Asteroid-World Fall 1998
Zip Dobyns
IRAQ CRISIS
I had debated writing about Iraq, and when we started bombing the country on December 16, that settled the question. We lack a birth time for Saddam Hussein, but the chart for his military coup when he took power in the country seems to work well. The coup was reportedly at 5 A.M. on July 14, 1958 in Baghdad. UT is three hours earlier. I have written previously about the chart, and had noted that the fall of 1998 could be crucial. The P Moon was conjunct P and N Saturn through most of September into mid-December, plus it was opposite Venus during the middle fall, quincunx the Ascendant in the earlier fall, and quincunx the Sun from mid-November to mid-January 1999. Obviously, there were many aspects involving other planets, but the P Moon is often a key timer for major events.
The chart has a cardinal T-square, or a full cardinal cross if we count the Descendant. With all three major fire “planets” involved, Mars in Aries in the 10th house, the rising Sun in Cancer, and Jupiter in Libra, the fire potential for over-confidence and rash judgment is certainly present. It is reinforced by Mars on the south lunar node, showing a lesson in the handling of personal (Mars-Aries) and executive (10th house) power. One-ten combinations show personal power meeting the limits of personal power in some form. Obviously, many different details are possible. Limits may involve “natural” law including time, cultural regulations, personal physical or emotional or mental limits, and/or one’s conscience. The P south lunar node has remained within a one-degree orb of Mars for many years, and when I acquired additional asteroids, I found Arabia also exactly conjunct them. Pallas, our most political asteroid, formed another T-square with the lunar nodes to accentuate the power struggle potential of the new regime. Fama (fame) and Hela (death) were also involved, closely conjunct the Sun in 20 Cancer. I don’t know how many individuals were killed in the coup, but Saddam has certainly killed a lot since then. Saturn and Chiron added to the tension, forming a yod (double quincunx) to the cluster on the Ascendant, and Icarus, the overreach kid who crashed, was closely conjunct Saturn to repeat the warning about handling power and the “law.”
The potential for success was also present in the chart with a grand trine in air signs and water houses. Air is the element of the intellect, the conscious side of the mind, while water symbolizes the subconscious part of the mind. Water shows the potential for intuition, and it can be secretive for reasons of security. The Moon was conjunct Libya, a country which has also played an outlaw role in the society of nations and which has cooperated with Iraq, and they are also conjunct Hephaistos, the maker of weapons for the gods of Olympus. Sumeria, an ancient kingdom in the region of Iraq and Iran, was conjunct Mercury, and Washingtonia (for our capital) was just past them on Juno. With the Plutonian nature of Juno, we have alternately been a partner of Iraq and an open enemy.
Many other features might be mentioned, but the current patterns are more important as we face a confrontation with the country which may continue for years. In addition to the P Moon as a timer for this crisis period, the P Sun just reached Pluto in mid-October 1998 and P Mercury was also involved, retrograding over Pluto. P Pluto reached N Williams (for Clinton) in 1997. P East Point started a conjunction with Uranus in the late spring of 1998. P MC reached an opposition to N America in June 1998 and it squared Mercury, Juno, Sumeria, and Washingtonia and was quincunx P Icarus. P Mars has held a quincunx to P Saturn for nearly two years, timing the current one-ten challenge in the natal chart. It is also square to Themis (divine justice) in 18 Leo. P Pallas just reached Atropos, a goddess who cut the cord of life, in the fall of 1998. P Siva (destruction) was retrograding on the Descendant, and will hold the aspect for years. P Brita (England which joined with the U.S. in the bombing) was opposite Chaldaea, another ancient kingdom in the area of Iraq and Iran.
Many more asteroids might be mentioned, but several other charts are also relevant to the picture so I am reluctant to spend too much time on a single chart. All of the listed aspects will remain in effect for a year or more, and we can look to the P Moon for possible additional peak periods of stress. P Moon will oppose Chaldaea, conjunct P Brita, and trioctile P Venus, P East Point, and Uranus in the late winter of 1999. The spring could be even more threatening with P Moon opposite Vesta, which is often a key to ruthless actions, while it is also quincunx Pallas, P Karma, and P Nobel (the inventor of dynamite), trioctile P Uranus, Mercury, Juno, Sumeria, and Washingtonia, and octile America among other aspects. Pity the people of Iraq.
The preceding aspects certainly fit the situation. Saddam has defied the U.N. inspection teams four times in 1998. Retaliatory bombers were in the air or about to be when Kofi Anan, head of the United Nations, brought back word that Saddam had recanted and again agreed to cooperate with the U.N. and Clinton called off the strike. The current situation adds to the drama, coming on the day the House of Representatives was to discuss impeaching the President and just the day before the scheduled vote on it. As this is written, more Republicans are announcing that they will vote to impeach Clinton, and they are angry at this interruption of their plans. The partisan conflict has intensified to the point of a complete loss of objectivity and reason. House members of the Armed Services Committee were told in mid-November when the bombers were called back that if the report from Butler on Saddam’s cooperation was negative, bombing strikes would be ordered immediately without any further discussion or warning. Butler, the head of the U.N. inspection team, is Australian and in no way involved in U.S. domestic politics. In spite of this clearly announced plan, when the strikes were ordered the day after Butler’s report and with the unanimous support of the President’s advisors, many Republicans suggested that they were timed to interrupt the impeachment proceedings.
We can understand the psychological blindness of the partisan Republicans who may hate Clinton even more than they hate Saddam, but how can we explain Saddam’s apparently irrational defiance of the U.S. and the world? One obvious possibility is his assumption that Clinton would be too weak to act while under attack from his own government. Another possibility is that the inspectors were getting too close to weapons he was determined to hide at any cost. It is also possible that Saddam thought an attack from outside would unify his people to support him against the enemy. He is allowing free media coverage of the situation, and obviously hopes to persuade the public opinion of the world to put pressure on the U.S. and Britain to stop the attacks. All of the preceding may have contributed to his decision to defy the U.S. He may have decided to maintain his biological and chemical weapons at any cost so the embargo would never be lifted, and thought that if he provoked an attack, Russia, France, and China would turn against the U.S. and Britain and unilaterally lift the embargo. In light of the smuggled goods coming in from Turkey and Iran, the embargo is leaky enough to only harm the people who aren’t important to Saddam. As long as his clan and his Republican Guard are well cared-for, he doesn’t care, and they are doing OK with black market oil sales and smuggling.
Clinton’s previously stated intent of attacking immediately if Butler’s report was negative was partly to prevent Saddam from having time to hide the weapons if his blocking the inspections was due to their being close to finding them. The beginning of Ramadan, a Muslim holy month, on December 20 also was a major constraint since initiating a military attack during this period could further alienate our Muslim allies. Of course, Iraq had no hesitation about making war during Ramadan or about attacking Israel on one of their most sacred days. The announced plan of the U.S. is to continue the bombing and missiles for 4 days, up to the beginning of Ramadan.
Clinton was in a no-win situation. He was criticized for not going ahead with the bombs when Saddam promised Kofi Anan full cooperation with the inspections, yet if Clinton had bombed without giving the agreement a chance, he would have been rightly condemned by world opinion. Any failure to order military action was called a lack of spine and courage and leadership while the action is being interpreted as a way to divert attention from the impeachment hearings. If Clinton, partly due to Ramadan, limits the action to four days, he will be accused of repeating the mistakes of the past, of not following through to any real conclusion. If Clinton continues the action, he will be accused of trying to delay the impeachment proceedings until a new session of Congress begins in January with fewer Republicans in the House of Representatives. Since the impeachment hearing and vote is continuing even as the bombs fall, the preceding theory is moot. The Republicans want Saddam out of power, but no one in the U.S. is willing to send U.S. soldiers to do the job. Nor do Iraq’s neighbors endorse a ground war to actually drive Saddam out. His departure could result in a civil war. The Kurds in northern Iraq would want to unite with the Kurds in Turkey. The Shiites in south Iraq might want to unite with the Shiites in Iran. Iraq’s neighbors probably prefer a weakened Saddam still in power to other possible consequences.
In the meantime, there are not enough Republicans in the Senate for the two-thirds majority needed to convict Clinton, but a highly partisan trial could continue to divide the country and impair the ability of the U.S. to provide needed leadership in a troubled world. Apparently, most Republicans are indifferent to real world problems, including the remaining threats to economic stability, in their need to “get” Clinton. As I have written repeatedly, I think that Clinton will continue to be harassed throughout his term of office, but he will serve out the term and then move to California. I think Bill and Hillary will split but not necessarily divorce, as she seeks a public office in her own right. We will look at Chelsea’s chart in another article.
Returning to Iraq, an article I wrote in November 1998 for the ISAR journal focused mostly on the 1998 Libra Ingress calculated for Baghdad. It was a horrendous chart, with a strong potential for violence and death, but I hoped that the Kofi Anan agreement would survive into 1999. The 1999 Aries Ingress in Baghdad looks like the potential death of Saddam or his regime with a Pluto-Juno conjunction exactly on the MC and Astraea (human justice), Megaira (a Greek Fury), and Sisyphus (futile effort) on the IC along with Ceres and the north node of Uranus. The planetary nodes carry the same meaning as the planets. Williams in 25 Aries 52 and the Part of Death in 26 Cancer 0 are octile/trioctile the MC-IC axis and accompanying asteroids. Since even with asteroids, astrology shows principles, not life details, this chart could show the U.S. attacking Baghdad, or the aftermath of such attacks, including a grim civil war in the country. Iraq could be similar to another Sri Lanka and several areas in Africa.
The 1998 Libra Ingress in Baghdad was dramatic, to put it mildly. The asteroid named for the United Nations was exactly on the Ascendant, showing the country’s life force subject to the organization. Photographica was also on the Ascendant within one degree, and our TV screens have fulfilled that expectation with pictures of Baghdad being bombed. Skuld, an asteroid of fate, was conjunct the one named for the U.N., and Libitina, a death goddess, opposed all of the preceding factors. Completing a fixed grand cross were Nobel (dynamite), Hiroshima (nuclear bomb) and Anacostia (a river in Washington, DC) in 4 Aquarius plus Hammurabi in 4 Leo. Hammurabi was a famous ruler of Babylonia in the region of current Iraq, the source of one of the earliest sets of codified laws, and a personal role model for Saddam whose goal was to conquer and rule a greater territory as Hammurabi did some 4,000 years ago.
The MC in this chart was octile Washingtonia for our capital and opposite Uranus, Karma, Damocles (sword over head) and Frieden (peace or the need for it). Williams in 16 Capricorn was octile America in 1 Sagittarius and square Sumeria in 16 Aries, named for an ancient kingdom in the region of modern Iraq. Though the potential for violence connected to the U.S. was obvious in the chart, there were enough harmony aspects so that I hoped it might be avoided. And Saddam did have his chance, but blew it.
The 1998 Capricorn Ingress will arrive in December 22, long before this issue of the Asteroid-World reaches readers. Its Ascendant in Baghdad will be 1 Sagittarius 55 conjunct Hela (death) and Coventry (a city in England noted for tension with a foreign ruler). Mercury is rising in a close conjunction with Pluto and three asteroids with overlapping orbs; Dresden (war attacks against non-military targets), Dike (fate), and U.N. Gallia (France) and Berolina (Berlin) are a few degrees later in 11 Sagittarius, trioctile Saturn and square the MC. France has protested the U.S. action, and Germany has “deplored” it. The Sun will be on Themis (divine justice) with Nemesis (who “got” you if you flouted Themis) just over one degree later and connected by other aspects. A cluster of factors in 12 to 14 Capricorn includes Venus, America, Icarus, Ra Shalom (named for the Camp David peace treaty), Tyr (the Norse war god), and Atlantis (potential for abuse of power). They square Mars, Versailles (the former residence of the kings of France and site of a treaty ending World War I and contributing to World War II), and Washingtonia in Libra. Sometimes partial names seem to “work” for individuals, and this chart would fit the potential of Jeffers (for Clinton’s middle name) and Clintford being possible keys to Clinton. Jeffers opposes Atlantis and squares Clintford, which is conjunct Washingtonia. Beograd (Belgrade) completes a cardinal cross in 16 Aries, reminding us that Clinton is dealing with more than the Near East and impeachment as the Kosovo cease fire unravels. Williams, the primary asteroid I have been using for Bill Clinton, will conjunct Anacostia (a river in Washington, DC) and square the Ascendant, Hela, Coventry, and Ceres, which is on the Descendant.
Russia is a long-term friend of Iraq, with especially close ties between Saddam and Primakov, the current de-facto leader of the country due to Yeltsin’s illness. Primakov would like to help, but in light of his country’s own crises, can’t do much. The asteroid Russia will be in 9 Aquarius on Damocles (sword over head) and square Hephaistos (maker of weapons), with the latter within a one-degree square to Uranus so a network is formed connecting Russia to Uranus. Moskva (Moscow) will oppose both Saturn and the Part of Death, which is just past Saturn. Water houses can indicate endings, including death. Chaldaea (for the region of Iraq) is on the 8th house cusp and Nobel (dynamite) is on the IC. Like the Libra Ingress before it and the Aries Ingress to follow, it is a grim chart in Baghdad, whether the deaths are of the people due to bombs from the U.S. and Britain, to malnutrition and illness, or to civil war and Saddam’s own military on suspicion of revolution against the regime.
According to the media, Clinton gave the orders for the military strike against Iraq about 8 A.M. on December 16, and the first bombs fell at 4:50 P.M. EST that day, which was early December 17 in Baghdad. Pluto had just set when the orders were given, and the MC was approaching a quincunx to Pluto and a wider quincunx to Uranus when the bombs fell. But the asteroids are more dramatic, with the two which were named for ancient kingdoms in the current region of Iraq hitting the angles. Sumeria was on the Descendant along with Osiris, an Egyptian god of life and death. Chaldaea, Fiducia (loyalty and trust), and Podalirius (healing or the need for it) were on the MC and square the Ascendant with overlapping orbs. Venus on the IC opposed Fiducia and Podalirius and it was conjunct Bacchus (associated with religious fanaticism) and Ra-Shalom (Egypt-Israel peace treaty), with the asteroids also square the East Point. The rising Mars was square a cluster of asteroids in Capricorn including Fanatica, Winchester (guns), America, Icarus, Tyr (war god), and Atlantis.
The planetary nodes symbolize the same principles as the planets, so in a war chart we expect the nodes of Mars to be featured. North Mars was in 9 Aries square the Capricorn cluster, while south Mars was conjunct Mercury. Other aspects included Brita in a T-square to the midpoints of Saturn and the lunar nodes. Hybris (hubris) and Aeternitas (immortality) were both conjunct the Ascendant/MC midpoint in 21 Leo forming octiles or trioctiles to the major angles and the asteroids clustered on them. Pluto was on Gallia (France) with United Nations just coming to the one-degree orb, and Nobel (dynamite) squared Pluto and Gallia. The Part of Death in 7 Pisces 54 was quincunx the East Point and just coming to Nobel as the dynamite fell in Baghdad. There are always more factors which could be mentioned, but I will close with Williams in the last degree of Aquarius trioctile Washingtonia in 14 Libra. Bill was battling on more than one front.
Though we lack a birth time for Saddam Hussein, some readers might like to explore his day of birth. The last information that I had about him was some years ago, and it was suggested that he might have been born soon after midnight. The date was reportedly April 28, 1937 in Tikrit which is near Baghdad. Even without a time of birth, we can work with the asteroids, most of which move more slowly than Mars. IF the early time is right, P Mars retrograded into Saddam’s 10th house, into Scorpio, which is co-ruled by Mars. His one-ten issue is dramatically stated in the chart with P Saturn trine N Mars and trioctile P Mars for many years.
The natal chart for this birth time fits his demonstrated character, with a Capricorn Ascendant on the south node of Pluto and Jupiter rising in Capricorn exactly opposite Pluto. But Saddam’s P Moon would be in 28 Aquarius for this current crisis, and that seems questionable. A birth time in the late morning would put the P Moon in early Pisces square Mars. In view of the uncertainty, I will just mention a few asteroids. P America is in 6 Aries square the P Sun, which is conjunct Moira (fate), Clube (death from the sky), and Wright (first flight of heavier-than-air planes). Gubbio completes a T-square in 6 Capricorn. Like Clube (and Tunguska), this asteroid was named for death coming to earth from the sky. America is also octile P Venus. Bill Clinton is dramatically present in the chart with N Williams conjunct N Saturn and P Williams conjunct N Sun. P Icarus in 9 Aquarius is retrograding, square N Uranus in Taurus and four asteroids in Scorpio: Guillermina (from the Spanish for William), Utopia, Parysatis (who poisoned her daughter-in-law) and Aesculapia (healing or the need for it). Bellona (war goddess) in 8 Leo and P Vesta in 9 Leo complete a fixed grand cross. P Urania (a female Uranus) opposes P Uranus. I still get blown away by the way the personal name asteroids work. During the Gulf War, Saddam’s P Sun was on Hela and Herberta for his deadly enemy at that time – George Herbert Walker Bush. Brita (England) was on Saddam’s N south lunar node, and P Phaethon (overreach and a crash) is retrograding over the N and P south nodes for years.
I support the effort of many people in the world who are praying for peace, but unlike the charts of human individuals, the charts of countries and the cycle charts of mundane astrology seem more fated to me. Humans can change their habits and consequently their destinies. Where masses of people are involved, it is very hard to change the consequences of the past and the emotional power of the masses, especially when religious fanaticism is involved. So, I can’t be very hopeful about a quick solution to the problems in the Near East. In both the chart of Israel and the chart of Iraq, there are no easy solutions.
The House of Representatives voted for impeachment, as expected, so we have another chart in this soap opera series about the perils of Bill Clinton. My helpful internet friend, Doc Cottle, was watching the clock and sent me the information. Vote number 218 came at 13:19:41 for the first Article of Impeachment and the measure was declared passed at 13:24:43, on December 19, 1998 in Washington, DC. A second Article was also passed, and two were defeated. The ones passed were on the charge of perjury in front of Starr’s grand jury in regard to the Monica Lewinsky affair, and on obstruction of justice in covering up the Lewinsky affair. The first vote was 228 to 206 with 5 Republicans voting against and 5 Democrats voting for impeachment. The second vote was 221 to 212.
The other major event of this momentous day was the announcement by Bob Livingston that he would not serve as the Speaker of the House in the coming term, and that he would resign from the House in June. His action followed his revelation late Thursday that he had extramarital affairs early in his marriage. His revelation was forced by his discovery that a Capital Hill newspaper planned to put the information on its web site. The paper got the information from Larry Flynt who publishes the sexually extremist Hustler. Flynt had offered a million dollars to anyone providing information about sexual indiscretions by members of Congress. Brian Bilbray, a Republican House member from San Diego, commented; “When bombs are rolling on the House floor, you don’t know where they’ll hit. It’s awful if Larry Flynt can set the agenda here.” Martin Frost, a Democratic House member from Texas, described the political atmosphere as “sexual McCarthyism that is now on the verge of wrecking our political process.” Richard Gephardt, the House Minority Leader, called Livingston’s decision to resign “a terrible capitulation to the negative forces that are consuming our political system and our country.” Jerrold Nadler, Democratic House member from NY, said; “We are losing sight of the distinction between sins, which ought to be between a person and his family and his god, and crimes, which are the concern of the state and of society as a whole.”
With Livingston out, the Republicans quickly rallied around a little-known House member to become the next Speaker. Dennis Hastert was a high school wrestling coach before entering politics. Despite his previous job involving a competitive sport, Hastert is noted for his ability as a “healer.” He is described as a moderate, a quiet conciliator who can listen to everyone and build consensus, as a person who can help to heal the rifts both within the Republican Party and between the two political parties. Ironically, it was reported that the House members who pushed for Livingston’s resignation were hoping for a more conservative choice for Speaker. Hastert is considered a moderate, and his choice is likely to help the Party win back the public who have been increasingly alienated by the extremists in the Party. The Republicans will meet on January 5, the day before the new session of Congress officially convenes, to elect the Speaker. Most of the House leaders, including the outgoing ones such as Gingrich and Livingston, are endorsing Hastert for the job.
Assuming that Livingston would be the next Speaker of the House, I had gotten his date and place of birth, though I did not have his birth time. Perhaps no one is interested at this point, since he will be leaving the public stage, but if we could get his birth time, the chart should provide a fascinating picture of a fixed dilemma and a highlighted Saturn for a power struggle with sex centrally involved and a rapid rise and fall. Livingston was born on April 30, 1943 in Colorado Springs, CO. Lacking houses, we can see some natal squares in the fixed signs Taurus, Leo, and Aquarius. For the rise and fall, P Saturn has been conjunct N Venus for years while P Mercury is briefly conjunct N Saturn.
Even without a birth time, we can still have some fun with the asteroids. Juno and Pluto carry the same meaning – a desire for a mate and a challenge to share sensuality, possessions, and power for mutual pleasure. With both Bill Clinton and Livingston confronting the same issue, I was amused to find P Juno conjunct N Williams and P Williams opposite N Pluto in Livingston’s chart. There are two variations on Robert for Livingston’s first name. P Roberts had returned to its natal degree and his P Mars opposed both. P Roberta squared P Eros.
J. Dennis Hastert was born on January 2, 1942 in Aurora, IL. His signs include 7 factors in earth, 4 in fire, 3 in air, and 3 in water. Of course, the house positions could vastly change that steamroller impression of an earth-fire emphasis. Also, his Cancer Moon being sextile/trine the lunar nodes strengthens the water for the capacity to listen. He is listed as a Protestant with a wife and two children, still living in and representing his birth state. He is described as a big, quiet man, always looking a bit rumpled. If anyone gets his birth time, it would be much appreciated. I’m playing with a speculative time of 21:26 CST, which puts Virgo rising and both the north lunar node and Neptune in Virgo in the first house.
Turning to a chart for which we have a time, the decisive vote which tipped the scale on the first article of impeachment came with Saturn on the Ascendant in under a half degree! Karma works. Sapientia (wisdom) opposed Saturn and Hillary was conjunct it within one degree. Hillary will need all the wisdom she can muster, and so far she is maintaining her public control though the tabloids report explosive outbursts against the secret service men in the White House. The MC was just seconds away from an octile to Williams, and the aspect was almost exact to the second when the first Article was declared passed. Williams was also conjunct Anacostia (a river in Washington, DC), opposite Fortuna, square Isis and Ceres in Gemini and Rumpelstilz in Sagittarius. The last may not be relevant, but Rumpelstilz was cheated of his reward after turning straw into gold. Williams was also octile or trioctile Morrow in Aries (named for a famous reporter), Washingtonia in Libra (for our capital and power center) and Richard (for the Democratic House Minority Leader) and Roberta (for the expected House Speaker). Both names were exactly on the IC. Williams was also semisextile Neptune, which was on Henry (for the chairman of the Judiciary Committee). Monica was in 24 Sagittarius just inside the 9th house and octile Uranus. Starr in 2 Cancer opposed the Sun/Moon midpoint. I just checked an alternate asteroid list of personal names for Denise, which is the closest we have for Dennis Hastert, the next potential Speaker of the House. In the impeachment vote chart, it is opposite Starr and conjunct the Sun/Moon midpoint in 2 Cancer.
Bill Clinton is obviously under enormous stress, but no one expects the Senate to be able to muster the 2/3rds vote needed to convict him and remove him from office. Since Aries is a fast Ascendant in the northern hemisphere, the P A will move into the trine to the 9th house Sun and maintain it to the end of Clinton’s term of office. P A will also move into a quincunx to Chiron, suggesting a shift in the legal situation. But the struggle will continue with P Antivertex opposite Mars for the balance of Clinton’s term, and P Venus moving in to form a T-square. P Moon will reach Venus in a bit over two months and hold the aspect for about two months, which might mark the time-frame for some sort of settlement, though not the end of the harassment of the President. I progressed the chart to the next Presidential inauguration on January 20, 2001, and found that the P Moon will reach Neptune and move into Aquarius about 3 months earlier. It will still be on Neptune for the November 2000 election, which could be dreams come true or a huge letdown, depending on whether one’s dreams are realistic. I suspect the letdown, since P Antivertex and P Venus will be in a tight T-square with N Mars. But in 2001, P Moon would fit leaving politics, as least for the moment, with an octile to Pallas, and Aquarius should mean the freedom to head west to the Pacific Ocean and his friends in fantasyland. I am assuming a move to California since Clinton has the asteroid slowly progressing over his Ascendant.
I have been postponing writing an analysis of the 2001 inauguration chart for years, and this seems like an appropriate time to do it. When a calendar date and time are specified, horoscopes can be calculated for events years ahead of time, and this chart is truly dramatic. I have rarely seen so many asteroids on an angle as are on the MC in this chart. If the ceremony is on time, with the new President completing his oath of office at noon, the house cusps and the Sun are always close to the same degrees, with about 26 Capricorn on the MC, the Sun in 0 Aquarius square the East Point in 0 Taurus, and the Ascendant in 13 Taurus. Of course, the planets and asteroids are unique for each new inauguration.
Some astrologers believe that Saturn represents the Democrats as the party more concerned with workers, while Jupiter represents the Republicans as the party which favors the rich. Unfortunately, I am not at all sure that this is a reliable theory, and we do not have an asteroid named for a donkey, the Democratic symbol. We do have an asteroid named for a Hindu god with an elephant head, and I am testing Ganesa to see whether it will “work” for the Republicans, but I have not reached a conclusion on the question. Both Saturn and Ganesa are rising in Taurus in this chart, but the MC is past the trine to Saturn and just coming to the trine to Ganesa, a hint that the Republicans might be happier. Once we know the names of the two major contenders, we can use the personal name asteroids, but even then, guessing details is still a guess.
As this is written in December 1998, Al Gore is the front runner for the Democratic nomination, though Richard Gephardt remains interested and Bill Bradley is exploring the possibility of running. Bradley presents an obvious problem since he and Clinton have the same first name so the asteroid Williams might refer to either or both. We do have an asteroid named Bradley in case he decides to run. If Gore is seriously challenged, it could help defeat him. I am convinced that Ted Kennedy’s fight against Carter when he was running for his second term was a factor in his defeat by Reagan. The Republican front runner at the moment is George W Bush, governor of Texas and son of the former president. Several others are possible, including past contenders Steve Forbes, Alexander Lamar, and Patrick Buchanan. Jack Kemp is a more remote possibility, but new dreamers might appear. Why anyone would want that kind of responsibility is beyond me.
IF Al Gore and George W Bush are the contenders, we have a choice of asteroid George in 25 Gemini being quincunx the MC and asteroid Albertina in 27 Libra square the MC. We could speculate that the change suggested by the quincunx signifies a change from being governor of Texas to president, or that it means George is separated from his hope of being president. We could suggest that the square means Al is blocked from getting the job he wants, or that he gets it and has a hard time handling it.
Even when we add the extra asteroids, guessing details remains a guess, but that there will still be flak in the media involving Monica and Bill Clinton is as close to certainty as astrology can get. In the inauguration chart, the asteroid Monica is rising in 16 Taurus, conjunct Herberta and Wisdom. Opposing them is Mars on Williams in 16 Scorpio, and Mercury for the media is square all of them in 16 Aquarius. A wider orb is allowed for the major planets, so Uranus in 19 Aquarius is conjunct Mercury and part of the picture, suggesting some sort of upset or unexpected outcome connected to revealed information. For still more emphasis on the role played by the media, the north node of Mercury is exactly on Uranus in 19 Aquarius. Digging up dirt on public figures has become a major goal of the media. The asteroid Wisdom could mean the presence of that rare gift or more likely the need for it and a lot of talk about the lack of it, in Monica and Bill naturally. Herberta in the picture could refer to a prominent role played by George Herbert Walker Bush. He would certainly be prominent if his son is being sworn in. Alternately, it could refer to Herbert Hoover, the president who presided over the beginning of the great depression of the 1930s. If a Republican president is elected and another depression follows, it could be good news for the Democrats a bit later.
As mentioned above, the MC of the inauguration chart is conjunct an incredible number of asteroids. These include Starr (for guess who), Byelorussia (a republic of the former Soviet Union), Helena (a theoretical key player in starting the Trojan War), Siva (god of destruction), Eduarda (Kennedy or a different Ed?), Bennett (Clinton’s lawyer or the moralist formerly in Reagan’s Cabinet?), Kaiser (the German title for the ruler who started World War I), Guernica (military attacks on civilian targets), Parysatis (who poisoned her daughter-in-law), Karl Marx (promoter of communism), and Brita (England). These are all within one degree of the MC, and with overlapping orbs, we can include Hygiea (healing or the need for it), Industria (business/jobs), Artaxerxes (the son of Parysatis and husband of the poisoned wife), Patrick Gene (for Pat Buchanan?), Salome (who danced for the head of John the Baptist), Lautauro (a Chilean Indian chief), and Hunnia (Hungary). To hammer in the message, Dresden, which carries the same meaning as Guernica, is on the IC.
Uncountable events are occurring at all times, so not all asteroids will be relevant to all events happening at a given time and place, but we can pick out a rather disturbing theme in the preceding list. When I first looked at the chart, I guessed that we might be in or considering a state of war, or that a military man might be taking office, or a man with a militant nature might be the new executive. We know that Saddam Hussein has developed and used biological weapons on his own people, and he is certainly capable of using them on others if permitted. As I wrote in a previous discussion of the chart of Israel, when the potential of an attack on Iraq brought out the potential of retaliation against Israel, the government issued gas masks to protect against missile-borne poisons. At that time, in the Israel chart for the end of the British Mandate, P Pasteur and P Leewenhoek were on the MC and IC. Pasteur developed the theory of germs and Leewenhoek first saw them in a microscope. In this inauguration chart, Pasteur is in 0 Sagittarius conjunct Pallas, our most political asteroid, implying the politicians will be concerned. Leewenhoek is in 21 Pisces octile Neptune and conjunct Phaethon (overreach), which is connected by overlapping orbs to the Ascendant/MC midpoint, equivalent to being on both major angles.
Artaxerxes and Parysatis lived in the general area of Iraq some thousands of years ago. The Trojan War was fought between the Near East and the European city-states, Salome lived in current Israel, pointing to the same critical Near-East region. Hygiea points to health issues. Several of the asteroids are keys to destruction. England joined us in the December 1998 attack on Iraq. I don’t know about Hungary or Byelorussia, but the latter might be a stand-in for Russia which is very concerned with Iraq. Russia is conjunct Aletheia (truth) in 8 Cancer, which could mean the “issue” of truth, whether present or lacking. They square Nobel (dynamite) and America in 9 Libra and the Sun/Moon midpoint is 9 Capricorn, with Prometheus at 9 Aries. The gift of fire to humans got Prometheus into serious trouble. Israel is in 11 Cancer, just past Russia and square Atlantis, another suggestion that being innovative with power can carry a cost. Karl Marx and jobs or workers are connected, whatever the details of the world in two years. War tends to produce jobs, though they are often producing for destruction. Missiles can cost about one million each.
We have still hardly touched the potential of this chart, but time and space run out. We may revisit it in the spring of 2001 when hindsight fills in the details.