the people and the systems that help and protect them to the interests of those in charge of the transnational corporations and giant banks.  These are the very ones who have been outsourcing jobs to cheap labor abroad and in drilling for oil, fracking for gas, mining uranium, are continuing to contaminate the environment and accelerate global climate change.

I will comment on Obama’s chances of re-election when the Republicans nominate their candidate and I have a chance to examine the chart of that person.

Final Thoughts – Another Pathway:

As we move toward the great square of Uranus in Aries to Pluto in Capricorn in the 2012 through 2015 time period, I think that the second American Revolution is beginning to build, and will most likely take the form of the development of a third political party.  It will not be the Koch brothers-financed Tea Party.  It will, however, reflect the growing number of people in the U.S. who long for an end to the Plutocracy and a return to real Democracy.  I think there will be grass roots movements in regions throughout the nation, mobilized and organized both locally and over the internet, to live sustainably and cooperatively, with a return to self-governance.  We will need a great “vision” as Neptune in Pisces (2011 – 2026) will reveal the bankruptcy of an unsustainable economy, our earth’s very life and natural resources in peril, and a humanity faced with self-extinction.

Historically, third parties have not had a good track record.  Neither have revolutions.  These new assemblages will need to embrace peace movements rather than military solutions; people coming out to vote rather than withdrawal from political discourse, and local economic and environmental templates that demonstrate our willingness to change the way we live.  The internet and mass communications have assisted the current revolutions in Tunisia and Egypt and may play a major role in millions of persons connecting with each other and giving birth to ideas that are real solutions.  We do not to have to move backward into poverty and despair, but forward into living in concert with the earth and in cooperation with one another.

The last time Pluto was square Uranus in 1933, we split the atom, a monumental achievement in science. This time, we may make a breakthrough in high energy physics that puts an end to our use of fossil fuels and will supply a virtual infinite supply of energy that is safe.  We may discover ways to clean up our waterways and oceans that are on the verge of destruction. 

Most of all, old religions and theologies that are wrapped in punishing dogma and tribal hatreds may come to an end and reclaim their origins in universal love and personal enlightenment.  Individuals may begin to take responsibility for their own spiritual development, achieving a whole new relationship with each other and the cosmos.

The time has come.

   Linda

Linda Schurman