December 23, 2002
Lott Out, Frist In
Trent Lott recognized last Thursday that he couldn't maintain his position as Senate majority Leader, and he bowed out. Tennessee's Senator Bill Frist, a close associate of President Bush, now seems to be a shoo-in when the GOP takes over the Senate on January 7. Frist, the Senate's only doctor, fits in with Bush's plan to make health care a top priority.
Bill Frist was born a faith-oriented Pisces (February 22, 1952; Nashville, TN, time unknown) with his Sun conjunct the political asteroid Pallas Athena. This combination recognizes nascent political trends and patterns, and has the good sense to act quickly. The Sun is also conjunct the Moon's North Node, indicating that he is karmically led to assume positions of great influence.
Coincidentally, Bill Frist was born on the same day as George Washington (February 22, 1732), and the two have several other important planetary parallels. Both have Mars in Scorpio. Washington successfully used this exalted Mars as a decisive General, while Frist deploys its strengths as a heart surgeon. Frist and Washington also both have the Moon in Capricorn, a placement fostering keen ambition, and undoubtedly propelling both men toward the Presidency.
Frist's only political problem may be his conscience. He has Jupiter and Saturn exactly opposed to each other, and this polarity often attracts situations that force one to confront his own sense of right and wrong. However, Uranus enters Pisces and will be conjunct his Sun in 2003-04, indicating he will be tested in the spotlight as Bush grooms him to take over in 2008.
Does Vice City Lead to Aggressive Behavior?
"Grand Theft Auto: Vice City", the hottest new video game of the holiday season, received a flurry of media attention last week following a critical report issued by a media watchdog group. Rockstar, the maker of Vice City, estimated that sales would eventually reach 10 million copies and bring in some $400 million, making it a huge blockbuster by any traditional film standards.
From an astrological view, the renewed interest in violent video games as a successful, but disturbing genre arrived during a Venus-Mars conjunction in Scorpio. Mars is the natural ruler of aggression and violent behavior, and this is especially true when travelling through Scorpio where Mars is said to be dignified. Venus linked with Mars here is love of aggression, as well as the sexually stimulating or even pornographic images accompanying the game action.
Further describing the surge of interest in violent video games was Neptune's influence, which was squared by both Venus and Mars last week. When Neptune is involved with Venus and Mars in our personal lives, we can envision a seductive environment offering personal power and sexual conquests, exactly what these games create. Neptune represents the element of escapist fantasy, and perhaps the glorification of violence.
With Scorpio Rising, the U.S. is already well known as a society inundated with images of sex and violence (note that Pluto, the ruling planet, is in the third house of the media). Last week the Venus-Mars-Neptune configuration all aligned with the U.S. Scorpio Ascendant. This coincided perfectly with the concern over the disturbing national trend toward increased violence and the degradation of women* via these best-selling video games.
Michael Jackson, the Price of Fame
On Christmas Day twenty years ago Michael Jackson's "Thriller" made its debut on the pop charts and eventually became the best-selling album of all time with 45 million worldwide sales. Jackson became one of the brightest stars in a galaxy of bright stars, but ever since has been fading into someone we find overwhelmingly strange.
Michael Jackson was born a perfectionist Virgo (August 29, 1958; 11:43 pm; Gary, IN**), with his Sun conjunct shamanistic Pluto. The Sun-Pluto link offers the potential for immense personal transformation, like becoming the musical magician with frictionless feet. However, the Sun-Pluto connection also brings an intense encounter with the psyche's shadow, and can easily lose touch with reality while immersed in murky obsessions.
Mercury is the ruler of Jackson's horoscope since he has Gemini Rising. Mercury is favored by a sextile to Jupiter in the fifth house of entertainment, which itself trines the Midheaven, the point of fame. Jackson worked on and released Thriller during a powerful Saturn-Pluto conjunction which took place right on his Jupiter. On the other side, Mercury is troubled by a square to Mars, found in the twelfth house of isolation, and often referred to as the house of "self-undoing".
A month ago, when transiting Uranus opposed his Mercury, Jackson dangled his baby over a balcony, endangering the infant's life, and triggering a media uproar over his irresponsible behavior. At the same time, transiting Pluto had just entered his seventh house of partners and was squaring his Moon, perhaps activating some subconscious hostility toward his unknown partner, the mother of the baby. Now Pluto is nearing his Saturn, as he wrangles over a $21 million lawsuit with his corporate partner, Sony.
* For more information, see http://www.apa.org/journals/psp/psp784772.html
or abcnews.go.com/sections/GMA/GoodMorningAmerica/GMA021031Grand_theft_auto.html
** Data according to Noel Tyl which he obtained from a Jackson spokesperson; other references give a birth time of 7:45 am.
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