A Book About Men:
Mars Retrograde News Timeline

Researched by Tracy Delaney
Planet Waves Articles Editor. [Comments by Eric Francis.]

Before Earth and Mars made their closest approach to one another in 60,000 years, predictions were running wild as to what might happen. When Mars and Earth are on the same side of the Sun, this is known as Mars retrograde; Earth passing Mars makes Mars appear to move backwards against the backdrop of the stars.

We have selected about 20 news items from the Mars retrograde period, which technically spans from late July 29 to Sept. 27. For true historical context, it would, however, be fair to include about three months on either side and by some methods of reckoning to take the entire era of history, as long as one year on either side of the closest approach -- as fair territory. For the sake of clarity, we're using the dates of the retrograde as guidelines.

In the constant background of the news was a marked increase in violence in Iraq and the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, and an increase in the tempo of truth about the Iraqi war unraveling with serious consequences in both the US and the UK. There were two major blackouts in the eastern United States. A retired Army general announced his candidacy for the presidency. And lots lots more. Just take a look.

Monday July 28
Pentagon terrorism casino revealed
"The initiative, called the Policy Analysis Market (Pam), was to allow traders to place money on an online market to back their hunches on, for example, a coup in Jordan or a biological attack on Israel." -- The Guardian. [The idea went over like a lead zeppelin and was quickly rescinded by the Bush administration. But given the events of the next several weeks, there was apparently some money to be made.]
http://www.guardian.co.uk/usa/story/0,12271,1008215,00.html

Tuesday Aug. 5
Gene Robinson elected first-ever openly gay Anglican Bishop, cleared of silly last-minute allegations
"Robinson was ambushed, hours before the House of Bishops was to take the final vote on his nomination, by the most scurrilous smear: He was accused of linkage to a porn Web site and of inappropriately touching another man. The church investigated both charges and cleared Robinson. The House of Bishops then voted to accept his elevation to Bishop of New Hampshire. End of story? Not quite." -- Minneapolis Star Tribune. [My question for the Catholics is, if priests are celibate, why should it matter what their sexual orientation is? In reality, the Catholic priesthood has been the repository for gay men forever and six Sundays, perhaps slightly longer.]
http://www.commondreams.org/views03/0806-10.htm

Wednesday Aug. 6
Arnold Schwarzenegger announced his candidacy for Governor of California
"Only in America could a guy who struts in an action-hero's Hollywood costume and barks macho lines from a script pass for a plausible political leader. But if George W. Bush can get away with it, why should Arnold Schwarzenegger be pilloried for the same antics?" -- New York Times. [At one point there were nearly 200 candidates on the ballot, and the election has been turned on and off by the courts several times; it's now back on.]
http://www.truthout.org/docs_03/091603D.shtml

Thursday Aug. 14
Huge blackout hits the US East coast
"The lights went out across New York, Michigan, Ohio and eastern Canada yesterday in the worst power failure North America has suffered in decades." -- The Guardian. [Said to be the worst ever, comparable only to events in 1965 and 1977. Mercury retrograde could be implicated too, of course -- one would hope.]
http://www.guardian.co.uk/usa/story/0,12271,1019334,00.html

Tuesday Aug. 19
Explosion at UN headquarters in Baghdad
"BAGHDAD -- A truck bomb explosion ripped through a hotel used by the United Nations as its headquarters in Baghdad today, leaving at least 14 people dead, including the top United Nations representative in Iraq." -- New York Times. [Sergio Vieira de Mello, the top UN envoy in Iraq, was said to be a likely candidate as the next secretary general.]
http://www.truthout.org/docs_03/082003A.shtml

Wednesday Aug. 20
Sobig.F virus goes wild
"As Earth approaches Mars, the Sobig.F virus is spreading so fast that it's slowing down the entire internet. The antivirus service I subscribe to trapped 1.8 million copies of the virus on Aug. 20 alone." -- Planet Waves Weekly, 22nd August. [And twice as many the next day. The virus quit, as programmed, on Sept. 10 and so far has not been heard from again.]
http://www.viruslist.com/eng/viruslist.html?id=65735

Thursday Aug. 21
Judicial inquiry continues into the death of Dr. David Kelly
"August 21: Dr. Kelly said Gilligan's report was 'bullshit' and that, if Iraq was invaded, he would 'probably be found dead in the woods', witnesses revealed." -- The Guardian. "September 22: Mr. Hoon once again says there was 'no conspiracy' to reveal Dr Kelly's name, but Alastair Campbell's diaries reveal No 10 and the MoD hoped Dr Kelly would 'fuck Gilligan'." -- The Guardian. [Lord Hutton's judicial inquiry, conducted by one of the UK's most powerful judges, commenced Aug. 1, and goes to the heart of the fraudulent case made by Blair and Bush to go to war against Iraq. Kelly was indeed found dead in the woods on July 18.]
http://politics.guardian.co.uk/kelly/story/0,13747,1021802,00.html
http://www.ericfrancis.com/issues/0308/kelly_astro.html

Tuesday Aug. 26
Report into Shuttle loss attacks 'lax' NASA safety
"A hard-hitting report today on the loss of the space shuttle Columbia and its seven crew earlier this year will expose a culture of complacency inside Nasa, and cast a shadow over the future of the manned flight programme." -- The Guardian. [Remember the Columbia disintegrated over Texas, with debris falling just 75 miles from the president's personal ranch, just two weeks before massive world-wide pro-peace protests.]
http://www.guardian.co.uk/usa/story/0,12271,1029211,00.html

Wednesday Aug. 27
Ten Commandments monument removed from Alabama court
"A moving crew removed the Ten Commandments monument from the rotunda of the Alabama Judicial Building on Wednesday to comply with a federal court order, as anguished protesters prayed at the building's steps." -- Associated Press. [This was after an ornery, God-loving and holier-than-anything, anywhere battle between the chief justice, who put the statue there, and the rest of the court system. It has been nominated for Ugliest Statue of the Century and His Honor has been nominated as Retrograde Patriarch of the Millennium. The statue has been replaced by a display with pages from the handwritten manuscript of The Celestine Prophesy. Okay, just kidding there.]
http://www.salon.com/news/wire/2003/08/27/ten_commandments/

Friday Aug. 29
Car bomb at Najaf mosque killed 100+, including beloved Shia Muslim religious leader
"Thousands of angry mourners called for vengeance as they gathered outside Iraq's holiest Shiite shrine where yesterday a car bomb killed more than 100 people, including one of country's most senior Shia Muslim clerics," Ayatollah Mohammed Bakir Hakim. -- Independent Digital. [This well-respected and popular cleric was about the best hope the US had to restore order in Iraq, who had returned from decades of exile in Iran. Much of his family had been killed by Saddam Hussein because of his religious and political activity.]
http://www.truthout.org/docs_03/090103B.shtml

Friday Aug. 29
Alaistair Campbell quits
"Alastair Campbell has announced he is to leave his Downing Street job in a shock move mid-way through the Hutton inquiry. His place will be taken by David Hill, a former director of communications for the Labour party." -- The Guardian. [Campbell was a daunting figure in the administration of UK Prime Minister Tony Blair, among many other things responsible for the spin that was put on Blair's and Bush's sales pitch to the world to bomb and invade Iraq.]
http://www.truthout.org/docs_03/090103B.shtml

Tuesday Sept. 2
Over 100 death penalty judgements overturned
"Citing a 2002 Supreme Court ruling that only juries can impose the death penalty, a federal appeals court overturned 111 death sentences Tuesday that had been imposed by judges in Arizona, Idaho and Montana." -- CNN. [The latest in a series of major victories for Death Row inmates and death penalty opponents in recent years, including the emptying of Death Row by Illinois Gov. George Ryan earlier this year.]
http://www.cnn.com/2003/LAW/09/02/death.penalty/index.html

Wednesday Sept. 3
Ex-Rev. Paul Hill executed for murder of abortion doctor
Paul Hill, a former minister who said he murdered an abortion doctor and his bodyguard to save the lives of unborn babies, was executed Wednesday by injection. He was the first person put to death in the United States for anti-abortion violence." -- Associated Press. [Can one be an ex-reverend? Perhaps in the case of Paul Hill.]
http://www.salon.com/news/wire/2003/09/03/hill/

Sunday Sept. 7
President Bush asks for $87 billion more for Iraq in flubbed TV address, planned to pre-empt Sept. 11 specials
"The President's television speech about Iraq last week had the feeling of something real being revealed after a thick, obscuring outer layer has been stripped away." -- The New Yorker. [Personally I thought it was his most convincing speech ever, but apparently nobody else agreed with me except for Jenica, who works at the pizzeria on Vashon Island. This same week, Bush also begins his unsuccessful attempts to get the assistance of France, Germany and the UN on his Iraq project.]
http://www.truthout.org/docs_03/092203E.shtml

Tuesday Sept. 9
Edward Teller, 'Father of the H-Bomb', Died
"Edward Teller, whose staunch support for the development of powerful weapons for defensive purposes earned him the unwanted title of 'father of the H-bomb', died at his home near the campus of Stanford University. He was 95." -- Washington Times. [What can you say to the H-bomb?]
http://washingtontimes.com/upi-breaking/20030910-115516-5854r.htm

Friday Sept. 12
Johnny Cash Died
"Johnny Cash, whose five-decade career defined and refined American music, died early this morning of complications from diabetes; he was seventy-one." -- Rolling Stone. ["There'll be pie in the sky / By and by, when I die / And it'll be alright, it'll be alright." --Johnny Cash]
http://www.rollingstone.com/news/newsarticle.asp?nid=18672

Tuesday Sept. 16
CNN star reporter criticized war coverage
"CNN's star reporter, Christiane Amanpour, has claimed the 24-hour news network was 'intimidated' by the Bush administration in its coverage of the war in Iraq." -- The Guardian. [Who would have thunk it?]
http://www.mediaguardian.co.uk/broadcast/story/0,7493,1043341,00.html

Wednesday Sept. 17
GWB's approval ratings hit a new low
"President Bush's approval rating on handling Iraq has fallen to its lowest level ever, and his overall approval rating is the lowest it has been since the 2001 terrorist attacks, according to a CBS News poll." -- CBS News. [Watch for incoming airplanes.]
http://truthout.org/docs_03/092003C.shtml

Wednesday Sept. 17
Gen. Wesley Clark declared Democratic candidacy
"LITTLE ROCK, Sept. 17 -- Retired four-star Gen. Wesley K. Clark announced his candidacy for president today, promising an optimistic but strong challenge to President Bush's leadership 'in the highest sense of patriotism'. In a relatively short speech bereft of any policy specifics, Clark, 58, vowed to 'hold this administration accountable' for the 2.7 millions jobs lost during Bush's tenure, the ballooning budget deficits and the loss of respect for the United States by 'so many people around the world'." -- Washington Post. [Declaring his candidacy with Mercury and Mars retrograde proves he uses the same astrologer as Dubya.]
http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn/A24563-2003Sep17

Friday, Sept. 19
Isabel makes landfall; flooding, blackouts in Mid-A states
"KILL DEVIL HILLS, N.C. -- Hurricane Isabel plowed into North Carolina's Outer Banks with 100 mph winds and pushed its way Thursday up the Eastern Seaboard, weakening to a tropical storm by evening but not before swamping roads and knocking out power to more than 2.6 million people. -- Associated Press.[Bringing the second major blackout to the East of this short spell of time, Isabel also killed about 25 people, flooding hundreds of towns and cities, cleansing the land and refreshing the aquifers of the Mid-Atlantic states.]
http://heraldsun.com/nationworld/14-391914.html

Friday, Sept. 19
Federal court heard Leonard Peltier parole arguments
The 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Denver heard arguments that U.S. political prisoner Leonard Peltier should be granted a parole hearing. His last request, in 1993, was postponed until 2008. The court is not expected to rule on this request for some time.

"In 1993, the U.S. Parole Commission postponed that hearing until 2008 -- essentially requiring Peltier to spend more than twice as long in prison as is customary before getting a chance at release. The commission said Peltier deserves to spend that much more time in prison because he helped ambush the two federal agents, Jack Coler and Ronald Williams, in 1975.

Also, he shot them to death in cold blood, the parole officials reasoned. But neither of those points has ever been proved in court, Peltier's lawyers argued Friday. The 10th Circuit therefore should force the parole commission to reconsider Peltier's application for a hearing, they said."
http://www.denverpost.com/Stories/0,1413,36~53~1645777,00.html

Sunday Sept. 21
Hans Blix Accuses US of 'Questionable Honesty' over Iraq
"ATHENS, Greece -- Former U.N. chief weapons inspector Hans Blix accused the United States of showing "questionable honesty" over Iraq and said the country was attacked despite posing no immediate threat." -- Associated Press.
http://truthout.org/docs_03/092203I.shtml

Sunday, Sept. 21
Ice-Age time capsule discovery revealed in Missouri
"The cave had remained closed until Sept. 11, 2001, when construction workers stumbled onto it while building a road on the outskirts of Springfield, the state’s third largest city . . . initial research shows most of the large formations likely formed during the Pleistocene Era, the period from about 1.8 million to about 13,000 years ago." -- Associated Press. [We need to look for a corresponding Sept. 11 time capsule to be discovered some time in the near future, containing samples of the whole truth in one place.]
http://www.msnbc.com/news/968572.asp?0cl=cR

Tuesday, Sept. 23
Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel members all quit
"WASHINGTON, Sept. 23 — Nine experts on a NASA space safety advisory panel have resigned in the wake of sharp criticism from the Columbia Accident Investigation Board and by Congress, the space agency said Tuesday." -- Associated Press. [The panel was created after the Apollo 1 disaster in which three astronauts died in a 1967 launch pad fire. Astronauts are known to have died in only two other accidents, Challenger and Columbia. The accidents are all clustered within a few dates in late January and early February.]
http://www.msnbc.com/news/970701.asp?0cv=CB10