Corrections and Completions

The September 2004 Forecast

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Mercury, Uranus, and Neptune are retrograde.

Venus sextiles Jupiter	25°05' Cancer/Virgo	September 1
Mercury returns to direct motion (stationary direct)	26°35' Leo	September 2
Venus enters Leo	0°00' Leo	September 6
Mars squares Pluto	19°35' Virgo/Sagittarius	September 9
Mercury re-enters Virgo	0°00' Virgo	September 10
Venus squares Lunar Nodes (eclipse points)	4°16' Leo/Taurus	September 10
Mars trines Chiron	20°39' Virgo/Capricorn	September 11
Mercury opposes Uranus (3rd of 3)	4°10' Virgo/Pisces	September 13
New Moon	22°06' Virgo	September 14
Venus opposes Neptune	12°57' Leo/Aquarius	September 18
Mars sextiles Saturn	25°05' Virgo/Cancer	September 18
Sun conjoins Jupiter	29°19' Virgo	September 21
Sun enters Libra	0°00' Libra	September 22
Mercury squares Pluto	19°41' Virgo/Sagittarius	September 22
Mercury trines Chiron	20°31'Virgo/Capricorn	September 23
Venus trines Pluto	19°43' Leo/Sagittarius	September 24
Jupiter enters Libra	0°00' Libra	September 24
Mercury sextiles Saturn	25°41' Virgo/Cancer	September 25
Chiron returns to direct motion (stationary direct)	20°30' Capricorn	September 26
Mars enters Libra	0°00' Libra	September 26
Mars conjoins Jupiter	0°24' Libra	September 26
Full Moon	5°45' Libra/Aries	September 28
Mercury enters Libra	0°00' Libra	September 28
Mercury conjoins Jupiter	0°51' Libra	September 28
Mercury conjoins Mars	2°15' Libra	September 29

All dates are based on Pacific Time.

In August, we saw the truth wars unfold pretty much as I predicted in last month’s forecast. Now it’s time for course corrections for all of us. For some, the events were symbolic, but for others, such as the citizens of Beslan, North Ossetia, it was apocalyptic. There Chechen separatists held about 1000 people hostage in a public school for 52 hours, a siege which ended in more than 200 dead, many of them children, when the terrorists detonated several bombs in the gym where the hostages were being held.

Don’t Kill the Messenger.

This event came in concert with the return of Mercury to direct motion, but it cannot be attributed to Mercury, who is only the messenger of the other planets. These events have all the flavor of the bigger players that Mercury speaks for: Mars, Uranus, and Pluto, with Jupiter thrown in to magnify their effect. All these planets have been interacting and will continue to interact in September. For the past year, they have been flooding our perceptions through the mutable signs (Gemini, Virgo, Sagittarius, and Pisces), and that is where Uranus and Pluto will remain. However, Mars and Jupiter move on to cardinal Libra to liven up the end of the month.

The events in Beslan tie most closely to Mars and Pluto, whose contact is not exact until the 9^th. The possibility exists that Russia could be hit again, since this contact will be re-triggered on the 5^th and 6^th. Why is this so volatile? Because Mars is carrying energy from Uranus, which it connect with on August 18^th. This, as you may recall, was when the wars of rhetoric in the US presidential campaign became quite vociferous. The siege in Najaf also began to escalate then, as Moqtada al Sadr refused to engage in peace talks with Iraqi political leaders. As Mars moves closer to Pluto, we may expect more terrorist events around the world, not just in the same places.

Untying the Planetary Knots

The planets have gotten all tied up with each other, as a number of them have collected in mutable signs. As they interact, interrelated events will unfold in our lives and in the news. Because Uranus and Pluto are involved, the events will be larger than us individually, uncontrollable and perhaps affecting more people than just ourselves. The dates of critical events are September 5–6, 9, 11–15, and 19–21. We will experience events that unfold the expectations that we developed during August, tempered by the things we’ve done to mitigate the unpleasant effects and amplify the desirable ones. They will carry a tinge of the unexpected as well, but for the most part, the unexpected has already occurred.

In the Presidential Campaign

In the presidential campaign, it’s time for a course correction. When Bush was credited with an 11-point lead over Kerry among likely voters (that’s voters who voted in the last presidential election) following the Republican National Convention, it gave the Kerry campaign a chance to rethink its strategy.

As of this writing, Kerry has hired a new campaign head, signaling his recognition that a change of direction is in order. If his message comes more from his heart and less from what someone else thinks he should be saying, it will have a positive affect.

The energy of the campaign will shift when several planets move into Libra in the third week of the month. First the Sun, then Jupiter, Mars and Mercury queue up to bring more of the cardinal, initiating force into our lives. They will bring out people’s fears and foreshadow the story of 2005-06, when Jupiter squares Saturn, which will bring a substantial shift in fortunes to us. The 20-year Jupiter-Saturn cycle demarcates business and economic ups and downs. Most of these contacts will occur in October, and they will color the election campaign as fear-based even more than it is now. It may begin a golden period for George W. Bush as Jupiter begins its sweep over his Neptune, Moon, and Jupiter. Those who hold out the hope that Kerry will win the election can take some solace in the fact that the golden period more likely to begin next summer. In addition, Jupiter trines Kerry’s Gemini planets immediately, indicating that the transit will benefit him too.

The Next Three Months

The event that astrologers look at in September is the time when the Sun ingresses into, or enters, Libra. It, as well as the three other cardinal ingresses of the year (those of Aries, Cancer, and Capricorn), presages world events of the coming three months. This chart, cast for Washington DC, can be read to determine the fortunes of the entire US without specifics about location.

If we look at this chart and compare it to the chart of the US (Zip Dobyn’s chart, 7/4/1776, 10:36 AM, Philadelphia), two things stand out. First, Mercury is emphasized in both charts, indicating that perception and message are critical to events in the US. Second, the US if faucing an identity crisis (the US Ascendant culminating) and a crisis in ideals (Neptune culminating). This could translate into such phenomena as the people getting fooled or fooling themselves; a sharp dichotomy in or loss of values; a shift in the identity of the US; people getting clearer about what the US is and is meant to be; manipulation of the message; the message being the most important thing at this time; a restructuring of the message; lack of truth in the message — or lack of truth becoming apparent as the truth comes out and is heeded. Individually, we have more power and control to improve our way of handling the messages we receive. However, collectively, the tendency is to play out a less-evolved manifestation, if only at first, then a more evolved understanding as the masses become more aware. How far this will go is anybody’s guess, for it’s where free will enters into the equation. It also indicates an economic slow-down or down-turn. Retail sales will be down for the quarter, despite holiday shopping.

We can see much more by looking at the charts of Kerry and Bush. First, Bush’s chart is not highlighted by the ingress chart. This means he won’t be assassinated, but he probably won’t have the prominence he had in the previous quarter, under the Cancer ingress of June 20. Then, his Mars was elevated and conjoined by Jupiter, amplifying his “war president” rhetoric and image. He was able to prevail on sheer aggressiveness alone with this aspect. However, none of his natal planets gain prominence in the new ingress chart. Kerry, on the other hand, has several planets placed in prominence — his stellium (grouping) in Gemini is on the Descendant of the ingress chart. This suggests that he may receive further jolts to his self-image from others, but he will be able to issue a few himself. With this chart, the man becomes the message. This implies that he will be attacked during the campaign for his person rather than his policies — hardly a surprise, since Bush can’t stand up to him on that score.

However, what is perhaps most telling is the relationship that each candidate has to issues of the truth. Contacts to the “truth-telling” aspect in the chart (Mercury in Virgo on the MC square Pluto in Sag in the 1^st) occur in each one’s chart. For Bush, they hit a sore spot, his Achilles heel (his South Node), which is particularly volatile (conjunct his Vertex). For Kerry, they hit his Sun and Ascendant, indicating that he is probably the purveyor of the message and makes conquests by telling the truth. It suggests that he is in control of the message and explodes others’ myths.

Now, it could work the other way, because the media are twisting the message. This, unfortunately, is a possibility, if only because we’ve seen it in the past. However, more and more of the media are emboldened enough to speak the truth at this point, and there may be some pleasant surprises in store in this regard. Again, this is where free will enters into the mix.

In Our Own Lives

After nearly a year of blockages and a build-up of pressure, the steam valve is starting to release. Those poor Virgos — they had to endure a long waiting period to get the benefits of Jupiter in their sign, but the goodies will finally start to come in, better late than never. For all of us, September in a decompression time with a slow start. Yes, through the 15^th, we’ll be dealing with new crises based on existing situations. But after that, we’ll be a little bit more on “glide”. The way we plan our days will pretty much be the way they transpire for a change. No new fires to put out, only old ones — for now.

That means to use this time to actually put out the fires, not just to sit back and accept the status quo. Yes, we all need some time to recover, and we should take it. After the 21^st, new situations will begin to arise, but that doesn’t mean that they will reach critical mass right away.

The Potential for Attacks

There is always the potential for attacks. The ingress chart shows that it is possible that the US will sustain one sometime during the coming three months. However, it is likely to be electronic, not biological, explosive, etc. It will affect communications, possibly short-trip travel or commerce, but travel related to long trips is not likely to be affected.

What We Can Do

This month we need to be good at completing. Get the old out of the way to potentiate the new that is coming. On the 21^st, make a wish (or as many as you want) for yourself. This will amplify the benefits of the new Jupiter cycle which begins on that day. Libras, your “Midas Touch” year begins then. Gemini and Aquarius, you won’t be doing too badly either.

Before then, we have to give ourselves time to learn the lessons we’ve been working on. The mutable signs (which have been heavily populated of late, if you recall) are about integrating and making whole. This is our chance to do it. When the planets enter Libra, we get to start new initiatives, and they don’t all have to come from within us or right out the gate. The key pitfall of the cardinals is impatience. Don’t settle for less than what you want just because it’s there. Temper your actions with caution and be willing to wait.