Paper Ships Astrological Perspectives

Blessings to all as we awaken to our true nature

Jupiter Conjunct Neptune - December 14 - 27, 2009

This is the second time this aspect has happened this year (see below). This time it happens during the Christmas season, adding an air of optimism to the general socio-economic climate. This will help Christmas sales, as it tends to loosen people's otherwise realistic controls on spending. But come next month, with a reassertion of the Saturn square Pluto aspect, when the Christmas bills come due, this could be seen as wishful thinking for many, including the Treasury and Federal Reserve. But January and February will come regardless, and now is a time for optimistic and cheerful celebration. Enjoy it while it lasts for these two weeks. At the end of the month we have the first of two eclipses. On the 31st we have a Full Moon eclipse at Sun 10 Capricon & Moon 10 Cancer, which will have the tendency to bring people back down to reality. Changes are in the works for January. People will be moving, changing jobs, losing jobs, and generally readjusting their personal and professional lives as we all shift with the dictates of the times.

Saturn Square Pluto

November 1st through December 7th, 2009 Saturn comes into a Square with Pluto. The last time this square happened was in the Summer and Fall of 1973 and again in May & June 1974. Those were tumultuous times in the U.S. and the world, both politically and economically. The established forces of entrenched control reach an historic breaking point at this time. This results in political, economic and social upheaval, revolution & change. The old guard is either forced out of power or else dies off, as the upwelling power of reality overcomes a crumbling status quo that has outlived its grasp on the very reality it is trying to control.

During 1973 and 1974 we see The Watergate scandal emerging with the resignation of Presidential aides Haldeman & Ehrlichman in April 1973, the Senate hearings in the summer of 1973, the White House tapes with their missing 18 minutes, all leading up to the eventual and unprecedented resignation of President Nixon in August 1974. In October 1973 Vice President Spiro Agnew resigns due to Income Tax evasion charges, and Gerald Ford is named Vice President.

Politically in the rest of the world: In Britain the Conservatives loose power. There are coups and revolutionary government changes in Cyprus, Uruguay, Thailand, Rwanda, Portugal, Afghanistan & Chile, where US rumored involvement results in the death of Salvador Allende and the military junta names General Pinochet as President, beginning 16 years of repressive rule. Current & former Political & military leaders die in Canada, Japan, Cuba, Turkey, USSR, Sweden, France, East Germany, Argentina & Pakistan. Governement leaders resign or are removed from power in Japan, Ethiopia, Greece & Argentina. There are bombings, attacks & assassinations in Ireland, Pakistan, South Korea, Argentina. There are government leader resignations in the US, Germany & Japan.

And if that was not enough, we have the Yom Kippur war between Isreal and Egypt/Syria/Jordan beginning in October 1973. The US backs Isreal politically as well as supplying arms, and the Soviets back the Arab states. Intense diplomatic activity eventually lead to a cease-fire, but not before the US discovers that the Soviets have put nuclear missiles into the Egyptian desert.

On the nuclear front in May 1974 India successfully tests a nuclear bomb, and joins the US, USSR, Britain, France and China as nuclear powers. And the US and France agree to supply Iran with nuclear reactors. Karen Silkwood dies in car crash and high levels of radiation are discovered in her apartment. This as she is on her way to meet with a New York Times reporter and a union official, where she plans to document her allegations against Kerr-McGee Nuclear Corporation.

On the energy front, OPEC quadruples the price of oil, up from $2.50/barrel at the beginning of 1973, to $11.25 by the end of 1974. This is equivalent to Oil rising from under $20/barrel to $50 in 2009 dollars. This created a huge balance-of-payments deficit in the developed countries, fueled worldwide inflation, wiped out economic progress in developing nations and concentrated petrodollars into a few middle eastern oil producing countries. This also corresponded to a domestic Oil production peak and decline in the US with an ever increasing dependency on foreign oil imports that continues to this day. World Oil production has now peaked during the first decade of the 21st century, underlying globalized energy & economic competition going forward.

On the economic front, the shock of the rise in oil prices as well as soaring grain prices precipitate a world monetary crisis and then a worldwide economic recession, the worst since the Great Depression of the 1930s. Speculative selling of US Dollars on foreign exchanges force a second devaluation of the dollar in 14 months. Secretary of Treasury George Schultz announces a 10% devaluation of the dollar, which helps export sales but boosts the prices of import goods to the US. By 1974 the economic recession deepens in the world and inflation reaches double digits.

Going back another 34 years to the previous time period when Saturn squared Pluto, we find ourselves exactly at the beginning of World War II, in 1939-1940.

And going back the the Saturn square Pluto period before that, puts us square into the Bank Panic of 1907, with runs on the banks and the stock market falling close to 50%. This eventually led to the creation of the Federal Reserve in 1910 and the passing of the Federal Reserve Act in 1913.

So, you can see that when Saturn makes a square with Pluto, the foundation upon which political, social & economic stability rests shows signs of crumbling due to reality stresses that can no longer be ignored. It is normal to maintain the status quo to continue political rule and economic norms. But the underlying realities of limited resources, economic debt and social & political truth eventually overwhelm the structures of the status quo, forcing changes to accommodate the way things really are. And that is the difficulty of these times. Ignoring the results of living beyond our means cannot go on forever. We have to become more frugal and more realistic in our daily lives and the daily commerce of the world. Eventually the world will not buy our debt anymore, and eventually the government will no longer be able to bail out anyone. Pretending that we can go back to living on the top of an unsustainable bubble economy won't work much longer. If we can't afford an accustomed lifestyle, we are forced to change our consumption habits. If we can't take money out of our houses anymore, and we have been laid off work, and our unemployment benefits are running out, we need to find practical ways to survive. This forces us to accept the reality of our situation and to begin to build a structure that actually supports our needs, while also using what is actually available to build that structure. People tend to see these times as "hard times". But the opportunity is to come back to reality and to then build something realistic that can maintain our survival, our needs and our opportunities. That is the challenge we face. And it is a gift that we give ourselves and our children, based on the strength and power of our grasp of the situation and our constructive response going forward. The past has crumbled and we must now build a new present and future out of the available materials at hand.

Currently, in November 2009 (and again in Jan-Feb 2010, & Aug 2010) we have the continuing economic crisis. 3/4 of all Wall Street trading is conducted by the major financial institutions and the Federal Reserve, using automatic high speed computer programs. These firms buy and sell back and forth to each other, effecting the market artificially in attempts to draw investors into the market so these firms can profit from them. Not only do they have an unfair advantage with this high speed trading manipulation, but the money they are using is money they received from the stimulus program. They are using taxpayer money (actually taxpayer debt) to fund their own profits. Most of the market recovery is due to the stimulus program.

Another indicator of where we are actually at is the Price to Earning ratio, the PE ratio. It has historically been considered that a Stock price to dividend earnings ratio of 20:1 was fairly healthy. Since this current economic crisis the S&P500 average PE ratio has gone to 60, 80 and recently topped out at 140:1! This means that the actual earnings of stocks have dropped 7 fold. The current stock market is over valued up to 7 times. Why has it "recovered" since March of this year, with a PE ratio as high as 140? By government stimulus money and high speed institutional trading artificially inflating the market value. The recovery is smoke and mirrors, financed with government money that only exists as debt that must be paid back later. And who eventually has to pay this debt? The American Taxpayer, worker and consumer.

The underlying fundamentals of the economy have not changed. We are still in a recession. The government has taken on huge debts that may never be paid off (you and me have to pay these trillions of dollars over the next few decades). Unemployment continues to rise, reaching on Nov. 6th 10.2% for U-3, and more significantly 17.5% for U-6 (the more total unemployment number which includes unemployed, underemployed and discouraged workers). The bankers and financiers of Wall Street, the Federal Reserve and government, who caused this crisis have been the only ones bailed out. Main Street USA is struggling to pay their mortgages, buy dwindling inventory & stay afloat with reduced income.

This crisis is a direct result of a financial system based on debt. A financial system the requires economic growth to continue forever with finite resources in a finite world system. During Saturn/Pluto times what is unsustainable in real terms falls apart. You then have financial crises, and the political crises that accompany them. Easy money evaporates and people, companies and governments face hard times. War is too often used as a means to "recover", at the cost of the lives and fortunes of the people. The super rich pretend to try to save everyone, but they really are just trying to save their system, which results too often in a severe reduction or elimination of the middle class.

Jupiter Conjunct Neptune - May 13 - July 24, 2009

This is THE open ended opportunity for possibilities on a grand scale. All doors are unlocked at this time and we get a chance to see what our creative energies have produced and can produce. All potential is available to us now, as we look into the ocean of existence, out of which the nature of everything emerges into the manifest world in all its scope and complexity. Nothing is certain right now. Many changes are in the works, effecting our economic, social, collective, international, religious, spiritual, artistic, musical, health and inspirational matters.

So what does this all mean? It means that we can use our creative powers at this time to create a manifestation template that will lead us out of our current limitation, blockage and manifested lack. It means that we need to think positively and know that we create our own opportunities. This requires optimism, faith and an undaunted willingness to move past whatever difficulties have been surrounding us and onward to a different situation that provides many more options and workable solutions.

Some will have windfalls drop into their laps at this time. But most of us will need to replace our uncertainty and immobility with a willingness to believe in our dreams and goals, and even more willingness to take the chance of acting on them. Nothing is permanent, not the good stuff and not the bad stuff. But everything is malleable at this time and the forms that can be created are limited only by our imagination, inspiration and willingness to believe in ourselves. Carpe Diem.

On the negative side, if you have no positive vision or dream, or if you are unwilling to let go of your victimhood, then you create a void within your experience that will pull in experiences that will "prove" that the cards are stacked against you, others are mistreating you, or that you are vulnerable to all kinds of dis-eases, deceptions, debilities & emasculations. It is best to not succumb to a pervasive malaise that allows your energy and will to leak out of you, instead of applying it to the next step in your journey of a thousand steps .

There is a tendency to drink or take drugs that loosen up your inhibitions or help you see things from outside the walls of your normal identity. This can be done without drugs, but some people will be attracted to indulging in them even more than usual. Best to get your inspiration directly from life and avoid the problems that too easily come when you are not fully in charge of yourself because of drugs or alcohol.

This is a really good time for concerts, movies, plays, singing, laughing, vacationing, day dreaming, trusting your intuition, and generally letting go of trying to force life into a mold or imposed pattern. Let go and allow your creativity to flow. Don't try to control it. Let yourself discover. Let yourself see life as fresh and new, and allow hope, joy and exuberance to express themselves. Get out of your own way and move on to something that gives you more satisfaction and a sense of the abundance inherent in life.

Uranus Opposite Saturn Triggered off by the Full Moon of Tuesday March 10th

This whole week from Saturday March 7th through Saturday March 14th highlights the Saturn Uranus opposition we have been living with since last fall. This opposition was exact on election eve, and the presidential campaign and world economic crisis are expressions of this polarity between these two Astrological Titans.

The last time these two opposed each other was in 1966-1967 during a peaking of the social & political changes of the sixties. The civil rights movement, the growing protests against the Vietnam war, the general rebellion against conformity, as well as going to the Moon, are all manifestations of this confrontation. Saturn represents the form and structure of manifestation, and its tendency to maintain itself, even when it no longer serves the life that must function within it. Uranus represents new discovery, new realizations, new awareness and a breaking away from the consensus and control of established processes. Uranus will often break out of the prison of the conventional and strike out into the experimental and untried. These two planets are inherently antithetical to each other. From Conservative vs Liberal, and conformity vs individualism to the Status Quo vs Revolution, we are faced with the need to maintain the order that is working, and replace that which is not working with something entirely new. The Economic crisis is a case in point. The system has failed, due partly to inherent unrealistic foundations and partly to allowing greed, corruption and unrestrained market forces to do whatever they damn well wanted. We are faced with having to remake the system on all levels, while realizing that the old models don't fit anymore.

This is a new situation that, while it has aspects that are reflective of past troubled times, really has no road map. We must blaze the trail and discover new ways to relate to value, fuction and the flow of wealth, resources and human interaction, on a world wide scale. Assuming that any economy can continue to expand forever within a finite environment, is doomed to collapse on itself eventually. And now, 2008-2009, is that eventuality. The world resources are finite. We have to live with each other on this planet and find a way to wisely use the resources and energy available without using it all up and destroying ourselves in the process. The old paradigm of creating war to get us out of recessions and depressions doesn't work anymore. We can't afford it. The need to discover and invent new ways to live sustainably and to support all humanity is the main challenge of this time. The balance is tipping in a way that even the powerful and rich are no longer insulated. Idiologies and the struggle for dominance just create more of the problem. Solutions that find inherently solid forms while also encouraging inventive and creative approaches are possible at this time.

This week marks the middle of the two year period of Saturn Opposite Uranus. How are we doing? Have we weaned ourselves off of the addiction to overconsumption and violent domination? Do we see the folly of demanding entitlement to a high standard of living at the expense of 8 out of 10 people on the planet? Are the forces of established structures and the need for renewed freedom of spirit balanced in our lives, or are they entrenched in a battle for all out control of our paradigm? Are we willing to work together to find the solutions instead of blaming and judging others in the vicious circle of the victim/victimizer program? Now is the time. The playing field is being leveled. We each work both for ourselves and for the whole planet. Nothing is certain, but opportunities are everywhere to be made. It demands our best creativity, courage and strength. This is either a time of falling back asleep deeper into the nightmare of denial, or an awakening into a time of creating and manifesting our dreams.

Paper Ships Books and Crystals for information on Eclipse effects
Read The Eclipse Report.

View Space-Light-Gravity.