Within hours of Kerry’s September 20th speech, every media outlet picked up the story, and the general consensus over the next several days was one of acknowledgement of the painfully obvious. From the President’s own party, Republican Senators McCain, Lugar, and Hagel issued a statement that basically said the Commander-in-Chief needs to level with the American people about the facts on the ground. Even the country’s intelligence agencies belie the president’s continued optimism in the latest rather pessimistic National Intelligence Estimate, which describes the potential trend in Iraq as ranging from barely stable to an erupting civil war.
Clearly, the idea of Bush living in a fantasy has struck a chord. And the timeliness of this insight cannot escape the awareness of the astrologer. This sudden coming into the American consciousness of Bush’s disconnect with reality comes just as Saturn returns to its natal twelfth house placement in Bush’s chart where it will sit from September 24 until December 8, 2004, returning yet again for a final crossing in the spring of 2005.
The twelfth house in the chart is where a person retreats from the world and lets go of our harsh, ego-driven, everyday reality. For many, this becomes a spiritual journey where the Self loses itself in the greater Divine Consciousness. The mantra for these people becomes: “Not my will, but Thine be done.” The twelfth house may also be seen as the house of self-sacrifice and service, where personal ego gratification is put aside for humbler pursuits. Hence, it becomes the area of those who work in hospitals and other institutions, caring selflessly for those who suffer.
In its more negative manifestations, the twelfth house is the house of mental illness, in the sense that it covers those who are divorced from a true perception of reality or are unable to cope with its harshness and consciously retreat into a world of their own. Likewise, substance abusers, who use drugs and alcohol to escape into a more pleasant realm that is free of anxiety, soul pain, and responsibility, are often manifesting the withdrawal from life’s struggles inherent in the twelfth house.
In George Bush’s chart, we find both the Sun and Saturn in the twelfth house. Wherever the Sun is in a chart, the ego wants to shine. It is an area that may be seen as the true goal of this incarnation. In the twelfth house, the Sun is moved to put its usual ego striving aside and merge with something larger, often a religious path or a self sacrificing goal that benefits the greater good. But Bush’s Sun is natally square to both Jupiter and Neptune. This colors these more “otherworldly” goals with poor judgment, arrogance, grandiosity, and recklessness (Jupiter) as well as a tendency to be somewhat self-delusional (Neptune). We can see, through the glimpses given by those who knew him back then, how this played out in the days of Bush’s alcohol and cocaine abuse when arrogance, recklessness, and poor judgment were the norm.
Interestingly, the same configuration of planets, Sun square to both Neptune and Jupiter, is also indicative of Bush’s intense, more recent religious life and his tendency for it to be colored by grandiosity and self-delusion. It is one thing to humbly let go of personal ego striving and attempt to serve a greater good. It is another to think you are God’s Chosen One to remove evil from the world. Unfortunately, the line between profound spiritual inspiration and grandiose religious delusion is often very hard to find. Perhaps the greatest indicator of the latter is the glorification and exaltation of the self or one’s personal group above others. In contrast, the healthy path of the twelfth house does not focus on the duality of good versus evil or us versus them, but the higher truth that we are all part of the greater human family and “even the least of these” deserves reverence and respect.
Also dwelling in Bush’s twelfth house is Saturn, which suggests that, like his past substance-induced escapades, his current religiously inspired crusade against evil will end up causing him pain. The house of Saturn in the chart indicates an area that we long for, but that causes us suffering until we learn to be very disciplined and cautious. It is where we need to learn restraint and humility. Currently, Bush does not want to let go of his inner conviction that he was “told by God” to invade Iraq and to fight evil in the world. But, as the transit of Saturn tightens its vise on Bush’s natal Saturn, it will be harder and harder to avoid the harsh, cold truth that his Iraq war, with its supposed march of democracy across the globe, is currently a failure and has, in fact, made the world more unstable and less safe. Facing this will be a true inner crisis for Bush, not just an acknowledgement of an unpleasant reality. His entire inner edifice is built on these delusions. It is as if he has to give up yet another substance that he is addicted to, and it may be inwardly devastating.
The current situation in Iraq may be gauged to some degree by looking at the charts of Iraq, the Second Gulf War, and the US. The 1921 Iraqi chart indicates extreme instability through most of January 2005, at which point Uranus will move away from its opposition to the natal Ascendant. The chaos and volatility on the ground should decrease considerably at that point but will be replaced with a fierce sense of self-determination, as Uranus begins a year-long conjunction of its own place beginning in March 2005. In addition, Pluto will be squaring first Jupiter and then Saturn, beginning in December 2004 and continuing intermittently through 2005. This suggests that there will be an intensified nationalist sentiment (Jupiter rules the 4th house) with a possibly strong religious (Pluto/Jupiter) focus. In addition, there may be some feeling of repression of individualism and self-expression (Saturn rules the 5th house).
The Gulf War chart suggested failure from its inception as I explained at length at the start of this war (see The War Begins from 3/21/03).
The Sun’s position in the War chart is 29 Pisces, the very last degree of the zodiac. The 29th degree of any sign brings with it a certain sense of sorrow and loss. The last degree of the entire zodiac brings as well a very strong sense of the end of a cycle and of things no longer quite right, but without the comfort and hope of having yet begun the next phase. In addition, the Sun position in the Gulf War II chart is Void of Course, meaning it is in a no man’s land where it will make no further aspects until it gets to the next zodiacal cycle, beginning in Aries. The VOC Sun position here suggests that the thrust of war could lead to unexpected and unwanted results. It is as if the goal (Sun) of the chart is no longer anchored in an organized and logical reality. There is an inherent weakness or flaw in the entire venture that can lead to a weakened, confusing, or disjointed outcome. In addition, the 29-degree Pisces Sun squares the Pluto /Saturn opposition mentioned above. Thus, the goals of the war (the Sun) are continually in a tension relationship with the US military aggression and assumption of power (Pluto/MC), as well as with the suffering and intense resistance of the people (Saturn/IC).
Currently, transiting Pluto is crossing the Midheaven (20Sagittarius42) of the war chart for the last time. This last pass stretches from late August through mid-November 2004. During this period, the power struggle over who is in control will be increasingly brutal.
Meanwhile, the progressed IC of the war chart has now moved to an exact conjunction with natal Saturn (22Gemini45), waxing from May 2004 through April 2005. This would seem to indicate the growing power of the insurgency, with the increasingly potent Saturn describing a very intransigent, conservative presence hindering the goals of the occupation. This hindering force and its power struggle with the military occupation will be intensified when Pluto moves to the progressed MC and exactly opposite Saturn in December 2004. Thus, it is likely that the entire period from May 2004 through April 2005 will see an increasingly strong resistance to the primary goals of the occupation, with September through December 2004 being most difficult.
It is worth noting that the second pass of Pluto opposite the war chart Saturn comes in June 2005, after the progressed IC/Saturn aspect has begun to wane. It may be that this crossing in June 2005 will be the last gasp of the occupation’s struggle to thwart the forces that hinder its goals in Iraq. Indigenous forces within the country itself may be creating their own future at that point along lines quite different than those envisioned by the original instigators of this war.
The US chart generally indicates that military action will be very strong through November 2004, with the final pass of Pluto opposite US Mars intensifying until then. A post-election military campaign is quite likely to occur, as has been reported recently. In addition, the progressed US MC is currently quincunx progressed US Mars (18Libra42) where it remains strong through January 2005. It will be triggered in January and early February 2005 by the Jupiter station which reaches 18Libra51 and then turns retrograde. Thus, military action by the US may well decrease after February 2005 according to these indicators.
In conclusion, the war in Iraq is likely to continue to be brutal and relentless through at least December 2004 or January 2005, with the forces that oppose the occupation gaining strength and to a great degree thwarting the original goals of the occupation. Tensions seem to ease after January, but the frustration to the war goals continues. From its inception, this war was a misbegotten adventure of the Bush administration, not thought out, not carefully planned, and highly reckless. It may be that the reality of this is finally penetrating the somnolent American psyche just in time for the election.
