The Saturn-Uranus Conjunction Breeds Radicals

Is there any connection between the demonstrators of the sixties and the "Occupy" demonstrators of today? One subtle connection seems to be that both groups were born during a rare aspect between planets in the solar system. An astrological connection it is.

When Saturn, the planet of discipline and focus passes in front of Uranus, the planet of invention and spontaneity, rebels appear to be born. Many of those who were 19 in 1961 were born on or near the dates when this "conjunction" between Saturn and Uranus occurred. Many of those who are 24 today were born when the conjunction happened again in 1988. Today's young demonstrators seem more mature than the 1961 activists, and a common complaint among them is that they've finished college with a load of debt only to discover that there are no jobs.

The planet Saturn goes around the Sun every 28 years. Every now and then it passes over the slower-moving planet Uranus, about once every 44 years. As viewed from Earth, one of these events happened on May 3rd, 1942. There may be people still living whose lives began about then, and I would like to meet them. Nineteen years later in 1961 and onward through the early sixties, some of us got arrested for our beliefs, we did.

In 1988, Saturn as viewed from Earth, passed over Uranus three times - going forward, in reverse, and going forward again. This zigzag along Saturn's orbit is thanks to parallax caused by Earth's own orbit around the Sun. If an outer planet is holding fairly still, Earth's yearly motion can make the planet appear from Earth to shift back and forth against the background behind it. In this case, the background was the even slower planet Uranus.

People born in 1988 on February 12 at 7:48 PM Eastern Standard Time (in Britain, that's 00:48 GMT on 2/13) will have Saturn precisely conjunct Uranus. The sun will be in Aquarius and the Saturn-Uranus conjunction will be at 29 degrees and 55 minutes of Sagittarius, right on the Sagittarius-Scorpio cusp. The effect of the conjunction will precede February 12th for several months. The effect will continue after the conjunction for several months as well.

People born in 1988 on June 26th at 12:26 PM EST will have Saturn precisely conjunct Uranus. The sun will be in Cancer and the conjunction will be at 28 degrees 47 minutes of Sagittarius.

People born in 1988 on October 18th at 8:14 AM EST will have Saturn precisely conjunct Uranus. The sun will be in Libra this time and the conjunction will be at 27 degrees 49 minutes of Sagittarius.

The effects of the conjunction can last for weeks or months. Some even speak of years.

Midway between each conjunction comes an opposition - every 22 years, Saturn and Uranus are on opposite sides of the sky as viewed from Earth. Astrologer Courtney Roberts tells in a YouTube video how this affects the earth. She sees the effects of the opposition beginning in 2008, the year President Obama was elected. A similar upsetting happened in 1968, when a strong movement had developed that was against the Vietnam War, and it led President Johnson to decide not to run for a second term.

And this year, dictatorships have turned into democracies in three countries on the south shore of the Mediterranean: Tunisia, Egypt and Libya. Syria may be next on the list.

Old habitual ways yield to the new when Saturn and Uranus are in opposition. Revolutionaries appear to be born when they are conjunct.

The Chicago Occupation

Downtown, I walked from a class over toward the "Occupy Chicago" protest yesterday, arriving first at a demonstration at the Bank of America just after the B of A had been gifted with a large amount of garbage removed from foreclosed houses. Apparently these turn into crack houses. B of A needs to keep foreclosed property from destroying the neighborhoods.

Protestors were standing and chanting. A fellow from a peace group from the suburbs was handing out leaflets. He was sort of talking Quakerism and I found myself talking class warfare.

A block south on LaSalle, I passed a bank which had a new wooden sign: "The Private Bank". This looked like a movie prop, but it is for real.

The intersection of LaSalle and Jackson is the center of the "Occupy Chicago" protest. People there were chanting "Banks got bailed out, we got sold out." A few demonstrators were chatting casually with the cops. A man came by passing out a small note about a meeting in the suburbs for planning a demonstration about the NATO and G8 meetings here next spring. Keeping time with the chant, a man was pounding a baseball bat on a drum made from half of a plastic 55 gallon drum. The racial mix was perfectly Chicago. Lots of people were just standing, not talking, so I didn't force anything. Witnessing.

When the feet gave out, I walked away. Passed what would appear to be a mortgage banker, two inches taller than me and fifty pounds heavier. Was wordless at the time, but now I wish I had shouted at his back as he walked away, "Diminishing returns!"

The Mortgage Bankers Association number is 202 557-2700. They are destroying neighborhoods.

- - - - In the news... - - - -

The lawyer for one of the four women in NYC who were spritzed inappropriately with pepper spray has just called on the District Attorney to arrest senior officer Anthony Bologna (aka "Tony Baloney") for assault. He was photographed spritzing - caught in the act. Per the NY Post... Huffington Post... More background from the International Business Times.

A photo of the provocateur who led the break-in at the National Air and Space Museum was quickly identified by commentors at the Democratic Underground website, which has the best detail about Occupation projects. This chap is history. Caught in the act.

The "Occupy" movement is totally peaceful and considers policemen to be within the 99% who need to see change by the top 1%. Spitting in the eye of a cop is totally out of order. Guys like this get turned in. Risky misbehavior!

Those Who Will Never Buy Houses Again

Every foreclosure turns a homeowner back into a renter. How many of these people will never again attempt to buy a house?

In many states, recovery of an overpriced house by the bank does not satisfy the home loan. The difference between what the bank gets from reselling the property and the outstanding balance on the loan can be up to the borrower to repay. Even after having been evicted from their home, they often must pay this money, and all the while, interest is accumulating. (However, in Alaska, Arizona, Connecticut, Florida, Idaho, Minnesota, North Carolina, North Dakota, Texas and Utah, homeowners may be able to "walk away" successfully.)

Needless to say, these former homeowners who still must pay off their lender will be forever lost to the housing market. How dare they ever buy again?

Anywhere from 25% to 47% of the mortgages in Chicago are already "underwater". The owners owe more than the houses are worth. Even if times get better and they pay off their current mortgages, will these owners be likely to buy again? After having been trapped once, they will probably be wary of becoming ever again so trapped.

Eviction of illegal aliens leaves empty houses. Empty houses bring down neighboring home values and help drive their mortgages underwater. Foreclosures also produce empty houses, also bring down home values and help drive mortgages underwater. Each neighbor's foreclosure can reduce the value of your own home by $10,000, estimates a Wall Street Journal article.

The government uses the number of new home sales (which fell again last month) as a metric to measure our economic health. With owners rapidly turning into renters, the number of potential new home buyers may dwindle down to where this metric is meaningless.

The National Mortgage Bankers Association is now meeting in Chicago. Is there anything you would like to say to them?

Their number is 202-557-2700.