Weekly NewsScope for December 4, 2006

Last week in Beirut, thousands of Hezbollah-backed demonstrators began camping out on the government's doorstep in hopes of forcing the Lebanese Prime Minister to resign. Meanwhile, in Mexico City president-elect Felipe Calderon took the oath of office while the opposition party staged huge protests in the streets. Other major protests were held in Bolivia, Botswana, India, and Australia. What's going on here?

A similar wave of mass protests began last April, which at the time (see NewsScope April 17, 2006), was ascribed to Pluto. Pluto had just turned retrograde at 26º Sagittarius, very near the Galactic Center. Pluto's activation of the GC, a celestial command post for humanity's evolution, is now being repeated. Over the next month, we can expect more mass protests around the global village.

Pluto is heading into a degree zone that has major implications for the Iraq conflict. Consider the horoscope for the American invasion of Iraq: March 20, 2003; 5:35 am; Baghdad. This chart features Mercury and the Sun in late Pisces, the sign of divided loyalties and emotions. Transiting Pluto squares this Mercury on January 4, which corresponds to ongoing, intense "talks".

Then, on April 1, 2007 Pluto turns retrograde while exactly squaring the Sun, an aspect which threatens Prime Minister Maliki's political - and perhaps physical - survival. This Pluto-to-Sun connection repeats several times, with the last being on October 26, 2008 at the height of the American election season. Under this dangerous influence, one can imagine that whoever holds power in Iraq must face assassination attempts, complex political intrigue, and civil war.

The 2008 presidential campaign is already heating up, and on the Democrats' side, perhaps 20 candidates will be declaring over the next few months. According to the most recent polls, the surprise #2 favorite (behind Hillary Clinton) is Barack Obama, the junior senator from Illinois. Since his keynote address at the 2004 Democratic National Convention, Obama has soared in popularity and national recognition.

Barack Obama's horoscope (August 4, 1961; Honolulu; time unknown) synchronizes neatly with the U.S. national horoscope. Among the many close contacts is his Neptune at 8º36' Scorpio, which is exactly, to-the-minute, conjunct the U.S. Scorpio Ascendant. This link describes the vision that he espouses for Americans of all ethnic backgrounds, as he expresses in his recently published book The Audacity of Hope.

Another connection is his natal Uranus, which opposes the U.S. Moon, located at 25º28' Aquarius. Here is where the excitement, the charisma, and the sudden skyrocketing to fame can be seen. As discussed in this column during the last presidential campaign*, candidates must have extremely tight connections to the U.S. Moon to ensure their popular approval and to get elected.

Obama's progressed Venus, the planet directly associated with popularity, is near his natal Uranus, a dynamic combination that has electrified his national following. In early 2008, at the height of the Democratic primaries, Obama's progressed chart looks extremely favorable (progressed Jupiter conjunct the U.S. Pluto, as his progressed Sun trines the U.S. Pluto) for advancing his ambitions. Here is a rising star to watch.

In the tradition of Ray and Walk the Line, bad girl Lindsay Lohan is considering playing rock artist Stevie Nicks in an upcoming biopic. Lohan's recent dramatic role in the film Bobby and her recording of Nicks' tune "Edge of Seventeen" move her beyond mediocrity to make her a credible choice to star as the Fleetwood Mac frontwoman. Why does Lindsay want this role?

The two celebrities do seem star-crossed. Lindsay Lohan** (July 2, 1986; New York, NY; time unknown) has her Sun in Cancer opposite Neptune, a combination well-suited for a music or film career. Her Venus in queenly Leo is perfectly trioctile (135º) her Neptune, adding the grace and beauty we expect of our goddess-like celebrities. Challenging Venus-Neptune aspects carry the intense romantic yearning that comes across so well in film.

Stevie Nicks (May 26, 1948; 3:02 am; Phoenix, AZ) was born with her Venus in Cancer exactly square Neptune. This combination dominates her chart, since Venus is angular (conjunct the fourth house cusp). This Venus-Neptune aspect describes her as the enchanting sorceress that she became while on stage. Lindsay's Sun is exactly conjunct Stevie's Venus, so that she can personify this classical archetype.

The two share several other close alignments. Stevie's Mercury-Uranus conjunction reflects her creative intelligence and overwhelming restlessness. Lindsay's Mercury is exactly trioctile Uranus. Both stars have hard Sun-Mars aspects, as well as hard Mercury-Pluto aspects. But the strongest connection between their two charts is Lindsay's Sun conjunct Stevie's love planet, Venus. Small wonder that Stevie's boyfriend was named Lindsey.

* The series of NewsScope articles beginning June 30, 2003 describe this correlation. Visit www.neptunecafe.com for more info on how presidential candidates' charts interact with the U.S. Moon.