Political Satire at it's best - "Man explains to WFTV News why he loves the Orlando Police Department"

This video was too good to pass up - hope the readers will enjoy this:



YouTube Link

Sustainability and "The Vegetarian Myth" - Where Many Have Gone Wrong

It has been a good long time since I've posted (and rightly so, maybe more on that at some future time). Things have been quite crazy "out there", but that's what was expected and should most certainly come as no surprise. Between the now admitted triple meltdown at the Fukushima nuke plant, the record breaking floods that currently threaten one or possibly two nuclear plants here in the US and the raging wild fires currently threatening the Los Alamos nuclear storage containers in New Mexico, there definitely appears to be a "running theme" developing. Then there's the continuing "GlobalRev" uprisings around the world along with the failed attempts to hijack the movements by TPTB, the continuing economic collapse playing out like a slow motion train wreck and the incredible weather anomalies that are only now being recognized as "incredible" by the MSM. Again, maybe more on these at a future time.

See, that's not what this post is about. I'm not interested in posting an "update" on the news, nor an editorial opinion piece...nor even a "how to" type article about RVing or growing a container garden in a campground somewhere in Florida.

If you're not already "up-to-date", you're simply doing it wrong.

If you're more interested in what I have to say than what an expert has to say, I thank you but please do check out the expert first - we can chat later about what he/she says.

If you haven't been greedily consuming everything you can find on the net about "how to" this or that, you are not only wasting valuable time but you most likely deserve the ignorance you currently possess on your particular "this or that".

No - this "post" is a sort of reminder of what should be considered sustainable. This post is here to help clarify some very false and potentially lethal misinformation that's out there (and has been out there), and hopefully help guide the misguided toward a more rational middle path (both in a physical, practical sense and in a more "spiritual path" or "way of life" kind of way).

And to top it all off, I'm not even going to write a "proper post". I'm going to simply embed a video you should watch, in which an actual expert talks about this, and leave it at that. So here's that video:

Dear American

The story, as many others do, begins like this: A long time ago, in a land far away...

The story is a long one, leading up to this point, and may, in fact, be a long one leading forward. We wont concern ourselves with what happened before, nor what happens later, as this story is about a young man's "today".

You see, "today" is today, no matter where you are - no matter what land you inhabit - and what this young man was realizing is something many of even our own people, and our current generations, can relate to. His world, as it stood, had become a very dismal place. Greed and corruption ran rampant. The people of his land were encouraged by their overlords to "sacrifice" their "cares" in order to pay their bills. Everyone was being forced into acting as a sort of compulsory slave, and they found themselves working long hours for little in return.

It seemed only the most ruthless could succeed in this young man's world. Those who followed their hearts were destined to become outcasts.

The young man wasn't happy about any of this, and so he found himself taking it upon himself to worry. He would worry about his family, his friends and his neighbors. He even worried about the future generations of his people. Continually reminding himself that he shouldn't worry so much, that it was unhealthy to do so and that these people he worried over had, for the most part, brought this all upon themselves, didn't seem to help.

He found himself sleepless and experiencing a very real physical pain as he imagined how his world "should be".

Day after day, night after night, the young man would put on a brave face. He would spend time with his family and pretend that he fully understood the situation his world was in. He offered his very best spiritual and emotional insights to others who worried, and he assured them that their worry was unnecessary...that things would take care of themselves.

After a few hours of this, he would retreat to his home, exhausted, and find himself swimming in his despair. The world was so big, and so corrupt. He knew there was no way for him to save his people from the approaching cataclysm.

Each night, his heart would cry silently while he attempted to distract himself from the problems he knew he alone could never solve. Evil itself had corrupted everything he knew, every aspect of his society, and the only solution to this problem was a complete devastation of his world.

But today, instead of impatiently waiting for sleep to come, as he usually did, the young man decided to take action. He decided that it was more honorable to try to speak out to the people of his world than it would be to just watch silently as his world was destroyed by the pervasive greed and corruption.

So, sitting quietly in front of his computer, he began to write:

---

Dear American,

I am writing in hopes that you will wake up. Your way of life is corrupt, and it will soon be over. I am not making a "death threat", I am trying to warn you of what is coming if you don't open your eyes. The world we live in is changing rapidly, is becoming more difficult to live in by the day, and it will soon become impossible to maintain society in its current form. It is up to each and every one of us to change the way we think about life and the way we act in the world.

There is but a short time to get your affairs in order. Soon, time will run out and we will all be living a very different way. Today's world is about to become a thing of the past...both a happy memory and a dire warning for future generations. The question is, will you be helping to preserve freedom and liberty, or will you be helping to destroy both with your blind faith in a failing system? Will you be prepared for the world you find yourself in?

We are all aware of the rampant corruption in government. We are all aware of the escalating erosion of our liberties. What we may not all be aware of is that such things as the current economic collapse were planned events. You see, a handful of individuals, families and corporations have amassed a large amount of wealth through their financing of such atrocities as World Wars 1 and 2, Hitler's concentration camps and even modern day terrorist activities. With this wealth came power. Lots of power. From the Federal Reserve Bank and the Bilderberg Group to Skull and Bones and Bohemian Grove, there is far too much secrecy surrounding those who run this country's affairs. Just ask yourself this question: if these people have my best interests in mind, why do they meet behind closed doors?

I am not telling you to go out and buy guns, nor am I telling you to stock up on canned meats and vegetables, though both of these may be good ideas. What I am telling you to do is this: become aware of the very painful but obvious conspiracy at play. You have become slaves in your own country. The dystopia of science fiction is already our way of life, from constant surveillance and big government nanny states to mind controlling drugs administered to the masses and high tech gizmos that betray every aspect of your being.

Through the consolidation of power by the wealthy elite, we the people have lost all but the faded memories of what made this country great. The dollar bill in your pocket is nothing but a debt to be repaid, and every hour you work, every penny you save, makes somebody else rich as you slide deeper into poverty. This is not the "American Dream", and it's not intended to be. This is the dream of the powerful elite. And it will only get worse from here.

It is already too late to make things right without many years of painful recovery and rebuilding, but if we don't start working today, we're only allowing things to become worse. Every year we sit back and allow this cancer to progress, our nation's recovery will become harder and more painful. You can help save our children and grandchildren from decades of suffering, but you must start by changing the way you think about wealth.

Wealth is NOT money. Wealth is NOT a new car or expensive clothing

Wealth is love, friendship, family and happiness

Wealth is freedom of emotional and spiritual fulfillment

To make things right, you must stop buying your video games, cell phones and fake fingernails. You must stop feeding these empty material desires that have done nothing but enslave you. Stop sacrificing your dreams by flipping burgers and answering phones for a living. Instead, invest your time and money into what makes you truly happy...what truly fills you with joy. Decide to love your neighbors and cherish your dreams. Invest in your local businesses. Buy your local produce. Grow flowers and vegetables in your own back yard. Spend time with your children before they learn to distrust and hate you. Withdraw all your money from the bank and spend it on what you know will last...on things that can be handed down generation to generation and shared amongst communities.

This is the only way to break the cycle of corruption we find ourselves in today.

This is the only way to get our country back.

It is your duty, as an American, to become informed. It is your duty to prevent the slavery that has been planned for you and your children by the powerful elite. There is little time left to open your eyes, and little time left to do what's right. Failure is simply not an option.

I am asking for you to work harder than you ever have before to ensure our country's survival. Now, more than ever, your country needs you. And it needs you to wake up.

Sincerely,
Your Friendly Neighborhood Blogger

The 8th US Saturn Return - Revisited

Back in January, I wrote up a 3 part examination of US Saturn returns, along with some interpretation of what the current Saturn return may bring. Interesting things have abounded over the last 3 months, many of which have been seriously downplayed and all but ignored by the mainstream media, but have still had the effect of bringing us to what I would have to call the proverbial edge of national catastrophe. Between the pro- and anti- union protests of February here in the US ("Valentines Day Protests" anybody?), ongoing revolutions in Tunisia, Egypt, Syria, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, etc, the new war in Libya (sorry, the "Kinetic Military Action"), and the Japanese earthquake, tsunami and multiple nuclear meltdowns ("partial meltdowns", sort of like being partially pregnant in my opinion), things have been shaping up to be some of the most interesting of times witnessed in modern history internationally. It's times like these that I like to take a step back, review what has been written, and then make some projections of the outcomes...so that's what we'll do.

As I outlined in The 8th US Saturn Return - Part 3, Neptune is currently transiting the US 3rd natal house in Aquarius, and has been conjuncting with the US natal Moon placement since the early summer of 2008. The US natal Moon is often thought to denote the "American Dream" and "the US as a melting pot" ideology. Neptune here has been causing lots of confusion surrounding these aspects of the "American personality", and, as March progresses into April, we're finally seeing some of that confusion fall away.

As I noted, it was during this time of "confused devotional fanaticism" that Obama was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize (before completing even a full year in office). Today, we can clearly see some of this "false glory" fading, as actions begin to speak louder than words, with international calls for Obama's Peace Prize to be stripped. This issue will be raised in the international arena again in the near future, likely around early May when Mars sextiles the US natal Moon from late Aries, but by this time I think there will be other issues taking the main headlines.

Also noted was the imminent move of Uranus from Pisces and the 3rd natal house into Aries and, eventually, the 4th house. Today, March 24th, Uranus is at approximately 0 degrees and 45 seconds of Aries, and in approximately 3 days will enter the 4th natal house of the US. Placed within a 1 degree orb of the MC/IC axis, there is a strong dynamic being brought to the surface, showing clearly the dichotomy between the US public appearance and what is going on "behind the scenes". It was just this morning that the video of Obama himself being locked out of the White House surfaced...I can only say to read between the lines on that one.

Also with this movement of Uranus into Aries came an increased risk of natural and unnatural disasters worldwide. It's interesting to note that on very day that Uranus moved into Aries, the world's most costly natural disaster to date began occurring in Japan. I say "began" because, to date, the nuclear reactors and spent fuel rod storage pools at Fukishima Daiichi are STILL not fully under control. Already, due to the damage throughout Japan from this horrifying triple-disaster, US auto plants have begun laying off workers, food imports from Japan have been halted and such things as "potassium iodide", "millisieverts" and "cesium 137" have become part of the national lexicon. Uranus will remain in Aries through to 2018 before moving into Taurus and the US natal 5th house - between now and then I believe we can expect continued disasters involving nuclear power and radiation that threaten the US mainland. Also on the front-page will be more and larger earthquakes along with the most catastrophic fires, flooding and wind damage seen to date. This is a large window of opportunity, but do expect most of these events to happen during 2011 and early 2012, while Uranus traverses the first 5 degrees of Aries.

Looking to the more personal planets during the second conjunction of this Saturn return, Mars was noted to be in a strong opposition to the natal Neptune placement and loosely squaring its own natal position in Gemini and the 7th house. This is a warlike aspect, and I noted that, though war itself was rather unlikely, posturing and rhetoric were to be expected. Also, oil issues would be in the headlines throughout this period. Both of these have come to pan out, with oil today hovering around $106/barrel and the unpopular, US led military intervention in Libya making front-page news over the last week.

As Mars conjuncts Uranus and the US natal IC, and enters the first degree of Aries, over April 2nd through April 4th, expect a "heating up" of these issues as "oil fears" are realized and "war" begins to spread beyond the borders of Libya.

I had also noted that the Moon was seen transiting the US natal 11th house and Scorpio during the hours of conjunction on March 22nd, bringing a woman into the spotlight on "international affairs", while "distancing" herself from "domestic issues". This woman, of course, represents Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, same as during the first of this three part return back in November and December. Also of note was Venus becoming conjunct with the US natal Moon, signifying confusion being brought to light over "an issue of immigration or humanitarian aid". On March 26th, as the Moon transits the US natal Pluto placement and Venus conjuncts the transiting Neptune, expect some sudden and tragic news to break. This looks to be related to something already in the headlines, but will allow us to see it in a new and disappointing light.

Another key aspect was seen as Jupiter being loosely opposed to the natal and transiting Saturn placement, and squaring the natal Sun, as the transiting Sun conjuncted with Uranus and the IC in the first degree of Aries. I noted that a likely interpretation would be a man coming into the public eye through some form of accusation of corruption by either the US government or big business. Interestingly, on the 18th, Bernard von NotHaus was convicted on spurious counts of counterfeiting US currency and conspiracy against the United States. Meanwhile, a bill to begin the process of having the state issue its own currency of gold and silver has been introduced in North Carolina and Ron Paul introduced the Free Competition in Currency Act to Congress, which would repeal the very laws used to convict the so-called "architect" of Liberty Dollars. Though this issue hasn't seen major street protests and rallies as of yet, I certainly have a feeling these will be front page news in a matter of weeks (especially as April 15th approaches).

Also related to all of this is the release of photos showing members of the US military posing proudly with dead Afghans just this Sunday. Hopefully this will prove to be a fairly isolated incident and not the sort of widespread abuse seen at the Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq.

The New Moon of April 3rd will be loosely conjunct Jupiter, still in opposition to the natal and transiting Saturn placement and square to the natal Sun (setting up a powerful T-square aspect), and could signify new developments of government and big business corruption issues. Perhaps a planning phase will begin for a national movement against the Federal Reserve system or the IRS, or perhaps some related information will be brought out through the mainstream media. Either way, the days surrounding the 3rd look to be full of fireworks.

We're only beginning the second phase of the US Saturn return, and already we're seeing some of the most chaotic times in recent memory coming to pass. It should come as no surprise that much is yet to be decided in the near- and long-term fates of the US, with another "stop-gap" spending bill pushing the big issues back another couple weeks, but so far we can see that things have only escalated. That's never a good sign when dealing with a Saturn return, as the worse things seem to be, the worse they will inevitably get.

During the weeks preceding the final conjunction of this Saturn return on August 28th, we should see things calm down significantly on the domestic front. This will be noticeable once Jupiter transits into Taurus on June 4th and stability, renewed optimism and a sense of direction take shape nationally.

Leading up to that time, the big news stories to hit headlines will likely deal with many of the same issues of last fall, specifically those of October and November. As Americans continue to wake up to the various forms of corruption and criminal mischief at the highest levels of government and big business, many of the same debates of 2010 will be replayed, this time with a new sense of clarity and purpose. The big fight, delayed over and over again, will finally take place in Congress as the fiscal irresponsibility of the last 7 years is exposed to some sunshine. The officials elected to office in November will be called upon to perform the toughest task of our times, and a high level of anxiety will hang over the debates taking place in Washington. The chaotic scenes of February in Wisconsin and Ohio will be seen again, likely at every state capitol, and perhaps even in DC before middle July.

Probably the most interesting thing to NOT develop thus far, in my opinion, is the promised WikiLeaks "bank data" release. The release will likely play the role of "biggest game-changer" when it finally does develop, possibly sparking massive banking reforms or even a sort of popular revolution. This may happen as soon as April 6th during the Sun/Jupiter conjunction, or as late as May 23rd as Mercury goes direct.

In any case, the next few months look to be chock full of "interesting times".

MSNBC Runs Story on Fed Money Printing - WOW

Who'd have thought we'd see the day when MSNBC actually runs a story on the Federal Reserve printing too much money?

I mean, wow...this story just doesn't get reported.

I believe they're wrong that these protests and revolutions in the Middle East and North Africa are simply due to higher food and commodity costs, but what do you expect? It's mainstream media. If they can't spin it, they wont report it.

That said, admission by the MSM, especially MSNBC, that the Federal Reserve is printing too much money - times are definitely changing.

Get ready for a wild 2011...

Wisconsin Protests and Web Bot "HOLE Incident"

It's been developing for a few days now, but sort of "in the background". Today, however, it's grabbing the top headlines on Drudge. Firstly, let's get an idea of what's going on and how this all started.

The story goes like this: The federal government in the US is broke. Nearly every state government in the US is broke. Wisconsin finds itself at number 28 when ranked against all the other states based on state and local debt in the year 2010, ranked low to high (dollar amounts in billions). The US Debt Clock website shows, as of writing this, current debt per citizen in Wisconsin stands at $7,689.

Could it be worse? Sure could - look at California on that chart...ALL the way down on the bottom with the highest debt figure - $433.5 billion. That's roughly 11 times the amount of state and local debt, for the year 2010, as Wisconsin had. Yet the debt per citizen there is only showing as $9,815 on their State Debt Clock page, which is not significantly higher than Wisconsin's. Why? Simple - California has a much higher population. With a higher population, the debt is sort of "spread thin" amongst the people and each person's slice of the "fiscal irresponsibility pie" is that much smaller. There's a similar situation when you look to Massachusetts, which ranks at number 44 with roughly $98.7 billion of state and local debt, yet due to the lower population shows a whopping debt per citizen of $15,392 on the state's Debt Clock page.

So it's obvious at this point that the state of Wisconsin is broke, even if they're not as bad off as many others. Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker knows this and proposed a bill that would help fill in the $137 million "hole in the state budget" this year and the $3.2 billion "hole" by mid-2013, which sounds like a good idea. Put the fires out before things rage out of control like they have in other states, right? The plan he outlines in the bill would require public employees to pay around 5.5% into their pension plans, a significant increase in Wisconsin but actually about the average nationwide. Also, public employees would have their health insurance premiums increased to about 12%, which is about half the national average. That all sounds pretty damn reasonable - and smart. Yet, we see this:



So why in bloody hell are these people protesting? Are they not willing to help get their own state back on track, reigning in the irresponsible spending practices and criminal underfunding that's been taking place for years?

Now, this is where the Governor of Wisconsin overstepped. His bill aims to remove basically all the public employee rights to collective bargaining. That means unions would lose the right to negotiate on issues like working hours, training, health and safety, or overtime. The bill does allow unions the right to use collective bargaining on matters of wages/salary, but otherwise strips away the power of unions to do much of anything constructive.

That's why people in Wisconsin started protesting. The fact that the Governor then overstepped again, threatening the use of the National Guard to break up the protests, just adds fuel to the fire.

Yeah, now we're starting to see the bigger picture. Basically threatening the use of force to stop peaceful protests over controversial legislation. No wonder this is becoming front page news!

[Edit 2-18: Feel I need to address the issue of whether or not the Governor actually threatened the use of National Guard troops to "quash protesters" - his original statement on last week was ambiguous at best and was styled, in my and many others opinions, to intimate this and he has, in fact, stated even in his clarification that the National Guard troops will be used for any purposes he sees fit. Again, while never explicitly stating that he plans to impose police state measures by rolling out National Guard troops (freshly returned from active battle) as an impromptu police force, this is still a real possibility that the Governor of Wisconsin has previously hinted at.]

Now, on to the seriously freaky web bot connection, which caused me to write this post.

This is from the Shape Of Things To Come report released in January (emphasis added):
on page 3: "The reader needs to be advised that *some* texts within this report will point to specific instances of upcoming violent events without providing additional descriptors of the event, though peripheral elements not germane but pertinent may well be provided. Got that? When you see an obvious 'hole' in the text, there is a good reason for it to be there."

on page 31: "The [destruction of civil life] sub set contains repeated references to [civil unrest] and [riots], as well as [armed insurrection]. This last is cross linked extensively to the TPTW and Markets entities. Within the [destruction of civil life] sub set are the previously described (in past ALTA reports) instances of [mob action] that results in the [burning alive] of [minions] and ['power elites'] and their [families]. The HOLE incident will act as a [spark] to [spreading contagion] {ednote: from the words to-be-used by the political minions} that is indicated to [start a riot] in an [urban area (north of DC)] that will itself [spread like fire]. The data sets are showing a lot of support for the [riots] sub set through Spring and Summer, but the [mother of all riots] does not appear within our data sets until later in HOLE."

and on page 43: "The SpaceGoatFarts entity also has some hints that the aware observer should keep a wary eye out for the appearance of the [planet-terran society] in 2011. This [group of planet-terrans] will be worth watching. The effective temporal markers include the [aftermath] of some [riots (in usofa, east coast, likely Spring)] that will [unleash (big) stink (across the nation}]. Note HOLE"

Welcome to the "Budget Hole" people. Holy freaking crap, it has begun. If this is right, it looks like the National Guard will be used...and the people aren't gonna like that one bit. Time to hunker down with your pie/popcorn and order that shortwave radio you've had on your need-to-get prep list for the last two years.

Fox News Deception - Ron Paul - They've Been Caught Red Handed This Time

I just have to post this one. Wow.. What a bunch of bastards.



Sometimes the deception is really just *that* in your face. Interesting times we live in. It's 5am and I haven't yet slept, so I'll keep it short, but wow...

No Sunnis, no Shiites. We are all Anonymous?

As the global revolution continues to move forward, we in "the west" are finally being forced to face up to the fact that these aren't just "radical Islamic zealots" angry about a "sudden lack of food". They're people fed up with their governments who are putting their foot down as a citizenry, exercising their God given Duty to "throw off" what's not working for their countries and their people. The protests and revolutions taking place in North Africa and the Middle East continue to captivate my attention daily. An interesting thing, however, has happened in the last few days that I absolutely must give some attention to.

Evidently, after US security company, HBGary, made repeated attempts to infiltrate Anonymous, threatening to release the identities of people involved in this so-called "hacktivist" movement, Anonymous hacked back, releasing thousands of private emails from the company's servers. But one thing they freed from the servers was a surprise to all - the notorious Stuxnet computer worm. Now, you might remember that this incredible computer worm was responsible for basically the shutdown of the entire Iranian nuclear program. Russia, who is collaborating with Iran on the construction of a nuclear power plant, even called out NATO, demanding an investigation on this "worm". Their claim? It could have caused a "Chernobyl tragedy"!

Now, it's painfully obvious to anyone who reads up on this thing that it was developed jointly by high-level government agencies, almost certainly including the US and Israel. The New York Times reported on this only weeks ago. It's also painfully obvious that this thing is truly in a class of its own. Never before has such a magnificent "weapon of mass destruction" been created with digital 1s and 0s. And now it's in the hands of "Anonymous".

Now, I'm not gonna say that I like Anonymous. In fact, I'm sure they're a bunch of jerks in real life. What I will say, however, is that this loosely-knit group of "hacktivists" has been doing some serious work on "our behalf". From the Scientology campaigns back in early 2008 to "Operation Tunisia" and their activities involving the Egyptian protests, these people have worked hard, effectively combining the resources of many, to ensure the freedom of information world-wide. That said, they now hold in their hands the most potent and destructive computer worm ever created. Holy crap, huh?

My take is that it's just a continuation of what we see going on in the streets of now Bahrain - a literal putting down of the foot by the people of the world. The world, as a whole, is fed up with totalitarian and tyrannical control by powerful elites and secretive cabals. The world's people clearly see the growing division between themselves and their own happiness. They want change for the better and simply aren't willing to stand by letting their human dignity be trampled by "greedy bastards" any longer. People want to be free. Information wants to be free. And this is what the whole world is fighting for.

From the above linked article, this sentence:
Many in the square waved Bahraini flags and chanted: "No Sunnis, no Shiites. We are all Bahrainis."

The Pursuit of Happiness

I came across an article this morning about Brazil looking to amend its constitution by guaranteeing the citizen's right to "happiness".

This got me thinking: as the global revolution is taking place, do we Americans even understand what it's all about? Do we understand what's taking place all over the world? Do we get what these people are actually fighting for?

"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."

Every American should certainly know this, the second sentence of our Declaration of Independence. The rest of world certainly knows it.

And we should all generally know what it means to have rights to "Life" and "Liberty".

What has me thinking today is this portion about "the pursuit of Happiness". What exactly is the "Happiness" our founding fathers were referring to? It must be pretty important, ranking up there with both "Life" and "Liberty", right? Understanding this right, guaranteed in our Declaration of Independence, might be the key to understanding the global revolution.

Having spent some time studying philosophy, I can tell you that the often overlooked capitalization of the words "Rights", "Life", "Liberty" and "Happiness" in the Declaration of Independence is actually quite important when trying to understand the meaning. You see, when a seemingly arbitrary, normally non-capitalized word is capitalized in a certain context, it signifies that the word is being used as a proper noun, just like a person's name. It has a very defined, exact meaning that is not to be confused with the mundane, dictionary definition of the word. That, in itself, gives us a clue as to what the phrase actually means - the "pursuit of Happiness" spoken of here is the pursuit of a very specific, singular thing, and not the general "happiness" that most of us would ordinarily think.

So, if that's the case, the definition of "Happiness", with a capital "H", must be identified somewhere. The question is "where?".

John Locke, a 17th Century philosopher, had basically outlined the structure of the government which the Declaration of Independence and US Constitution established 100 years or so later. His philosophies can be easily recognized throughout both of these founding documents, and Thomas Jefferson himself stated that he considered Locke as one of the "three greatest men to have ever lived". It's generally accepted that the origin of the second sentence of the Declaration of Independence is Locke's Second Treatise of Civil Government, Chapter 2 where he states (in section 6):

"The state of nature has a law...which obliges every one...that being all equal and independent, no one ought to harm another in his life, health, liberty, or possessions..."

In this statement, however, Locke never mentioned "Happiness". He spoke of life, liberty, health and possessions. Many historians and scholars would have it that, Thomas Jefferson, in a stroke of genius, just decided to reword what Locke had written as he authored the Declaration; that the word "Happiness" is symbolic, and that he actually meant "possessions". The use of "Happiness" as a proper noun, however, tells us this must be wrong.

Looking to Locke's An Essay Concerning Human Understanding, Chapter 21, there is extensive discussion of "happiness", including the clear definition it would need to be used as a proper noun. In section 42, Locke states:

"Happiness and misery are the names of two extremes, the utmost bounds whereof we know not... But of some degrees of both we have very lively impressions; made by several instances of delight and joy on the one side, and torment and sorrow on the other..."

So Locke defined "Happiness", as one "extreme" of which we can only experience in various degrees through impressions of "delight and joy", and contrasts it to "misery" with its impressions of "torment and sorrow". Further, in section 36 of this work, Locke states:

"For, as much as whilst we are under any uneasiness, we cannot apprehend ourselves happy...pain and uneasiness being, by every one, concluded and felt to be inconsistent with happiness...that which of course determines the choice of our will to the next action will always be- the removing of pain, as long as we have any left, as the first and necessary step towards happiness."

Then in section 61:

"But as soon as any new uneasiness comes in, this happiness is disturbed, and we are set afresh on work in the pursuit of happiness."

Clearly, that exact phrase, "pursuit of happiness", is defined here as the act of removing "pain" and "uneasiness" which are contrary and therefore hinder the experience of "happiness", and this is what our Declaration of Independence states is an unalienable Right.

There is no mention of property or "possessions" here, only a very clear definition of "Happiness" being a spectrum of experience we perceive through impressions of "delight and joy", and of its pursuit being the removal of the hindrances to those perceptions.

And this is what the whole damned world is fighting for!

Right now, Tunisians, Egyptians, Yemenis, Jordanians, Algerians and Syrians are all standing up and throwing off the shackles of their repressive regimes. Even in Saudi Arabia, people are taking to the streets in protest of what they feel as a "pain" or "uneasiness". Many are pointing the finger and saying it's about food and health and property, but it's not.

It's about their right to "the pursuit of Happiness", that very same right we Americans declared was given to every man, woman and child by their Creator!

Even in Brazil, a reform in the way the government thinks and operates is underway, and they are looking to add "happiness" to their list of guaranteed rights!

The whole world is actively seeking the American Dream, and the key to the Dream is that one tiny portion of the Declaration of Independence..."the pursuit of Happiness".

The question is, then, when will Americans stand up and fight for their own right to pursue it?

Those Damn Web Bots...Again and Again...

Thought I'd put a little bit up on the progress of the web bot predictions and how things have come to play out since the last update I posted, Latest Updates from Web Bots and Assange's Plan B. In that post I noted firstly the imminent "dam" near-disaster, related to it "nearly collapsing" or "scooting off its base", and being caught in the nick of time by "sharp eyes". As we know, just days later, 4,500 people were evacuated as water began seeping under the large dirt levy that held back the massive flood waters. Not quite a dam, per say, but it might as well have been.

Moving forward, I hadn't actually posted anything about the update Clif posted on January 4th about [logical frank] and the [testing] of [the Irish] [face]. In this update, stressing was done about the importance of the temporal marker nature of the "wild colleen" meme and the appearance of the "logical Frank" meme, along with the little red book. On this "logical Frank", Clif writes:

the [logical Frank] would have a [direct] and [leading] role relative to the [great global awakening] a2bka (also to be known as) from the point of view of the ThePowersThatWere, the 'great revolution'...It is the [great global awakening] that will define the underlying emotional 'tone' of this year, 2011. From our work, the data seems to be forecasting 2011 as a year of some significance, that is to say, a year of recognized, and fundamental, change.

He goes on to write that the linguistics specifically point to the period as being seen, from a future perspective looking back, as "monumental", though through our eyes as it unfolds as "epic".

The real key to all of this becomes "the Irish" being somehow "tested". Specifically, the "face" of "the Irish". This should take shape as we approach summer and be apparent around midsummer and heading out toward this fall, but I think we might get a serious taste of this in the next few weeks as things continue unfolding in this "global revolution" already well underway. For those of you living under a rock - yes, UNDERWAY. UNDERWAY, UNDERWAY, and UNDERWAY.

Of course, this started with protests in Tunisia on January 6th and 7th that led to the total revolt and ousting of government by the 14th.

Clif goes on to state that a woman will be the center of this "Irish face". Go figure. As I looked over the current US Saturn return, I picked up on a possible woman (signified by Venus with Neptune conjuncting the US natal Moon) being at the center of some controversy, and thus coming into the spotlight, occurring toward the end of March. I can't help but think this may be the time period where the final "wild Colleen" herself, acting as the "face" of "the Irish", comes into the spotlight. I mean, honestly, with astrology we see markers...get a general idea of things...and the general idea is that some form of political dissent will be brought forth over human rights issues, and these are tied inextricably with the "melting pot" and personal freedom loving natures of that US natal Moon. This is a unique marker in the progress of the US Saturn return and seems to point to a significant shifting on what we Americans think about over the next 7 to 14 years. If I'm right, the first signs of this would show up around February 14th in what could become called the "Valentine's Day Protests", as the Sun, Mercury and Mars transit this point.

This Saturn return is about a national face lift here in the US, but it has significant international ramifications as it's painfully clear that the spirit of the US is no longer confined to our tiny quadrant of the world. The "American Dream" has spread throughout the world and, in a very real sense, the fate of the world is directly tied to challenges we face in the US. Will we all come together in a great global protest against un-American ideals, or will we, the American's, take a back seat and let the rest of the world achieve what we once upon a time achieved, letting our own domestic situation degrade into what they face today? I suppose we'll find out soon.

The 8th US Saturn Return - Part 3

As we found in the study of previous Saturn returns (The 8th US Saturn Return - Part 1 and Part 2), every 28-30 years, the US is challenged by the transit Saturn over the US natal position. During each past occurance, problems with the structure of government were pushed into the public spotlight and the future course of the nation was decided by a single generation. The US was, in a sense, challenged to "grow up" and take on greater responsibilities through drastic reform in government structures. Often, there was also a cosmic call for humility.

The current Saturn return is likely no different, and the fate of the US again hangs in the balance. Today, we are in the midst of what may become known as the worst depression in US history, with prolonged and record levels of unemployment, blatant fraud and corruption running rampant throughout the highest levels of our economy, and sweeping policy changes, such as health care, being made (and possibly undone) in a mere matter of months. The US is entrenched in what has been dubbed a "global war on terrorism" at the same time as the nation has become intensely divided amongst itself over a veritable laundry list of political, social and economic issues. We are bombarded daily with headlines that scream at us the extreme importance of making the right choices today, and the dire consequences that await our nation if we don't.

In the conclusion to this extended three part posting, I will take a closer look into the current Saturn return. I'll begin by first analyzing the global and generational forces, namely those of Pluto, Neptune and Uranus, that give us clues to the forms of challenge the US currently faces. This will establish a sort of framework that was put forward during the initial transit of the Saturn return on December 3, 2010. I will then take a look at the more "personal" aspects of this return, taking into account other planetary transits, and the various aspects to the US natal chart, at the subsequent transit points of the Saturn return. This should give us the detail we need to "flesh out" the framework established.

In January of 2008, Pluto began it's 18 year long transit through the sign of Capricorn, which will culminate in 2022 with the first Pluto return to be experienced by the US. This sign placement has, as it did last between 1762 and 1777, turned the global focus toward revolutionary transformations in both government and "big business". The flavor of this transit has an organizational quality, lending to the structural, Saturnian nature of Capricorn, where new organizations are brought forth from individual desires for transformation.

December 3, 2010

Currently, Pluto is transiting the US natal 1st house, placing its influence on matters of personality. In fact, the nature of 1st house transits on the US chart could be said to define the "face" of the nation, both domestically and internationally. The 1st house acts as a dividing line between "self" and "other", represented in the opposing 1st and 7th houses. Activation of the 1st house by any planetary transits tend to focus a spotlight on this dividing line. In 2000, when Pluto entered the 1st house in Jupiter ruled Sagittarius, issues of personal freedoms and of philosophical or ideological conflicts, all Sagittarian issues, were dragged into this spotlight. The US quickly found itself at war with opposing ideologies all over the world through the expansive "War on Terror". Since entering Capricorn, however, this "expansive" nature of the war has been under constant public attack. A more conservative, Saturnian desire to define and restrict the line between "self" and "other" has taken the spotlight. Focus has turned toward the individual's place in the world, and toward the governmental structures that directly represent him. In a sense, the John Q. Public is being compelled to literally transform the "face" of the nation into a more accurate representation of himself.

Looking to Neptune, and the role it plays in defining the "American Dream" (see Part 2 for more on this), we find it conjunct the US natal Moon placement in Aquarius and the 3rd house. The US natal Moon here has often been thought to represent the "melting pot" mentality of the public, the high ideal of "equal rights", as well as the "Don't Tread on Me" attitude that the US has always held in high regard. Neptune in this place, however, is said to create a fog that causes confusion, and potentially delusion, surrounding the functioning of a natal planet. Neptune first moved into Aquarius in 1998 while in the US natal 2nd house, and it transited into the 3rd house, making its current conjunction with the US natal Moon, back in the early summer of 2008. This was just as the presidential election campaigns were reaching their fever-pitch. Neptune's transit here had led to a sense of confused devotional fanatiscism surrounding the campaigns, especially that of Obama who was heralded on more than one occassion as a messiah and was subsequently awarded a Nobel Peace Prize before he had even completed a year in office. Obvious, too, was the effect it has had on the campaigning of Sarah Palin and the continued frenzied support of Ron Paul.

As Neptune transits the rebellious sign of Aquarius and the 3rd house of mind, a push for more open and high-minded ways of thinking has, in fact, become important to the individual. The American Dream today is to actively stand up and fight for the highest ideals, including personal freedoms and the rights of man himself, rather than to stand by while a greedy and powerful elite strip these freedoms away. This placement of Neptune in the early 3rd house, however, is also a harbinger of lost direction and mistranslations. Neptune confounds the sense of logic while in the 3rd house, causing rational decision making to become difficult. With Aquarius considered the sign of the masses, this confusion becomes most apparant when looking at large groups of people.

A more intuitive approach to thinking is required under this placement, as Neptune is capable of revealing hidden truths while in this house. It can be expected, however, that neither will the books balance nor the truth be spoken with any sort of elloquence. Poetry, art and music become more effective means of communicating with this placement, and deep meditation or occultic research will prove fruitful. Public speeches and the figures of accounting will suffer. George W. Bush, with his natal Neptune placement in the 3rd house, shows us how difficult it can be to say what you mean under this influence with his countless blunders ("Our enemies are innovative and resourceful, and so are we. They never stop thinking about new ways to harm our country and our people, and neither do we.").

Uranus, the planet of revolution itself, also is seen transiting late in the 3rd house, near the cusp of Pisces and Aries. It was last in Pisces during the Saturn return of the 1920s, which manifested as a sort of "drunken revolution". Since it entered Pisces in early 2003, it has called for a return to a conservative balance in all things, and to avoid the decadence of extremes that forever challenge planetary placements in Pisces. Just as it did then, it shows we are in a time of fiscal extremism where the money supply has been increased beyond all reason. The threat of the wrong decisions with this placement are clear, as 7 years after the Saturn return of 1922 and 1923, with Uranus transiting early in Aries, the US found itself experiencing the Great Depression.

So our framework is established, as Pluto tells of a time where the symbolic face of the nation is being transformed through radical adjustment of governmental structure and big business, and Neptune of a time where the American Dream itself has become an irrational, confused frenzy of devotional fanatiscism, personal freedoms and high ideals. Uranus tells us that the time of Piscean extremes and the "too much is never enough" mentality are nearing an end, that we may be about to experience an Aries induced financial hangover.

December 3, 2010

As we look to some of the aspects of these generational influences, we do find a spectacular opposition from Pluto to the natal US Jupiter and Venus conjunction at the first transit of this Saturn return. These planets, often considered the Greater and Lesser Benefics, respectively, play an integral role in international relations by their placement in the 7th house. Specifically, these planets lend a pleasantness to international affairs, and help ensure the US is held in high regard by our closest allies. With Pluto making an opposition to them, however, the very nature of these alliances is being pushed to transform, and the "self versus other" paradigm is again brought to mind.

The 7th house, however, defines all close relationships, both "good" ones and "bad". This opposition, then, also marks relations with US enemies. The placement of Jupiter conjunct with Venus has given the US an appearance of almost mystical strength to such "enemies" throughout much of American history, but this opposition is highlighting every weakness of the US on the world stage.

We also find a sextile from Uranus in Pisces to the natal Pluto position in Capricorn and the 2nd house. In this relationship, an easy exchange of energies between the revolutionary nature of the transiting Uranus and the transformational nature of the natal Pluto is being manifest through the push we see for revolution in our monetary policy. Debt has been called front-and-center, as it becomes the biggest hurdle to American progress. The US public has found itself shackled with credit card and mortgage debts that it simply can't pay, and big business is drowning in their pools of "troubled assets". Debt relief is on the ticket and Uranus is daring us to go for the ride.

Jupiter, itself loosely conjunct with transiting Uranus, is seen in a loose opposition to the natal placement of Neptune. This is marking a time when the American Dream is itself seemingly opposed to our own philosophical ideals and direction of growth. This can also be seen manifest in the financial troubles afflicting the country. Americans have found themselves unable to save, barely making it paycheck to paycheck, when they know that's exactly what they should be doing.

With Venus and the Moon transiting the 11th house in Scorpio, we glean an important element of how the return initially manifests itself. Specifically, we see a feminine energy, likely a woman, brought into the spotlight in the international affairs of the 11th house. This relates to secrets, which is the domain of Scorpio. The Sun is also seen conjuncting the natal ascendant, a time of world attention being focused, for better or worse, on the personality of the US itself.

Interestingly, on November 29th, just 5 days before the first transit of Saturn to its exact natal degree, WikiLeaks released the first group of US diplomatic cables. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was seen frantically traveling the world trying to minimize damage to international relations leading up to the release of what was subsequently dubbed "Cablegate". Since this time, of course, the US government has been publicly pursuing various ways in which to charge Julian Assange of WikiLeaks for espionage.

Also of note is the sextile aspect of transiting Mars in Sagittarius and the 1st house to the US natal Moon. This speaks clearly of anger relating to human rights, and matches nicely to that caused by the increased security at airports nationwide during the latter half of November. This reached it's climax just before the first transit of the current Saturn return, marking it as another key event in deciphering the root challenges facing the nation.

March 22, 2011

On March 22nd, the US will experience the second, retrograde transit of Saturn over the natal point. At this time, we find the Moon again transiting the 11th house and Scorpio, bringing a woman into the spotlight on international affairs, though it appears she's in effect "distancing" herself from domestic issues, signified by a striking lack of accompanying aspects during the hours of closest conjunction.

Venus, this time, is seen conjunct the US natal Moon, along with transiting Neptune, showing some form of confusion being brought to light surrounding an issue connected with immigration or humanitarian aid. This could signify Obama, as well, with his election under this placement and the continuing debate over his official birth certificate. Also likely here is a public outburst of political dissent, organized by a woman of some prominence, over a personal rights issue.

Mars is in a strong opposition to the natal Neptune placement, and is loosely squaring its natal position in Gemini and the 7th house. This, I hate to say, is a very warlike aspect, showing outward hostilities against the US and the "American Dream". Though war is unlikely, rhetoric and posturing is to be expected with this placement, and issues relating to oil (Pisces) will be likely to make the headlines on a daily basis.

Jupiter is seen loosely opposing the natal (and transiting) Saturn placement, and squaring the US natal Sun, as the transiting Sun conjuncts with Uranus and the IC in the first degrees of Aries. This portends an especially heated time domestically, when national security is on a literal knife's edge. It's likely that we'll see a man come into the public eye at this time who is vehemently indicting the US on the world stage, through the exposure of some form of corruption in the highest levels of government or big business. This, in turn, causes public outcry. Protests and demonstrations, domestically and internationally, are very likely. Another possibility is that this man is actually being tried in the court system by the US government on charges that are contrary to the public opinion, thus sparking the protests and public outcry.

Synthesizing these aspects and placements with the framework we established earlier shows us that late March and early April will most assuredly become the pivotal point in this Saturn return. Protests, political dissent, posturing and rhetoric will be grabbing headlines. The US will be domestically, and maybe also internationally, challenged to take a conservative, face-saving approach. It will be called out to rectify political and financial excesses of the last 7 years as the confusion that has surrounded issues of individual human rights and immigration, and even delusional political divisions, will begin to be lifted. The exposure of corruption, human rights violations and what look to be "decidedly un-American practices" by government or big business, through trials or public hearings, will cause public outrage, civil unrest and protests.

With Uranus entering the first degree of Aries, and conjunct the IC, the threat of a sudden and violent uprooting of domestic life and culture in the US, through natural or unnatural disasters, and possibly a complete collapse of the financial system, is a looming threat throughout both the spring and summer. It also shows us that the only good solution to the challenges of this return are in reforms that bring us back to our roots, as represented by the IC. Truly conservative, constitutionalist or libertarian policies will be debated on the floor of Congress and in the Senate for the first time in a more than century, almost certainly with support from the majority of Americans.

August 28, 2011

On August 28th, the third and final transit of the Saturn return will likely take place without much fanfare. At this point, Neptune is in retrograde, moving back into a tight conjunction with the US natal Moon placement, and thus bringing confusion back to the masses until late spring of 2012. With the Jupiter in Taurus and the 5th house, however, a sense of optimism is possible as there appears to be a clear direction established. This placement of Jupiter shows an increase in creative innovation for the nation, and a likely time of material stability, that should also last until late spring of 2012.

The 8th US Saturn Return - Part 2

In The 8th US Saturn Return - Part 1, I reviewed the previous seven US Saturn returns and the events that coincided with them in order to illustrate the nature of Saturn returns in the US natal chart. In this, part 2, I will review some of the planetary placements during these previous returns, hopefully shedding some light on the other factors that shaped the events and gave each return it's own unique flavor of challenge.

To avoid too much analysis, and keep things more to point, we'll look specifically at the 3 outer planets beyond Saturn: Uranus, Neptune and Pluto. Pluto, the slowest moving of the 4, plays the largest role in each Saturn return, especially when looking at national charts, coloring the events of each return with both it's sign, on a global level, and by house placement for entire generations of Americans. The transit position of Pluto during each of the Saturn returns tells us exactly what area of life, and through what means, the US itself is being challenged to transform.

US Natal - July 4, 1776

Neptune, also, gives us important generational markers, showing us what the "American Dream" looks like during a given time. For example, its natal placement in Virgo tells us that the original "American Dream" was that of structured work ethic and a more conservative spiritual or religious ideal. The highest ideal was a job well done. Being in the 9th house, this also gives us clues about a more joyful, freedom seeking spirit, with deep philosophical undertones, through the eyes of which the words "pursuit of happiness" make much more of an impact. As we follow Neptune's travels through the houses and signs, we can see the attitudes and values of the masses shift on a national level, giving us a barometer with which to judge the public sentiment and, for lack of a better term, cares.

And Uranus, the revolutionary of the chart, also gives us some key details in deciphering each of the returns; namely, its placement shows where the new systems, to replace the old and outdated ones, are rooted. The natal placement of Uranus, in the sixth house and at approximately 9 degrees Gemini, tells us that when the Constitution was signed, the revolutionary spirit of the first Americans dealt directly with a new type of or approach to work, or service, itself. A different way of thinking, about communications and the philosophies of science, was necessary to bring forth a new paradigm. The darker side of its placement, however, tells us also where dangers may lurk or what the wrong decisions to make may be. By tracking the progress of Uranus through the houses and signs, we can further pinpoint the source of the challenges faced during a Saturn return, as well as divine the new systems that may evolve from them.

December 16, 1804

The Saturn return of 1804-1805 was hallmarked firstly by Pluto's transit of Pisces, showing a certain interest in the secret affairs of the ruling class. This also highlights an attitude of heightened public awareness of the original Neptunian "American Dream" itself, which would not only be in danger of being dissolved through controlling power structures, but also would be primed for a transformation into something greater and more powerful in itself. In transiting through the 3rd house of the US chart, Pluto was emphasizing the need to transform areas dealing with communication as well as organizational structures, and the way of thinking that underlies them. Combined with Neptune's transit through Scorpio and the US natal 12th house, much of this was brought to a spiritual, though unconscious, level. The values of every day Americans had a more open, mystical or spiritually "transformational" tone. The people wanted to know the truth, by whatever means was necessary, and were willing to put in the hard work to discover it.

Uranus, transiting Libra and the 10th house, was pointing to a need for judicial reforms specifically, as well as a visible revolution in the existing political structure. This was exemplified in the ousting of the Federalist party, which had become predominately bankers and businessmen, by the much more popular "Jeffersonian Republicans". The Revolution of 1800, as it was later called, led to the major reforms during the Saturn return which were largely founded upon issues of the elitism among the Federalists as well as a push by them to stifle dissent, especially from the newspapers of the time. Darker paths for this Uranian drive would have been for a restructuring of the existing party, providing a false paradigm shift, or for the newly empowered party to take a tyrannical or monarchical approach themselves (which, in fact, almost did occur through the "witch hunt" impeachment trial of Justice Chase).

October 15, 1834

As we reach the second US Saturn return, we find Pluto in Aries, traversing the 4th house. Pluto here signifies a truly global time of struggle in forming a new beginning, if need be through extreme actions. The fear of relying on other nations became a real concern, and a drive to return to the principals of the "founding fathers" through complete reformation was at play. Of special concern would be homes and property, as well as family and traditional values, as signified through Pluto's 4th house placement. Neptune's placement in Capricorn and the 2nd house, loosely conjunct the natal Pluto placement, showed an even stronger drive to reform monetary policy to that put forward originally by the US Constitution, the literal "birth" of the nation. There was a sense of disillusionment with the economy and government finances, with the American Dream being an individual's own accumulation of wealth and property, guaranteed them as a God given right.

Uranus is seen transiting the 2nd house as well, but placed firmly in the sign of Aquarius. It showed a strong need for revolutionary reforms specifically in money and wealth of the individual, especially relating to the debts of the masses and the establishment of a humanitarian aid of sort. The failure of the US to fully restructure the financial system, instead opting to just pull government monies from the Second Bank of the United States, allowed the bank to "call in" all its loans led to the "popping" of the debt bubble. The ensuing "Panic of 1837" was followed by a severe, 5 year long depression and massive unemployment.

November 25, 1863

Moving forward to the Saturn return of 1863-1864, we see Pluto in Taurus and the 5th house, Neptune moving through the 4th house in Aries and Uranus transiting the 7th house in Gemini. Pluto's placement in the 5th house shows a lot of issues regarding gambling or speculation, and it's placement in Taurus shows issues regarding monetary systems in general and agriculture specifically. Neptune's placement in Aries gives us signs of people working toward anarchic goals as well as a blurring of the lines between religion and war. The American Dream was being "born again", in a sense, as something entirely new. From the synthesis of these factors, it's truly hard to imagine a nation going to war with itself, but that's exactly what had happened as the South gambled it's money and property to hold on to the traditions of their fathers.

Uranus placed in Gemini tells us of the needed revolutions in not only communications and new ways of thinking, but in learning to deal with opposing points of view. It took a revolution in the approach to waging battles, as well as the way of thinking by those in power, for the North to finally win the war. However, both sides had aggrandized the respective battles won and their war heroes to the point of blurring the lines between that of religion and war, making it harder to find common ground even after the war was over. The new way of "dealing" with one-another, 14 years later, still was not acceptable by many.

September 30, 1893

The Saturn return of 1893 has Pluto and Neptune conjunct on either side of the US Descendant in Gemini. This placement of Pluto shows a chronic, long-term "illness" that has built up over the years becoming an acute problem. Specifically, this illness dealt with ideas and ideologies as they related to work ethics, much of which was legacy from the Civil War period and the Reconstruction Era. Neptune here screamed of the want for scientific breakthroughs, industrial revolutions and the geniuses that rose later to prominence. Americans all wanted to be the next great inventor. However, the past 15 years had been full of Neptunian issues regarding the avoidance of monetary issues. The culmination of this resulted in the Panic of 1893, who's resolution lay in the placement of Uranus as it transited Scorpio in the 11th house.

Specifically, Uranus here foretold the need to use its political allies in a truly unusual way to regain footing. The US needed to firstly become more outspoken, and secondly to give up the resentment it had held for European countries up to this point. By preferring to stay isolationist and not tapping the resources of its allies, breaking the paradigm seen up to this time, the US quickly fell into another panic. Before the next return of Saturn, the US will have had to endure its place, finally step up on the world stage and becoming a key player in one of the most horrific and bloody wars to date.

November 8, 1922

The fifth Saturn return, in 1922 and 1923, placed Pluto in Cancer and the US natal 7th house. Here, it showed an absolute need for transformation of both home and family, as well as the security of the nation itself, through relationships to other nations. Neptune, moving through the 8th house in flamboyant Leo, warned of dramatic issues with taxes and "other people's money". At the same time, an illusory, theatrical "dreamer" mentality was given free range to run amok throughout society. The American Dream had transformed into a drunken collage consisting of art, music and just "having fun". This, at a time of prohibition, was an explosive thing. Even the Federal Reserve, set up in 1913 during the first world war, inflated the money supply by some 60% during this period. Many of these added dollars went directly into the markets, which inflated stocks to truly unprecedented levels and gave the whole nation a false sense of wealth and optimism.

Uranus at this time was moving through Pisces, showing itself as another sort of drunken revolution where too much was never enough. It called for a return to tried and true systems, and conservative attitudes, to avoid too much excess. The challenge of Pisces is always to find a balance in the middle rather than allow yourself to live in the extremes. As well, Uranus traversing the 3rd house called for a renewed sense of concentration and maturity. These struggles presented in every arena of American life, and the failure of the US government, as well as the Federal Reserve System, to renew a sense of conservative responsibility, led the country down the path of hedonistic decadence. The crash of 1929 and the start of the Great Depression occurred 7 years later.

January 10, 1952

In 1952, upon the sixth return of Saturn to its natal US placement, we find controlling and transformational Pluto has taken Neptune's place as it traverses Leo and the 8th house. Here in Leo, it sows the seeds of extreme nationalism, and placement in the 8th the seeds of secrecy. Indeed, the times were that of intense political drama and power plays. Neptune is seen making its way through Libra and the 10th house, putting its emphasis on careers made up of the illusion of justice. A sort of Neptunian dream fog had fallen over the country's public image and it was hard to tell what was really up and what was down. Neptune's American Dream was that of being in the spotlight and being important - of becoming the boss and shaking all the right hands. Idealism can run rampant with this placement of Neptune, and deception is not only easy, it's expected.

With Uranus moving through Cancer and the 7th house, we can see a great need to start going it alone when it came to public image, and to become much more "choosy" when it came to close allies and partnerships. In fact, any allies or partners of the US should have been allowed to do as they would during this time, as a large allowance for freedom was called for. This allowance for freedom was most emphasized in the domestic sphere, in order to avoid potential hysteria. As we know, however, the "Second Red Scare", McCarthyism and even "blacklists" came to the forefront during this time. From the proxy war in Korea and the first joint military exercises with NATO, to 7 years later, Vietnam, it's clear the correct path was not chosen. Covert and dishonest wars were fought, the people were lied to, and the hysteria eventually brought the people of the US to a fever-pitch of anger and resentment that nearly resulted in a revolt 14 years later.

October 22, 1981

And finally, when we look to the last US Saturn return, in 1981, we see this time Pluto in Libra and the 10th house. This signifies a time when being "top dog" is of the utmost importance in the US. Balance in relations, justice and cooperation, however, also took on a sense of urgency. The potential for power plays was high, but more likely was just outright sabotage in efforts to "level the playing field". Neptune, transiting the 1st house in Sagittarius, gave the American Dream a renewed sense of optimism about the future and a strong yearning for individual freedoms. Dreaming big became the norm, and this was to be expressed in every aspect of the American life. However, it also gave many the option of fanaticism in regards to spiritual or emotional matters, and it made it difficult to discern where the US ends and the rest of the world begins. This gave the US public a feeling of obligation to help the rest of the world, along with a lack of true sense of self.

With Uranus in Scorpio and the 12th house, there was a need to be truly focused as a nation, like the stinger of a scorpion, and to dig up the truth wherever it lies, by whatever means necessary. This was the proper resolution to the problems put forward during this return. Instead of this, however, investigations were half-hearted. The fraud and corruption was allowed to continue, leading to much larger problems down the road with politics, the markets and the economy. The corruption later uncovered throughout big business during the late 80s and early 90s should still be fresh in the minds of most of us.

In The 8th US Saturn Return - Part 3, I take a closer look at the current Saturn return, including the US natal "personal planets", which I have left out here for sake of brevity, and offer an analysis of what challenges may be in store for the US, as well as potential solutions to the problems the nation faces.

Congratulations! You owe $44,886.57!

Catching this story off CNSNews.com this morning was a little unnerving, to put it mildly. I mean, we all know that the US government has saddled the public with staggering levels of debt that could never be payed off. But do you know what the actual numbers are?

$13,858,529,371,601.09

That's as of December 22nd of this year...nearly 14 trillion dollars.

This, of course, is a new record in debt - a number so high it really doesn't make any sense to think about in our everyday lives. When you break it down to your individual share of the debt, however, it starts to become a little more clear.

You owe $44,886.57.

Ahh, sir? I don't have that kind of money. I live in a camper and drive an old beat-up pickup truck. I struggle to pull in enough to pay for a campsite to park on every month. And you say I owe how much again?

Keep in mind, that's your "equal share". The other 308,745,537 people in this country owe that much too. Even the unemployed ones. Even the ones who are currently losing their homes to foreclosure, can't afford an apartment and will soon be forced to live in a cardboard box.

And wait! That's not even the whole story!

The US Debt Clock, a "real time" breakdown of some pretty important numbers, shows us how much deeper this proverbial rabbit hole really goes.

When you look at the personal debt numbers, composed of such things as mortgages, car loans and credit card debts, the numbers are just as staggering. $16.199 trillion dollars, or $52,088 per citizen. I wonder if "we the people" should pay off our personal debts before we tackle the national...think the Chinese will wait?

And then there's that "US Total Debt" number which stands around $55.487 trillion dollars at 11am today. That breaks down to $178,415 per US citizen, or $680,593 per US family. And the clock shows only a meager $7,976 in savings per US family. Wow.

I wont even start on the "Unfunded Liabilities" number showing over a million dollars "owed" per taxpayer.

This is just another striking example of how badly the system is broken.

Fire up those printing presses Mr. Bernanke! I'll go get the helicopter!

You People Actually Scare Me

Christmas Day, 2009, the "underwear bomber" boarded flight 253 in Amsterdam, bound for Detroit. That part you seem to remember.

And that's why you are just passively sighing over the atrocities being performed hourly at every major airport in this country.

What you seem to have forgotten was this: the US State Department KNEW that Mutallab, the Nigerian who tried to blow up his underpants, was involved with al-Qaeda in Yemen. They purposely and consciously chose to NOT revoke his visa - they thought it might scare him off.

You've seem to have forgotten that intelligence agencies from the CIA and FBI to MI5 and the Israeli Mossad, all admitted that they KNEW that there were plans to blow up airliners with explosives hidden where the sun don't shine. They knew, for a fact, that these plans were coming out of the Yemen.

You seem to have forgotten that Mutallab's own father went directly to the CIA with his concerns about his son's terrorism associations and the MI5 also told the CIA directly about what kind of threat this man posed back in 2008.

And incredibly, you have forgotten that eyewitnesses actually watched Mutallab completely bypass security at the airport in Amsterdam. He didn't even have to show a passport! Does Kurt Haskell or the "sharply dressed man" ring any bells?

Come on people. What the hell is wrong with you? You've been completely fleeced AGAIN, and "they" didn't even have to try very hard.

I really don't get it - it's as if you enjoy being treated like criminals. It's as if you like the idea of becoming a slave to totalitarian government. Do you like the idea of being bombarded with cancer-causing radiation and felt up by poorly trained rent-a-cops? Does it make you "feel safe"?

I don't know what you've been drinking, people, but it sure isn't what I've been drinking. You people actually scare me.

Confirming Suspicions - Assange is Just a Puppet

It's been hard to ignore all of the mainstream media coverage of the latest WikiLeaks. The rising chorus of "Assange is a terrorist" over the last week, however, should definitely give us pause. Over and over, Assange is been called a "criminal" and a "terrorist" by corporate giants and governments around the world. The newspapers, meanwhile, who were instrumental in publishing the leaks, from the New York Times to Der Speigel, have received no mainstream criticism for their role.

So, why are they so adamant on labeling the guy as "bad"?

Then this morning, after experiencing a debilitating internet outage yesterday, which continues intermittently today, I find that the charges brought against Assange in this supposed "rape" are, actually, that he didn't wear a CONDOM? Come on people. This is about as absurd as it gets. An international arrest warrant for not wearing a rubber.

These are fake charges brought against a shill, only to be dropped later after the mainstream media circus has had its fun...where have we seen THAT before?

Over the years, a clear pattern can be seen to emerge when you look at periods of time in which something serious was brewing under the surface. Be it Michael Jackson, OJ Simpson, Lacey Peterson, Saddam Hussein or Osama bin Laden, when someone's face is plastered all over the mainstream press, you can be SURE there's something "they" don't want us to see.

Does Assange KNOW he's being used as a distraction? Does he know that he's being used by the very same elitist fraudsters he's supposedly trying to expose? Of course he does. Otherwise, I'd expect that he'd have been a lot more outspoken when it comes to such ridiculous charges being brought to him by the industrialized world governments. He'd have taken up the offer of residency/asylum in Ecuador. And by now, considering how clear it's become in the last week, he'd have stated very publicly that government operatives have obviously been funneling him junk information and are trying to use him as a distraction from the truth.

The fact that nothing Assange has released, to date, is truly mind-blowing - that everything he has released was already "out there" on the internet and known to anyone with a brain and 5 minutes of free time every day - says to me that he's very aware of the role he's playing.

So aware, in fact, that he's probably smiling to himself at this very minute while thinking about how easy it was to pull the wool over so many eyes at once.

Washington and Wall Street are Shaking in their Boots!

A quick read of this Businessweek article reveals much about the mentality of today's outdated, out of touch "leaders". Viewed as a serious threat to their raping and pillaging, Ron Paul has become, again, the whipping post for the power's that be, or more appropriately, the powers that WERE and who still, for some reason, think ARE.

The article starts off with the story of retiring Senator Judd Gregg, the current chairman of the House Financial Service Committee’s Subcommittee on Domestic Monetary Policy and Technology, handing out Ron Paul's End the Fed, at a central bank meeting in November. The book, which outlines a return to the gold standard, among other things, debuted on the New York Times non-fiction best seller list at #6 and ranked at least as high as #18 on the Amazon books best seller list. Gregg supposedly told those in attendance of the meeting that it'd be worth finding out what Ron Paul, next in line to take chairman of the subcommittee, has planned for them.

You see, they KNOW we're coming for them. They KNOW we've had enough of them inflating the middle class into poverty while lining the pockets of their elitist cronies. They KNOW we're looking to fix the mess they've made by, first and foremost, exposing them and their ilk for the sociopathic criminals they truly are.

This will lead to stripping the big government incumbents and the Federal Reserve fraudsters, the investment banksters and the too-big-to-fail corporate jackasses, of all their self-assumed power. Eventually, it will lead to the greatest accomplishment of modern times - a global revolution where the shadow government, illuminati freaks are imprisoned for their crimes against humanity.

Let's be clear here, I voted for Ron Paul in the 2008 Primary. I wanted this guy in. I can be quoted as saying then that "if Ron Paul doesn't win this thing, we wont achieve freedom again until there's blood in the streets."

Obviously, he didn't win. He didn't even win the republican nomination. What's followed has been a steady decline into tyrannical "Big Sis" government and a full-on Nazi-esque police state mentality. We have, at this point, no real chance of fighting this thing off without a true uprising of the people.

The "Tea Party" movement, which I have viewed with a heaping dose of skepticism since it was hijacked by those looking to make a fast buck, still does have the underlying spirit of the movement intact. The recent ousting of incumbent Democrats and neo-con Republicans has put the elitists on edge, and for good reason. Republicans and Democrats alike know that time is up and they have to start listening to their constituents. If they don't, they're not only done for politically, they risk a civil uprising or even a civil war.

So what are they doing about it? The same thing they always do! They're distracting everyone with more BS as they keep doing what they've been doing! But this time they're scared. They're scrambling to make things happen before it's too late. They know their smoke and mirrors tactics don't get them very far anymore, and pony shows have almost no effect on the people who have already woken up.

The incoming House Speaker, Republican John Boehner, has already been reported to be discussing ways to keep Ron Paul from becoming the chairman of the subcommittee...you know, to keep him from exposing the fraud and criminal activity of our elected leaders and the banksters. He's doing this secretly and quietly, trying to not raise any alarm bells. Too bad, Boehner - you're on candid camera now.

According to The Daily Paul, if they DO pass him over at the vote next week, the full House of Representatives will have to ratify the chairman's appointment. If that happens, the phone campaign will begin. Don't miss out on that one, should it arise.

What I need to say about all of this, however, is that EVEN IF Ron Paul gets the chairman seat for the subcommittee, the ball that is the complete lock down of the US population is already rolling. We have not only an uphill battle on our hands, in getting our freedoms back, but a battle in which we're heavily out-gunned and certainly out-numbered. For every one true patriot in this country, there are dozens of pathological thieves who want nothing more than their monthly "poor me" welfare checks and GMO foodstamps. These mindless zombies will do anything to protect their entitlements.

Those on the front-lines of this battle will be the first to go. They'll be locked up in FEMA camps and labeled "domestic terrorists".

We're coming into a time when things are going to get very scary in this country. VERY scary. All I can say is, it's about damned time.