For some, the headline yesterday that brought much good cheer (keeping in line with good cheer anticipated all this week), was the news that Raj Rajaratnam, hedge fund manager extraordinaire, had been found guilty of conspiracy and securities fraud http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/12/opinion/12thu1.html?hp

Rajaratnam was reportedly born in Colombo, Sri Lanka on June 15, 1957 (time unknown); Sun in chatty Gemini (like Donald Trump and Newt Gingrich) and Moon in either make-it-happen Capricorn or socially significant Aquarius (I suspect it’s enterprising Capricorn, but I’m not willing to spend the hours it would take to test for an exact birth time). What else might we expect to find in his horoscope? This is your chance, for those of you who read this forecast everyday, to amaze yourselves with what you’ve learned about astrology and how you can apply it to good use yourself (my secret stealth mission).

Here are some facts about today’s astro-logical poster child, followed by planetary patterns we might expect to see in the horoscope.

• He studied engineering in college. We’re going to expect to see Uranus (innovation, technology) prominently configured.
  
• He is famous for excess, to the point of wretchedness. He reportedly paid Kenny Rogers millions of dollars to perform at a birthday party. One of his favorite songs is “The Gambler”. Think! What planet is associated with EXPANSION? We’ll expect to it placed strongly.
• Since he was convicted of fraud, we’ll expect to see a powerful placement of the planet associated with things not being as they seem (NEBULOUS). What planet is that?
  

Let’s go to the chart. We see Uranus (technology, genius, innovation) in royal Leo (grand, sense of entitlement) in an exact connection to Mercury (mind) in clever Gemini. DING! This man is very, very smart. We see expansive……JUPITER in a tight challenge to the Sun. A challenging influence from Jupiter can be over-indulgent. DING DING! Finally, we see nebulous….NEPTUNE in a challenging aspect to Mars. Newt Gingrich, Glenn Beck, Sarah Palin and Bill Clinton all have challenging aspects between these two planets. Would you say that all of these people might be described as charismatic…to the point of being slick? Do they exist in their own unique version of reality? Have they ever been thought of as deceptive? DING DING DING!

Now let’s say this horoscope belongs to someone running for office or applying for a job in your company. Would you vote for them? Would you hire them? If you said “yes,” what other information would you need about them in order to feel confident that you’d made a good decision? What do you think would be this person’s strengths or weaknesses?  Remember: there is nothing inherently good or bad with planetary patterns. People decide how to use — or misuse/abuse their abilities. People decide whether to build all the way up to heaven or all the way down to hell.

Use today’s analytical Moon in Virgo energy to digest this complimentary astro-logical lesson…or anything else on your plate that requires mulling over and organization. Oh– and here’s another example of idealism/”miracles just might happen” thinking hitting the headlines. Yesterday a bill was introduced in the Senate — again — (by Bernie Sanders of Vermont and Jim McDermott of Washington State )to establish a single-payer health insurance/care system in the United States. It is astonishing to me how many otherwise super-smart Americans do not know what “single-payer” means. I am convinced that it is perhaps the most significant reason why the concept hasn’t won greater support. Houston, we have a problem. A MARKETING problem. 

Read about single-payer health care here http://www.pnhp.org/facts/what-is-single-payer, or enjoy my pithy explanation. Single payer means taxpayer-funded, as in Medicare For All. OK, what does that mean? It means given a choice between spending your tax dollars to build military bases all over the Middle East or paying your hospital bills in the event you are hit by a bus, how would you choose to spend it? Excellent. I see you are in favor of a single-payer system, as you would prefer to spend your tax dollars on your health care. In the best of all possible worlds, we would use the money we currently spend on, for example, military bases in the Middle East and spend it on keeping you healthy and free from the worry that if you get sick, you will go bankrupt. Y’know, like they do in every other allegedly civilized Western nation. Single-payer/taxpayer funded health care is nothing new. If you know anyone whose parents served in the military, that person has enjoyed the benefits of taxpayer-funded health care. Why should they have all the fun?

Of course, if we don’t spend our money building military bases in the Middle East, we won’t be able to stand guard over all that oil…which means maybe we’ll have to stop relying on oil and come up with an alternative source of energy that doesn’t require a military base to guard it. Oh my, I am really dreaming here. Must be the stars… ; )