Here's Ray Merriman:
MMA COMMENTS FOR THE WEEK
BEGINNING SEPTEMBER 30, 2002
Many of the world’s leading stock indices fell to new multi-year lows last week, nearby to the September 19-24 geocosmic cluster zone that contained a Sun square Saturn and Mars square Pluto aspect. The German DAX closed below 3000 for the first time in 6 years, with a low of 2774 on Tuesday, September 24. The FTSE (Financial Times Stock index of London) fell to 3610 intraday on Tuesday, thus taking out the 3625 low of July 24, which is also a new 6-year low. The Netherlands AEX index fell to 28.28 on the same day, also a new low in the past 6 years. Only the Swiss Stock market, of all the European exchanges, held above its lows of July 24. However, it came close with a low of 4396.80, which is essentially a double bottom to the 4372.60 low of July 24. In the Far East, the Hang Seng Index fell to 9015 on September 25, its lowest level since the 8894 level of a year ago, following the Terrorist Attack on New York. But the Japanese Nikkei stock index stayed above 9000, and the 8969 low of September 6, and closed relatively strong at 9530. In New York, the Dow Jones Industrial Averages fell to their lowest level since July 24, with a low of 7666 last Tuesday. By Thursday, they had rallied back above 8000, only to fall back again to around 7700 on the close of Friday. It was one of the few indices not to rally strongly into the end of the week. But since it was the last market to trade on Friday, this may not augur well for all stock markets next week. We are headed into one of the strongest geocosmic cluster zones of the year, between October 6-22. It has been my concern for several weeks that the stock markets of the world could see a panic sell-off into this period. And so far, since the highs of late August, that concern seems to be correct, as one market after another keeps making new multi-week, and even multi-year, lows.
Last week I suggested that words might be voiced, and regretted, concerning the prospect of war with Iraq. I stated that this possibility was related to Mercury retrograde, and the transit of Mars between a square to Pluto (September 22) and Saturn (October 14). The later two signatures represent aspects of war and aggression, whereas the former signature represents ideas that may be expressed and later regretted.
So what happened last week? During a speech on Monday, in Trenton, New Jersey, President George Bush said, "The Senate is more interested in special interests in Washington and not interested in the security of the American people." And this set off the very type of petty political posturing that is sure to bog down the very agenda Bush is trying to push through. First, Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle angrily accused Bush of seeking political gain from the war debate. Then highly respected Senator Robert Byrd of West Virginia charged that the President is trying to dominate Congress with the war issue. He is trying to take the nation’s mind off economic problems in the weeks before the mid-term elections of November 5, according to James Kuhnhenn, a Washington Staff reporter for the Detroit Free Press. Even the Wall Street Journal ran a front-page article on Thursday, questioning the longer-term effects of Bush’s behavior of confronting and bullying allies as well as adversaries. The White House was caught completely off guard by the partisan furor that resulted from the President’s remarks.
But just as disturbing as the effects of Bush’s remarks were, so too were those of Senator Byrd. According to the same article referred to above, Byrd went on to state, "I’ve been in this Congress 50 years. I’ve never seen a President of the United States… stoop to such a low level." Ah, sorry Senator. But what would you call the decision by President Bill Clinton, a Democrat like yourself, to actually go ahead and bomb the same evil empire of Saddam Hussein in December 1998, on the eve of the scheduled vote on his own impeachment, thereby delaying the inevitable vote? In politics, it seems everyone stoops to low levels after promising to aspire to such lofty goals during election season. And that is part of the problem of disillusionment with leaders that the world faces today as it continues to hover on the brink of disaster.
This might be a good time to revisit the horoscopes of President Bush and United States of America, which is available in several databases, including the AstroDataBank (Lois Rodden) and Steinbrenner data collection. For many months now, I have reported the continuation of his popularity and the success of his campaigns. He has been under the very favorable transit of Jupiter, first over his Sun, and now over his Ascendant and first house planets of Mercury and Pluto. The man is on a roll, and his behavior is not likely to change for a couple of years. In the next year, Pluto will transit in opposition to his natal Uranus, which conjuncts the USA Mars. It seems that every USA President who leads the USA into a military conflict has a hard aspect to the Mars of the USA chart. And the war mantle of President Bush doesn’t change in 2004, when the progressed Sun will conjunct his natal Mars, exact on June 6, 2004. It also in that same month of June 2004 that transiting Saturn will conjunct his natal Sun, and move towards a square to his natal Moon–Jupiter conjunction in Libra, in July. From an astrological point of view, one can make a case that George Bush probably continues to bask in the confidence of his policies and behaviors. He sees them as successful and popular, believing that he has the support not only of the American people, but allies the world over. Whether his perception is realistic or a self-delusion may be debatable. But if it is delusion, he doesn’t seem to "wake up" to the reality of how his behavior may be resented by others until mid-2004, when Saturn finally assumes a more forceful position in his chart. Until then, his role as Commander in Chief of not just the U.S. armed forces, but probably the world’s, seems to be the role that he both relishes and executes with the most motivation.
Knowing the nature of his chart and all the Mars-Pluto signatures coming up, and knowing the USA chart and all the Mars-Pluto signatures coming up in it, should we feel the world is moving towards more and more peace in the next two years? No, not at all. But is it possible that his campaign makes humanity fully aware of the dangers that Terrorism poses to its future? Yes. And ultimately it comes down to the very black and white type of reality that seems to typify Mr. Bush’s personality: either the forces of Uranus and Neptune in mutual reception between 2003-2010 lead to a major peace effort to rid the world of all weapons of mass destruction. Or the negative principles of Saturn-Pluto will result in the Terrorists gaining control of weapons of mass destruction by the end of this decade, thereby presenting a threat to the world as we now know it. There is a choice to be made, and it represents the ultimate destiny of the Peace Generation, the Baby Boomers, who are now in positions of power to do something about the future of the world.
Today it sounds naïve to even bring up the subject of eliminating all weapons of mass destruction, all over the world. But by the end of this decade, as Uranus enters into Pisces while Neptune continues through Aquarius (2003-2010), to not support such a major overall of those very weapons that threaten massive destruction, may find one on the side of the minority. Today it popular to be tough, to support an agenda of no compassion and no compromise. It wins votes. But if I am reading the heavens correctly, that is soon to change as the consciousness of the world is readying for a massive shift. It is a shift that is the ultimate destiny of the Neptune in Libra, sextile Pluto in Leo generation, to effect.
But first, we may have to suffer more pain and anxiety of the possibility of war in the next two weeks, as Mars moves closer and closer to square Saturn on October 14. Hopefully the leaders of the world will exhibit rationality and not make hasty decisions or voice combative words irresponsibly, as we witnessed last week. On the positive side, if the anxiety increases and there is a panic sell-off in the stock indices of the world, it will probably represent the final capitulation to the 4-year cycle bottom. In that case, we could begin a multi-month bull market. |
