Saturday, July 30, 2005

Beyond Pluto: A 10th Planet Revealed

Astronomy and its inseparable component, astrology, have a new planet to contend with, it seems. Astronomers say they have found a planet beyond Pluto. This leads to some interesting thought as to what role it plays in the natal charts and therefore lives of we homo sapiens..... Just as the Sun, Moon, Mars, Venus, Mercury, Jupiter, Saturn, Neptune, Pluto and the asteroid Chiron have visible effect, so would this planet..............


A US astronomer said Friday he had discovered a 10th planet in the outer reaches of the solar system that could force scientists to redraw the astronomical map.

If confirmed, the discovery by Mike Brown of the respected California Institute of Technology would be the first of a planet since Pluto was identified in 1930 and shatter the notion that nine planets circle the sun.

"Get out your pens. Start rewriting textbooks today," said Brown, a professor of planetary astronomy, announcing what he called "the 10th planet of the solar system," one that is larger than Pluto.

"It’s the farthest object ever discovered to orbit around the sun," Brown said in a conference call of the planet that is covered in methane ice and lies nearly 15 billion kilometers [nine billion miles] from Earth.

"I’d say it’s probably one and a half times the size of Pluto," he said from CalTech, based in Pasadena, near Los Angeles, referring to what until now has been the most distant planet in Earth’s solar system.


Full story.......

A 10th Planet?!

It seems there is life beyond Pluto..........



A US astronomer said Friday he had discovered a 10th planet in the outer reaches of the solar system that could force scientists to redraw the astronomical map.



If confirmed, the discovery by Mike Brown of the respected California Institute of Technology would be the first of a planet since Pluto was identified in 1930 and shatter the notion that nine planets circle the sun.



"Get out your pens. Start rewriting textbooks today," said Brown, a professor of planetary astronomy, announcing what he called "the 10th planet of the solar system," one that is larger than Pluto.



"It’s the farthest object ever discovered to orbit around the sun," Brown said in a conference call of the planet that is covered in methane ice and lies nearly 15 billion kilometers [nine billion miles] from Earth.



"I’d say it’s probably one and a half times the size of Pluto," he said from CalTech, based in Pasadena, near Los Angeles, referring to what until now has been the most distant planet in Earth’s solar system.






Full story

Saturday, July 16, 2005

Riding July's Grand Trine Wave

This weekend, July 15-17, will be quite intense! Why? We have a grand trine occurring between the fiery signs of Aries, Leo and Sagittarius and the planets Mars, Venus and Pluto.

A grand trine is a powerful positive aspect in astrology which focuses on 120 degrees between planets. For this summertime grand trine, Mars in Aries, Venus in Leo and Pluto in Sagittarius are aligned 120 degrees apart between 21-23 degrees. If you know geometry, this gives you an equilateral triangle (a triangle with equal sides and angles). Aspects of 5 degrees or less in orb in a natal chart is interpreted to have a strong effect on a person over their lifetime; in a current transit or progressed chart a 2 degree orb is usually used.

If you are born with a grand trine you typically have a rather easy go of it in some area of life. Some people born with more than one are the people we see who coast through life and have things handed to them on the proverbial silver platter.

Mars is the mythological God of War, governing energetic action and sex; Venus is the mythological Goddess of Love (also known as Aphrodite); Pluto is the mythological God of Hell/Death. Hell/Hades and death are simply states of transformation. These three energies come together to form a grand trine within two degrees over the three day weekend. You may feel their influence approaching as much as three days before and you may still feel them as much as three days after the aspect ends on Sunday.

What does it mean for you in the “real world”? You could find yourself getting quickly, deeply caught up in a compelling relationship or liaison that feels almost “fated”. He or she may feel like “The One” and you cannot pull yourself away from their powerfully captivating aura. It is this good? Well while Mars and Venus bring lots of good sex and romance, Pluto is going to make it the most intense sex and romance you have had in a long time, if ever. In fact it could simply be a deep connection that takes you quickly into the void and then ends just as rapidly with no drawn out conclusion. You won;'t have much time to ask "Is this the right thing". You waded out into the water.....sensing "something" was going to happen. Go into each encounter this weekend with your eyes open and no conditions. It means going into the wave with no fear, hopping on your board and riding it into shore, enjoying the ride.

Blessings!

Barrett

Friday, July 15, 2005

Saturn in Leo 2005

Change is inevitable. The world continues to spin on its axis and the effect of it on our lives is what we each decide to make of it. Saturn is changing signs from Cancer to Leo. Are you ready?

SATURN IS ENTERING LEO at 5:34am PDT/8:34am EDT/2:34pm GMT on Saturday July 16, 2005 for two-and-a-half years, after a two-and-a-half year sojourn in the sign of Cancer. But perhaps sojourn is not a word that adequately describes what Saturn does as it transits through any sign. Saturn’s orbit is slower than those of the Sun, Moon, Mercury, Venus, Mars, and Jupiter. While it moving so slowly through a sign, it does some serious work on you, giving you the energy to redefine and refine yourself in some area of your life. If you resist it can be painful; if you are mature about it and do the right thing, it is rewarding.


FROM CUB TO LION/LIONESS:

Saturn last entered Leo at 10:11pm June 4, 1976/1:11am June 5, 1976 (EDT)/7:11am GMT on June 5, 1976. It was a time of assessing what was in our individual and collective hearts and what we needed to do to recover from the wounds we had suffered during the time of Saturn in Cancer. How were we going to heal? What did we know we had to have the courage to address? Where did we need to be brave? What needed to be cleansed from our hearts? Where were we being stubborn? Where were we creating frustration? Were we ready to open our hearts? What did we need to learn and did we need to return to school for an education in something? Where was your ego over inflated? What did we not learn morally and ethically the previous few years while Saturn was in Cancer? Whatever it was we were forced to reap the consequences of our actions; either we reaped reward and advanced because we had acted honorably and forthrightly, or we reaped scorn, obstacles, ridicule and reprimand because we had acted immaturely in our own self-interest and self-protection and most likely lied about it the entire time by claiming we were doing it for the interests and protection of others. Now we must start maturing. Like the Jack Nicholson line in the movie “The Shining”, Saturn is saying “Honey, I’m home”.

The same things life themes that occurred about thirty years ago are playing again and will get top billing.

There are ways to handle this energy in a mature and positive manner, depending on where your natal and transiting Saturn are located. Saturn may be the Lord of Karma, but it is also The Teacher and empowers us to DO THE RIGHT THING in our lives. When you do, Saturn is the planet that brings the energy of reward.

If you want to know how it will affect us all collectively and YOU individually, you can purchase the indepth 11-page PDF article for only $7 via this blog (right hand side) or in the Healing Universe Shop: Saturn in Leo 2005 article

Blessings!

Barrett

Saturn in Cancer: Muzzling the Muppets

Saturn in Cancer has historically been a time of restrictions and limitations put on women and children. Our present time is no exception as children's lives are under attack by military recruiters making unwelcome and unsolicited telephone calls to their homes as though they are their friends, and now, the takeover of children's public television programming which began blossoming about 30 years ago........



********



The Bush administration wants to force public broadcasting to toe the Republican line



Ken Tomlinson may be America's most accomplished propagandist. He got his start as an intern for Fulton Lewis Jr., who ruled right-wing radio when Rush Limbaugh was still in diapers. In the early 1980s, Tomlinson ran Voice of America, promoting the policies of Ronald Reagan to the rest of the world. As editor in chief of Reader's Digest in the early 1990s, he published the most reliably reactionary magazine in the country. Now, as President Bush's handpicked chairman of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, Tomlinson is in a position to spread the Republican message to Sesame Street.



As head of the board that doles out $400 million in federal funds for public broadcasting, Tomlinson is actually required by law to provide PBS and NPR with "maximum protection from extraneous influence and control" by meddling politicians. But in recent months, Tomlinson himself has been the one trying to alter PBS programming. A close friend of Karl Rove since they worked together overseeing Voice of America, he hired a right-wing consultant to secretly monitor Bill Moyers for signs of "liberal bias." He collaborated with the White House to hire two "ombudsmen" to keep an eye on Frontline and All Things Considered. And after President Bush was re-elected in November, Tomlinson warned a gathering of PBS executives that the country had moved to the right -- and that their programming should reflect that.



Welcome to a new era in the battle over public broadcasting. Instead of simply threatening to cut federal funding for PBS -- as Nixon, Reagan and Newt Gingrich did -- the Bush administration has taken a new approach. Far from standing as a firewall against outside political pressure, Tomlinson is trying to force PBS to toe the Republican line, turning the network into a taxpayer-funded facsimile of Fox News. The GOP coup scored a major victory in late June, when the CPB board quietly confirmed Patricia Harrison -- a former co-chair of the Republican National Committee -- as its new president.



The full story from RollingStone.com

Monday, July 04, 2005

Clamboils and Cancer New Moons

Are you enjoying your Fourth of July? If you do celebrate this national holiday, I hope you are having a thoughtful and enjoyable time. For me it is usually always a time of family and friends and a yummy clamboil in New England. There is nothing like smelling those big pots filled with layers of Ipswich longneck clams, pieces of corn on the cob, cherizo sausage, whole onions, potatoes and some lobsters. The juice in the bottom of the pots to be soaked up with crusty bread. The BUTTER. On everything..on the bread, in the pot, on the corn, the lobster, in the chowder. Oh and the homemade clam chowder! Cold, cold beer. Wooooo! It's my memory of home. It makes me feel like everything is somehow going to be alright. The regularlity of those clamboils while growing up lit a homefire within my heart and still warm me.

Cancer is the sign of the home, mother, family, security and all that is about nurturing and being nurtured, including teaching, nursing and food. Oh the safety and security of home, mom's cool soothing hand and the ability to shut and lock the door against to cold and cruel world.

Just two days from now, on July 6, there is a New Moon at 5:02am PST at 14’31 degrees Cancer. What does this portend for we humans? This kicks off an especially significant month for Cancerians such as president George W. Bush (it is also his birthday) and his friend Donald Rumsfeld, actor Tom Cruise, twin actresses Tia and Tamara Mowry, musicians Richie Sambora and Millie Jackson, other Cancerians and those who have strong Cancer signatures in their natal charts. A strong Cancer signature can be Cancer on the Midheaven, cusping the 10th house, Cancer on the IC cusping the 4th house or in the 4th house, Saturn in Cancer, or Moon in Cancer.

Saturn, called by many names including The Lord of Karma, The Teacher and The Father is the planet known for bringing structure, discipline, rules, regulations and restrictions when it sees that someone is doing things that need to change, cease or frankly, when the person needs to stop being selfish and childish and grow up. Cancer can be The Mother OR The Smotherer (and the latter oppresses, gags and/or kills people under the guise of love and protection). As one client with Saturn and Moon in Cancer said to me once, his mother is killing him with her love – she is always saying and doing things to manipulate him (lies and new rules) to make her world the way she wants it to be (she is insecure), no matter that is harming him.

Saturn is the ruler of Capricorn, Cancer's polar or opposite sign. Thus it is strong in Capricorn or exalted, and weak in Cancer or in detriment. This means that Cancer has a very hard time dealing with life when Saturn is on board. Cancer is a cardinal sign and it wants to be in control. It wants to make the rules and typically those rules are ones designed to soothe the inecurities and fears of Cancer. But when Saturn is involved - Saturn makes the rules. Hence with a Cancerian president in the U.S.A., we now have "Homeland Security" or "Homeland Insecurity" as many call it, locking down the nation and spreading messages about how the outside world hates the USA and that Americans MUST be fearful of the foreign and thus attack it (zenophobia). Distractions abound (keep bringing up terrorism andthe WTC) while the military and the military-industrial complex the late Republican President Dwight D. Eisenhower warned about are out of control, the economy has slumped, homes and jobs are hard to come by for ordinary citizens and national healthcare is dismal. Secrecy abounds (hiding in that Cancerian Crab shell). A Cancerian president is supposed to be taking care of and nurturing the American people as a compassionate, outgoing, loving nation that takes care of itself well and then uses it resources to care for other nations. But instead the Cancerian Crab is breeding fear, hate, war and religious intolerance/disrimination...... and hoarding all the resources for his rich friends.

When pushed to answer for certain things, the Cancerian Crab waddles from side to side and evades a direct answer. But Saturn provides the smack-down and one way or another the person with strong Cancer placements suffers loss for refusing to DO THE RIGHT THING.

Saturn has been in Cancer since June 2003, people like Cancerian George Bush have been faced with obstacles when not acting in truthful, mature and nurturing ways. When acting out of insecurity, fear and a need to control, they have faced criticism, exposure, ridicule and loss of respect.

Saturn will leave its mark on you no matter what – thus it is best to do your best so that its touch upon your life brings structure, new growth and increased responsibilility in caring for others (responsibility given by people who trust you to provide care the way in which they say they need it). How will you know you have been doing the right thing? You have gained increased RESPECT from others. How will you know if you have been bucking your spiritual lessons? You are facing endless obstacles, receiving ridicule and are not trusted or respected as you should be. In fact, people may fear you, avoid you and reject your controlling attempts to "protect" them.

Saturn leaves Cancer on July 16 at 5:34am PST and enters the sign of Leo. I will write later about that transit and what it means for people with Sun in Leo or strong Leo signatures in their natal chart.

For now, think of July as a time for Cancerians to celebrate new beginnings and endings of some difficult but what also should be life changing lessons. Any Cancerians or people with strong Cancer placements, resisted learning lessons and stayed their course for the last few years, they have experienced downfall in some way. They will also see the detriment of their behavior over the next decade or longer due to their immaturity, insecurity, lies and deceitfulness, lack of true care for others and their arrogance in continuing to commit selfish acts. People know when they are being deceived or abused! But never fear, (never fear!) when God/Goddess/Spirit is sending a message via Saturn, there really is no outsmarting it.

This New Moon is a great time for all signs to plant new seeds and manifest new projects and ideas. Now is a time to seek prosperity and to understand that the Universe always supports you if you allow it. Here are some Cancerian things you can do on this lunation: Do a breast self-examination on this New Moon and schedule a mammogram or gyn appointment. Buy yourself a supportive new bra that lifts and shapes! Frederick's of Hollywood can fit you well for a new one! Redecorate/revamp your home and clean it up, making it more inviting and peaceful for yourself. Cook your favorite meals for the next three weeks. Enjoy some extra hours of sleep. Give more hugs (you'll get some too!). Let your child or mate do something they really want to do without a warning or negative indication from you - in fact encourage them to do it and trust that it will be fine. They'll be very happy when they return home and that will bless you! Start a small savings account if you have not already done so or put a small amount into an account. Perhaps get on Sharebuilder and invest a little money in a few stocks. They can start you off with $4.....hey every little bit counts. Trust that your world will not fall apart if you do these things, in fact it will only get more secure.

Remember, God/Goddess/Spirit WILL take care of you! have questions about your natal or current transit chart? Want some insight about your coming months or the year? Arrange for an astrology consultation via the Shop

Blessings!

Barrett

Astrologer Sues NASA Over Probe

I can recall watching the blockbuster movie "Independence Day" (I like Will Smith's acting) and feeling especially squeamish when they jammed pointed missiles and jet fighters up into the cervix-like opening of The Mother Ship (the alien). I was reminded of how men designed weapons of war and cars...and they like to make them long, hard and fast. That came back to me with the news that NASA, which is basically ALOT of men, planned to inject a probe into a comet in space. It resembled, once again, the thrusting of a penis into a vagina and the forced injection of sperm. I try not to think about these things much, but alas, the symbolism is very clear.

Just as a young boy (and some men) doesn't stop to pause and think about the consequences of sexual intercourse and how it can change his entire future, so it seems with space exploration. NASA appears to not care about what happens to the universe, the planets, the other celestial bodies...It just wants to control space.

In astrology, natal (birth) charts and transit/progressed (current) charts are calculated by mapping the sky out there, so to speak. The mapping is able to be done because through years of trhe science of astronomy (which has historically included astrology), we have tracked the movement of these planets to the second.

NASA appears to not care if it upsets any balance or throws off the orbits of any planets for astronomy and astrology mean nothing to it. One astrologer, however, is taking it seriously adn she is doign something. The BBC News report is below. It hope she can make some headway. The men at NASA need to know that aiming their probes at planets, comets and asteroids and injecting them with what becomes their space garbage, has long-term consequences.........

You know I always wondered about creating a movie called "Liberation Day" and having a huge phallic "Father" ship. There could be lots of round/circular fighters who surround it and shoot lasers etc at it until WHOMP, it simply bends in half, drooping down like a massive flaccid penis, and then it explodes. I do not think men would like that movie. They would walk out of the theater holdig their crotch and feeling hostile....don't ya think?


From BBC News:

"A Russian astrologer is suing Nasa for crashing a probe into a comet, claiming it has distorted her horoscope.

Marina Bai is seeking $300m (�170m) in damages, saying the probe's impact on Comet Tempel 1 violated her 'life and spiritual values'.

She had tried to have a Moscow court prevent the experiment from taking place but her action was rejected.

Nasa smashed the washing machine-sized 'impactor' into the comet at a distance of 133m km from Earth on Monday.

'Interference'

'It is obvious that elements of the comet's orbit and associated ephemera will change after the explosion, which interferes with my practice of astrology and deforms my horoscope,' Ms Bai told the Izvestia daily newspaper.

Nasa scientists hope the experiment will reveal new information on the Solar System's original make-up and perhaps even how life on Earth emerged.

Ms Bai, from Moscow, said the Tempel 1 comet held an important place in her family history, as her grandfather wooed her grandmother by showing her the comet.

Her lawyer, Alexander Molokhov, said the case was based on solid legal ground, since Nasa has an office in Russia, located in the premises of the US embassy in Moscow. "