Good Morning!

Moon is in Taurus, happily connected to Mercury and Pluto — which are also happily connected.  More of the easy flow of energy aimed at keeping things exactly as they are supposed to be: comfortable and secure. Plus a ton of dirt from whatever Mercury and Pluto can dig up. Moon goes void on an easy alignment with the Virgo Sun at 11:32PM — nothing to be concerned about. Your only caveat today is that Mercury is STILL retrograde — so keeping on double checking and triple checking before you ship.

Let’s get right to the news.

So. We had a Full Moon and an eclipse last week, and Mars, which symbolizes assertion/aggression — for better or for worse — was closely involved. Over the weekend, Mars triggered the eclipse — and hopefully some of you remember my mentioning a few weeks ago that when Mars triggers an eclipse, we often see a release of bottlenecked energy. And it was quite the weekend of aggressive releases in the U.S. Eight people stabbed at a Minnesota mall — and incendiary devices set off in New Jersey and Manhattan — like clockwork, if you are tracking Mars relative to a recent eclipse. And darned if the arrest of the prime suspect on Monday didn’t flow exactly in synch with planetary patterns:

A rare cooperative alignment between Venus and Mars bodes well for efforts to rein in boundary-pushing action with iron-fist-in-velvet-glove directives…

It’s enough to make this astrologer do a Snoopy dance. And be ever so grateful that the chart for the time of the explosion on 23rd Street at 8:30PM ET 9/18/2016 in NYC was ruled by a quirky guardian angel, with planetary placements suggesting a diffuse and ineffective expression of energy that could otherwise have been lethal. Did you know that the pressure cooker device was apparently “accidentally disarmed” by two men who then took  the suitcase in which it had been placed? In New Jersey, two homeless men were credited with alerting police when they found a backpack with wires and explosives.

It is interesting — but not surprising — that Ahmad Khan Rahami’s horoscope was also eclipsed last week and on Sept 1st.  Birthdate: Jan 23, 1988 — in Afghanistan. Aquarius — Moon in either Pisces or Aries — probably Aries, meaning it would have been hit by transiting Uranus back in 2011, sparking a significant change. “Bomb Suspect Changed After Trip Abroad,” says the  NYT. Right. Meanwhile, his Venus is at 9 Pisces, exactly square Mars at 9 Sagittarius — eclipsed by the New Moon at 9 Virgo. That tense pattern has also been under the surreal ambition suggested by the exact Saturn-Neptune square on Sept 10th. Neptune on its own has been exerting its potentially bewildering influence for over a year. Friends say he became more religious. Makes sense. His natal Saturn and Uranus are together at the end of Sagittarius, suggesting a strong need to shake things up, someone marrying the old and new. This pairing was also hit by last week’s eclipse AND by transiting Jupiter (expansion), just before it entered Libra — and by transiting Mars, too. Astrology is amazing. Let’s move on.

UPDATE: Hillary Clinton. Her Moon is at 22 Pisces, so it was hit by the eclipse and attacked/provoked by transiting Mars at 22 Sag. Her natal Uranus is at 25 Gemini, so it was also affected. Her Midheaven — which refers to status and reputation — was hit by the solar eclipse on September 1st — but not as intensely last week’s lunation. In August, a measurement in effect for several months became exact, suggesting potential overexertion and sudden crisis, necessitating a fight. This was a measurement among Saturn, Uranus and Mars — which I am not going to explain in detail here — but clearly it applies. Other measurements  involving Neptune (viruses, infection, scapegoats) in her progressed horoscope reflects more of the surreal spin. At the beginning of September, the NYT estimated her odds of winning the election at 90% compared to Trump’s 10%; as of today it was at 79% to 21%. Mind-boggling, if you didn’t understand the planetary patterns at play. Actually, it’s still mind-boggling.

On September 25th, Venus in Scorpio will meet up with her Scorpio Sun. This suggests a lift, just before the first debate, scheduled for the 26th. On the 27th, another long-term measurement will be exact — between Pluto (power, transformation) and her Midheaven (career, status). This is a make it or break it opportunity for power as a karmic reward, if you will. The potential downside of Pluto-Midheaven patterns is a total tear-down.

UPDATE: Donald Trump. His opinionated Moon in Sag is at 21 degrees; his doubletalking, ever-changing Gemini Sun is at 22 degrees. Both were provoked by Mars and eclipsed last week, a day before he held a press conference in which he conned the media into giving him free airtime to promote his new hotel in Washington. Furnished with things that weren’t made in America. Koran and prayer rug happily supplied upon request, which is hospitable, but seems to contradict other things he’s said: “Trump’s New Hotel Offers Everything He Claims to Hate.” At the end of the lengthy free political campaign commercial  alleged press conference, he announced that the total lie about Barack Obama being born in Kenya — a lie he perpetuated since 2011 — was in fact a total lie because he finally said it was. Then he blamed the start of the lie on Hillary Clinton. If you’ve been reading this forecast since 2011, you may remember what was going on in his horoscope back then:  transiting Neptune opposing his Mars and Ascendant, suggesting a meltdown, delusions, fanaticism, etc.

Are you familiar with the term “gaslighting?”  It’s what I think of whenever I think of Donald J. Trump and his tight Mercury-Neptune square; Mars in Leo in the 12th conjunct the Ascendant; double talking Gemini Sun conjunct erratic Uranus, both of which oppose the Sag Moon; a mean-spirited meet-up between Venus and Saturn; the testosterone surge otherwise known as the Fixed Star Capulus on the Midheaven. Gaslighting. I hope you look that one up.

UPDATE: Edward Snowden. As anticipated in earlier forecasts, he’s made an ambitious reach this fall, making a case he should be pardoned by President Obama on moral grounds. And Oliver Stone’s movie about him is now out.

UPDATE: Keith Olbermann. The opportunities for expansion in media in communication expected this summer (noted here in March), have materialized. He has a new show on GQ and he’s generating buzz on Twitter. Another Snoopy dance for this astrologer.

UPDATE: Governor Scott Walker of Wisconsin. This is another person we’ve been writing about since 2011.  Perfectly in synch with that dirt-digging double Mercury-Pluto alignment today and Friday, the governor is the star player in an absolutely must-read expose of money, power and resources in corporations and government. It’s called “Because Scott Walker Asked,” and Donald Trump is in it, too. Here’s an excerpt from the Guardian’s riveting piece:

In July 2015 the state’s highest court, the supreme court of Wisconsin, terminated the John Doe investigation before any charges were brought. The conservative majority of the court ruled that the prosecutors had made a basic misreading of campaign finance law and targeted individuals who were “wholly innocent of any wrongdoing”.

In a contentious twist to the ruling, the justices ordered the prosecutors to “permanently destroy all copies of information and other materials obtained through the investigation”.

This latter-day equivalent of a book burning could have condemned the John Doe investigation into permanent oblivion, leaving voters none the wiser. But at least one copy of the evidence gathered by the prosecutors survived the bonfire, and have now been leaked to the Guardian.

One day I may write about current patterns in the governor’s horoscope. Too many other items to put into today’s clown car of news.

My Celestial Calendar did arrive yesterday, but I didn’t need it to know that on Sunday, Venus (women, social expression, art, money) was in a supercharged contact with rebel Uranus. In the NYT Sunday magazine, one story was about two producers involved with Transparent, the TV series about a family patriarch who identifies as female and thus makes the transition. The producers are also trans — and used to be a couple. Elsewhere in the NYT, Modern Love’s essay was about how a mother handled her six-year-old son’s wish to wear skirts and dresses to school.

The Sunday before last, you may recall that Venus was supercharged by Pluto — suggesting empowerment of the feminine and also potentially “witchy-bitchy” women. Who saw the NYT op-ed that ran on that day, titled “The Bitch America Needs” — referring to Hillary Clinton. Is this not amazing? Astrology is AWESOME — and if you’re an Avid Reader who’s been thinking about maybe booking a personal consultation to find out how you can use astrology as a Really Useful Tool, here’s the 411.

Finally, this tidbit from Avid Reader Katya, who thoroughly understands the potential of Venus with Pluto (and Uranus) — and wanted to make sure I did not miss this item, now taking schools in France by storm:  “This is a 3D Model of a Clitoris — and the Start of a Sexual Revolution.”  Absolutely spot on, Katya. Thank you.

…and I just glanced at the horoscopes of Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie. Tremendous pressure in both from transiting Uranus and Pluto to multiple planets and angles. Added pressure for him from transiting Neptune squaring his Ascendant. Something is not as it seems; we see a potential deception or wipeout. Big needs for greater freedom of individual expression for them both  — all well and good — but how is their marriage going to accommodate those needs? Ms. Jolie has filed for divorce.

Thank you for reading this forecast and sharing it with the entire Free World.