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Horoscope of Haiti's Earthquake |
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Sunday, 17 January 2010 |
The scale of the disaster so overwhelmed Haiti that government officials and national police simply abandoned their posts. The Red Cross estimated some 50,000 had died, while relief efforts were stymied by widespread transportation and telecommunication failures. President Obama sent the U.S. military in to manage the security and relief issues and the hundreds of millions of dollars pledged by world leaders.
Haiti's horoscope (January 1, 1804; Gonaives, Haiti; noon) reflects the long and difficult history of the country, as well as the current devastation. The Capricorn Sun attended by six other placements in Capricorn shows the tendency for strong, patriarchal government. But with a Mars-Chiron conjunction squaring Saturn, the government has often been ruled by corrupt dictators supported by a brutal and oppressive military.
At the moment of the 7.0 earthquake (January 12, 2010; 21:53 UTC), transiting Saturn and Pluto were squaring each other while aligned with Haiti's Mars-Chiron square Saturn. If we think of the transiting Saturn-Pluto square as a crisis of authority (as described here last week), we can see how this incident left Haiti without a functioning central government.
Natally, the Moon opposes Pluto in the Virgo-Pisces polarity, which describes a population that has been victimized politically, socially and economically. Challenging transits and/or progressions to planets in the Virgo-Pisces axis often lead to disaster. In Haiti's case, the progressed Moon and Pluto were conjunct in Pisces while being squared by progressed Mars. Here we have the indications for violence and chaos that could have been seen beforehand had any astrologers been tracking Haiti's national horoscope.
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Horoscope of Ali Abdullah Saleh, Snake Dancer, President of Yemen |
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Monday, 11 January 2010 |
As transiting Saturn turns retrograde this week while in a close square to transiting Pluto, a crisis of authority has erupted in many hotspots around the globe. Last week the Obama administration focused its anti-terrorism efforts on Yemen, the ancestral home of Osama bin Laden and an Al Qaeda training ground for terrorists like the one that disrupted Flight 253.
Yemen's national horoscope is not much use since that nation is on the edge of being a failed state, but Yemen's President Ali Abdullah Saleh has been in power since 1978. President Saleh was born on March 21, 1942 with his Sun at 0º Aries. Like so many people with either of their action planets (Sun or Mars) in this critical degree area, the struggle for control over life's difficult circumstances has become extremely challenging.
Saleh's Sun opposes Neptune, a combination that suggests his rule is colored by oil interests, secret networks, corruption, and continuous uncertainty. He's described the process by saying that ruling Yemen is like "dancing on the heads of snakes." However, with his Sun trine Pluto, he's managed to consolidate and maintain his power by earning a reputation as a consensus builder.
Saleh's Mercury in Pisces squares Mars in Gemini, a planetary duo that tends to promise anything, but may be unable or unwilling to deliver. This combination is now a central signature in his chart since his progressed Sun is now squaring Mercury and will be conjunct Mars over the next two years. This development promises much action for him and the nation he rules, marking Yemen as a pivotal front in the anti-terrorism movement.
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Timothy Geithner in the Hot Seat |
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Monday, 11 January 2010 |
This week, the five largest banks that received federal bailout money will report huge executive pay and bonuses. Reaction will likely be more rage at Wall Street insiders, and from politicians, more promises for reform legislation. Much of the wrath is being directed at Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner for his role in protecting AIG at the height of the financial crisis.
The ongoing Saturn-Pluto square is behind these developments, since these two planets are adversely hitting the U.S. Venus-Jupiter conjunction. In the U.S. Scorpio Rising horoscope, Venus and Jupiter are found in the 8th house of credit and inherited wealth. Together, they represent the top tier of America's money-interests. Along comes Saturn to show the problem areas, and with Pluto's involvement, the potential for major reform.
Timothy Geithner (August 18, 1961; New York, NY; time unknown) was born during a Jupiter-Saturn conjunction in Capricorn, a micro-population that may be among the most conservative in the nation. His Sun at 25º Leo is in the same place as Bill Clinton's, a key degree area in American politics since it aligns with the U.S. Moon at 25º Aquarius.
As Neptune – the planet of scandal, doubt, and uncertainty – nears the U.S. Moon and opposes Geithner's Sun, he's becoming the target of American disappointment. It doesn't help him that his Mars is located at 1º Libra, right in line with the current Saturn-Pluto square. This combination may attract intense enemy action which can lead to his downfall. If he plays his cards right, however, he can lead a reform movement that trims Wall Street's worst excesses.
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