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INAUGURATION 2001
PART 6
GORE PICKS LIEBERMAN
by Zip Dobyns
Al Gore has picked Joseph Lieberman as his running mate in the 2000 presidential elections. Unlike Cheney, Bush’s potential VP, we have at least a tentative birth time for Joe from Lois Rodden’s great data bank. He was born on February 24, 1942 in Stamford, CT at approximately 7 AM EWT. Al’s choice of an orthodox Jew as a potential U.S. Vice President was a groundbreaking action. As all of the commentators have said, a primary goal was to contrast the current candidates with the personal morality of Bill Clinton. Polls continue to give Clinton high marks for his job performance, but to disdain his personal life promiscuity. Al and Joe hope to convince the U.S. public that they are on the side of the angels when it comes to family values.
From the beginning of his campaign, Joe has talked about his religious convictions, stirring up a variety of reactions. Interestingly, the Christians have mostly applauded him while some Jews have been disturbed. The fear of the latter is that bringing religion into politics runs the risk of one religion gaining the political power to enact laws to enforce its own sectarian beliefs. That is more of a danger with Bush, who authorized a “Jesus” day in Texas, clearly favoring Christianity. The Republicans also want to deny women the right to end unwanted pregnancies while they oppose stricter gun laws that could protect children. Joe has repeatedly emphasized that he wants religion to join with politics to encourage morality, but not to favor one religion over others. He has especially sought to reassure Moslems that he will not use political power to favor Jews in Israel over the Palestinians.
Obviously, different religions do differ in what they consider to be moral. The fundamentalist extremists appear determined to preserve embryos rather than children after they are born and adult females. They seem to think it is ok for kids to go hungry with welfare ended, and to get shot when guns lack safety locks and are available to criminals at gun shows, and for whole families to suffer because women are forced to have babies they can’t support adequately. Conservatives usually also eagerly support the death penalty for criminals. Only embryos deserve protection. In contrast, those who believe in the continuity of life suspect that it is doubtful whether any soul would bother to enter an embryo which is destined for an early termination. The death penalty for criminals is also questioned, since the truly hard-core psychopaths may reincarnate rapidly and continue their destructive habits rather than receive education in prison and have time to change some of their habits.
Joe’s chart fits his vocal concern with religion. He has a stellium in
the first house in Pisces which includes the East Point, the Sun, the
Antivertex, and the south lunar node. Three more factors are in the Pisces
house: Pallas, Venus, and Mercury. His Sagittarius MC and Juno in the
natural house of Sagittarius also support a genuine, spiritual orientation,
while angular house positions for Jupiter and Neptune provide additional
emphasis. However, despite this emphasis on faith, his strong Aquarius
suggests tolerance for the faith of others, and commitment to democracy.
Pallas, Venus, Mercury, Ascendant, and Ceres are all in Aquarius, and
Uranus is in a powerful conjunction with Saturn and Mars. The latter
conjunction is especially interesting as a key to his mix of conservative
and equalitarian beliefs. Mars shows his identification with the conservative
Saturn and with the revolutionary Uranus.
It can be a real challenge to integrate those three very different sides of life, but Joe seems to be handling it. Capricorn is traditionally associated with Judaism, while Pisces is considered the sign of Christianity. Uranus is, of course, connected to “new age” ideas, many of which are not new but are very ancient. I am not sure about Islam, but in light of its militant and dogmatic stance, it might fit Mars or Pluto. In his career in the U.S. Senate, Joe has been a conservative Democrat. The orthodox branch of Judaism is the most conservative one. In his personal life, he divorced and remarried, actions often associated with Uranus, but reportedly he is a devoted husband and father. We can see the mix of Saturn and Uranus in all areas of his life. The lunar nodes across the first and seventh houses are typical of broken relationships, or of work in fields such as consulting, law, and politics. Jupiter in his fourth house can indicate a religious or idealistic home and parents, or parents who value education, or parents who come from a foreign country, etc. His Sagittarius MC reinforces the picture.
The mutable and Aquarius emphasis in Joe’s chart certainly shows intelligence and verbal fluency. Pluto, ruling the ninth house, and Chiron, another Jupiter, in the sixth house, along with the Sagittarius MC, connect Joe’s work to idealism. As usual, this can be manifested in a variety of ways. We may look for the perfect job, or want to do our work perfectly, or make work an ultimate value in our lives, or want our work to make a more perfect world. Similarly, the idealism of Neptune in the seventh house, Juno in the ninth house, and Venus in the twelfth house, may look for a perfect mate, or pick a mate who is looking for perfection, or pick a mate and try to save him/her, or pick a mate to save the chart owner, etc. If we share our ideals and goals with a mate and move toward them together, without expecting too much of each other or of the relationship, we handle the challenge successfully. To handle letters nine and twelve in our astrological alphabet, we need to worship the Whole, the Infinite, not a small part of life.
The interesting asteroids in Joe’s chart include three variations on his first name. His natal Jose is in 7 Taurus 30, natal Josefa is retrograding in 15 Virgo 24, and natal Josephina is in 5 Sagittarius 47. Having one of these just over one degree from his MC may be a support for Joe’s birth time. Just a fraction of a minute earlier would bring Josephina to the one-degree orb which I use for the new asteroids. His MC is also quincunx Jose, and still another angle (and they depend on birth time, of course) connects to a personal name asteroid with his Ascendant in Washington DC quincunx Josefa. These aspects do not “prove” the birth time is accurate, but I think they support it.
We also have three asteroids for his partner, Al Gore. Albertina is in 25 Cancer 19, and the recently rediscovered Albert is in 25 Taurus 1. I also recently added the asteroid Arnolda to my default list when I learned that it was Al Gore’s middle name. The asteroid Arnolda is in 0 Aquarius 42. The position of Arnolda supports the possibility that Joe might have been born a minute or so earlier than the even hour of 7 AM. That slight change would keep his P Washington MC conjunct Arnolda until early 2001. With a 7 AM birth time, the local P MC would end the conjunction less than a month before the election on November 7, 2000. Albert and Albertina are sextile each other but less connected to the rest of Joe’s chart. P Williams (for Bill Clinton) in 24 Leo 19 at the election does hold a square to natal Albert – not a good augury. Many people think that Clinton is more of a liability than an asset for Gore’s chance to win. I expressed that fear when I analyzed the chart for the 2001 inauguration when our web site was started in the early spring of 2000.
I would not want to subtract more than about a minute from Joe’s birth time, since his P Josephina at the election is retrograding in 7 Sagittarius 36, bringing it back within one degree of his natal MC. Having one’s personal name asteroid on the MC certainly fits personal action related to the Law, authority figures, and power. Obviously, the letter ten principle also relates to the consequences of how we have been handling universal law and limits. If we are handling them effectively, we gain increased power with MC, Saturn, and/or Capricorn aspects. If we have not been practical and effective, we fail in some way.
Joe’s P MCs are also strongly aspected. Joe’s P local MC in 1 Aquarius “may” still be on N Arnolda, and is opposite P Albertina in 1 Leo 24 at the election. His P MC from his birthplace is conjunct N Venus and opposite P Hela and P Nemesis in 5 Leo. Hela was named for a goddess of death. Nemesis was the one who “got” you if you flouted Themis, divine law. This set of aspects is a good example of why astrology cannot be sure of details. A conjunction with Venus is assumed to bring something pleasurable. Oppositions can be manifested as partnerships with cooperation, or as competition, conflict, and/or separation. If Joe gets what will theoretically bring him pleasure, winning the position of Vice President, will Nemesis and death separate him from Arnold and power? Or could he be separated from Arnold and gain power as the replacement president? Or will he lose the contest and be separated from the potential death of a close associate? Those who have read the earlier articles about our political year will remember that this 2000 election “could” foretell the death of the president.
P Albert in Joe’s chart is in 19 Gemini 58, conjunct his N Moon and P Jupiter and trine Joe’s N Ascendant. The traditional way to read that would be that Albert would be favored by the public and attain his ultimate goals in harmony with Joe. But it could mean that Albert would be fortunate enough to NOT be elected if the next president is destined to face major threats. Or, it could mean the fortune will be given to Joe if he inherits the power when Al loses it, for whatever reason. Joe’s P Ascendant will have just started a conjunction with his long-lasting P Saturn-P Uranus conjunction. Like the MC aspects, the combination could give power or take it away, depending on how effectively the individual has been handling the “rules of the game.” Joe’s P local Ascendant forms a T-square to N Ceres and N Juno. Ceres signifies a Cancer-Virgo mixture, a nurturing “earth-mother.” Juno is another Pluto, with all of the letter eight potentials including partnerships, conflicts, and endings. P Urania in 7 Aries 30 is octile/trioctile the T-square, adding to the potential of Uranian unexpected changes in the handling of power (the fixed sides of life).
Additional hints of turbulence and conflict come from N Winchester (guns) and P Israel in 8 and 7 Aquarius respectively, where they square N Jose and P Mercury in 7 Taurus. Many of our presidents who died in office were shot. The third corner of another fixed sign T-square is formed by N Hela and P Moon in 7 Leo. Hela was natally retrograde and it had turned direct and come back to 5 Leo where it was conjunct N Georgia, a variant of George for George Bush, in 6 Leo. Joe’s P Moon was also conjunct P Chiron, P Richard, and P Siva in 8 Leo, bringing in the names of the Republican contenders, Bush and Dick Cheney. N Richard was also in 8 Leo, having been retrograde and returned to its natal degree.
As indicated previously, the network of aspects hints at violence involving guns, but many details are possible. There could be squabbles over defense spending on the military budget. Involvement in military action in other countries is possible – especially with the ongoing attempt to contain Iraq. The new president and VP may have to deal with terrorists, and will certainly have to go on dealing with drugs in Colombia. Homegrown militias and protesters from both the extreme left and the extreme right may make trouble. The inauguration chart on January 20, 2001 points to a turbulent four years which “might” include personal threats to elected officials. Joe’s N Moon, P Jupiter, and P Albert are also within orb of P Minerva, the goddess of wisdom, and if Al and Joe are elected, they will certainly need wisdom. This collection in 19 Gemini is also opposite N Libitina, another death goddess, in 19 Sagittarius. P Libitina in 4 Capricorn is octile Joe’s N Ascendant and opposite N America. Hel, another asteroid named for the same death goddess as Hela, is progressing conjunct Joe’s N Vertex, the P north lunar node, and N Washingtonia for our capital. P Icarus (overreach and a possible fall) is connected in 12 Pisces, and N Jupiter completes a mutable-sign T-square. Whatever the outcome, Joe will need his faith.
We have one more name for Al and Joe’s main opponent. The asteroid George is in 0 Capricorn, conjunct Potomac for the river in Washington DC. They are both octile Joe’s N Ascendant in Washington, to fit the contest. P George in 22 Capricorn is sextile Joe’s N Juno, and forms a grand trine to his local P Ascendant, N Saturn, and N Hel. Grand trines in earth signs suggest practical competence in dealing with the material world, but is it the competence of George or of Joe, and which will benefit in the end? P Mars adds to the picture of a power struggle which potentially involves someone’s death. P Mars is square Neptune and P Themis in Virgo but trine N Tyr, the Norse name for Mars, in 28 Gemini, and trine Joe’s local N East Point in Washington and his P Winchester in 29 Aquarius. P Mars is also octile P Atropos, a Greek goddess of death, in 14 Taurus 21.
There is always more, but can we make sense of the mixture considered so far? Joe’s chart certainly points to power struggles, but there is also a lot of protection for him. Comparing Joe’s chart to Al’s and George W’s, Al’s is the most conflicted. Yet, as has been said, conflict might mean not getting what he wants, the presidency, while a mostly harmonious chart with only a little conflict, (some is inevitable in all charts), might mean getting what one wants and then having the roof fall in through not having learned to deal with conflict by compromising. Excessive harmony can manifest as arrogance, assuming that we have a right to what we want. As the political wars continue this fall, we will continue to monitor them, and we’ll be doing post-mortem analyses after November 7.
Zip Dobyns
Copyright © 2000 Los Angeles Community Church of Religious Science, Inc.
