Sagittarius:
The Sign of Expansion of Knowledge and Hope for the Future:
This is the season of Lights; the celebrations of Hanukkah and Christmas – representing victory and salvation. It is a time that would remind us of prophecies from holy books and written in the constellation of stars — that after the darkness comes the light; the “Lion shall lie down with the Lamb”; that someday, there shall be “no more war.”
All this religious mythology and its seemingly overly optimistic view of human nature often generate a skeptical response since history rarely aligns itself with these “visions of sugar plums” and, instead, presents us with bombed and burned-out cities, angry protests, online death threats, and images of psychopathic heads of state on the TV news. It would seem to many of us that we are witnessing the “end times” and the promise of a new age of enlightenment is barely visible beyond the horizon.
Tribal wars that are enlisting help from nations with weapons of mass destruction are on a killing spree. Individuals in our country are posting hate messages online and attacking people in schools, synagogues, shopping malls, and hospitals in an angry spree of suicide and murderous hate. A case could be made that the root of so much of this is a collapse — of reliable governance, solid families, effective public education, and attentive parenting, the source of which lies in huge historical economic inequalities. Hate begets hate and would, sadly, leave many people no reason to live at all. This is reflected in recent elections producing far-right leaders in Argentina and The Netherlands, both having run on an anti-immigrant platform.
Jupiter, the planet that “rules” Sagittarius is currently in the sign of Taurus — a sign that governs land, property, financial assets, and the natural world – earth’s abundance out of which life springs. Thus, who “owns” the land, commands the nation’s boundaries, and controls the world’s natural resources needs to come to the surface and be recognized, for they are the true “rulers” of prosperity and whether it is hoarded among the very few, or shared with compassion among the many. The examination of “ownership” and who has control over it has formed the basis of personal wealth, political parties, and national identities for centuries.
The current billionaire class of people who we already know have financed political campaigns has recently been exposed for gifting money and thereby influencing the Supreme Court and its Justices. Thus, last month, the Court adopted a “code of ethics’ that nobody takes seriously since there is no law or entity to enforce it. Sad, indeed! Recently, in a case that sought to exempt Trump from the ballot for president, a judge in Colorado ruled that, even though Trump instituted an insurrection to overthrow the government, his particular oath of office exempts presidents. This will go to the Colorado Supreme Court and maybe even to the Federal Supreme Court. Could we even believe that the future allows presidents to ignore the vote, overthrow the government, and, thus, become a dictator, ending democracy as we know it? Trump, a former billionaire himself, knows how to manipulate the legal system to his advantage since he has spent most of his life doing it.
Past History? Clue – it rhymes!
An even more significant planet is Uranus (disruption, chaos, invention, and breakthroughs) also currently transiting in Taurus. The last time this took place – the 1930s — coincided with the Great Depression and the rise of the Third Reich including the holocaust in Germany which included the Axis powers that resulted in WWII. Jewish immigrants were fleeing Germany and were turned away in the US. The US entered the war as Uranus transited into Gemini, returning to its natal position, and led the way to victory by 1945. The atomic bomb was dropped on Japan by the US, leading the way to the development of nuclear energy and the advent of the Cold War with the Soviet Union.
With Putin’s invasion of Ukraine — and the attack of Hamas on Israel resulting in a war that is decimating Palestine, along with Donald Trump’s promise to get rid of “the vermin” (immigrants and those who oppose him), it would remind us of Hitler’s promise to rid Germany of the Jewish population. Mass shootings of both Jews and Muslims are taking place in the US. Less reported is the recent genocidal war in the Sudan, murdering thousands of civilians. History rhymes!
Recently there was a gathering of Arab and Muslim leaders in Riyadh, consisting of 57 heads of state, to condemn Israel for “war crimes including, ironically, Syria’s leader, mass murderer, Bashar al Assad. Since Iran has attacked US military locations in the region and is in another “proxy war” with the US and its allies, it would seem the Israeli-Palestinian conflict threatens to engulf the entire region. The Biden administration has worked through Qatar and Egypt, to make successful negotiations to release Israeli and US hostages along with a halt in the bombing of Palestine. With Mercury going retrograde and trine Jupiter this month, there may be more deals made with some resumption of the war, and some halting the war. Ultimately, Hamas will lose. Israel will change their governance. The Palestinians will be devastated. What does it all accomplish? Things may be clarified by January.
Interestingly, this month’s New Moon at 21 degrees of Sagittarius is described in Goldsmith’s “Sabian Degrees” as: “In an oral examination, a rabbinical student and his professor pull down their glasses in an angry face-off, the student arguing from Scripture and the professor arguing from personal experience.” Is all this about a “war of religions or control of regions?” It is all about control of wealth, land, resources, and human minds.
Is this the beginning of World War III? Certainly, this month’s Mars transit in Sagittarius would suggest the conflicts spreading. There may be a tendency to try to negotiate an end to some of these conflicts in January when Mars (war) is sextile Saturn (stability.)
Please note: Mercury goes retrograde on Dec. 12 and goes direct on January 2. Postpone the signing of important documents or start new projects until January. Spend time editing and correcting. The Winter Solstice Chart on Dec. 21st has some very hopeful aspects.
US Politics:
Frontrunner Donald Trump continues to openly reveal that he will violate the Constitution and the rule of law, effectively ending Democracy in America. He has already stated he would fire the joint chiefs. He has stated he would arrest his enemies and opponents. He has threatened a judge and his staff involved with the civil suit concerning fraud against him in New York, in which he has already been convicted. His supporters seem to be fine with a dictator in charge, leaving the American people with essentially no governance or rule of law.
As an astrologer, I look at planetary configurations to tell the tale. Neptune is inconjunct his Mars and Uranus will square his Mars next year, symbolizing losses and a destabilization of his efforts. The period between March and April is the biggest challenge to Trump, as Saturn advances in Pisces, square his Uranus and his North Node in Gemini. That same Saturn will inconjunct his previously fortunate Jupiter. There is an eclipse in Libra conjunct his Neptune. The Federal trial in Washington, DC, with Mark Meadows testifying, is likely to convict him of sedition remove him from the ballot, and produce a criminal conviction… The other trial that is likely to produce a conviction is the one in the State of Georgia against Trump’s attempt to throw the election there in 2020.
The Economy:
Mercury goes retrograde in Capricorn on Dec. 12 and goes direct in Sagittarius on Jan. 2. Markets look both good and bad, which means there are contradicting indicators. The rate of inflation is slowing, but most people, even though they may be employed, can’t afford cars, housing, and other big staples of the US economy. The housing market has declined. However, people have increased their purchases, both online and at the stores. Wall Street is mostly positive as stock markets continue to rise. Next year, I would see a mild recession which I will discuss in the January Newsletter.
Interestingly, in the Financial Times last month, an article was posted: “Wall Street and Beijing fight fallout of ransomware attack on China’s biggest bank, (ICBC) that disrupted trading in the $25 trillion market for US Treasuries.” China’s economy has seriously declined and they have been selling their US Treasuries, which affects prices in that market. Last month, Pres. Biden met with Premier Xi Jinping in California. It is of utmost importance that the two nations attempt to settle their disputes, both to avoid war and avoid financial crises. Both nations are engaging in massive spy networks on one another. If sanity prevails, they will come to some kind of agreement not to start a war.
Serious dark clouds are gathering around the solvency of the US dollar. The debt crisis looms. Congress keeps threatening to close down the government, but has an agreement, at this point, to kick the ball down the road into next year. The Trump-instituted tax breaks for the richest Americans end in 2024 which could help, but nobody is talking about this since Republicans want to cut the budget while Democrats want to tax the rich. The coming Saturn/Neptune conjunction in 2026 – a true dollar solvency crisis – will force their hand.
Science & Technology:
There was an online science post on October 30th reporting “The long trek toward practical fusion energy passed a milestone last week when the world’s newest and largest fusion reactor fired up. Japan’s JT-60SA uses magnetic fields from superconducting coils to contain a blazingly hot cloud of ionized gas, or plasma, within a doughnut-shaped vacuum vessel, in the hope of coaxing hydrogen nuclei to fuse and release energy.” It goes on to report that a plasma heated to 200 million degrees Celsius for about 100 seconds, is far longer than previous tokamaks. I will continue to report on the amazing progress of this technology which is moving faster than previously predicted.
In the October Issue of Scientific American, an article by Douglas Fox was published entitled “A Stratospheric Gamble” They report: “The effects of global warming have gotten so bad, so fast that some scientists say its time to start engineering the sky.” I have written about this subject based on my research in my books and newsletters for years. Back in Oct of 2012, I attended a conference of scientists in Massachusetts in which a “geo-engineer” from the federal government pitched the possibility of using 747s to dump silica into the atmosphere to simulate a global “cooling” that, in the past, has been created by volcanoes erupting. The audience of scientists, at that time, was appalled, saying that this could have unintended consequences of floods, droughts, etc, in locations that could kill crops. This article addresses the pluses and minuses and comes to no clear conclusion about this method of engineering climates. It is worth reading to familiarize ourselves with what is going on in this realm.
Last month, news was released over the media that through bio-genetic engineering, a cure for Sickle Cell Anemia has been discovered. This is a breakthrough in curing genetic-based diseases and is only the beginning as Pluto goes into Aquarius next year and will be in this sign until March of 2043. An age of scientific breakthroughs lies ahead of us, unequaled in human history.
Another loss of a great American:
Last month. Former First Lady Rosalynn Carter passed away at age 96, while former President Jimmy Carter remains in hospice care at age 99 years. Some of us would agree that she contributed in so many countless ways to mental health, caregiving, and Habitat-for-Humanity, and was a respected advisor to her husband in an era in which this was very rare. She set a tone and inspired ensuing first ladies to use their positions to be active and constructive. Some would make a case that the Carters were the last of the honest and sincere idealists who occupied the White House.
Iconic Statesman Passes:
Another landmark passing was that of Henry Kissinger, an iconic statesman, who opened up diplomatic relations with China under Pres. Richard Nixon 1972, spent decades as a consultant to U.S. presidents of both parties and just died at age 100 years. Controversial because of his association with the war in Vietnam, Kissinger remained an advisor to statesmen even in recent times.
Final Thoughts:
In “Tale of Two Cities” Charles Dickens famously wrote a description of his story revolving around the French Revolution “It was the best of times. It was the worst of times.” In his novel, “A Christmas Carol” his legendary character, Scrooge, highlights the same resounding theme of our societies today – power vs. humility — cruelty vs. compassion — greed vs. love. Many of us lament how little progress humans have made in this direction over the centuries. We go to our temples, churches, and mosques to pray that greater wisdom will prevail – that we may even save ourselves from ourselves. It would seem that our creator has sent us here to figure this out for ourselves. Very few leaders in human history have risen to this occasion, and more frequently than not, the greatest have been assassinated for their efforts.
Now is the time. The time has finally come. The birth of a new saving grace; the light that brings victory over our very own darkness; a wisdom that already exists as we open up our hearts and minds to all the constellations in he universe and its eternal promise of salvation.
May you celebrate the holidays with a transcendent hope and love rising in all your hearts!
Blessings,
Linda
Important Points of Reference for Astrologers:
New Moon at 20 degrees Sagittarius trine the North Node and square Neptune on Dec. 12; Full Moon at 4 degrees Cancer trine Saturn and sextile Jupiter; Dec. 27; Mercury goes into
Capricorn Dec. 2, sextile Saturn, trine Jupiter Dec. 8, goes retrograde Dec. 12 repeating the previous aspects, is square Neptune Dec. 26, is conjunct Mars Dec. 27, and goes direct January 2; Mars in Sagittarius is trine the North Node Dec. 24 and is square Neptune Dec. 29; Venus goes into Scorpio Dec. 5 trine Saturn, is opposition Jupiter Dec. 9, is inconjunct Mars Dec. 20, is opposition Uranus Dec. 20, and is square Neptune Dec. 25; Jupiter in Taurus goes direct Dec. 25; the Winter Solstice Dec. 22 is sextile Saturn.
