|
AND ANOTHER LEAVES WHILE ANOTHER COMES
Should old acquaintance be forgot and never brought to mind We two have run about the hills, and pulled the daisies fine; And there’s a hand my trusty friend, and give us a hand o’ thine The ending and the beginning of anything looks exactly the same and so it is with New Years. On the surface things look the same. I have the same job, the same furniture, the same house and car, the same park across the street; it all looks the same but all has changed forever. I have a new granddaughter, a new daughter-in-law, two dictators have died, a past President, 3000 soldiers are dead plus tens of thousands of Iraqi’s, tens of thousands in Darfur, a new Democratic Congress, and a new DOD and we have changed as a country. Psychologically we leave the old year behind us and look toward the unknown of 2007 that includes even greater expansion of the consciousness of the universal mind. We have reached the point in the history of mankind where the past is truly gone and what worked before won’t work now, only we have not yet replaced the old with something new, which remains to unfold. 2007 is a 9 year and 9 years are an ending of a cycle and preparation for the coming “1” year in 2008. Collectively the world will begin winding down from this present cycle and have the opportunity to pick up the challenge of being co-creators of a “new world.” There are plenty of options on the table. Greed and every man for himself, get all you can get and forget the rest of the world, another is a kinder, active, all inclusive spirituality. I know that many have been living this kind of life or think they have, we are just getting our mind around the fact that “all inclusive” means kindness towards “all.” What in our closets do we want to expunge and what do we think we need, most importantly, what quality in our lives do we want to leave behind and replace with a kinder, more trusting, and gentler quality? It’s the “closet” of our collective soul that will need cleaning for we are moving into un-chartered waters at least for this recent generation of peoples (the last 500 years) We don’t have all our human past intact, for if horse-racing is the sport of Kings, book burning is the sport of conquerors leaving the information of the past hopelessly fragmented and we are left to modern genius to constantly discover and create anew. At this juncture in our evolution, particularly as it relates to what’s known as America, our Solar Arc planets have progressed to Aquarius and Pisces, the most universal of all the signs and with Uranus and Neptune in those signs the demand of the collective is to begin looking at the “all” and how do we support the “all?” How do we shift from a “command and control” mentality to an adult mentality? It’s a challenge and in large and small ways we have the opportunity to start this year. This year begins with Libra on the Ascendant and Mercury squaring from Capricorn in the third house; mis-communications, mis-understandings will reign. The media frantically trying to get on board with the shifts in their world and trying to grasp their fading light of relevancy for a bigger market share of the populace. This “shift” isn’t like going from still pictures to moving pictures, to talkies or from radio to TV. They can’t just go from TV to Cable or the Internet because the younger generation is unimpressed with marketing and will respond less and less to advertisers, leaving less and less money to create something new. This year we will see the beginning of throwing out old TV stars and trying to replace them with new faces and new messages. They are just beginning this process and watching them stumble is amusing. Communications will be big really big this year. The Moon is in Gemini in the 9th and ruling the 10th, it opposes Jupiter and squares Uranus, and that spells upheaval and change in the media, travel and possibly our courts. You may see this year even bigger mergers with the media, such as Fox buying ABC, or CBS or MSNBC, or some similar combination. Jupiter in Sagittarius in the third will square Uranus this year and Uranus rules the 3rd in the US Chart, with Sagittarius ruling the 3rd in this year’s chart. Mars in Sagittarius in the 3rd sextiles Neptune in the 5th, there is an opportunity for some creativity maybe we will take it, and maybe not (for Mars also squares the North Node) not but the opportunity will be there. Wherever Sagittarius, Aquarius and Pisces fall in your personal charts indicates and opportunity for you, but it has to be something different than what was in the past. I think the Moon/Jupiter/Uranus combination in the 2007 chart is most interesting because this Moon is pretty much in the same place that GWB’s 2005 Inaugural Moon resides, which is where the US Uranus resides (8 Gemini 55) our National Upheaval is not over, neither is the upheaval in the administration. Last year the failures in Iraq, the Baker report, having to fire Rumsfeld, people turning against this administration, a Democratic Congress were all very jarring to them, and those upheavals are not over. One of the psychic predictions I read said a couple of high level Republicans would be shifting to the Democrats this year and the energy is certainly there for that to happen further blurring the lines of who and what we the people can trust, forcing us to pay more attention to who is running in 2008, caring less about the party and more about what they stand for (and not just the Presidential candidate) New Orleans gave us Jambalaya and because of New Orleans our elected officials are about to go into their own Jambalaya stew over the next several years, maybe for the next 75, that’s what politics is about to become in this country. Racing on here, Moon/Jupiter/Uranus in Gemini/Sagittarius/Pisces will find the religious right of all religions becoming more strident as they see they are losing hope of a theocracy, plus there will be more “religious” leader scandals. Look for those scandals to come from the hard core evangelicals and Catholic Church, as well as Zionists and Muslim Clerics. Unaspected Venus (ruler of the Ascendant) is in Capricorn in the 4th. She wants to solidify her home and tradition but there isn’t a tether for her to build on solid ground. Her restrictive values will be thrashing around the 4th house of our “home” this year loudly trying to get a foothold to no avail in the end. The above aspects indicate upheaval in the military as we try to hire mercenaries throughout the world ostensibly to replace our soldiers but more to again blur sovereign boundaries (New World Order) Mars sextile Neptune could see a rise in the arts this year as we look toward a little mysticism and peace, spiritual practices also rise, all kinds of mystical and spiritual practices. The 110th Congress takes office on January 4th with a VOC Moon in the 5th house. A continuation of a lack of imagination among our “leaders?” and little will be accomplished, at least not too much we can see. A Jupiter/Uranus square, while Saturn in its retrograde motion is not in a trine to Pluto, it will come forward to trine in a few months to give this Congress a little power. Mars is coming to a conjunct to Pluto but more importantly Mars will be conj. The US natal Mars squaring the natal Neptune; arguments and confusion for them, however Jupiter is also in a sextile to Chiron so ultimately healing could come out of that confusion. There is so much in the New Year chart and the 110 Congressional charts; I will be adding bits and pieces to a post as the month goes on. I urge you to read other predictions because this article is getting to be too long now. The bullets I will give are: Military upheaval and perhaps revolt Church scandals leading to mass exodus from mainstream church and new religious More political involvement from a new generation of voters Potentially a new Supreme Court Justice and the continuation of stacking the courts with Media will be the big story this year, joining forces with one another in order to survive George Bush Sr. is in a very unstable health position with him passing on or too sick to TV and Movies become less violent, with more “feel good” movies and more things like “The Good Shepherd” also a greater influx of actors and entertainers becoming openly politically involved on both sides of the aisle. They’ve played these people and now they want to be these people and try to effect change. If the trend continues the imaginative and creative minds they will bring to politics will be a real blessing (this unfolds over the next several years, beginning at the end of 2006 and only becoming stronger through 2012, then we will see) The pipe dreams of greatness our politicians have been laboring under will be floating away this year, actually it’s started and they really don’t know what to do. Like the rest of us, we only know to do what we’ve always done. It will be up to the people to re-educate our corporate and political leaders. I cannot emphasize enough all the talk that will be happening this year, breaking scandals, threats of internet changes (and to some extent it will change) Words, words, hyperbole, hubris, all of this in a scramble to maintain power positions. Take most of it with a grain of salt, except for the internet. Be prepared to be shocked, scandalized, amused and tired of watching and hearing mouths run off. Sometime after the first of the year Joe Lieberman becomes very unpopular and potential of John McCain (the most desperate candidate of all) getting sick toward the end of the year and carrying forward into 2008. If we go to war with Iran (and I have my doubts) it won’t be until closer to 2009. The only thing that could shift that scenario would be Israel going after Iran and we step in to help them, after all we are in the area and we are putting in a “surge,” enough soldiers to go to the “rescue” for another country. Iran’s chart doesn’t show a war until 2009 but I have not looked at the Israel and Iran chart together. There is some kind of game being played their between governments and the UK and US, we are the only ones who don’t know what the game might be. This will be a good year for Sagittarius and Aquarius particularly. Scorpio’s should watch their spending but they will financially come out ahead by 2008. Leo’s have solid gains but won’t see that until closer to 2008, as well as Taurus. Capricorn’s have few problems this year. Virgo’s will be working hard. Pisces and Gemini’s have changes coming their way but doubtful they will be too upset over them unless they are the type of Gemini’s and Pisces who love good drama’s, potential of new work for them. Cancer can make it a good year but will need to keep a positive attitude and work on not worrying too much. Whoops, Aries I completely forgot to include you on the listing above, but one of our posters is looking out for you and reminded me so what's in store for you in 2007? Well it's what you've been waiting for; the love of your life, or the "jerk" takes a hike, it's a new job, new move, new baby, new life. It can be any of those things Aries, but you will get what you have been waiting for this year. With any bit of luck, the end of 2007 will find us with the same furniture, the same scenes, everyone healthy, happy, prosperous and more wise. "and there's a hand my trusty friend and give us a hand o' thine...we'll take a cup of kindness yet for auld lang syne." HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!!!!!!
Sally Cheyne McDonald on Jan 1 | Link
Comments
Great column....the media are already having that should be 'losing' circulation... Posted by: wv on January 1, 2007 11:00 PMWhat wv said. Plus, Cap'n Sally, any indication of our pulling together to try and rescue the planet. Many thanks and Happy New Year! Posted by: shylurker on January 1, 2007 11:01 PMthat should be 'losing circulation'... Posted by: wv on January 1, 2007 11:04 PMNot this year Shylurker, just a few joining the already in progress groups trying to save the planet. I don't believe it will be until at least 2010 before there is a massive effort and then it will only be a beginning. Most people of this world are just trying to survive, only a few have the money and technology to begin doing something. One minute a day of the sun's rays sends out enough energy, that if harnessed, could supply all the energy this planet needs, what do we do with it? The countries that are trying to do something adds up to very little. Massive changes need to happen, and laws enforced. If Al Gore or someone like him was president perhaps he could lead the way for the rest of the world, but he isn't. We need real leadership, real innovation, real imagination and we just don't have it right now, not in the US, not anywhere. Posted by: Sally on January 1, 2007 11:28 PMNo religion and an end to war: how thinkers see the future Alok Jha, science correspondent Guardian People's fascination for religion and superstition will disappear within a few decades as television and the internet make it easier to get information, and scientists get closer to discovering a final theory of everything, leading thinkers argue today. Philosopher Daniel Denett believes that within 25 years religion will command little of the awe it seems to instil today. The spread of information through the internet and mobile phones will "gently, irresistibly, undermine the mindsets requisite for religious fanaticism and intolerance". Biologist Richard Dawkins said that physicists would give religion another problem: a theory of everything that would complete Albert Einstein's dream of unifying the fundamental laws of physics. "This final scientific enlightenment will deal an overdue death blow to religion and other juvenile superstitions." http://www.guardian.co.uk/print/0,,329673601-117780,00.html Sigh. Well, thanks so much Cap'n Sally for taking a look at it. I hope the planet can hold on. Posted by: shylurker on January 1, 2007 11:38 PMThis fits right in Sally. http://observer.guardian.co.uk/business/story/0,,1980298,00.html Birth of the first global super-union Amicus, IG-Metall and two US labour groups join forces to confront the power of the multinationals British, American and German unions are to forge a pact to challenge the power of global capitalism in a move towards creating an international union with more than 6 million members. Amicus, the UK's largest private sector union, has signed agreements with the German engineering union IG-Metall and two of the largest labour organisations in the US, the United Steelworkers and the International Association of Machinists, to prevent companies playing off their workforces in different countries against each other. The move, to be announced this week, is seen by union leaders as the first step towards creating a single union that can present a united front to multinational companies. Derek Simpson, general secretary of Amicus, said: 'Our aim is to create a powerful single union that can transcend borders to challenge the global forces of capital. I envisage a functioning, if loosely federal, multinational organisation within the next decade.' Amicus is itself planning to merge with the Transport & General Workers' Union in May to create a 2 million-strong labour organisation. Between IG-Metall's 2.4 million members, the USW's 1.2 million and 730,000 at the Machinists', a merger would create an organisation with some 6.3 million members. More... Posted by: Pat C on January 2, 2007 12:18 AMMore on the globalization of unions (posted on earlier thread yesterday): Sally: George Bush Sr. is in a very unstable health position with him passing on or too sick to Roderick: Yeah I was thinking that he had suffered a stroke after he broke down last month while speaking at Jeb's fairwell address and he was only discussing Jeb's 1994 defeat. Sally: Bill Clinton is also in an unstable physical position. In looking at Hillary’s chart I have always felt that something would happen that would stop her from running for President and if something serious happened to Bill Clinton that would certainly place her in a difficult situation for a presidential run and Saturn will be conjunct his Sun. Roderick: Not that I hope that anything bad happens to Bill but at least it would get Hillary out of the running for the Democratic nomination for President. Posted by: Roderick on January 2, 2007 01:36 AMHappy New Year, Sally and all. Posted by: Teresa on January 2, 2007 02:10 AM Sally: "Mars sextile Neptune could see a rise in the arts this year as we look toward a little wv: "Disney/ABC is in trouble." Good article Sally I will print it out to refer to. And thanks Roderick for the "dialogue format. It clarifies things.
Ghada Karmi
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/story/0,,1981174,00.html Posted by: wv on January 2, 2007 02:56 AMVery nice article, Sally. You have given us all quite a bit to chew on for 2007. As Roderick said, I hope that Bill Clinton recovers, even if he has aligned himself with the "dark side"/Bush Sr./NWO. Not so much for Hillary's presidential chances, but because I wish him no ill will. The heart can be, quite literally, the "heart" of health issues for a Leo Sun. Given my general focus and interest on the "big picture" and long term trends in astrology, I'm still learning personal charts. It would be interesting to see what has recently developed for Clinton since the end of his Presidency in 2001. But I don't think his heart bypass surgery was anywhere near as successful as he had hoped it would be. In my observations, it seems that he has never fully regained the full strength of his spirit and energy, as his appearances since his surgery have illustrated. Much as I'd like to see him face the music and stand trial for all of the bloodshed and death in the world he has fostered during his lifetime, even passing along the torch of destruction to his sons, I actually hold no ill will towards Bush Sr., either. But I do have many questions for him that will probably never be answered while he is still among the living. Such as why did you lie, cheat and steal to create your fortune, at the cost of so much suffering and millions of lives, when you can't possibly take any part of it with you (except perhaps karmically, and then not necessarily as one might want it) into the next lifetime? Why walk such a path of destruction that eventually boomerangs back upon you and those closest to you, whom you might actually care something for? I'd like to think his tears during Jeb's departure speech were tears at the realization that the sum total of everything he's worked for in his life now amounts -- or will soon amount -- to shit, and that his son George is thoroughly laying waste to the family name, ill-gotten fortune and legacy. Maybe this is the beginning of Bush Sr.'s spiritual awakening? Maybe. And I'd like to think that. But I'm not naive. He's more likely upset and kicking himself that a far more competent Jeb (at least, as Bushes go), whom the family trusted and supported more, wasn't set up to make the run instead, in 2000. But the Bush lust for titles, prestige and power perhaps overcame their better sensibilities. And now, seven years in, we are looking at probably the last Bush to hold high office in the U.S. for many, many years to come. Too bad, so sad. Posted by: NEOBuckeye on January 2, 2007 02:57 AM
Happy New Year! Let's start it off right with a full-hearted celebration of love, compassion, forgiveness, and emotional connectedness. This is the Full Moon to swim in the unbounded ocean of love that connects us with the rhythm of life and all other sentient beings. With Moon in Cancer pulsating the energy of caring, compassion, and nurturance, trining Uranus in Pisces awakening into this unbounded ocean of love can be yours if you are willing to let go and dive in wholeheartedly! This is that once a year when the Full Moon is posited in the astrological sign it rules, making the force of love and trust so abundant, that we must open our hearts; even with Mercury (mind) and Sun (ego) in the hard-reality sign of Capricorn . So those of you who have lost faith in love, though you may not believe it, you too are surrounded by love. Love is everywhere, in every particle, in every wave. It is the glue that binds us to our planet and all existent life upon it. http://www.astrowisdom.com/thisfullmoon.htm Posted by: wv on January 2, 2007 02:58 AMI think Murdoch and Fox will struggle more and more for reasons that Sally mentioned above... the same reasons that made them both successful in the 1990s. Heavy marketing ploys and catering to an emotion-driven, right-wing, often religious, audience. The energy, indeed, is shifting, I believe back to practicality, intellect and spirituality, and News Corp's current business plan will no longer be enough to sustain the company. If Murdoch continues down his present path expecting a turnaround at some point, he will be in for a rather rude awakening, and his company could go down in a colossal bankruptcy or buyout. I could definitely see a News Corp takeover of ABC/Disney (wonder what Walt would think) since they both spew at about the same degree of right-wing, status quo, flag-waving, pro-corporate dogma. But what would it change? Fox would own more stations, but would only spew out more of the same crap that more people are tuning out. Maybe they'll have their anchors wear Mickey Mouse ears? So what? MSNBC is joint-owned by Microsoft and GE/NBC, and someone at MSNBC seems to have finally figured out since sacking Phil Donahue, that with Keith Olbermann, presenting balanced views really do generate higher ratings and viewership. I only hope it continues. I'd like to see Sun Myung Moon of the "Unification Church" exposed for all of his corruption. So few Americans even know about this man, much less about his background because the media have given him a free pass. But there are some truly hideous things there, particularly in the way of his sexual perversions/corruption, and people would question how he has been allowed to become such a force in D.C./politics. Maybe he is somehow implicated in a larger scandal involving protestant denominations and even the Catholic church? Regardless, people should know who he is and exactly what he is about. I think a lot of Christians would also have serious doubts about his self-proclaimed status as the Messiah due to as Moon describes, Jesus' failure. Posted by: NEOBuckeye on January 2, 2007 03:32 AMWell, dovetailing right in here (about it being a huge year for mergers & communications), many of you may have seen on DU the news items about ATT buying BellSouth + the really interesting item about quite a few employees i.e. airline mechanics and others (maybe 12) seeing a UFO - flying saucer shape - hovering silently over a hanger then quickly hot tailing it out of there with a huge acceleration. Posted by: Sharon on January 2, 2007 04:01 AMSorry, distracted..that was in Chicago's O'Hare Airport :-) Happy New Year, Everyone. I feel optimistic but am looking forward to that day when war will end and religion will not divide us but spirituality will unite us (I don't exactly agree with the scientists that religion is juvennille, except maybe in some sense.) Meanwhile, I will have Saturn go back over my moon/pluto late winter/spring, then oppose my sun (at 0 Pisces) shortly thereafter, bring on my Saturn return (about 0 Libra) in 08 squaring Pluto in Capricorn, the latter of which will oppose my 6 deg. Uranus in Cancer. It might even be a t-square formation if it's timed right. 07/08 will be a significan period for me (can't forget the Uranus trans. of Mar/Venus (22-24 Pisces) on my midheaven coming soon. Fame & fortune? Interestingly, more real estate work is coming my way so the Sat. retrograde to my moon/pluto in the 2nd could be bringing some money my way (we'll see). Sally..you forgot about Aries. Great article. Thank you! Posted by: Sharon on January 2, 2007 04:45 AMLet us rejoice: AT&T... back from the dead. Mergers galore. Not just corporations, though, but governments as well. There is buzz of "regional cooperation" in some major cities. Probably early signs of what's to come under Pluto in Capricorn, now just a little more than one year away. Intellect and science are now appearing to rebound and re-assert themselves as the Pluto in Sag energy winds down, and beliefs, pushed to their extremes, are now revealed as simply that; Extreme beliefs with little if any foundation. The death of religion has been predicted for many years, however. And I'm sure they'll still be predicting it 100 years from now. The energy waxes and wanes over time, as many things do, but it will always exist in some form or another, though perhaps much different than what we know it to be today. I can already see the mass exodus from churches taking place that Sally mentions, however, due to scandal and for the simple fact that a lot of the core beliefs and principles simply have no more relevance or meaning in today's world for most people, or at least have been rendered meaningless by hypocritical leadership. People have begun searching for personal truth and answers elsewhere, in other religions, and outside of traditional organized religion altogether. I do believe that a lot of churches will shut their doors over the next few years, resulting from declining membership and interest. There are a lot of older church congregations, for instance, that will simply die-off with their aging membership, as fewer and fewer young people are being born and raised in those churches, while fewer still choose to remain there when first given the opportunity to leave. One significant development since 1995-6 has been the emergence of the "Big Church" organizations that may serve thousands, even tens of thousands in one or more Sunday morning services. But rather than preach Biblical dogma, the focus is more often than not placed upon a charismatic individual who delivers the morning sermon, rather than the sermon itself. What is really interesting, however, is that in many of these Big Churces, the message is not the traditional protestant preaching of "fire and brimstone" threatening people to "straighten up or else you are going to hell". Rather, there is a sort of motivational, if not decidedly spiritual and even "Eastern" message, often mixed with gospel choir music and media presentations. It will be most interesting to see if this development survives long past the end of Pluto's transit of Sag. I doubt if many will, but I suspect that the ones that do survive will have to be based upon something more concrete and lasting than mere personalities and production quality alone. Posted by: NEOBuckeye on January 2, 2007 06:58 AMApologies for reposting this - I posted under the last article's comments section, but realised that it should really be posted here. Hi Cybear I cast a chart for this year and the turn of the year for Washington was 10.23 Capricorn - which makes the Symbol for this year Capricorn 11: Pheasants Display Their Brilliant Colors on a Private Estate... I know it sounds like a long shot, but that could be construed as fireworks 'brilliant colors' ... private estates... My keywords are: Glorious houses and estates. Lawns and gardens, Statues and birdbaths. Peacocks, pheasants, swans, etc. Enjoying the riches the environment offers. Large plots of land. Nature reserves. Game birds. Aristocracy and the ruling elite. Beauty, elegance and grace. Fabulous displays of color. Parks. The Cautions: Foolish disregard of pending danger. Feeling that one has to be on "on parade" or else they will be overlooked. Issues of standing out from the crowd. Jealousy and envy through things on display. Lusury and beauty or snobbery that excludes. Showing off. "Do Not Enter" and "Keep Off the Grass" signs. Capricorn 9 with the Angel Carrying the Harp appears to me to be the harbinger of the new year in that it's the Sun degree as we head into new year - it's usually the Sun degree on New Year's Eve. Many things are said, many hopes are revealed, many wishes made. Capricorn 10, which is often the degree of the Sun on New Year's day is An Albatross Feeding From the Hand of a Sailor. It's about letting go of worries and superstitions... Perhaps this speaks of the hopes and dreams of NOT taking our albatrosses that hang around our necks into the new year? It's about welcoming strangers, as well. I just had a Pheasants Displaying Their Brilliant Colors on a Private Estate experience, actually. I have had 2 very close friends from Eugene, Oregon (both astrologers) staying with me for the last few days in my house in the Blue Mountains 100 kms west of Sydney. We just went for a bushwalk and one of them (AMAZINGLY) saw a lyre bird scratching the ground, looking for grubs. The lyre birds is beauoootiful - like a miniature peacock, beautiful plumage and a tail that looks like a 'lyre'. They are master imitators of other birds. We followed this beautiful male bird for at least 10 minutes. They are so SELDOM seen. I have only ever seen one once in my life (in the wild) and THAT time, I was with Philip Sedgwick (the American astrologer) as he was visiting here in the Blue Mountains. Soooo, I have my own little story that goes with that degree. The Sun has now flipped onto Capricorn 12: A Student Lecturing, Revealing Little Known Aspects of Life. Speaking of which, here's a link to a David Attenborough piece on the Lyre bird - it's amazing and I hope you all enjoy it. http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=3433507052114896375 Hi NEOBuckeye Thanks for your thoughts on the meaning of the year 2007 - it does indeed sound like the ending of some people's careers and all that.. very interesting, thanks for your insights! Posted by: Lynda Hill on January 2, 2007 09:07 AMThank you for your thoughts and insight as well, Lynda. What a blunder for Giuliani's 2008 campain. His top-secret plans aren't so anymore. Oh Linda, How lucky you are! I have painted more than one lyre bird on people's walls, from book photos. I can't remember even seeing one in a zoo here. Thank you Lynda! So interesting! .............. Sally this one is so helpful to me! You said, "Wherever Sagittarius, Aquarius and Pisces fall in your personal charts indicates and opportunity for you, but it has to be something different than what was in the past.". Does this refer to natal or progressed? I'm going to take a look. This period of time is my second Saturn return, something I have dreaded. So far, it hasn't been too bad. Perhaps life has prepared me. .............. We are rich here in the depth and breadth of our astrological wisdom. Posted by: Pat C on January 2, 2007 12:45 PMhttp://salon.com/books/int/2007/01/02/numbers/ Seeing the light -- of science Ronald Numbers -- a former Seventh-day Adventist and author of the definitive history of creationism -- discusses his break with the church, whether creationists are less intelligent and why Galileo wasn't really a martyr. By Steve Paulson Jan. 02, 2007 | Despite massive scientific corroboration for evolution, roughly half of all Americans believe that God created humans within the past 10,000 years. Many others believe the "irreducible complexity" argument of the intelligent design movement -- a position that, while somewhat more flexible, still rankles most scientists. This widespread refusal to accept evolution can drive scientists into a fury. I've heard biologists call anti-evolutionists "idiots," "lunatics" ... and worse. But the question remains: How do we explain the stubborn resistance to Darwinism? University of Wisconsin historian Ronald Numbers is in a unique position to offer some answers. His 1992 book "The Creationists," which Harvard University Press has just reissued in an expanded edition, is probably the most definitive history of anti-evolutionism. Numbers is an eminent figure in the history of science and religion -- a past president of both the History of Science Society and the American Society of Church History. But what's most refreshing about Numbers is the remarkable personal history he brings to this subject. He grew up in a family of Seventh-day Adventists and, until graduate school, was a dyed-in-the-wool creationist. When he lost his religious faith, he wrote a book questioning the foundations of Adventism, which created a huge rift in his family. Perhaps because of his background, Numbers is one of the few scholars in the battle over evolution who remain widely respected by both evolutionists and creationists. In fact, he was once recruited by both sides to serve as an expert witness in a Louisiana trial on evolution. (He went with the ACLU.) Numbers says much of what we think about anti-evolutionism is wrong. For one thing, it's hardly a monolithic movement. There are, in fact, fierce battles between creationists of different stripes. And the "creation scientists" who believe in a literal reading of the Bible have, in turn, little in common with the leaders of intelligent design. Numbers also dismisses the whole idea of warfare between science and religion going back to the scientific revolution. He argues this is a modern myth that serves both Christian fundamentalists and secular scientists. Numbers stopped by my radio studio to talk about the competing brands of creationism, his quarrel with atheism and his breaking with faith, and why some famous scientists -- like Galileo -- hardly deserve the label "scientific martyr." Given the overwhelming scientific support for evolution, how do you explain the curious fact that so many Americans don't believe it? More... Posted by: Pat C on January 2, 2007 01:15 PMThank you, Sally, for your wonderful take on the turn of the year. NEOBuckeye - ouch about Guiliani - I guess it won't help him that this full moon's Venus degree is Capricorn 30: A Secret Meeting of Men Responsible for World Affairs - talk about laying the papers on the table! Interesting, PatC about Ronald Numbers (what a curious name for the subject matter he's talking about) - and curious that the Sun and Mercury are currently transiting Capricorn 12: A Student of Nature Lecturing About Little Known Aspects of Nature... And QOP, yes, I feel very lucky. AND it's interesting how I've only seen these birds in the wild when I was in the company of astrologers! Posted by: Lynda Hill on January 2, 2007 02:02 PMBTW, I have a bit of a rant about Saddam's execution over at http://sabiansymbols.typepad.com/ Ah, Democracy!
A spokesman for the Interior Ministry said the Al-Sharqiya station, owned by a former chief of radio and television for Saddam, had incited violence and hatred in its coverage and had ignored warnings to stop. http://apnews.myway.com/article/20070101/D8MCNASG0.html Posted by: wv on January 2, 2007 02:59 PM
US President George W Bush intends to reveal a new Iraq strategy within days, the BBC has learnt. The speech will reveal a plan to send more US troops to Iraq to focus on ways of bringing greater security, rather than training Iraqi forces. The move comes with figures from Iraqi ministries suggesting that deaths among civilians are at record highs. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/6223923.stm
The urge to merge From Economist.com Last year's takeover wave may hit the rocks this year THE urge to merge has never been stronger, nor satisfied more expensively, than it was in 2006. The total value of mergers and acquisitions (M&A) around the world reached almost $4 trillion, beating the previous record, set in 2000, by $500 billion. The total for 2006 was four times the nominal figure for 1996, and eight times the figure for 1986. Even after taking inflation into account, that leaves a remarkable growth rate. http://www.economist.com/daily/columns/businessview/displaystory.cfm?story_id=8482275 Posted by: on January 2, 2007 03:07 PMThanks Sharon for pointing out that I forgot Aries. In many ways they will be the most fortunate of all this year and if they have been working on anything but being a victim they will certainly get what they want this year, they've had to be patient far too long and this will be one of their jackpot years. If they have been hanging on to being a victim in some kind way, they will get that too, Aries gets what they want this year. Thanks again for pointing it out, I have an Aries daughter and she's hit a bit of a rough patch the last couple of years and I sure wouldn't want to forget them. Posted by: Sally on January 2, 2007 03:09 PMSaw this posted on Salon and it made me laugh out loud. Not astrological, but maybe a passing of an attitude. "This lady, passed on a month ago, made me smile. Hope she does the same for all of you." http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ee8yHHJhV5s ............. In the sky! A bird? A plane? A ... UFO? Published January 1, 2007 It sounds like a tired joke--but a group of airline employees insist they are in earnest, and they are upset that neither their bosses nor the government will take them seriously. A flying saucerlike object hovered low over O'Hare International Airport for several minutes before bolting through thick clouds with such intense energy that it left an eerie hole in overcast skies, said some United Airlines employees who observed the phenomenon. Was it an alien spaceship? A weather balloon lost in the airspace over the world's second-busiest airport? A top-secret military craft? Or simply a reflection from lights that played a trick on the eyes? Officials at United professed no knowledge of the Nov. 7 event--which was reported to the airline by as many as a dozen of its own workers--when the Tribune started asking questions recently. But the Federal Aviation Administration said its air traffic control tower at O'Hare did receive a call from a United supervisor asking if controllers had spotted a mysterious elliptical-shaped craft sitting motionless over Concourse C of the United terminal. More.... Posted by: Pat C on January 2, 2007 03:30 PMThat does make me smile PatC, very cute. The other thing I want to say about Aries is they are the luckiest of all this year, so make sure you have an Aries in your life, it will lift your spirits. Posted by: Sally on January 2, 2007 03:52 PMWell I have an Aries Descendant, and another member of my family has an Aries Ascendant. Hmmmm I hope that counts! We'd love it! I hope that Aries in your family shines this year Sally. It's so deserved. Posted by: Pat C on January 2, 2007 04:03 PMPat C I love the Fruitcake Lady! Posted by: lunaoscura on January 2, 2007 04:16 PMMe too lunaoscura! What a character! Laughter is good medicine. Posted by: Pat C on January 2, 2007 04:24 PM January 2, 2007 Second Thoughts on Gays in the Military Steilacoom, Wash. TWO weeks ago, President Bush called for a long-term plan to increase the size of the armed forces. As our leaders consider various options for carrying out Mr. Bush’s vision, one issue likely to generate fierce debate is “don’t ask, don’t tell,” the policy that bars openly gay service members from the military. Indeed, leaders in the new Congress are planning to re-introduce a bill to repeal the policy next year. As was the case in 1993 — the last time the American people thoroughly debated the question of whether openly gay men and lesbians should serve in the military — the issue will give rise to passionate feelings on both sides. The debate must be conducted with sensitivity, but it must also consider the evidence that has emerged over the last 14 years. http://www.nytimes.com/2007/01/02/opinion/02shalikashvili.html?pagewanted=print Posted by: wv on January 2, 2007 04:27 PMSo now we get to debate on whether gays have the right to be cannon fodder for The Eternal War? How lucky for gays! Posted by: lunaoscura on January 2, 2007 04:42 PMBut I'll bet they'll still want to protect the 'sanctity' of their abusive style marriages where the man is dictator of his domain as per God's edict and still won't allow gays to marry. Posted by: lunaoscura on January 2, 2007 04:54 PMSally, My wonderful grandmother was also a take-charge Aries who stuck her neck out and showed her feelings (largely through music). Other than that, I have always loved Arians. A bit directive but they are very generous and affectionate and natural, and mean well. They show their feelings, then forgive and keep moving. Good luck to your daughter and to all here with Aries influence! Posted by: Sharon on January 2, 2007 05:26 PMYay Sally! As an early aries a good year has been a long-a time-a comin'. May we all have every good fortune and empowerment to make this world a protected and loving place! Lynda you won't believe this: here in Boulder, Co I saw a lyra bird flying tail hanging, it was astonishing! That was about 4 years ago and thought it had escaped from a zoo or was someone's escaped pet! More likely our avian friends are seaching for habitat as theirs are most likely ruined. I know the seasonal flight of birds are in disarray worldwide and they are greatly distressed as a result of what humans have done. In my (hopefully effective) practice I envelope them in a gold light of love and protection, along with all that lives here with us. Yay Sally! As an early aries a good year has been a long-a time-a comin'. May we all have every good fortune and empowerment to make this world a protected and loving place! Lynda you won't believe this: here in Boulder, Co I saw a lyra bird flying tail hanging, it was astonishing! That was about 4 years ago and thought it had escaped from a zoo or was someone's escaped pet! More likely our avian friends are seaching for habitat as theirs are most likely ruined. I know the seasonal flight of birds are in disarray worldwide and they are greatly distressed as a result of what humans have done. In my (hopefully effective) practice I envelope them in a gold light of love and protection, along with all that lives here with us. Oh, but hawks are messangers. Posted by: Pat C on January 2, 2007 06:13 PMOh, Pat C but what meaning a sparrowhawk, any idea? They're gray speckled with gorgeous orange-pink underwings. Stand statuesque, about 12" stem to stern, small delicate face w/curved fine beak. (not a flicker, but we have those too). Posted by: patb on January 2, 2007 07:45 PMpat, my husband tells a story of a time when he and some other people were out gathering red willow, and a hawk came and made his presence known. Another man said to my husband, "You'd better get back to camp, you're needed there.". He returned to camp, and one of his children had just arrived and was looking for him. I had an experience when I was "flying" down the highway at high speed very early in the morning while there was no traffic. I saw a hawk sitting on a branch by the side of the road way ahead of me. He appeared to be looking directly at me. As I came closer, he continued to look straight at me. As I came along side of him, I looked quickly to the side and he was still looking right at me. As I looked at him, I also saw my side view mirror where I saw a plicecar in back of me. Eeek. I took my foot off the gas, slowed down and thanked the hawk. The police car drove past me and went on his way. Posted by: Pat C on January 2, 2007 08:03 PMGreat stories PatC, thanks so much! For me it either means the irs is looking for me (small pickin's) or then again, it did look a bit like my sister back east! peck. peck. Posted by: patb on January 2, 2007 08:13 PMpat, I think if your hawk were looking to hunt in your yard, he/she would have been quick and silent, rather than railing on your porch. Yes? Is there anything you should be paying attention to that your hawk is reminding you of? No need to answer here, but give it some thought. You asked for a sign and you got one very strong one. Wonderful! Posted by: Pat C on January 2, 2007 08:22 PMpat c~ ay-yiy-yi. Have a list of things that all are just as dire/important, tackling one at a time. Figure if one of them demands to be #1 while I'm working on the others, so be it. I've really put in the energy/necessity to not be afraid. All I can do right now is be systematic. Then again, maybe I ought to check w/my family in NY. Posted by: patb on January 2, 2007 09:14 PMUsually pat, it's something right in front of you. You have been honored by a hawk, not one to be trifled with, so i know you have great strength, that even you may not realize that you have. Posted by: Pat C on January 2, 2007 09:32 PMI saw the "mistake" that CNN made. Does anyone know if this is real? I was so sickened thinking that these people are murderers and slanderers and then I wondered if this wasn't a hoax just to upset the likes of me. http://www.rawstory.com/news/2006/CNN_comments_on_Obama_gaffe_in_0101.html CNN apologizes for Obama gaffe in Bin Laden graphic .......... The Chicago Tribune did a story on the sighting, and also gave it some air time. Posted by: Pat C on January 2, 2007 10:23 PMPatC, no, not that I'm trifling with the idea. See this hawk has come & gone with fair frequency for about a year. He sits where the sparrows feed, which is on my railing, I give them unshelled sunflower seeds every morning there. Oh!! LOL! Ok then! These are residents/neighbors. Perhaps he was angry because there were no birds for him. Hunters usually try to use some stealth, but maybe he/she was just letting off some steam. I'm sure you'll know when you get a signal from the energy you are waiting for pat. Posted by: Pat C on January 2, 2007 10:54 PMNative American Full Moon Names for 2007 http://news.yahoo.com/s/space/20061229/sc_space/fullmoonnamesfor2007
Pat C.-thank you for the info. God we are really up against some very rotten,psychopathic individuals. Like all animals they are the most dangerous when cornered. Whooo! I had really convinced myself that we were being teased. This is very sad and very frightening. You're welcome clymela. I'm sure CNN is pleased with themselves. The message was sent. Until we get corporations out of government, this kind of manipulation will continue. I hope with all my heart that the Dems go after the FCC. Thank you for the Moon article Morgana. The names are of course, practical for each season and the work to be done. Posted by: Pat C on January 2, 2007 11:27 PMHi PatC Clymela, the other sick fundie is Rep. Virgil Goode... sick sick sick. Posted by: Morgana on January 2, 2007 11:35 PMGood morning Lynda! Serendipity! Posted by: Pat C on January 2, 2007 11:41 PMWhen I was visiting Scotland a while back, NEO, they were busily turning 1000s of beautiful ancient churches into condos & shopping places... better than tearing them down. ;O) Imagine having a living room with a floor to ceiling stained glass window!! Not too shabby. Posted by: JoannaOregon on January 3, 2007 12:28 AMSally, What an article...It will be interesting to see how this year unfolds. Roderick, I posted a few threads back that I thought Poppy may have had a stroke. But, he may have been bawling over the fact that he and his buddies won't be around long enough to "clean up" the mess Jr has made. Lynda, thanks for the interps! "Perhaps this speaks of the hopes and dreams of NOT taking our albatrosses that hang around our necks into the new year?" Exactly, we have to leave the past behind, focus on today and work for a better tomorrow. Posted by: Cybear on January 3, 2007 01:45 AM Cybear....I am a Gemini, birthday June 7, and GHWB Sr is June 12, and starting in early December I started crying at the drop of a hat. I also was sick most of december with indigestion, norovirus, etc. I think the Jupiter/Uranus/Saturn/Sun aspects going on has got some bearing on it, but I 'recognized' GeorgeSr breakdown....it is also indicative of the process of reviewing one's life which probably has more impact in Dec on Geminis. Of course, I also have Pluto on my progressed ascendant, conjuncting not only my Part of Fortune, but the Galactic Center. This has been a really emotionally dreadful time. I think some chickens came home to roost for GHWB....and he recognized the poop. Posted by: judiGem on January 3, 2007 02:00 AMJoanna, I think I'd like to live in Scotland (ancestral roots there too) in a place with stained glass windows! Posted by: judiGem on January 3, 2007 02:01 AMhttp://www.trinidadexpress.com/index.pl/article_opinion?id=161074934 Posted by: Crystal on January 3, 2007 02:24 AMAnybody see Olberman tonight? Apparently he was at his scathing best. Said something like we went to Iraq based on Smirky's lies and now he wants more to go for his ego. Wow! I'm waiting for it to appear on crooksandliars. Posted by: shylurker on January 3, 2007 02:38 AMI believe that hawks represent spiritual wisdom. http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-predict2jan02,0,3962081.story?page=2&coll=la-home-business
TV station values jump as the rules allow companies with newspapers to own broadcasters in the same city. But the changes are too late for Tribune, which had snapped up newspapers including The Times expecting restrictions to melt away sooner. Murdoch lands the Journal. News Corp. adds to its stable of newspapers by buying Dow Jones & Co., owner of the Wall Street Journal, to bolster Rupert Murdoch's nascent business news cable channel, a companion to his Fox News juggernaut. Some investors are furious that Murdoch would spend $5 billion on an old-line media acquisition when a purchase of CNet Networks Inc. could fill a similar need for a fraction of the price. This parody of Saddam's execution as Bush's execution is on the BBC no less. I was shocked http://www.tomraworth.com/hang/hang.html Posted by: Sally on January 3, 2007 02:54 AMI saw Olberman. It's worth recording for repeated viewing. ......... Medicine animals are viewed differently sometimes, even among different Native tribes. Perhaps they are like dreams, and interpretation is best felt by the person to whom they appear. The meaning is clear to the appearee, so to speak. You know it when you feel it. Posted by: Pat C on January 3, 2007 02:59 AMHere is the transcript. KO's website had it up already. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16442767/ Yuppers our jaws were on the floor. Rock on KO! Posted by: Morgana on January 3, 2007 03:08 AMWow Sally that parody of Bush as Saddam being hung shocking yes, prophetic ? Posted by: Morgana on January 3, 2007 03:12 AMIt's up: I just love Kieth Olberman. I picture someone (certainly not the commander in chief) on his staff, watching Kieth, and turning inside-out with shock and amazement. All great blessings on Kieth Olberman. Posted by: Pat C on January 3, 2007 03:14 AMShock and awe! Yep. Posted by: shylurker on January 3, 2007 03:19 AMAnd then there was this on Frontline tonight. PBS, that right leaning station! Sen. BOB GRAHAM: Oh, it says to me that the decision had been made that we're going to go to war with Iraq, all of this other was just window dressing, and that the intelligence community was being used as almost a public relations operation to validate the war against Saddam Hussein. NARRATOR: Paul Pillar, a veteran high-ranking CIA analyst, was one of the primary authors of the white paper. PAUL PILLAR: It was clearly requested and published for policy advocacy purposes. This was not informing a decision. What was the purpose of it? The purpose was to strengthen the case for going to war with the American public. Is it proper for the intelligence community to publish papers with that purpose? I don't think so. And I regret having had a role in that. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/darkside/etc/script.html I don't know Morgana if it is prescient on the part of the BBC but I was sure shocked to see it there, I was shocked to see anything like this up much less the BBC. Someone is sending a message. Olbermann's "special comment" was stunning in its intensity and passion and truth Posted by: Sally on January 3, 2007 05:27 AMBoth of them were stunning. Keith in a good way. Posted by: Pat C on January 3, 2007 05:50 AMPatB, I meant to say WOW to your lyre bird story... wonder how it got there? One of life's mysteries... Sally, the parody on the BBC was not actually on the BBC website - check out the address: http://www.tomraworth.com/hang/hang.html It's someone who's very cleverly jumped on the BBC site's coat tails in some way. Posted by: Lynda Hill on January 3, 2007 07:19 AMSally, Sally, Ah too bad, I actually saw that a little bit ago had to go back to examine it was just too odd and did see it was from his site. Thanks for pointing it out, I have Neptune in an exact square to my Mercury today and I've been pretty fuzzy Posted by: Sally on January 3, 2007 08:37 AMThanks for the link, Morgana. Keith is a man and Bush is such a little boy. Posted by: Mark on January 3, 2007 09:06 AMYea, verily, Mark... the French would say "Infant Terrible" Posted by: JoannaOregon on January 3, 2007 09:54 AMhttp://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2007/1/3/51935/98666 Bush Declares War on the Democratic Congress Posted by: Pat C on January 3, 2007 02:50 PMhttp://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/01/03/AR2007010300075.html Rep.-elect Keith Ellison, the first Muslim elected to Congress, found himself under attack last month when he announced he'd take his oath of office on the Koran -- especially from Virginia Rep. Virgil Goode, who called it a threat to American values. Yet the holy book at tomorrow's ceremony has an unassailably all-American provenance. We've learned that the new congressman -- in a savvy bit of political symbolism -- will hold the personal copy once owned by Thomas Jefferson. Posted by: Pat C on January 3, 2007 04:24 PMI think that swearing on ANY supposedly holy book is very, very freaky... as if it were magic & as if one broke their vow sworn on that "holy book," one could be punished in some manner. Bolt of lightening?!?! It's one of the ultimates in superstitious & magical thinking... the kind that gets people, particuarly women, burnt at the stake wholesale. Supposedly grown men acting like that... just blows my mind! Posted by: JoannaOregon on January 3, 2007 05:02 PMI think there are a couple of Buddhists to be sworn in, too. Wonder if they'll use the Dhammapada. Posted by: shylurker on January 3, 2007 05:32 PM"Mana"-filled holy books are trance inductors for the "masses"... you know, like the flag, martial music, acres of little white crosses, swathes of metal medals across a barrel chest, apple pie n' mom.... Posted by: JoannaOregon on January 3, 2007 05:48 PMRobertson Predicts 'Mass Killing' Jan 02 6:29 PM US/Eastern
Robertson said God told him during a recent prayer retreat that major cities and possibly millions of people will be affected by the attack, which should take place sometime after I think if they can demand it & get away with it, shy... there will be only pink supremacist mana-books allowed. ;O) (books-schmooks...) Posted by: JoannaOregon on January 3, 2007 05:54 PMI sure agree with you Joanna. Posted by: Pat C on January 3, 2007 06:00 PMA new interview with Dr. Justin Frank by Buzzflash. http://www.buzzflash.com/articles/interviews/049 Justin A. Frank, M.D., Author of "Bush on the Couch" Gets to the Heart of the Matter: We Have a Sociopath as President I think what he does is he turns everybody who disagrees with him into his father. It doesn’t matter whether it’s actually the concrete representation of his father, like Baker, or the voters who vote against staying in Iraq. We have become his father. We are the people he is now defying. He will turn everybody, any authority, anybody who disagrees with him, into a father figure who he’d have to defy. -- Justin A. Frank, M.D. more... Posted by: lunaoscura on January 3, 2007 06:12 PMre the Bush/WSJ letter to the public...one thing is for sure, he didn't WRITE it...talk about the making of a silk purse out of a sow's ear.... Posted by: judigem on January 3, 2007 06:39 PMThe next to the last line of this piece says it all. If you have been waiting for the cavalry to ride over the hill, you can stop. Take a good look around you. We’re it. It's that simple. http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2007/1/3/41512/09523 Posted by: Morgana on January 3, 2007 06:45 PMOne of the comments which seems apt on KOS about WSJ and Bush letter: ____ Bush is itching for a showdown...and he will take everyone down with him. Like Saddam did until caught out... Ego collides with the immovable object of the fed up public.... Posted by: judigem on January 3, 2007 06:50 PMWikipedia on Charles I of England... The first Civil War (1642 - 1645) ended in defeat for Charles, after which the parliamentarians expected him to accept their demands for a constitutional monarchy. Instead, he remained defiant, provoking a second Civil War (1648 - 1649). This was considered unacceptable, and Charles was subsequently tried, convicted and executed for high treason. Posted by: judigem on January 3, 2007 06:55 PMKeane/Kagan Plan Means More Bloodshed Bush's proposal, if he makes it, is the work of retired army general Jack Keane and Frederick W. Kagan of the American Enterprise Institute. AEI is the second most important Israeli lobby in Washington after AIPAC. Keane and Kagan profess to believe that 30,000 more U.S. troops can bring security to Iraq. Keane and Kagan argue that more U.S. troops would permit the U.S. military to retain control of an area after they had cleared it of insurgents. They ignore that Iraq has progressed from insurgency into civil war. There can be no Iraqi army independent of the sectarian conflict. The military problem for the Americans is no longer a small insurgency drawn from a minority of the population, but sectarian strife involving all of Iraq. Today the only choice for U.S. forces is to ally with one side or the other in the civil war or to depart Iraq. Knowledgeable people regard the Keane/Kagan plan as a proposal designed to continue for a while longer the blood profits of the U.S. military-industrial complex and to advance Israel's interests by spreading Sunni-Shi'ite conflict throughout the Middle East. The neoconservatives' original plan was to give Israel hegemony in the Middle East by using the U.S. military to overthrow Iraq, Iran, and Syria. The failure of U.S. forces to subdue Iraq has led to a new neoconservative plan to give Israel supremacy by spreading sectarian conflict among Muslims throughout the region. No Arab state would be stable, and Israel could proceed with its seizure of Palestine. If Bush adopts the Keane/Kagan "plan," he should be impeached for putting two special interests – the military-industrial complex and Israeli Zionist settlers – ahead of America's interests and the interests of peace in the Middle East. The crimes of the Bush regime already stand at a horrendous level. There is no support for the Keane/Kagan "plan" in the American political establishment, among Middle East experts and the American public, or within the Bush administration itself. The American electorate, or stolen elections, have put in the presidency an ignorant and moronic person who is guided not by sense and reason but by an enormous ego that can admit no mistake. In the name of a concocted "war on terror," the American public has permitted Bush an endless stream of mistakes. These mistakes are destroying any prospect for peace in the Middle East, committing America to endless and pointless conflict, destroying America's soft power while demonstrating the limits of its military power, creating a domestic police state, and endangering the U.S. dollar. There is no imaginable gain from the Middle Eastern conflict that Bush has initiated that could possibly offset these costs to Americans. The U.S. electorate attempted to rein in Bush in the November election by giving Democrats control of Congress. But Bush refuses to listen to the electorate as he prepares, instead, to mire America deeper in an illegitimate conflict that does not serve America's interests. President George W. Bush is destroying America. Will Congress stop him? "...was considered unacceptable, and Charles was subsequently tried, convicted and executed for high treason." I really liked that bit, judi... I'm looking forward to it. Sorry if that sounds harsh to all you folks who are nicer by nature... "nature nicers." TaHA! Posted by: JoannaOregon on January 3, 2007 07:09 PMBreaking news from David Swanson inside the Capitol: http://www.slate.com/id/2156397/fr/flyout The Bill of WrongsThe 10 most outrageous civil liberties violations of 2006. Sally, if there is kala sarpa yoga personified, http://downwithtyranny.blogspot.com/2007/01/anti-labor-democratic-senators-willing.html ANTI-LABOR DEMOCRATIC SENATORS WILLING TO WORK FOR CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTIONS... FROM BIG BUSINESS Posted by: Pat C on January 3, 2007 08:53 PMhttp://thinkprogress.org/2007/01/03/escalation-political-decision/ CNN reports “President Bush is expected to announce his new Iraq strategy in an address to the nation early next week.” According to the BBC, “The speech will reveal a plan to send more US troops to Iraq.” Last night on NBC News, Jim Miklaszewski reported that the new strategy will be announced next Tuesday, and that an administration official “admitted to us today that this surge option is more of a political decision than a military one.” Just weeks ago, CentCom commander Gen. John Abizaid told Congress “I met with every divisional commander, General Casey, the corps commander, General Dempsey, we all talked together. And I said, in your professional opinion, if we were to bring in more American Troops now, does it add considerably to our ability to achieve success in Iraq? And they all said no.” More... Posted by: Pat C on January 3, 2007 08:59 PMhttp://www.firedoglake.com/2007/01/03/guess-who-is-going-to-dc/ Guess who has press passes to cover the Libbly trial? snip Yep, that is correct: your intrepid pals at Firedoglake, with the more than able assistance of Marcy Wheeler, Emptywheel of The Next Hurrah, and fabulous author of Anatomy of Deceit, and a few other all stars who have talked with us about covering various aspects of the trial process, are headed to DC to cover as much of the trial as we can manage to see and hear. More... Posted by: Pat C on January 3, 2007 09:19 PMRaj, in Hindu astrology Uranus, Neptune and Pluto are not recognized and certainly weren't when the Hindu astrological laws were set up. But a Kala Sarpa Yoga is when all the planets fall between Ketu and Rahu and Saddam doesn't have that condition, his Moon and Mars falls out of position. However, George Bush has a Kala Sarpa Yoga, all of his planets fall between Rahu and Ketu, true some would say he has had a life of misery and failed opportunity just as Saddam did, but they both have also had a life of great success (from their perspective) and power. Except for my clients I rarely spend the time it requires for an indepth personal chart or mapping one's life unless it relates to a world wide event, or historical event, or the US, etc. etc. etc. At this point Saddam's life from birth to death just isn't something I would take the time to do. Even if I did, I wouldn't do it in Hindu Astrology because I've only studied Hindu for about 10 years and just as an adjunct to Western Astrology, I just don't consider myself enough of an expert in the Hindu discipline to draw a complete and conclusive astro picture of a person. Saddam has at this point become a martyr, thanks to the bungling of his execution and Jupiter going over his Moon/Mars conjunction and by February Jupiter hits his North Node making him a star to his people. The US simply must stop staging these events, they have absolutely no talent for making them real, again a lack of imagination or competency. Tom Brokaw said "it's hard to imagine that they could have done a worse job with this execution Posted by: Sally on January 3, 2007 09:21 PMhttp://www.counterpunch.org/roberts01032007.html Post by Paul Craig Roberts, former Reagan Assistant Secretary of Treasury: Bush Cuts and Runs from Reason On January 2 the BBC reported a leak from a "senior administration source" that President George W. Bush is going to give a speech, whose "central theme will be sacrifice," announcing an increase in US troops in Iraq for security purposes. Speculation abounds whether the leak is designed to block Bush's insane policy with protests or to soften its controversial edge when announced. The BBC reports that "already one senior Republican senator has called it Alice in Wonderland." Bush's proposal, if he makes it, is the work of retired army general Jack Keane and Frederic W. Kagan of the American Enterprise Institute. AEI is the second most important Israeli lobby in Washington after AIPAC.
Knowledgeable people regard the Keane/Kagan plan as a proposal designed to continue for a while longer the blood profits of the US military-industrial complex and to advance Israel's interests by spreading Sunni-Shi'ite conflict throughout the Middle East.
The American electorate, or stolen elections, have put in the presidency an ignorant and moronic person who is guided not by sense and reason but by an enormous ego that can admit no mistake. In the name of a concocted "war on terror," the American public has permitted Bush an endless stream of mistakes. These mistakes are destroying any prospect for peace in the Middle East, committing America to endless and pointless conflict, destroying America's soft power while demonstrating the limits of its military power, creating a domestic police state, and endangering the US dollar. There is no imaginable gain from the Middle Eastern conflict that Bush has initiated that could possibly offset these costs to Americans. The US electorate attempted to rein in Bush in the November election by giving Democrats control of Congress. But Bush refuses to listen to the electorate as he prepares, instead, to mire America deeper in illegitimate conflict that does not serve America's interests. President George W. Bush is destroying America. Will Congress stop him? Happy New Year to all! Sally, great article and the parody was shocking but interesting. As far as Saddam's execution on the holiday...I apologize for not knowing the Arabic name, but I did read that it is also known as The Feast of Sacrifice. Is this what Bush is really alluding to? Sally, is there any possibility of Bush not finishing this term? Or a public psychotic break-down? Anything ? I hope that science is not the end of religion...I hope that organized deceit that calls itself religion will end.....I do not believe it possible that humankind will cease spiritual practice. If anything I see a re-emergence of meaningful spiritualality, a reclamation, a rediscovery of much much older ways. Bright Blessings "...George Bush has a Kala Sarpa Yoga, all of his planets fall between Rahu and Ketu, true some would say he has had a life of misery and failed opportunity just as Saddam did, but they both have also had a life of great success (from their perspective) and power." Sally what does this bode? Posted by: Pat C on January 3, 2007 10:46 PMNegroponte will resign his post to become Deputy Secretary of State to Rice. Posted by: Pat C on January 4, 2007 12:41 AMPatC, maybe it's a simple lack of oppositions (awareness) and not having the tempering influence of perspective (or interference) of others (there's an iceberg ahead!). PatC A Kala Sarpa Yoga in Hindu astrology is when all the planets (excluding Uranus, Neptune or Pluto) fall between the North and South Node, meaning there aren't any planets before the NN or after the SN, and in Hindu astrology that indicates a life of misery and hardship, a very difficult life. GWB has actually had that for his own personal self, fortunately for him he has always had someone to bail him out of his life of misery. Course in Hindu astrology there is always another "rule" to soften or erase the original rule, there is in Western astrology as well, we call them aspects. On to other issues, I think Negroponte's appointment as Deputy Secretary might signal Condi's resignation in a few months. Astrologically Negroponte has one of the most cruel and evil charts I have ever seen. Posted by: Sally on January 4, 2007 01:42 AMNegroponte is one of the cruelest and evil government workers we have ever had. His vicious cruelty will be remembered in Central America for generations. And now of course in Iraq. Yes, It always makes me nervous when he starts shifting around on the politicakl chess board! John Negroponte July 21, 1939 12:00am London, Eng. He was asked once for his birthtime and he said close to midnight. Posted by: Sally on January 4, 2007 03:45 AMI don't say this about many people, not even Bush Sr. But Negroponte's spirit is very, very ugly. I wouldn't want to be near him, even in a crowded room. He should never have been allowed into a position of power of any kind. He might as well have been the son of one of Hitler's top SS men in Nazi Germany because he leaves a trail of bloodshed, murder and death in his wake, wherever he goes. A truly nasty and murderous thug if one ever existed. The Hague/ICC was created for this man. Posted by: NEOBuckeye on January 4, 2007 04:52 AMIf you have the time, do over to salon.com, watch the few-seconds commercial and enter so you can read Sidney Blumenthal's latest. It is interesting and provides good historical perspective and then, at the end, he delivers the knock-out punch (as he usually does). Good read. Posted by: shylurker on January 4, 2007 05:14 AMOutstanding article by the author of "Wag the Dog" it's just outstanding and one to make all of us sit up and think http://www.buzzflash.com/articles/contributors/677 I will go Shy, love Blumenthal Posted by: Sally on January 4, 2007 06:38 AM(((wv, Happy Birthay))) Happy Birthday, wv!! A Cap?! Hmmmm. So serious and so funny when making fun of the rule makers and slick because understanding when rules can be ignored. Just a second before I hit the road to the new office (long hours forced transfer) but let me say this about Negroponte OMG!!!! Told my husband that if someone wanted an astrologer to draw up the chart for a villan this would be one chart. I mean Good God!! He must be one stupid SOB to have refused to evolve at all what a vicious caricature. This energy could have been used to heal. Thank you Sally. You explain so well, even I understand the Kala Sarpa Yoga. :-) Thank you also for the date on Negroponte. If I recall correctly, there was some detailed discussion on him in an earlier article, and he was one frightening man. ............. U.S. Bars Lab From Testing Electronic Voting NYT January 4, 2007 A laboratory that has tested most of the nation’s electronic voting systems has been temporarily barred from approving new machines after federal officials found that it was not following its quality-control procedures and could not document that it was conducting all the required tests. ... ............... Posted by Joanne on Salon: http://www.votetrustusa.org:80/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=2145&Itemid=51 Diebold Moves into the Georgia SoS Office by Roxanne Jekot, Countthevote.org – Decmeber 22, 2006 This article was posted at Peach Pulpit. It is reposted with permission of the author. So, those of us who have been watching the Diebold Debacle since 2001, are not at all surprised at today’s developments as reported in the Atlanta Journal Constitution. You see, we fully expected one of the “Cathy’s” to leave office and go to work for Diebold. I bet on Cathy Cox, but we knew the potential was there for the Kathy (with a K) Rogers as well. They were walking advertisements for Diebold all along. It turns out that it is Kathy (with a K) Rogers as reported in today’s Atlanta Journal Constitution: Kathy Rogers, director of the secretary of state’s elections division, resigned Nov. 30 and has accepted a job with Diebold Election Systems, manufacturer of Georgia’s voting machines, according to several state officials. Rogers apparently will serve as a liaison between elections officials throughout the United States and Diebold. But, it gets better…....... Read the Entire Article Posted by: Pat C on January 4, 2007 02:40 PMJohn McCain a Target for All Sides Thursday January 4, 2007 1:16 PM
By LIZ SIDOTI Associated Press Writer WASHINGTON (AP) - Everyone, it seems, is jabbing at John McCain these days - from a Republican rival for the presidential nomination to several potential Democratic candidates. ``When you're the perceived front-runner, your head's above the political trench and everyone takes shots at you,'' said Chris Lehane, a Democratic strategist and presidential campaign veteran. http://www.guardian.co.uk/uslatest/story/0,,-6322211,00.html Posted by: wv on January 4, 2007 03:32 PMFun comparison: Negroponte and Cheney (esp w/C's progressed mars oppo pluto being the least of the excitement). Looks a bit War Of The Worlds-ish when gwpinhead is included in this trio.
Oh, another thing. All the minds here, Sally, Lynda, Negroponte's introduction AND new congress/senate coming in under a void moon (and gw's saturn). Posted by: patb on January 4, 2007 04:09 PM"gwpinhead" ...whaddaHOOT! Posted by: JoannaOregon on January 4, 2007 04:11 PM* The 2006 You Didn't Hear About While many of the big stories in 2006 were bad news, there were hundreds of activist successes in 2006 that permanently changed the world. The big news is usually the bad news, & this year the biggest stories weren't even news--climate change & the war in Iraq were trouble that had begun well before 2006. But dozens of small stories set another tone--the tone of that graffiti in Seattle during the shutdown of the World Trade Org there in 1999: "We are winning"--not the same as "we have won" & can stop; "we are winning" is a call to action. Activists won dozens of small & not-so-small victories for human rights & the environment in 2006. The fabric of the world is woven out of small gestures; the large ones mostly just rend it & leave more to mend. And the small gestures continue. Here are some of them. ... http://www.zmag.org/content/showarticle.cfm?SectionID=1&ItemID=11756 Posted by: JoannaOregon on January 4, 2007 04:30 PM* His Last Hurrah bush Cuts and Runs from Reason On Jan 2 the BBC reported a leak from a "senior adm source" that [rotten-rez] is going to give a speech, whose "central theme will be sacrifice," announcing an increase in US troops in Iraq for security purposes. Speculation abounds whether the leak is designed to block bush's insane policy with protests or to soften its controversial edge when announced. The BBC reports that "already one senior [necroporn] senator has called it Alice in Wonderland." bush's proposal, if he makes it, is the work of retired army general Jack Keane & Frederic W Kagan of the American Enterprise Institute. AEI is the 2nd most important Israeli lobby in Wash after AIPAC. Keane/Kagan profess to believe that 30,000 more US troops can bring security to Iraq. Keane/Kagan argue that more US troops would permit the US military to retain control of an area after they had cleared it of insurgents. They ignore that Iraq has progressed from insurgency into civil war. There can be no Iraqi army independent of the sectarian conflict. The military problem for [USia] is no longer a small insurgency drawn from a minority of the population, but sectarian strife involving all of Iraq. Today the only choice for US forces is to ally with one side or the other in the civil war or to depart Iraq. Knowledgeable people regard the Keane/Kagan plan as a proposal designed to continue for a while longer the blood profits of the US military-industrial complex & to advance Israel's interests by spreading Sunni-Shi'ite conflict thruout the Mid East. The neocons' original plan was to give Israel hegemony in the Mid East by using the US military to overthrow Iraq, Iran, & Syria. The failure of US forces to subdue Iraq has led to a new neocon plan to give Israel supremacy by spreading sectarian conflict among Muslims thruout the region. No Arab state would be stable, & Israel could proceed with its seizure of Palestine ... http://www.counterpunch.org/roberts01032007.html Posted by: JoannaOregon on January 4, 2007 04:38 PM"Activists won dozens of small & not-so-small victories for human rights & the environment in 2006. Joanna, U seddit! There's a huge force of energy behind those "small" (please Your Freakishness, may I have more po-rridge?)gestures. It's the universal language of goodness where we all feel the same wherever we're from. Plus, there's this little matter of global meltdown getting in the way of corporate gluttony. Kinda like poor Mama Cass choking on a ham sandwich on a larger scale. Happy Birthday WV, a very Happy Birthday. I told you that this would be the ONLY time this year that I would say what I really think about you, you can print it out and remind me off and on, but these words will not escape my lips or pen until this time next year. This is what I really think of you WV, you're a kind sensitive and caring man. You have added a great deal of richness to AW with your articles and your words and support of other posters here (well most times)I am most appreciative of the depth of thought you bring and your research has been a great gift to me (so has everyone's on this site, but I'm talking about you) If I've called you a curmudgeon from time to time and cranky, it's only been meant in the kindest of ways. You are one of a kind WV and we all love you here. There, last time you will hear that from me this year. A lovely birthday to you my friend. Don't like this VOC Moon for the swearing in of Congress, little will be accomplished this year. Posted by: Sally on January 4, 2007 05:12 PM* Ambush At Democrat Pass Chaos. That’s what one reporter called it after the House Democratic leadership fled the media stakeout outside the Caucus Room. TV crews with no one to focus on. Angry reporters. Jubilant protesters. Briefing postponed until … sometime. It was meant to be a sober display of the new responsible Democratic power, a reading of the "100 Hours Agenda," a political moment in the limelight before the inevitable conflicts began in the actual legislative process. It certainly seemed like the presentation would unfold as planned. Fashionably late, Rahm Emanuel & Steny Hoyer appeared confidently before the mics massed under Cannon House Office rotunda. They faced a dozen live TV cameras & a 100 domestic & foreign reporters. Emanuel, looking as smooth/rich as a polished cordovan loafer, took the stage & a hush fell. He said all the right things: “move in a new direction,” “changing the relationship between lobbyist & legislator,” “take away gas subsidies,” “The People’s House.” But he got no further than that. ... http://www.tompaine.com/articles/2007/01/03/ambush_at_democrat_pass.php Posted by: JoannaOregon on January 4, 2007 06:07 PM"It's the universal language of goodness where we all feel the same wherever we're from." Beautifully put, patb... I tend to forget that during a malstrom of a few monsters. Posted by: JoannaOregon on January 4, 2007 06:20 PMThanks Joanna for that. Nancy Pelosi officially took her oath at 2:29 PM EST on 01-04-07! Too bad it's under a VOC moon. Posted by: Shadowhawk on January 4, 2007 07:36 PMShe took my breath away, in a good way. Posted by: Pat C on January 4, 2007 07:53 PMA very happy birthday, wv! And Sally, "And Another Leaves. . ." hit the spot. Posted by: karen on January 4, 2007 08:25 PM JoannaO', I saw the sound byte of Rahm and Pelosi being drowned out by chanting protestors, I was NOT impressed with Cindy Sheehan, Codepink, any of it. They were rude, discourteous and didn't give the Dem leadership a chance to speak. They p*(*d me off sufficiently by their actions for me to pull my membership and support for them. I have strongly supported both in the passed, but it looks like to me they are lacking in judgement as to WHO the enemies are. Posted by: Morgana on January 4, 2007 09:32 PMI'm not such a big fan of this Void of Course thing... I can & will use the election chart & get quite a bit of info... & I know we're all... er, "gun-shy" of the Dems, but it was massive change actually because The People were behind it (in SPITE of the cheating machines in great use & so was probably a massive landslide), so we WILL see changes & many changes for the better. Posted by: JoannaOregon on January 4, 2007 09:47 PMThe Dem leadership perhaps should've been ready for something like that, Morgana... I'm not impressed by their "fleeing the scene" either. There're so many inflamed pimples ready to pop that leadership is simply going to have to take a difficult case of bushaAcne into consideration. No big deal. Posted by: JoannaOregon on January 4, 2007 09:52 PMI'm not a big fan of the VOC moon, either--esp. since I have one in my natal chart. But I digress. I suspect that not much will get done in the next two years. Worse yet, I suspect that even if people are disillusioned with Bush, they're not yet disillusioned by the grand deception otherwise known as the conservative movement. I seem to remember that the last several Congresses, since 1997, have convened on VOC moons. This might explain a lot of things about them. The one silver lining I can get out of this is that, if they don't accomplish what we hope they will accomplish, we'll at least have something to blame it on. Posted by: Gina on January 4, 2007 10:05 PMActually, I think Pelosi gets it. She understands Cindy Sheehan's and Code Pink's right to protest the war. It's good to see that they didn't have the ladies dragged out the way the republicans have in the last 6 years, or make them shut up. That's very heartening and speaks volumes for how the Democrats treat protesters. Had it been a Republican at the podium security would have been called in and Sheehan and the others would be in jail right now. Cindy Sheehan and Code Pink are right though. Their chanting is meant to deliver a message for all of us and I'm kind of grateful that they can do it. No matter what day it is we do want the war to be ended now. I'm very sure Pelosi doesn't mind this interruption all that much, since she obviously believes the same thing. Posted by: lunaoscura on January 4, 2007 10:06 PMYeah, I'm quite OK about Cindy Sheehan and protesters doing whatever they need to do to get heard. More and more people are right there with her every day. Oh yeah--one more thing about this VOC moon in Cancer: I seem to remember, I believe it was William Lilly's quote, in my Llewellyn Planetary Guide, that the VOC moons in "the signs of the moon and Jupiter performeth somewhat." Hey, I have to find a silver lining somewhere. Posted by: Gina on January 4, 2007 10:18 PMWASHINGTON - President Bush has quietly claimed sweeping new powers to open Americans' mail without a judge's warrant, the Daily News has learned. The President asserted his new authority when he signed a postal reform bill into law on Dec. 20. Bush then issued a "signing statement" that declared his right to open people's mail under emergency conditions. That claim is contrary to existing law and contradicted the bill he had just signed, say experts who have reviewed it. Bush's move came during the winter congressional recess and a year after his secret domestic electronic eavesdropping program was first revealed. It caught Capitol Hill by surprise. "Despite the President's statement that he may be able to circumvent a basic privacy protection, the new postal law continues to prohibit the government from snooping into people's mail without a warrant," said Rep. Henry Waxman (D-Calif.), the incoming House Government Reform Committee chairman, who co-sponsored the bill. Experts said the new powers could be easily abused and used to vacuum up large amounts of mail. "The [Bush] signing statement claims authority to open domestic mail without a warrant, and that would be new and quite alarming," said Kate Martin, director of the Center for National Security Studies in Washington. Posted by: Pat C on January 4, 2007 10:32 PMhttp://www.rawstory.com/news/2006/Oil_giant_paid_groups_to_mislead_0103.html Oil giant 'paid groups to mislead public' on warming "ExxonMobil Corp. gave $16 million to 43 ideological groups between 1998 and 2005 in a coordinated effort to mislead the public by discrediting the science behind global warming," says the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS), according to an Associated Press article.
A press release by the UCS lists multiple charges against ExxonMobil as outlined in its extensive report. It accuses the oil giant of, among other things: Raising doubts about "indisputable" scientific evidence; more...... Posted by: Pat C on January 4, 2007 11:29 PMhttp://www.mundoweblog.com/palomino/?p=20 you are right Posted by: milf on August 16, 2007 10:43 AMPost a comment
|