What’s Coming Down—and When?

An Examination of America’s Potential Future in Light of Its Astrological Chart

What’s Coming Down—and When?

An Examination of America’s Potential Future in Light of Its Astrological Chart[1]

            In previous essays I have made references to possible forms of the future for America and American society.[2] Those essays make it clear that I am not a fan of our current culture, government or society, nor am I very optimistic about the future. In part, this stems from a series of dreams I had back in 2007 and 2008 which suggest some of the challenges we are likely to face in the coming years.[3] In part, my attitude stems from my reading of Native American sources about the actions of the United States government over the last 400 years,[4] and Native predictions about the karmic consequences of those actions.[5] And in part, my attitude stems from my reading of Jung, and his conviction that our collective future will see some sort of “impending world catastrophe.”[6] As people have read the previous essays posted to The Jungian Center’s blog, they have asked me for specifics: what’s coming down? What are we, as a society, looking at in the next few years? And when might we expect the challenging times to arrive?

            There are several ways one might address these questions: One way is with the use of Intuitive Imagery, which I have used with several friends who are adept in it.[7] Another way is by consulting the variety of mantic arts,[8] the results of which, on the collective level, often are hard to decipher or interpret. A third way is by watching one’s dream guidance, and beyond just watching, actively seeking the guidance of the psyche through an interactive dream practice. I have done all of these. There is also another source of information, which Jung used on occasion to better understand his patients, and also to study the relationship of married couples.[9] This source is astrology.

            Many Americans, nearly all academics, and some of you readers of this blog might at this point start rolling your eyes. Astrology? Astrology!***??? Yes, I know. Years ago I too had a very low opinion of this ancient branch of knowledge—until I was forcibly, shockingly disabused of my prejudice in this regard. It happened like this:

            I was a very logical, rational Cartesian college professor, locked into the world of theory and abstraction like only an Eastern Ivy League intellectual can be, when, in November 1983, my world began to come unraveled. It began with the first of what I have come to call my “voice-over dreams.” No action, no figures, just a voice that said: “Friends will die. Relatives will die. You will give up everything and your life will be transformed.” I was married at the time and I woke up and told my husband, thinking that he must have heard this loud voice. But no, he had heard nothing. I then dismissed the whole experience, given my academic prejudices, but my husband remembered what I had told him. Five days later I learned that my friend Hazel Crafts had dropped dead. When I told Ed, he reminded me of the words I had heard. But I dismissed it as “just a coincidence.” Over the next six months, however, I lost another friend, two aunts and an uncle and everything in my life began to fall away. I came to feel like I was losing my toehold on reality and various friends tried to help, some sending me to ministers, others to counselors, others to psychiatrists and psychologists. So it was, in the Spring of 1984, that I thought my student Miranda was taking me to another therapist of some kind when I went with her to a home in downtown Bar Harbor. It was only on the sidewalk going into the house, just minutes before my appointment, that she told me the person I was about to meet was not a therapist but an astrologer. I recall freezing on the spot, turning to Miranda in shocked disbelief, and yelling at her that that sort of stuff was bunk, nonsense, that she should know better, that astrologers were full of—Well, you get the idea: I was not open to astrology at all! Miranda then said that if I didn’t go in she was still going to have to pay for the session and all the work the astrologer had done to prepare for it. That made me feel guilty: here was one of my students being willing to ante up her own limited funds to help me out. So I hung my head and went into the house. The session lasted the better part of 5 hours—5 hours during which I was transformed. First I sat there, arms folded across my chest in stern disbelief and disdain. Then I began to hear things that rang true—about my nature, my personality, and, even more intriguing, about what I was experiencing at the time. But it was when the astrologer began to tell me when all of it would be over, when life would get better, that I really sat up, took notice and then, lacking any other inner resources with which to explain what I had just experienced, I accused the woman of being a psychic. “No,” she replied, “anyone could do this, if he or she were prepared to study and learn how to interpret the symbols.” Astrology was just a powerful symbol system, open to anyone willing to invest the time and energy to learn. I could do just what she did. Presented with such an intellectual challenge, some part of me took the bait, and I became a student of Frances Sakoian on the spot.[10] Over time, as I faced similar experiences, I came to realize that the Universe was taking each of my prejudices, each of my paradigms about how reality is, and “popping” them, forcing me to give up my old beliefs.

            I recount my personal story here for those of you who, like me 30 years ago, have dismissed astrology without even examining it. A very powerful symbol system, developed in every one of the major cultures of the world, time-tested for thousands of years, astrology has validity. It should not be dismissed out of hand. And it can provide some insights into the questions that I am getting from students at The Jungian Center and readers of this blog. At the same time I realize some readers of this essay may be practicing astrologers, well versed in the technicalities of chart analysis and interpretation. As I try to write about America’s future through its chart, transits and progressions for both those who know nothing about charts and those at the opposite extreme, professional practitioners of astrology, I will add notes throughout the text for the pros interested in the specific astrological data on which I am basing my sense of our collective future. I suggest those familiar with astrology consult the appendix to this essay for more discussion of particular technical points.

America’s Natal Chart: Personality, Values and Collective Concerns

            One of the tenets of astrological practice is that, before we look at transits and progressions (i.e. what is going on with the client at the time) we must look at the natal chart, to get a sense of who the client is, his/her interests, level of awareness and life purpose.[11] So before we tackle the subject of what the current planetary configurations suggest about America’s future, we must examine America’s identity, as seen in its chart.

            A natal chart is drawn for a date, place and time of birth. The debate begins: When could America be said to begin, as a country? Some insist the nation began only in 1787, with the Constitutional Convention that created the United States, others with George Washington’s inauguration as President on April 30, 1789.[12] Most astrologers date our beginning to the signing in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, of the Declaration of Independence, on July 4^th, 1776, the date when we formally broke our tie to Great Britain. But while this date and place are most commonly agreed upon in the astrological community, it is not without debate too: What time was the Declaration signed? No primary source gives us an exact time.[13] Various astrologers have ventured times, some using the technique known as “rectification” to argue for a 4:45 PM time.[14]

            Why does this matter? Having an accurate time allows the astrologer to identify the “rising sign” and the house placements of the planets for that date and place. Absent a reliable birth time, we can create only a “solar chart,” which would lack some specifics that are useful in fleshing out a transit reading. In what follows, I am going to rely mostly on what is incontrovertible,[15] assuming July 4^th, 1776 is the “birthday” of America. I will indicate in footnotes those rare times when I am using data based on the hypothesized birth time.

            America’s Personality. From its astrological chart, we can see many of the qualities that have made America great: its enterprising spirit,[16] its ability to act with surety and confidence,[17] its fertile imagination[18] and ability to make practical use of creative inspiration.[19] With strong engineering and mechanical skills,[20] America is gifted with the ability to undertake ambitious projects, to coordinate large teams of people, to develop strategies and manage collective resources and power.[21] Thanks to its Promethean Mercury,[22] America’s mentality is future-oriented, inventive, ingenious and expansive in its goals.[23] It is also very humanitarian, willing to help others, altruistic and generous of spirit.[24] The Extraverted nature of America makes for a society that is gregarious and sociable, oriented more to outer reality rather than to its inner life.[25]

            Earlier essays noted some of the less desirable qualities in the American temperament.[26] Analysis of America’s natal chart reveals others. For example, the negative side of America’s personality may go back to its origins as a nation of immigrants, leading to a certain feeling of inferiority or insecurity about status.[27] To compensate for this feeling, America is inclined toward boasting and self-aggrandizement,[28] reflecting a gnawing inner feeling of “not making the grade.”[29] Its thinking influenced by deep-seated emotional patterns (of which it is unconscious),[30] America feels the need to prove itself over and over,[31] and it has an exaggerated sense of its own importance.[32]

            Most prominent, in America’s personality, is its puer nature. America is immature, childish in many ways, e.g. in its tendency to jump into things without proper preparation;[33] its expectation of a big break coming any time now, producing a lack of realism;[34] its tendency to scapegoat or need to have some external enemy on which to project its failings;[35] its irrational gullibility;[36] and its tendency to bite off more than it can chew.[37] The puer also tends to be superficial, living on the surface, in an attempt to avoid facing the dark places within.[38] Most problematic, with the puer nature, is its strong reluctance to face or deal with bad news, unpleasant facts or negative issues. Denial looms large in our collective makeup,[39] and, as I noted in the essay on America’s shadow, denial is not that river in Egypt: it is a very dangerous trait in our collective life and one that could intensify our misery by blocking any realistic engagement with the challenges we currently face.

            America’s Values. Jung made many trips to the United States and he liked this country, although he recognized its preoccupation with what he called the “yellow god,” i.e. gold/money.[40] Material wealth and “success” defined in material terms are two of America’s most characteristic values. Others include progress (defined as continual improvement in physical conditions, particularly in terms of making life easier and more comfortable through the application of sophisticated technologies that save labor and time);[41] freedom (defined as the untrammeled opportunity to do what one wants, when one wants, how one wants, with minimal interference or limitations);[42] creativity (especially the pragmatic kind that solves practical problems and makes piles of money,[43] e.g. blockbuster films, “killer aps” for the iPhone etc.); self-improvement (in the sense of the archetypal “Horatio Alger” self-made man);[44] and platitudinous values like the flag (i.e. patriotism), Mom and apple pie.

            More problematic values include its litigiousness,[45] its vaunting of independence into exemptionalism (unwillingness to cooperate with other nations or to honor the decisions of courts outside the United States),[46] its strong concern for self-protection,[47] and its religiosity.[48] This last is problematic because American religiosity is deeply imbued with cosmic vanity, that ideological stance that regards one’s own position as privileged.[49] The cosmic vanity of America’s Christian fundamentalists is no different than the cosmic vanity of the Islamic jihadist. The anachronistic ideology of the medieval Crusaders lives on in the contemporary clash of these two groups.

            America’s Collective Concerns. Modern critics of American culture identify our current concerns as “need, greed and speed.”[50] We are addicted to faster, faster, more and more, never feeling like we have enough. As for “need,” American society seems unable to distinguish between “need” and “want.” Our “wants” are endless; our needs modest, but the materialism of our culture, coupled with the consumerism that is driven by the incessant marketing and advertising all around us, makes most Americans feel they need to buy this “new new thing” and that latest gadget. Perhaps once upon a time in our collective life we lived content with “Yankee frugality,” but that long ago was replaced with the discontent of “consumeritis,” the societal disease built on “planned obsolescence” and “keeping up with the Joneses.”

            None of our consuming habits makes us feel more secure, and especially in these times of terrorism, security is another widespread collective concern.[51] In an earlier blog essay[52] I spoke of the true source of security—our individual knowledge, understanding and awareness of the Self within and its guidance. The vast majority of Americans knows nothing of this. Most Americans externalize their locus of security[53]—savings, a pension, a job, a spouse, a set of marketable job skills—all of these vulnerable to loss. So fear haunts the collective mind of America.

            Another concern is standing up for what we believe in. Americans have strong emotional convictions, and are willing to crusade for “truth, justice and the American way.”[54] This is fine until it produces political paralysis, as we see now in Washington, with neither party willing to temper its ideology to make needed changes in important policies. It is also a detriment when “the American way” becomes the American Exceptionalism that was the subject of an earlier essay: chauvinistic, self-satisfied, terribly inflated—and therefore headed for a fall.

            What is the nature of this “fall,” and when is it likely to happen? These questions shift us from America’s natal chart to an analysis of the aspects that the transiting planets are making. By “transiting” I am referring to the planets that are constantly moving through the heavens. The position of the 10 planets in 1776 is not the same as their position now, in 2010 (and especially around August 1^st). The angles (“aspects” in astrological jargon) the planets’ current positions make now to the planets’ positions in 1776 provide us with insights into what might happen to the United States in the next few years. These transits also give us clues as to timing—when we might expect various events to occur.

America’s Future

            After making some general remarks, I will consider our future under several headings: politics; economics, finance and ecology; and social or cultural circumstances.

General Overview

            Generally, some expert astrologers recognize that the United States is likely to experience “severe lessons” because part of its destiny is to “gain realizations that are of a fundamental nature.”[55] Given all the difficult aspects in the transits at this time, I can’t help but think many of the “severe lessons” are, or soon will be upon us.

            Speaking of destiny calls to mind the issue of karma. Just as individuals get back what they put out so do countries. With all the aspects involving the Nodes of the Moon[56] now, I can’t help but think the U.S.’s karma is now coming due. As I noted in an earlier blog essay “The Law of Cause and Effect and America’s Future,” the United States has terrible karma to clear. The coming months and years might be when this is meant to happen, given all the signs of it in the transits.

             Hit by both transits and progressions the Nodal axis is timing a series of fated encounters that are meant to have a major impact on America’s growth and development. With transiting Nodal axis contacting Jupiter, this could relate to religion or our culture. Since the Islamic jihadists criticize both our religion and our culture, their actions might relate to this aspect. As the transiting Sun comes to conjunct natal Rahu and oppose natal Ketu in the coming months,[57] the U.S. could experience some important, meaningful encounter linked to its destiny or purpose. Natal Jupiter and Venus are opposed by the transiting Nodal axis, suggesting this might involve a relationship or dispute with another country over religious differences. Again, the Islamic jihadists come to mind.

            The challenge of confronting karma won’t go away soon: transiting Saturn is moving into a square of the Nodal axis which won’t become exact until the Fall of 2013. So it is likely we will be facing consequences of our collective past actions for years to come. We aren’t going to like this. It won’t be a pleasant experience. With all the transits and progressions involving Mars,[58] and the 7 transits and 4 progressions involving Pluto,[59] the next few years are going to see the eruption of primitive, infantile passions, the surfacing of deep rage and long-pent-up frustrations, and the triggering of public unrest.[60] In such a climate of burning, instinctual drives, neither logic nor intuition will produce much in the way of answers. As a society we have to realize we are in a calcinatio time,[61] an important stage of development that sets off complexes in the individual and is likely to show up in the collective in waves of mass demonstrations, protests and perhaps even rebellion.[62] This is a “wipe out” time that wants to sweep away what has become anachronistic so new things can emerge.[63] There will likely be changes in basic patterns of living, working, and governing. The progressions of Jupiter produce sublimatio energy now, providing us with opportunities to see what’s going on from a higher perspective.[64]

            The 4 transits of Saturn[65] speak to a desire to break free of life structures that have become calcified and rigid. In an individual, these aspects often mark a time in life when there’s a major shift. On the collective level, this might show up as earthquakes, especially when the 9 transits involving Uranus are also considered. If so, the times in 2010 when an earthquake would be most likely are: March 22-29, April 18-25, May 15-23, June 12-19, July 9-14, August 5-13, September 2-9, September 29-October 6, November 22-30, and December 20-25^th.[66]

            The afflictions involving Mercury[67] suggest the coming year will not be very easy in terms of communications. Mercury under stress can time intervals when appointments are missed, problems arise in meetings, and errors in contracts create hassles. Computer systems and global communications systems may be disrupted or malfunction now. Information the United States gets might be incorrect, distorted or incomplete.[68] (Are the bankers telling us the whole story? Are the generals on the ground in Iraq and Afghanistan giving the President the full picture?). Some people may be reluctant to express their feelings honestly at this time,[69] a dangerous situation if they are in positions of power or keepers of key information. In other contexts important communications may get garbled due to emotional issues or prejudices that block our getting or taking in all the facts.[70] Given our long history of prejudice toward the Middle East, it is not hard to imagine that we would be prone to mis-hearing or misinterpreting the intelligence we get from that part of the world, and with the 9/11 trials coming up, there might be challenges and delays with Mercury afflicted. In 2010, miscommunications are especially likely from April 19 to May 12, August 21 to September 12 and December 11 to 30^th, when transiting Mercury will be retrograde. Travel plans go awry, luggage gets lost, phones malfunction and both email and snail mail have glitches in these 3-week intervals.

            Communications difficulties may be compounded given the unconscious stuff that is likely to emerge this year. In earlier essays[71] I have noted how unconscious most Americans are. Jung reminds us that the overall level of any large collective is based not on the highest but on the lowest common denominator.[72] This means our collective consciousness is very low. The transits of Neptune and Pluto making hard aspects to the Moon, Jupiter and Venus[73] might show up in our collective life as distortions in our collective judgment, the surfacing of painful memories (e.g. the events of 9/11/01), and uncontrolled impulses being brought into the open. It will be particularly important in the next several years to have very cool, calm, collected leaders in positions of power.

            Even if unconscious forces play a minor role (which I don’t think they will, given the karmic nature of our time), we are likely to see troublesome mental attitudes in our country. Impulsive, headstrong attitudes may arise as the transiting Sun comes to oppose Pluto.[74] Self-deception—willful avoidance of facing reality—is likely with transiting Neptune inconjunct natal Neptune. Impractical ideas and intellectual conceit, as well as fixed attitudes and mental vacillation will pose problems to our effective hearing and handling of information.[75] The next several years are likely to be a sustained interval of emotional and mental confusion.

            All this will impact our relationships with other countries. We are likely to witness unforeseen difficulties in dealings with our friends, or with groups and organizations (like the United Nations and other non-governmental organizations).[76] With progressed Mars in a square of the U.S. Sun, a relationship could break up. With transiting Pluto opposing Venus in the U.S. chart, changes in relationships are likely, perhaps due to the United States trying to reform or remake other nations. Conversely, we may see other nations or figures try to do this to the U.S. (I am reminded here of Osama bin Laden’s demands after 9/11 to the United States; clearly he and his ilk would like to remake us!).

Given the high level of indebtedness we now have with other countries, it is good that the stars at this time bespeak a growing interest in foreign cultures.[77] Maybe we will even begin to support widespread foreign language learning in our elementary schools.

            Such educational reform would require energy, perhaps more energy than our society will be able to summon, given the signs of laziness, self-indulgence, self-pity, confusion, anxiety and hopelessness indicated by an array of aspects.[78] Arguments, anger and back-biting are also likely to continue;[79] we see all these now in the polarized environment of the U.S. Congress. There are some “hot” issues that may surface that will grab the public’s attention;[80] whether we will have sufficient sense to deal with these issues rationally is doubtful. We may lack the willingness, as a society, to cope with practical affairs. People may retreat to their homes and eschew involvement in public life.[81] (Another, less palatable interpretation of these transits is that we might have to remain in our homes, quarantined in the face of pandemics, or insulated from biological or radiological threats).[82]

            Eccentric or unreliable people might be in key positions[83] (like the fellow in the consular office of the embassy in Yemen who misspelled Abdulmutallab’s name, thus leaving him off the “No Fly” list), and they could create problems for the U.S. We will need leaders who resist the tendency (due to the U.S.’s “J” nature)[84] to jump to conclusions without sufficient information. Calm deliberation will be the order of the day, but is likely to be in short supply. We will need a balanced, rational outlook in the years ahead, an outlook using caution, diplomacy and good judgment. We will need to cooperate with other countries and play fair, and work to find honest solutions to problems.[85] We also need to recognize that there are large-scale forces afoot that affect all of humanity,[86] and this is no time for idleness, hopelessness or unconsciousness. With transiting Pluto squaring Neptune, we as a society must recognize, understand and work with the unconscious, but given the infantile nature of the American psyche, I think it is unlikely we will do so.

            More likely is that the U.S. will be its own worst enemy in the years ahead,[87] stumbling into political, economic, ecological, and social changes beyond its control.[88] Life will feel like a big test.[89] Old wounds may reappear, bringing up social discontent and sparking a death-and-rebirth time. The hardships and frustrations we are likely to see are meant to encourage conscious change, serious reforms to make a world that works for everyone.[90] No longer will we be able to carry on with old ways, old forms, old beliefs, old attitudes.  

Aspects of Our Political Future

            We are already seeing the stars reflected in some aspects of our political life, e.g. the polarization and battles between Republicans and Democrats, with few politicians taking the high road of statesmanship or thinking of the long-term well-being of the country.[91] Such in-fighting and political posturing is alienating the electorate and sparking protests, as we see in movements like the rise of the Tea Party.[92] Conflicts with government authorities, and more broadly, conflicts with authority figures of all types, are likely to continue and probably will get worse.[93] Power struggles are going to be a theme beyond government: we will see them in the world of business, as well as in the military.[94] But we aren’t likely to see the full picture, because another theme of the politics of the years ahead is secrecy. Secret or covert action could be carried on behind the scenes, some of it to avoid opposition or disapproval from the public or Congress.[95] Even now, of course, we surely know we are not privy to all the “black ops” and other forms of covert activity that are going on ostensibly for the good of the country.

            More problematic than secrecy will be the theme of domination: the United States may try to dominate other countries (nothing new there, of course) or it may get a taste of this treatment from others, with the double Sun-Pluto/Pluto-Sun opposition. Power struggles are likely to take place on both the domestic and the international scenes.[96] The latter will spark problems in our foreign relations (we see intimations of this already in our dealings with Pakistan). If the U.S. tries to reform or remake other countries without cleaning up its own house (and huge debt level) there could be a backlash or dangers.[97] The progressed Chiron return could produce crises that are beyond America’s control.[98] Things could get out of hand, particularly with the transits involving Mars,[99] suggesting impulsive and aggressive behavior, war, revolution or natural disaster.

            The transits[100] suggest that the mood of the American public will be out of harmony with our political leadership. The people may have little sympathy for government officials, particularly if public scandals come to light, or if grandiose, unrealistic projects have little to show for all the money and rhetoric they sparked.[101] Lawsuits, rash physical confrontations, possibly even large-scale rebellion may mark the coming years.[102] Certainly it will be a challenging time for politicians, as more and more citizens begin to ask pointed questions, reflecting their growing discontent and feelings of disillusionment.[103]

            The United States experiences a Saturn return in October 2011. Such transits are always challenging times, marking intervals of crises and calling for a fundamental reorientation.[104] Next year will be a time of breakdown and disintegration (will the States stay united? Will the country split apart?). If the union holds, the country is likely to experience a fragile self-confidence, which may be very hard to endure, given its triumphalism and vaunting sense of exceptionalism.

            The next few years politically will be a time for the U.S. to develop practicality and face reality.[105] We are no longer the masters of our own house, given that we are so deeply in debt to other nations. We can no longer dictate to others, given how dependent we are on foreign resources (especially oil). We have to give up our intellectual and moral conceit[106] and recognize that uncontrolled selfish impulses will be our undoing.[107] We are facing a breakdown time, a time when, if we choose, we can turn breakdown into breakthrough. We only have a few years to make this shift in attitude: transiting Pluto will come to oppose the U.S. Sun exactly early in 2016. This is when the stars suggest we will have to make some great sacrifice, especially around power. We may have to submit at that time to another nation more powerful than we (China perhaps?). We will undergo a change of a total, irrevocable nature. Since Pluto transits are so powerful, and Pluto moves so slowly, astrologers often give its transits a wide orb: we might be feeling the intimations of this challenging transit even now.

Aspects of Our Economic and Ecological Future

            Without a doubt we have been seeing intimations of the future in our economic conditions these last two years. We can expect more of the same hardship and problems related to corporate finances, insurances, taxes and public monies in the years ahead,[108] along with lawsuits and legal difficulties,[109] wasteful spending, and neglect of necessary maintenance of our local and national infrastructure.[110] While we will hear of more and more Americans losing their jobs, the media will also present us with news of obscene levels of luxurious living and selfishness on the part of moguls and CEOs whose greed knows no bounds.[111] In the face of such a disconnect between the people and the plutocrats, discontent may boil up into riots, looting and widespread thievery.[112]

            The last two years have presented us with the scenario for the future in terms of our nation’s finances. All the talk of things getting better have been the result of the temporary conjunction of Jupiter and Neptune. Jupiter is now moving off Neptune, and it is likely that by mid-summer 2010, when Jupiter will be conjunct Uranus, the rose-colored glasses will be off and people will return to reality.[113] Aspect after aspect warns of conflicts and problems related to corporate finances, taxes, insurance, and monies we have borrowed from others.[114] Past financial extravagance will cause the U.S. embarrassment, and we may see difficulties in dealings with our creditors.[115] It is well known that both Russia and China would like to see a single global currency.[116] It may well be that the coming years see such pressure on the U.S. dollar that these two countries get their wish, as some of the aspects refer to coercion in financial affairs[117] and a “sustained interval of financial tension.”[118] The progressed Chiron return may spark a severe depression as the stock market goes into a swoon much more severe than what we saw in recent years. This is a time for both personal and national belt-tightening,[119] but all we hear out of Washington are calls for more programs, costing more money.[120] In this, as in so many other areas of reality, the U.S. is in denial. The slowdown we are now experiencing will turn into a major depression likely to last for years—all meant to induce us, as a society, to develop new values, new attitudes toward the material world and money, and to work toward a new economic paradigm, predicated on justice and equity for all.

            The business world faces many uncertainties now and this will continue in the years ahead. We can expect the unexpected in our collective commercial life.[121] Caution will be needed, as well as a good deal of courage on the part of entrepreneurs hoping to do well in the business landscape of the next few years. We are likely going to hear about more deceptive and unethical business practices,[122] and yet more examples of greed and selfishness that create legal and PR difficulties, as well as financial losses.[123] There are likely to be problems with work efficiency[124] and hassles in business caused by communications glitches.[125] Perhaps this will be due to the sunspot activity that scientists predict for 2011 or it may take the form of computer hackers spreading viruses or developing ways to break into and take over control of servers and other large computer-based communications systems. The coming years will not be an easy time for PR and marketing firms, or businesses involved in transportation, import/export or finance.[126]

            We are likely to see more food-borne illnesses, workplace dangers from chemicals, explosives, fires or employees so enraged by mistreatment that they go on shooting rampages at their workplace (or former workplace).[127] The emotional and psychological problems of workers kept on after massive layoffs will also be an issue facing many businesses.[128] Occupational hazards from toxic chemicals, water pollution, or leaking gases will also be in the news.[129] We may see tainted medications,[130] as quality standards fall due to greedy suppliers of raw materials. (This is something we have seen already with the Chinese who substituted cheaper substances for more costly gylcerine). Tainted meds will be a serious problem as more people fall sick: Since economic and financial stresses tend to weaken immune systems, more people are likely to fall prey to infections. The H1N1 swine flu epidemic is not going to be the last widespread disease in our collective future.

            The environment will continue to generate debate,[131] even as the reality of global warming becomes more and more evident. From mining to melting glaciers, we will witness myriad examples of Mother Nature trying to get our attention, while we still have time to turn the global environmental crisis around. Given the scope and severity of our economic and financial dilemmas, I would be very pleasantly surprised if  the environment gets the attention it deserves.

Our Social and Cultural Situation in the Years Ahead

            Given the puer nature of the American national soul, we are likely to see more people spending more time indulging in social activities that divert their attention from the challenges we will be facing as a society.[132] The puer does not like to face negativity or deal with the “hard stuff” of life: he would rather play. Juvenal recognized this in his famous remark about how the Imperial subverters of the old Republic were able to co-opt the people with “panem et circenses,” bread and circuses.[133] The modern form of bread is Social Security, disability and unemployment payments, food stamps and WIC, while the modern version of circuses is sports: NASCAR, the Super Bowl, the World Series etc. While the social structures of our culture fall apart, the American people are likely to pull an ostrich act and go hide their heads in their TVs, Wiis, iPods and iPads. Those still willing to engage socially with others may encounter problems—insincere gestures made to avoid unpleasantness,[134] self-centered attitudes that alienate others,[135] profound restlessness,[136] impulsive actions,[137] over-use of alcohol or abuse of drugs.[138] Escapism will not be appropriate in the years ahead, although many, if not most Americans, are likely to fall into it. The future will call for Americans to become responsible for themselves and not look to government—local, state or national—to bail them out.[139]

            On the cultural scene, we are likely to see difficult problems arise over religious beliefs. With transiting Pluto opposing Jupiter, the United States may become the victim of autocratic promotion of religious beliefs (think al Qaeda). We might experience coercion in the name of religion. The transits and progressions of Pluto to America’s chart call for the death of old cosmologies and religions so as to allow the rise of new visions and spiritualities more attuned to the coming Age of Aquarius. Transiting Neptune coming to conjunct the Moon fosters attunement to spiritual energies as it wipes out the old ways. We are likely to see more people become involved in personal expressions of the spiritual impulse within. Multiple transits and progressions[140] support the predictions of Native peoples that the coming years will see a global spiritual awakening. 

            Such a global movement will likely be supported by a growing interest in the cultural traditions of foreign countries[141] and a willingness on the part of Americans to travel to foreign lands to experience these traditions first-hand. This is nothing new: Americans have had a wanderlust for many generations. But foreign travel for Americans in the future may come with family separations,[142] lack of prudent discrimination,[143] poor taste[144] and dangers from mobs or crowds.[145] If the U.S. government continues to be tone-deaf to the mood of the American people, we may even see mob violence and riots in this country.[146]

            The aspects involving Saturn and Pluto to the U.S. chart are asking us to work with our collective shadow (beginning, of course, with our own individual shadows). We must, as a culture, face our shadow. It is staring us in the face: Its name is “Taliban.”[147] The events of the last decade have served to “constellate” our collective shadow and now we must face it—not lambaste it, not excoriate it, not point the finger and call it an “axis of evil.” All that is just more projection. We must give up all the exceptionalist rhetoric and face the truth that we, as a nation, are not perfect, not superior to other countries, not above needing to work on ourselves. We are now in an important time in the history of our national life, a time meant to spark emotional and spiritual development.[148] We need to give up our materialism, greed, selfishness, consumeritis and self-indulgence, and come to recognize the potentials that lie in our immediate future.

The Potentials in Our Future

            So far this essay has had a negative tone. We are living in challenging times and such times often seem negative. But we must recognize that we are choosing to put labels like “negative” on what is not necessarily negative at all. It seems to be part of basic human nature that we get motivated to change more from what is unpleasant, what is not working, than when everything is going well. We are now in a time—and facing a much more difficult couple of decades—when things will not go smoothly, when our karmic “chickens” come home to roost, when we will have to grow up, as a society. It will be much easier to do so if we change our attitude, and focus on the positives—the purposes and intentions of all the challenges we face.

            Why all the disruptions, depressions, discontent? We are meant to wake up now, to use our collective painful experiences as awakeners, as goads to our creative imagination, to stimulate our ingenuity and resourcefulness. When we confront an old way that no longer works, it is meant to help us discover some new way that is more aligned with what really matters in life. For example, when  budgets are tight and high-tech gifts are beyond the family’s means, parents and children might turn to the simpler pleasures of storytelling, board games and other forms of entertainment that foster literacy, inter-generational interaction and family solidarity. Economic hard times can be the incentive for us to create a new economic model (capitalism being so destructive to both the Earth and human beings), with new values and a new attitude toward money and the material world.[149] As the most materialistic of all cultures (as well as the most wasteful and consumptive), the United States has to move away from materialism and come to believe the truth in the bumper sticker: “The best things in life aren’t things.”

            The events in our national life are providing us with myriad opportunities to move in new directions and create the solidarity that “rugged individualism” has thwarted in our collective history. For example, if petroleum becomes a resource in very limited supply (a likely prospect over the next decade) it will give us the opportunity to develop car pools or local shared transportation systems, and thus to get to know and rely much more on our neighbors. If the national government disappears (another likely prospect in the next several decades),[150] we have the opportunity to develop regional associations and a strong system of local communities. If we are forced to evacuate our homes and move to other places (either through natural disasters, like earthquakes, or through terrorism), we have the opportunity to jettison most of our “stuff” and come to recognize what’s really important in life. These are unsettled times—just the sort of times that inspire creative artists—so we can expect an outpouring of insightful creative expression in the coming years, by both plastic and performing artists.[151] We need to be open to such creativity and celebrate the changes it can help bring about.

            We are standing at the precipice of a breakthrough time in our national life. As always, it comes with a breakdown period beforehand. We must remember the point: that old ways, old systems, old verities, things we have taken for granted are leaving so that we can move in new directions and create a more viable reality, a reality attuned to the demands of our souls and the wisdom of Nature. We can do this, we can get through this challenging interval, but only if we understand the bigger picture—that what we are facing is purposive, meaningful, important and ultimately for our benefit.

Appendix for Those Familiar with Astrology

(and others who want further information)

            The material above was drawn only from what is incontrovertible in the U.S. chart and its near-term transits. Nothing was drawn from the debatable components—house systems, Western vs. Vedic, Tropical vs. Sidereal, possible birth times. In what follows I consider information from some of the debatable sources.

            First, I want to note that I am using a 10 degree orb here—an orb much wider than the 6 degree orb I use when handling individual charts. Then I suggest the experienced astrologer turn to the chart included with this essay which presents the version I think best represents the United States in terms of rising sign, house placements and choice of system. What criteria did I use to make these choices? Let’s consider this question.

            My choice of rising sign comes from Liz Greene’s The Outer Planets and Their Cycles.[152] Greene was not original here: she got her chart from Dane Rudhyar’s The Astrology of America’s Destiny. A footnote in Greene’s book noted the work of Barry Lynes,[153] who “rectified” America’s chart by culling through 200 years of its history, to determine a more accurate time for the “birth” of the country as 4:45PM, rather than Rudhyar’s 5PM. Using 4:45PM gives us an Ascendant of 7 degrees Sagittarius in the Tropical system.

            Why the Tropical system? Those who have had chart readings with me know that I prefer the Sidereal system. In this case, however, I think the Tropical more accurately reflects the low level of consciousness, the manifold puer qualities and the ESTJ nature of the American temperament.[154] As Liz Greene notes, Sagittarius as a rising sign suits the United States so well, with its lust for freedom, dislike of constraints or limits, its love of wealth, its wanderlust and pioneering spirit and its cowboy (puer) mentality.[155] The Sidereal system would put the ASC in Scorpio, and that does not suit the American nature at all.[156] Saturn in Libra in the 10^th house in the Tropical system also well reflects the American tendency to “set itself up as the arbiter of rights, the fair judge and leader and guide.”[157]—a role it loves to play in the world, a very different role than one would expect with the Sidereal Saturn in Virgo.

            While I can see the Sun in Gemini in the Sidereal system (more puer), I can also see the Cancerian nature of the Tropical Sun, with its strong protective and defensive instincts, its concern for material security, its fear of ridicule, its isolationism, its risk-taking with other peoples’ money, its strong patriotism (think “American exceptionalism”), its dislike of mental or physical discomfort, its powerful imagination and its aversion to being told how to do things.  

            As for the house system—Placidus (Western) or Vedic—I went with the Placidus because it posits Venus, Mars and Jupiter in the 7^th house, a placement that I think reflects the projective tendencies of America much better than the 8^th house placement these planets have in the Vedic system. In both systems the Sun is in the 8^th house, so the basic nature of the country—focused on corporate and business finance, other peoples’ money, progress, regeneration, secrecy and superficiality (in its reluctance to face the dark places in the national psyche)—is the same regardless of which house system is used.

            Now I want to turn to a more general examination of the U.S. chart (Tropical, Placidus, Sagittarius rising) and the transits that are underway now or will be coming up in the next 15-18 months. See the chart included in this blog essay. The astonishing number of Grand Crosses is immediately evident: 14 involve planets in the 1^st, 4^th/I.C., 7^th and 10^th/M.C. houses, the 4 most significant houses in a chart. However these multiple hard aspects manifest, the United States surely will have to sit up and take notice.

Another two, more transient crosses develop a few days later, as transiting Mercury comes to oppose the U.S. Moon in square to the Ascendant/Descendant, and to ASC opposing natal Uranus. These crosses are in the 9^th, 3^rd, 12^th/ASC, and 6^th/7^th/DSC houses. Communications will surely be an issue, perhaps communications fraught with intense emotionality, frustration or anger (since the Moon is involved and afflicted). We are also likely to witness finger-pointing and blaming, as the “powers that be” project out their stuff, and, as a nation, the U.S. tries to weasel out of its dilemma by looking to others (7^th house). That the 12^th house is involved suggests that the coming crisis/crises will have, as one of its purposes, to make the United States more conscious of its unconscious. Whether the nation will be willing to look within remains questionable. I have my doubts, given its immature puer nature.  

Note also the transiting Sun hitting Rahu in the 8^th, a position that lies on the midpoint between the natal Mars-Neptune square. This seems likely to highlight 8^th house issues, e.g. corporate finances and monies the United States derives from other countries. As I noted earlier, with the involvement of Rahu, I find myself thinking of karma coming due around our profligate ways and materialistic values.

Another Grand Cross will form as Venus and Mars transit through the 10^th and into the 11^th house and come to oppose U.S Chiron while squaring the natal Mercury-Pluto opposition. Chiron is the wounded healer, a sensitive spot in any chart, and hit here by hard aspects, I can imagine that the U.S. will feel some sort of pain in this time.[158] All the 10^th house activity suggests that whatever comes down will not be hidden: the 10^th is not a house where things get hidden and so the United States’ crisis, karmic moment, financial humiliation or global comeuppance will be out there for all to see. Whether this will provoke some sensible response on the part of Americans, whether all these cosmic energies will be put to some positive purpose, the astrologer can never predict: “The stars only impel, they do not compel.”

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