Jude’s Threshold

If your eyes glaze over – or if they don’t – every time the subject of ‘card check’, unionizing, lost jobs, and the political power-and-money games surrounding them come up, please read Maria Cocco’s clearly written article:

http://www.truthdig.com/report/item/20090330_make_them_pay/

Yes, it is typical of a politician that they morph from their candidate phase into something quite different once they’re in office.

But with Pres. Obama working so diligently on (supposedly) saving the US economy and on ‘creating  jobs’ one must wonder if the jobs to be created have a purpose other than paying wages.

And the paradox of the situation seems odd to me since corporate greed has become a headline, the president says he’s “angry, too”, and yet Mr. Obama doesn’t seem to support improvements for laid off workers and others whose wages have fallen through the greedy machinations of corporate gorillas afraid that union organization might cost them their next two or three Lexus payments.

One could suppose that overpaid CEOs, if financially strapped by paying decent wages to the people who make their wealth possible,  could choose to rent out the extra bedrooms in their cushy penthouses – perhaps not a perfect solution since no decent person would want to live with them.

Not coming from a region of the country that has had the advantages (and disadvantages) of unionized labor, it isn’t always possible for me to follow the script on the subject of  ’card check’ changes, other union labor disputes, and congressional legislation to ‘fix’ things that always seem to make matters worse for the little guy, and thereby plusher for corporate fatcats.

Yes,  Ms. Cocco’s article has given me a boost in understanding what’s up with Arlen Specter on the subject of lost jobs, fallen wages, and lack of negotiating power for the common man  - predictable, but disturbing nonetheless especially considering the economic climate we face.

Duh Moment Occurs:

So let’s see if I have this right: Congress (with its self-voting ability to raise its own pay)  sides with corporations against US workers and their rights.

Yes, I think I ‘get it’ now. And it wasn’t so difficult for a southeast-born simpleton after all.

Did you know that Lois Rodden’s excellent chart data source, Astro-Data Bank, is now an open Wiki project where you can freely graze for chart details?

http://www.astro.com/astro-databank/Main_Page

Uh oh! After updating my post here on the Astrology of this week’s G20 Summit in London with the current transits of Pluto to the US and UK natal charts, I find that Julie Demboski has published her overview of this week’s Astrology – titled, ‘Reversal of Fortune” which I fret relates to the outcome of the economic Summit our president is attending.

The summit is the big  ’plutonian’ event of the week as plutocrats assemble themselves in London from far and wide.

Read Julie’s excellent article which concerns your current personal conditions as well – she says that April 4 is the day to watch this week:

http://juliedemboski.wordpress.com/2009/03/29/mar-30th-april-6th-reversal-of-fortune/

Her post highlights the Superior Conjunction occurring this evening (edt) of Sun and Mercury at 10Ari34 and if we round off the degree to check its Sabian Symbol, what word picture do we get for ’11Aries’?

“The President of the Country.”

Dane Rudhyar, in his book  ’An Astrological Mandala”  gives this degree’s Keynote as: ‘The power resulting from the formal integration of the collective desire for order.’ 

CENTRALIZATION OF POWER.

And Power, in human form, calls itself to order in London this week…on our behalf? Or to further promote the designs of the New World Order?

Using a sunrise (solar) chart for April 2, 2009, London, England, the G20 Summit’s horoscope with details has been published, if you’re the least bit interested:

http://starsoverwashington.blogspot.com/2009/03/astrology-of-g20-summit-april-2-2009.html

And don’t fret overmuch if you don’t speak astrologese - the article is written in quite plain English.

‘Pluto’ Update, Monday, Mar 30, 2009:

One thing not in the SO’W post but very telling is the Pluto transit to US natal Venus which appears on the MC/IC angle of the Summit’s chart.

Since I had blabbed about Pluto’s stint opposing America’s natal Venus, Jupiter, and Sun in Cancer (3 – 14) over the next few years, I didn’t want to mention it, I suppose. But Pluto opposite Venus on the chart’s angles has proven too difficult to ignore so I’ll mention it again here.

Pluto opposing natal Venus is a period of time when joint ventures, legal matters, and social relationships are strained – and manipulated by powerful people, to say the least – outcomes are not promising.

Manipulation and jealousy are on Pluto’s agenda as America’s values, priorities, material possessions, and relationships are in conflict with current circumstances.

‘Retreating to a safe distance’ is the usual advice during this transit, but the G20 Summit makes this impossible, as do the other issues Mr. Obama has to negotiate as president. This doesn’t look good as Pluto moves on to our natal Jupiter, then natal Sun in self-protective Cancer. Argh.

So when will ‘secret hand’ Pluto be out of our Cancerian neighborhood? Allowing a 5 degree orb, which we must for slow-moving Pluto, I’d say the worst of the ill effects won’t lessen until 2015 with some improvement a year or so before.

Sorry. Long slog with bright spots here and there pre-2015, imho. Even Robert Reich dances around having to say how long he thinks the  US economic downturn will last and gives ’2 or 3 years’ as the rosiest scenario (in his presentation to the Commonwealth Club, Jan 29, 2009) which would point to 2012 or so.

And in the UK chart of Jan 1, 1801, Pluto will oppose natal Moon in 2011-12 (7 Can = abuse and emotional manipulation, possibly trauma) then go on to conjunct UK natal Sun (10 – 11 Cap) in 2013, ’14, and ’15.

Yet using a 5 degree orb, the ‘master spy’ and manipulator is in their neighborhood already, isn’t he?

So by only looking at Pluto transits, can we say that the powerball will be in England’s court to America’s detriment? It would seem so, but again, that’s my opinion…and this is my personal weblog, isn’t it?

After all, we’re the dolts who blew our fortunes on war – while other nations allowed our American-taxpayer-funded military to police the world on their behalf. #

Original post continues here:

Another thing I neglected to add to the post on the G20 Summit, and which you may wish to know, are details on the Fire-Water Sun Aries-Moon Cancer blend.

This combination of energies indicates an extremely charismatic leader but one who becomes bitter if his/her ideas are not embraced wholeheartedly.  No, an ‘embrace’  is not likely to happen for Pres. Obama at this Summit unless it’s for the cameras!

And since UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown has no absolutely no charisma whatsoever, perhaps another ‘world leader’ will stand out from the herd.

There is great difficulty handling personal criticism with this moody blend, a tendency that is echoed by the Summit’s Venus oriental (see post), with the planet of money, values, and relationships still retrograde until mid-April.

The ‘Images for Integration’ for Sun Aries-Moon Cancer are as follows:

‘A child in a petulant fury runs away from home…A lightening storm at sea gives way to a peaceful, radiant dawn…The Salvation Army.’

(‘Sun Sign-Moon Sign’ by Chas & Suzi Harvey.)

Should be a riveting Summit because of current world fiscal and social conditions – and its chart is certainly interesting.

With Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner touting on TV’s political shows this morning, I have just enough time to tell you that New York’s Robert Ellman has written an excellent article on why he’s holding Democratic feet to the fire even though he votes for them and voted for Barack Obama last November.

But that’s not all you get in one post with Rob who details health care legislation’s chances in Congress with Sen. Max Baucus (D-Montana) holding the keys of power as Chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, and the rhetorical platitudes Baucus has used to hide his true intent – keeping the medical industry complex’s grip on the regular American’s wallet.

In my astrological neighborhood, it’s called ‘class warfare of Pluto-Chiron’ and is a symptom of a plutocracy working to keep its claws on the helm of power. I assert that 2008′s financial meltdown was the elite class holding us hostage to our fears and using our bank accounts as ransom for a high-jacked, failed banking system that they built, then crashed so that a ‘new system’ would be called for.

The G20 Summit in London this week may tell some of the tale concerning the US dollar’s destiny – and our own. But it all depends on what the wheeler-dealers behind the scene have up their magicians’ sleeves…and it’s more than a wrinkled old arm. 

It will be interesting to hear the scripts that come out of the meetings as delivered by Pres. Obama and others – will their words ring out above violent protests? Will protests become violent in part by secret instigators working on behalf of the Rothschilds and Rockefellers?

Rome, Berlin, Paris, and London have seen protests this weekend ahead of the Summit. Europeans are angry about spiralling inequality and most are blaming America’s greed and corruption for the world’s financial problems. It’s not been a lack of liquidity, but too much money (printed by unaccountable-to-the- public central banks) being too cheap that’s caused problems and we-the-people aren’t the ones who over-printed! We’re all victims here.

And like many people, I am not pleased for the most part with the president’s choice of economic team which has too many of the players from Clinton days (and before.)

So holding Democrats in power to a populist standard isn’t a bad thing, it’s the only thing the underclass can do if it values its very existence. And by ‘underclass’ I mean anyone not of the self-exalted, hubristically inclined super-rich ‘power elite.’

Now if you’ve read this far, I know you’ll believe me when I say that Mr. Ellman explains it better here:

http://intrepidliberaljournal.blogspot.com/2009/03/max-baucus-is-corporatist-class-warrior.html

So once again, in the form of Max Baucus and his colleagues, we may say that on Capitol Hill corporate donations speak much louder than we-the-people — they drown us out, in fact — and Mr. Ellman is no happier with the condition than this gnat of a blogger who can’t say it nearly as eloquently as he.

Well, is Mr. Obama really moving the US government to the ‘left’ as some have charged? Apparently he should be since he was elected to do just that on behalf of the majority of we-the-people.

And who doesn’t fondly remember through 8 years of the Bush-Cheney adminstration the oft-repeated mantra of  ‘compassionate conservatives’ when faced with the prospect of being their brother’s keeper?  “All through your life, you made choices,” they intoned from their smug, high horses.

Translation: you’re on your own, sucker. I got mine. You get yours.

Recent research by Michael Ward is highlighting the theory that C. S. Lewis based his popular children’s classic ‘Chronicles of Narnia’ on “7 heavens” with each book in the series based on the characteristics of one of the 7 planets’ energies and influences.

Ah hah! say astrologers.  As with many things, it helps in reading the Narnia books to have some familiarity with planetary archetypes as known through the centuries.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/religion/3536716/Secret-theme-behind-Narnia-Chronicles-is-based-upon-the-stars-says-new-research.html

Here’s a link to Wikpedia’s bio on “Jack’ as he was known to family and friends (such as J. R. R. Tolkein):

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/C.S._Lewis

And now for a  little Astrology…

Clive Staples Lewis was born on Nov 29, 1898 in Belfast, now Northern Ireland, birth hour unknown.

Since the Moon remained in Gemini for the 24-hour period of that date, we may consider his Fire-Air Sun Sag-Moon Gem blend with Gemini the sign of the writer.

Sag-Gem is a witty, versatile, friendly combination with the disposition of a literary genius.

Profound yet fun-loving, this blend indicates one who desires both knowledge and wisdom, an eternal child who is only satisfied when getting the moral of the story.

Playing the devil’s advocate to the nth degree, this combo loves the sound of its own voice and can out-talk anyone.

And with ‘The Screwtape Letters’ being one of my all-time favorite books, it was little surprise to see this blend for author Lewis because he certainly plays the devil’s advocate – his assistant, Wormwood  – in this brilliant book which explains the tactics Satan uses against the human race (second only to the Bible) in a marvelously elucidating way.

In relationships, however, this blend is quite out-to-lunch in the emotional department, yet is always able to give practical advice due to a natural talent for logic.

Commitment is often avoided because of a fear of boredom and the possibility that adventure may be blocked or stymied in some way. Life should be one adventure after another, says Sun Sag-Moon Gem, with its tendency to wiggle out of emotionally tight corners.

These energies make for a gifted teacher, communicator, and inspirational catalyst – one who is always open to new cultural experiences and has amazing verbal skills and an attractive way with words.

Negatively, there is the possibility of spreading oneself too thin, and of over-analyzing things as a way of avoiding or hiding from feelings.

New Age ‘prophet’ Benjamine Creme shares this natal Sun-Moon blend along with Persia’s Akbar the Great,  Noel Coward, Billy Connolly, Edith Piaf, Anna Freud, and Francisco Franco.

There is only one ‘Image for Integration’ for Sun Sag-Moon Gem, but it’s as charmingly adventurous as we might expect:

‘Robin Hood as a young boy plays truant from school to go to his archery lesson, but ends up teaching his card tricks to his master.’

(‘Sun Sign-Moon Sign’ by Chas & Suzi Harvey.)

Fund raising for marijuana legalization organization NORML tripled after Pres. Obama glossed over the ‘legalization = tax revenues’ question from Twitterers during the president’s online forum this week.

Besides gaining tax revenues with its legalization of Non-Violent possession, what a savings it would be to taxpayers if smokers were not imprisoned for years – and imprisonment’s social cost to families losing loved ones is impossible to calculate and heart-breaking to consider.

But if the CIA’s traditional and reputed involvement in drug trafficking is a secret part of the issue, they may want to keep their cash cow close and their bong-lovers closer!

And Mary Jane is handy for evidence-planting purposes, you know. (Did I just type that out loud?)

Plus, I guess it was too much to expect the president to give a shout-out to terminally ill patients whose appetites are improved and pain relieved with you-know-what, even with recent seemingly relaxed federal raid policies on taxpaying, regulated medical marijuana operations.

Personally I think anyone who’s ill and dying deserves whatever relief they can get for their pain and suffering and if it’s from naturally growing greenery, so be it. If it were You or a loved one dying, would you feel the same?

The first time I moved to DC years ago, there was a hazy cloud of smoke hanging over the city that surprised me – 9 times out of 10, after dinner drinks included a little sumpin’ sumpin.’ 

Three years later I was moving there again and it was 10 out of 10. So DC politicians, staffers, embassy employees, and the rest can tell ME they refrain from the green herb now, but I cannot believe it for the majority of them.

Still, this is Politics and what US president wants to be known in history as the prez who legalized weed? Perhaps it would take more empathy, compassion, and sympathy than any politician out for his main chance could ever possess.

Wonder if George is stoned right now? ;p

Disclaimer: the opinions expressed in this post are those of the author and do not reflect opinions of the White House or of other federal agencies – at least not in public forums.

http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2009/03/28/fundraising-jump-for-marijuana-group-after-obama-snub/

If you’re familiar with America’s natal chart (Sibly version: 5:10 pm LMT) you know that US natal Pluto, the planetoid now in process of cleaning out our financial closets, is posited in our nation’s 2nd house, one of the money houses of Earning Ability, Values, and Self-Worth.

Astrologer Jessica Murray, who writes consistently excellent articles at Daykeeper Journal, has a new series and you can catch Part I here:

http://www.daykeeperjournal.com/murray.shtml

Tell me: did your Granny once advise you to save your pennies? Well, what do you think of her old fashioned advice now?

It’s Friday again, day of art-loving Venus, planet of relationships and love. Have you had dinner yet?

Because it’s time for Dinner at Delphine’s!

And if you’re age 17+, more such relationship art and friskier stuff may be viewed at:

http://cosmicpersonadesigns.blogspot.com/

(You’ll find an Art Slideshow in the sidebar column.)

And for Art Downloads try:

http://stores.lulu.com/judecowell

In the mood for Moon Art or a Botanical rendering? Mosey over to:

http://secretmoonart.blogspot.com/

Perhaps I’ll run into you on an art site somewhere while you’re  ’smirking the weird’ as Jimmy Fallon calls it. And you know you do.

How cool is this?

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/S/SCI_ASTEROID_MATCH?SITE=AZPHG&SECTION=SCIENCE&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2009-03-26-00-33-47

Was John Lennon’s Judy in the Sky with Diamonds prescient, or what?