 "The shoes are marching for us." @nicoleghio via Twitter.
Notes on Love and CourageDear Friend and Reader: Well, the Saturn-Neptune square certainly has begun with some energy. It's been warming up all year, and is now at its first of three major peaks. The world has hardly ever seemed more chaotic, with more horrid things going on in more places. It's appealing to push it all away, to not pay attention, to have a few glasses of wine, turn off the ringer and put on a CD, or do a bong hit and watch South Park (a rare bastion of truth).
For some, the feeling of being repelled by these events, and the world situation, verges on a kind of violent denial or chosen ignorance. Yet I don't think there's ever been a more critical time to pay attention and follow events. If they all seem designed to instill fear and chaos, awareness and understanding are the only way to penetrate that. It hasn't even been three weeks since the 11/13 incidents in Paris. During that time, the French government has carried out 2,335 raids on private homes and other locations. That's a lot of raids. Imagine going to the grocery store that many times. Imagine SWAT teams storming through your building or neighborhood. France remains in a state of emergency. Belgium has also conducted numerous raids on civilians, including one where someone whom authorities claimed to be the 11/13 mastermind was killed by a suicide bomb. Countries within the European Union have begun to seal their borders, and the world has been turned against Syrian refugees. All it took to do that was the claim of one Syrian passport found at a crime scene in Paris. That's how easy it is these days to blame a whole country.
have joined bombing Syria. This is crucial: the main response to 11/13 was to bomb Syria. The United States has run well over 7,000 bombing runs on Syria recently. The U.S. is now sending more ground troops into Iraq, which most likely means Syria too -- describing them in perfect doublespeak as a "specialized expeditionary targeting force." Meanwhile, the majority of governors in the United States have openly vowed to block Syrians from entering, even though they lack any power to do so -- at least now. The way things are going, if we don't wake up and turn this around, we'll be seeing security checkpoints on the New York-New Jersey line before long. That's what happens when we think greater 'security' makes us more secure. The two have nothing to do with one another. Presidential candidate Jeb Bush has said he wants people to be made to prove that they're Christian. There must be some way, he said. What does he mean? Religious affiliation papers? Digital implants? Tattoos? Reciting the Hail Mary backwards, like a field sobriety test? Is he that stupid? He may be. Is this the world you want to live in? I don't think so. While the shock of Paris was still reverberating, on Nov. 27 there was a shooting and five-hour standoff at a Planned Parenthood clinic in Colorado Springs. Three people were killed. This is yet another incident in the ongoing war against women's reproductive rights.
This took 16 lives, including those of the two people alleged to have done the shooting. Twenty-one other people were injured. We're told the assailants were armed with semi-automatic weapons and explosives, were in possession of thousands of rounds of ammunition and were dressed in combat-styled attire. We are being told that their home contained a kind of bomb factory. I'll come back to this scenario in a moment, and the associated chart. Here is something I noticed going through my day Wednesday. I woke up that morning and listened to Amy Goodman's coverage of the COP21 climate change coverage on Democracy Now! [Listen on Planet Waves here.] Leaders of 100 countries are currently gathered just outside Paris, supposedly to negotiate a treaty that will keep the average global temperature from rising more than 1.5 or 2 or 3 or 5 or however many degrees centigrade. This may all be a sham. The problem is pretty far-gone as it is, and changes made now won't have an effect for decades. That day, Goodman, who is providing live daily coverage this week and next, was talking about something that has barely made news -- the fact that Exxon's internal corporate documents indicate the company had been aware that its activities were causing global warming since 1977.
While this Exxon angle wasn't getting much coverage, the conference itself was getting some attention in the mainstream media. This partly involved the French ban on protests in the wake of the 11/13 incidents. Rightfully, the world should be enraged about the conduct of both governments and oil companies given how the climate issue has developed. The French love to protest (it's the national sport) and can turn out massive, orderly crowds on little notice. No such thing is happening. And now coverage of COP21 has disappeared, of course with the exception of Democracy Now! There's one additional major news item to weave into context, for the full picture. Earlier this week, Chicago mayor (and former Obama chief of staff) Rahm Emmanuel fired his police chief, Garry McCarthy. This involved McCarthy's handling of the killing of Laquan McDonald, an unarmed black youth who was shot 16 times by a white cop in the summer of 2014. Police claimed McDonald had lunged at them, but video evidence proved otherwise. McCarthy, the police chief, was aware of this the day after the shooting but kept quiet the fact that he knew about it, and continued to issue denials.
There are many common threads here. One of them is using guns and bombs on unarmed people. Countless thousands of bombing runs on Syria, a list of names of people shot by the police that could fill a war memorial, and an ongoing litany of mass shootings in the U.S. Today someone said that the incident yesterday in San Bernardino was staged by the government. Why exactly? So they can come for our guns. That's the level of paranoia and misunderstanding we're dealing with now. There has been absolutely no serious talk of gun control, and the "gun show loophole" is still so wide open that any psychotic multiple felon can arm himself with weapons of war in 15 minutes. Is anyone aware that there have been 353 mass shootings in the United States this year alone? We're also at the three-year anniversary of the Sandy Hook massacre. Back then the gun nuts were also saying this was staged so they could take our guns away. The solution to gun violence is always more guns, till soon we'll all be living at the O.K. Corral. Only this gunfight won't last 30 seconds. Pope Francis recently called it "piecemeal World War III."
Since the advent of newspapers, the speed and loudness of events used to start wars has increased exponentially. That increased by many orders of magnitude with broadcast media, then again with the Internet, then again with 'social' media. So whatever we are witnessing, we're seeing it in exaggerated, distorted form. The speed and impact of events are turned up; facts matter less than impressions; people respond to conflicting information with fear, suspicion or by dismissing what they read. What is frightening is that the more events there are, and the more fear they generate, the less we tend to think about each of them. In total, this greatly increases their propaganda value. The Chart for San Bernardino One challenge with presenting an event chart (I have heard from some readers) is that people who are not astrologically literate tend to skip those sections. To encourage reading, I'm going to make this as short and as simple as I can, providing enough information for other astrologers to test out my theory. This event is totally confounding. The chart gives the clearest picture. When I get a chart for one of these events, the first thing I check for is veracity. To put it bluntly, I am looking for evidence of a false-flag event -- which means something blamed on the wrong party.
I do my best to correct for observer bias by using strict rules of chart interpretation, by working with other astrologers and many fact-checkers whose viewpoints I understand. For my chart I am using 10:59 am, the earliest time verified by CBS News. In the chart for San Bernardino, we have something that looks like a government job, top to bottom. I do not believe this about every event and I am a tough customer on these mass shootings. I think that a lot of them are done by authentic weirdos, and influenced by psychotropic meds. This looks like a different kind of event from every angle. The section of the chart at the top left is the one that deals with the government. It's called the 10th house. Every major factor in the chart points back to the 10th house. There would seem to be no way out. Every way you run the logic, you come back to the same place. The 10th in this chart is Sagittarius. The ever-important rulers of both the 1st and 7th houses (ascendant and descendant) are in Sagittarius and the 10th, in a conjunction. A conjunction is about collaboration, collusion and mutual involvement.
The Moon is in Virgo. In this kind of astrology a critical factor is what the Moon does next. What it does is make a square to Saturn in the 10th. So the Moon also points to the 10th. Last, the 4th house (opposite the 10th) seems to be a good indicator of the shadow government (that is, the level of officialdom that comes with the 'black budget' that even senators cannot see, 'black ops' such as assassinations, spying on the public, etc.). The 4th has Gemini on the cusp, which is ruled by Mercury -- and that, too, is on the 10th house. I could go on for a while. Now, this was supposed to be a domestic act, but that's not likely with Sagittarius up there. As of press time, officials are describing the perpetrators as having ties to Pakistan and Saudi Arabia, and are starting to say that they may have had jihadist motives. That is not jiving with the "workplace shooting" version of the story. There are many, many elements of the official version of events that make no sense at all. But what I think we're likely to see is that somehow this is going to be blamed on Islamic extremism and that as a result we will be told that the war has officially come home to roost in the United States. This will be made into an international issue somehow.
The trust issue is huge. Here in the post-9/11 world of relationships, everyone is a potential stalker or spy. This political event has had profound personal implications for everyone. From the first moments anyone could see that it would be used as a means of getting people to be afraid, to shut own, to distrust anyone in your field of view. The social climate has become so uptight it feels weird to relax a little, and for some it feels impossible to be anything but suspicious. Since then that same thing has happened over and over again. The planet is heating up and the world has grown colder. This is not a place we can live safely, or with any modicum of sanity. They are equally important issues. And while we may not be able to do much about the meteorological climate today, there's plenty we can do right now about the social climate. Lovingly,  Additional research: Fe Bongolan, Amy Elliott, Andrew McLuhan, Amanda Painter, Cindy Ragusa, Carol van Strum, Sarah Taylor, Len Wallick, Lizanne Webb Planet Waves (ISSN 1933-9135) is published each Tuesday and Thursday evening in Kingston, New York, by Planet Waves, Inc. Core community membership: $197/year. Editor and Publisher: Eric Francis Coppolino. Web Developer: Anatoly Ryzhenko. Designer: Lizanne Webb. Office Manager: Lauren Gdovin. Astrology Editor: Amanda Painter. Astrology Fact Checker: Len Wallick. Copy Editor and Fact Checker: Jessica Keet. Client Services: Amy Elliott. Media Consultant: Andrew Marshall McLuhan. Eric's Assistant: Whitney Beecroft. Research, Writing and Editing: In addition to those listed above, Planet Waves is produced by a team consisting of Fe Bongolan, Judith Gayle, Kelly Janes, Amanda Moreno, Carol van Strum, Len Wallick.
 Dreaming as Vision Questing By Jeanne Englert I am a deer using my whiskers to experience the beauty of a chair. I call my pet bear so I can feed him. He is far away but I can see him coming. I have new eyes that allow me to see into the depths of the sea. A clear and determined voice awakens me in the night, calling my name.
I set an intention for a dream that would help me understand dreaming as vision questing. In the remembered dream, I start on a journey along a dirt road, continuing down an almost vertical descent to the banks of the Hudson River and driving north through the waters of the river without a road. The surrounding landscape is as clear as the waters I navigate. Within the dream, I recall a similar path of getting to the ocean when I'm in San Francisco. The navigation in the dream is treacherous. I clutch the steering wheel for dear life, never sure if I'm going to make it. I am exhausted yet exhilarated when I awake. The dream is filled with uncertainty at every juncture but ultimately leading me to forge my own path through the waters of the dreamscape. A quest, whether in dreams or waking life, takes us into the multi-dimensional universe in which we live, to a place where connecting with spirit and receiving guidance are possible. Our dreams are a journey within which we are initiated over and over again. Our inner dream guides nudge us towards transformation, to the next step, challenging our endurance but remaining loyal to our highest good. With intention, dreaming becomes a spiritual quest deepening the connection to our higher self, supporting our healing, and assisting us in navigating our lives. This is the latest in a series of letters connected to Vision Quest, the 2016 annual edition of Planet Waves. You can read the prior letter in the series here, and the first letter -- introducing the project -- on this page. Weekend Astrology: Empowerment, Devotion and Ethical Ambition Dear Friend and Reader: As I write this on Wednesday, the COP21 UN Climate Summit in Paris is in its third day. The ban on public protests that was instituted as part of a 'state of emergency' (which some are calling a police state) in the wake of the Nov. 13 attacks was scheduled to end Tuesday; instead, it has been extended by French police until Dec. 13 -- specifically for central Paris and for Le Bourget, where COP21 is being held. You might see that decision as a 'necessary limit' to protect safety (meanwhile, French police have conducted more than 2,000 house raids to look for suspected terrorists). Or, perhaps you consider it a misguided overreaction.
However you look at it, one thing is clear: the shadow side of the Saturn-Neptune square (which made its first exact contact on Thanksgiving) is being described boldly by these events: fear. There's also an element of the use of illusion/delusion (Neptune) by authority (Saturn) at play: a message is being sent that anyone who is not a foreign head of state (specifically of one of the major developed countries) or a member of the police or military has no power. Yet that message is nothing without fear to carry it. How does one combat fear in such a situation? How do you remember and make contact with your personal power? Creativity can be one way through; taking action in some small way in your own life to make something or do something constructive -- or helping others -- can neutralize fear. It shifts your focus, and channels the fear energy in a different direction. Getting creative (and I don't even necessarily mean 'artistic'; you might create a new filing system for your office or cook a beautiful meal) also taps into love (or a sense of unity) and eros (life force). That is, the opposite of fear and the sense of disconnection and polarization that comes with it. Your connection with this idea of creativity/eros/life force is being reflected, and perhaps shifted or emphasized, by the ingress of the asteroid Vesta back into Aries today at 12:45 pm EST. In astrology, Vesta is associated with devotion, such as tending to your inner creative spark or erotic fire as one would tend the hearth, and also with sacrifice. The first degree of Aries is the famously sensitive Aries Point, which integrates the personal with the political. Timed with the heightened attention to global warming that the COP21 summit and diverted protests are generating, I see a question here: Do you identify more with the idea of devotion when it comes to slowing global warming and other environmental issues, or with the idea of sacrifice?
My friend wrote, “Biggest bang for an environmentally conscious individual's buck: Take fewer plane trips. This is heartbreaking for those of us who live far away from our dear ones. To choose between my family and the largest effect I can have on the planet (minuscule though I know it is) is an emotional toughie. Me: I'm doing everything I can, could I have a pass on this one? Mother Nature: (*cough hack wheeze*) No. Me: Ack.” Where is she on the spectrum of feeling compelled by devotion to the planet versus feeling a sense of sacrifice? Only she can determine that for herself. Which is really what I'm trying to get at: whether a necessary act feels like a sacrifice to you or like an act of devotion in service of something greater than yourself is largely a matter of your perspective -- and that perspective, that sense of how you identify, can change. Speaking of change, Venus is also changing sign, moving into Scorpio on Friday at 11:15 pm EST. Scorpio, ruled by Mars, is the sign opposite Taurus, one of the signs Venus rules. So Scorpio is not the most comfortable sign Venus can be in; passionate, yes -- but passion can become aggressive if you lose sight of your empathy. Venus in Scorpio (especially trine the centaur planet Nessus in the first degree of Pisces) suggests a question this weekend: are you aware of the difference between 'attracting and receiving' in your sexual relationships, versus 'getting and keeping'? More than semantics is implied in the language differences; this is a true contrast in how intimate exchanges can work -- or not work, as the case may be. The question applies to how you are with money and material possessions, too, while Venus moves through Scorpio until the end of this month (rather appropriate for this gift-giving season). But this weekend, see if you notice a pattern, perhaps an old one, in how you relate to others sexually. Which approach opens the flow to sharing and expanding passion?
The other major square is Mars in Libra square Pluto in Capricorn, exact Sunday at 3:52 pm EST. Reading this aspect one way, it brings us back to the protesters clashing with police in Paris, the non-violent environmental groups trying to get their voices heard, and the question of whether you have power and how you exercise it. In its most mundane form, this square warns of power struggles, particularly in relationships (Libra) and between an individual and an institution (Capricorn). There's also a caution here to avoid dangerous places or people, since Mars-Pluto aspects can describe violence; it's possible that clashes in Paris will be exacerbated. At the same time, Mars square Pluto increases energy and ambition in positive ways, according to astrologer Robert Hand. 'Ambition' gets tossed around as a dirty word because it's easy to forget to integrate ambition with empathy, compassion, ethics and some level of spiritual depth or purpose. Without those other components, ambition becomes ruthless -- and any underhand actions taken now will likely come back to bite you in the ass. However, combined with those positive attributes, Mars square Pluto can be used to creatively transform the world around you. That's what environmental groups around the globe are trying to do for the survival of the planet; in one very literal example, an organization called Brandalism has created more than 600 faux ads around Paris blasting the hypocrisy of the COP21 corporate sponsors. You could engage in much smaller-scale, local actions that would fit the astrology -- whether you're energized by the need to slow global warming, or by the need to restructure business relationships and workspaces, or a desire to overhaul your home's aesthetics. Wherever you direct your efforts, stay aware of anything that seems to polarize your consciousness or asks you to sacrifice your ethics and morals. There are many ways to get where you want to go, but not all means are justified by the ends. Yours & truly,  Amanda Painter   By Amanda Painter Melbourne, Australia, assigned its trees ID numbers and a shared email address in 2013 so that citizens could report problems such as downed or dangerous branches. Surely that happens -- but not nearly as often as people anthropomorphize the trees and write emails directly to them. The Atlantic's Citylab website reports that Melbourne's trees "have received thousands of messages -- everything from banal greetings and questions about current events to love letters and existential dilemmas." Not only do Melburnians love the trees, but people all over the world are writing to them. Now if only the trees could attend the UN COP21 summit (with full voting rights), they might not need us to speak and act on their behalf. Our leaders are not doing so well at it. As the person addressing the Algerian Oak above states, "Hopefully one day our environment will be our priority." And hopefully that day will be very, very soon.  Facing the Future Dear Friend and Reader: In this week's edition of Planet Waves FM, I consider the touchy issue of facing the future in a time of global and individual struggle. I look at climate change, the cover-up of global warming by Exxon, and other factors. I also give a close reading of Saturn square Neptune and the fear factor. In the last segment I continue my review of The Game by Neil Strauss. My musical guest is Sean Crimmins, a local songwriter. Lovingly, PS -- I was having a problem with a component and there is an audio quality loss in this edition. Apologies for that. --efc  Your Monthly Horoscopes -- and our Publishing Schedule Notes Your extended monthly horoscopes for December were published Wednesday, Nov. 25. Your extended monthly horoscopes for November were published Thursday, Oct. 22. Your Moonshine horoscopes for the Gemini Full Moon were published Tuesday, Nov. 24. Please note, we normally publish the extended monthly horoscope on the first Friday after the Sun has entered a new sign.  Planet Waves Weekly Horoscope -- Dec. 3, 2015, #1078 | By Len Wallick  Pre-order Vision Quest today and secure all 12 sign readings, plus original music and articles by featured writers -- all at a great value.
 Pre-order Vision Quest today and secure all 12 sign readings, plus original music and articles by featured writers -- all at a great value.
 Pre-order Vision Quest today and secure all 12 sign readings, plus original music and articles by featured writers -- all at a great value.
 Pre-order Vision Quest today and secure all 12 sign readings, plus original music and articles by featured writers -- all at a great value.
 Pre-order Vision Quest today and secure all 12 sign readings, plus original music and articles by featured writers -- all at a great value.
 Pre-order Vision Quest today and secure all 12 sign readings, plus original music and articles by featured writers -- all at a great value.
 Pre-order Vision Quest today and secure all 12 sign readings, plus original music and articles by featured writers -- all at a great value.
 Pre-order Vision Quest today and secure all 12 sign readings, plus original music and articles by featured writers -- all at a great value.
 "The past several months I have felt like my ass was strapped to some unnamed comet with no off switch. My exposure to astrology in the past left me wanting…no substance…too generic. I decide to give it another chance and gifted myself with your Sagittarius birthday reading. Well, finally! I now understand that this comet doesn't HAVE an off switch, but I have at least found the steering wheel. Thanks." -- Tree Ravenwolf You can still pre-order the 2015-16 Sagittarius Birthday Reading for the discounted price. You'll receive two full audio segments of astrology, a third segment of astrology afterthoughts and your tarot reading, plus photos of the cards and the charts. While Eric works on it, listen to last year's reading, on us, for inspiration and to review if you have a Sagittarius Sun, Moon or Rising Sign.  Pre-order Vision Quest today and secure all 12 sign readings, plus original music and articles by featured writers -- all at a great value.
 Pre-order Vision Quest today and secure all 12 sign readings, plus original music and articles by featured writers -- all at a great value.
 Pre-order Vision Quest today and secure all 12 sign readings, plus original music and articles by featured writers -- all at a great value.
 Pre-order Vision Quest today and secure all 12 sign readings, plus original music and articles by featured writers -- all at a great value.
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