In the Shadow of the Eclipse: A Watershed Time for the US

July 21, 2009

by Terry Lamb

The eclipses in Cancer and Capricorn are always significant for the US, because the nation has so many planets in these signs: Venus, Jupiter, Sun, and Mercury in Cancer; Pluto in Capricorn. (See the chart at left.) Every 9.5 years, we enter a new period when the eclipses occur here, one that lasts for about 18 months. In the shadow of an eclipse we can see everything. The unconscious, which is usually hidden in the brilliant light of the Sun, can't hide when we are eclipsed.

Before Liberty There Is Life.
Cancer and Capricorn are the “survival” axis. We could say that the US as a nation is very sensitive about its ability to survive. This sensitivity was certainly triggered in the wake of 9/11, especially with the fear-mongering that reigned supreme once Saturn entered Cancer in mid-2003. It is this sensitivity that leads to the reactionary stance of some gun-owners that they must be able own any gun under any circumstance. The slogan, “Don’t tread on me,” has been associated with the US since the American Revolution.

Cancer-Capricorn Eclipses in Recent History
The last time the eclipses were in Cancer-Capricorn was July 2000 – December 2001. The Lunar Eclipse before 9/11 was on July 5 and conjunct the US Sun. The Lunar Eclipse chart cast for New York City or Washington DC was critically tied to the 9/11 events. Nine years before (July 1990 – December 1992), the US became the sole superpower as the USSR collapsed.

These eclipses contact the US chart in two primary places: The Lunar Eclipse placed the Sun conjunct (and the Moon opposite) the US Sun (2̊ orb) and square the US Saturn (1̊ orb); the Solar Eclipse places the Sun-Moon opposite the US Pluto (2̊ orb). The US Mercury Rx is indirectly involved.

The Lunar Eclipse in the US Chart
Whenever the Sun in a chart of a person or other entity is eclipsed, it is safe to say that the person/entity will be reassessing their identity. This was certainly true 9 and 19 years ago, and it is even more true today as Pluto in Capricorn approaches its first return since the country’s inception. What issues tie into this?

• Where does the US stand on civil liberties, and what will it do to recognize and stand behind international law (such as the Geneva Conventions)? How will the nation address blatant violations of the conventions by VP Dick Cheney, Sec-Def Rumsfeld, and others?

• How do we see ourselves — as a nation that takes care of all its citizens, or as a super-capitalist libertarian dream that lets the underprivileged fall to the bottom and be used by the powerful?

• What is our position on the rights of the individual? Do we have the right to health care? The right to the privacy of our own bodies? The right to direct our own health care?

When a nation or a person has Saturn square Sun, it means their feet are being held to the fire. With an exalted Saturn, a position of privilege cannot be abused without penalty. This is codified in the Constitution and in law. Equality is the standard to which we must all aspire. Current issues related to this include:

• The blatant racism that is coming to the surface through an unbelievable Republican double-speak (calling Judge Sotomayor a racist while being the real racists).

• The still prevailing sentiment that the financial masters of the universe on Wall Street and Fleet Street are above the law.

• The challenge to see the truth behind the smoke screen regarding the economic collapse.

The Solar Eclipse in the US Chart
With the Solar Eclipse triggering the US Pluto, it takes us right to the heart of our identity, because the nation was born out of a revolution. It was nothing less than a transformative idea in government, an experiment. This is the first test of whether the experiment is succeeding. The big issue that we must deal with is, quite simply, a return to democracy. Are we a plutocracy (with an all-powerful president-king), an oligarchy (with all powerful businesses), a soft fascist state (with security placed above individual rights)? Here are some of the issues:

• Money is not speech. Campaign finance reform is the key to bringing the essential balance of power (constitutional checks and balances, the vote of the people) back to the nation.

• A corporation is not an individual and should not be treated as such. A corporation is amoral and does not die a natural death. Corporatism can only be overcome by reversing this court decision.

• No one in government should be above the law. It will bring the death of the nation. If the Bush Administration is allowed a free pass on torture and other antics, a situation will arise on the US Pluto return (if not before) that will so change the form of the nation as to kill it.

There are signs of hope and life. AG Eric Holder is in the process of pursuing indictments against select Bush Admin officials (yet to be named). We have a new Supreme Court Justice who is likely to see through the convoluted arguments that lead to the twisted decisions that have come out of the Roberts court thus far.

Look at the issues that arise over the coming month and see how many carry themes related to these underlying issues.

• The soldier captured by the Taliban — is he being tortured?

• The health “care” corporations — will they win the battle over healthcare reform legislation?

• Swine flu — will the less-privileged have equal access to a vaccine and care in the event of illness (and what will it do to all of us if they don’t)?

• Torture prosecutions — what is going on?

• Justice Sotomayor — has a nice ring to it, doesn’t it?

• Perhaps the biggest bomb of all: The Family — the secret “Christian” house on C Street in Washington, where fallen members’ transgressions are justified and sanctified, even applauded. It’s the home of Mark Sanford, John Ensign, Tom Coburn, and Zack Wamp. How Cancerian is that?

President Obama’s Eclipse
The Solar Eclipse also contacts President Obama’s Saturn-Jupiter conjunction. This will trigger a test of his leadership ability, and we’ll get to see his true mettle.

The eclipses coming at the end of year and through January 2011 will continue to light up this part of the US chart. The effects of each will build on the ones before. Stay tuned for more developments.

Between the Shadow and the Light: Tales of Uranus and the Summer Eclipses

by Terry Lamb

July 2, 2009

We are currently feeling the dramatic effects of two planetary patterns. On Wednesday (July 1), Uranus began its 5-month retrograde period, while the energy is building toward a Lunar Eclipse on Tuesday (July 7). Another eclipse, a solar on July 21, is also being felt now.

Amy Klobuchar Is Psychic.
The last drama of last fall’s election is over: Al Franken will be sworn in as the junior senator for the State of Minnesota sometime next week. Amy Klobuchar (the senior senator from Minnesota) and I were right. She said that he would be sworn in by “the time the corn reaches knee high” (traditionally by the 4th of July).

I was right in expecting the Lunar Eclipse to be involved in the timing, and Uranus too played its role. Uranus is actively opposing Senator Franken’s Saturn, is about to back up over it for the second of three contacts. Uranus is the “clearer of the path” sudden-style. The Lunar Eclipse opens a new chapter in our book of life. Finally, Frannie Franken will get to take that bag that she had packed in the corner and finally move to Washington. There are other contacts too , enough to know that this is a milestone event in Franken’s life. Sun to Uranus-Venus tells us it’s a sudden change; MC to Venus says it’s good news; Sun quincunx his Sagittarius Moon suggests an awkward change of residence made in haste. Saturn to his South Node tells me that it fulfills a deep longing to serve — it’s a dream come true. He is also going to serve on the Health Committee, symbolized by Virgo.

Also noteworthy are two major aspect patterns focused on Mercury. The planet of winged feet and humor, so important to a Gemini, is in a T-square to Saturn-Uranus and a grand trine to the Moon in Libra and the Aquarian threesome (Chiron-Neptune-Jupiter).

The eclipse is focused right on his Venus and the MC for the announcement of the court decision. Al Franken goes to Washington!


What Do Michael Jackson and Billy Mays Have in Common?
Uranus exactly squared the Vertex in Jackson’s chart. This alternate but sensitive Descendant is often featured in sudden “pressure-cooker release” events. For Billy Mays, Uranus was opposing his Moon (with Saturn conjunct it), and the Solar Eclipse on July 21 would have been on his Sun (a classic heart attack contact).

In both men’s charts, the Aquarian triple conjunction (Chiron-Neptune-Jupiter) is strongly featured. While they are more idealistic than dramatic like Uranus and the eclipses, they are more powerful even if on background. For Michael Jackson, they were exactly conjunct his IC, a potent force that perhaps led him to decide (on some level) that he couldn’t climb out of the hole he was in. Both men were born in 1958 and going through their Chiron returns. Chiron’s completes at 51 years, and it is a time when in some cultures a person would be considered free of social obligations. It is also involved in transitions of all sorts, including death.


Health Care on the Operating Table
Health care reform is also on the front burner right now, and this leads us naturally to think about Saturn in Virgo. Can we reach the goal of restructuring health care before Saturn leaves the sign? Perhaps in some ways. Teddy Kennedy introduced a new plan that includes a public option and that will cost considerably less than the plans so far proposed. This appears to be the choking point for many legislators. Will Kennedy’s Uranus “splash” make waves in the legislative process? Yes, but they will probably not reach shore until the fall.

The chances of health care reform passing before the summer recess are slim, but the eclipses enhance that possibility, however, because they hit the chart of the US at significant points. The Lunar Eclipse is very close to the US Sun, while the Solar on July 21 contacts the US Pluto. These factors make it certain that new, critical information will be revealed in July.

Although wide-ranging in their nature, each of these events and issues are characterized by the sudden change that characterizes both Uranus and eclipses of the Sun and Moon.

© Terry Lamb