Astrology of Today’s News

   The mythic status of the Kennedy family in the USA is well-trodden ground and a new CNN series American Prince: JFK Jr about the tragic son of Jackie and JFK killed in a plane crash when he was 39 apparently does little to dull the starry image. The reality is, as ever, another story altogether.

  Trawling through the Kennedy family charts what is notable is the prominence of Fixed stars.

 John F Kennedy Jnr, 25 November 1960 12.22am Washington DC, had his Midheaven exactly conjunct and Pluto square Aldebaran, one of the four Royal stars, of which Astrology King remarks – A splendid and illustrious life; glorious, mighty and commanding nature; fame, busy with many activities, bountiful resources. Prosperity from youth. Honour preferment, good fortune and favors from women.

 His 12^th house Uranus was also conjunct Alphard, the Fixed star which can give artistic appreciation, also strong passions, lack of self- control, and a sudden death by drowning, poison or asphyxiation. In particular Uranus conjunct Alphard can bring disgrace through love affairs, bad for marriage, downfall through love disappointment.

 Carolyn Bessette, 7 January 1966 8.45pm New York, to whom he had an ill-starred marriage that was on the rocks after three years just as both were killed in the plane crash, has no Fixed star aspects; though her full-on, recklessly enthusiastic Mars Venus in Aquarius conjunct her Ascendant and Uranus Pluto in her 8^th hints at a troubled and out-of-control personality. Their wedding on 21 September 1996 had the North Node conjunct Vindemiatrix, the widow maker. Their relationship chart had the composite Jupiter conjunct shipwrecking Scheat.

  Their deaths on 16 July 1999 6pm Martha’s Vineyard MA, had Vindemiatrix hovering around the Midheaven and the Cancer Sun was conjunct Procyon, Fixed star of rise and fall.

One generation back. John F. Kennedy, 29 May 1917 3pm Brookline, MA, had rise-and-fall Procyon on his Midheaven, his Gemini Sun conjunct Aldebaran, his 8^th house financial/sexual Jupiter was conjunct the destructive star Algol; and shipwrecking Scheat was conjunct his Chiron in his 6^th house of health.

Sun conjunct Aldebaran gives great energy and perseverance, high material honors but the danger of losing them, danger from quarrels and the law, honor, and riches ending in disgrace and ruin, liable to disease, fevers, and violent death. Gains may be great, but always lurking in the background, even in the shadow of success is a loss, sometimes a tremendous loss. Violence is possible. Will gain a leading position but also will make enemies through whom danger will threaten.

Jackie Kennedy, 28 July 1929 2.30pm Southampton, New York, had Regulus conjunct her Midheaven and Neptune with Alphard close by.  Regulus on the Midheaven raises the individual to a high position in life, far exceeding the environment they were born into. Connections with rulers or famous people. A splendid and illustrious life. Neptune conjunct Regulus: Prominent leader, influential friends, few if any enemies, domestic harmony, natural death in old age.

 But the relationship chart between JFK and Jackie has Saturn conjunct Vindemiatrix square Pluto exactly – with the composite Pluto conjunct a composite New Moon on one side and Mars on the other. Saturn conjunct Vindemiatrix suggests secret difficulties with marriage partner.

 JFK’s Inauguration chart, 20 January 1961 12.45pm Washington, DC, if the time is accurate, had Algol conjunct the Ascendant and Uranus conjunct Alphard. The latter as above with JFK Jnr – strong passions, lack of self-control, disgrace through love affairs, bad for marriage, and a sudden death.

When JFK died in Dallas on 22 November 1963 around 1 pm Aldebaran was conjunct the IC and Regulus conjunct the Descendant.

  The Kennedys certainly provide a crash course in Fixed stars. Whether it reinforces the notion of the Curse of the Kennedys, or an indication that being intertwined with the Fixed stars makes for a noteworthy life, good and bad, I am not sure.

The indefatigable actor Brian Cox, born two weeks before Donald Trump, is still going full tilt. He’s just off stage playing the 18th-century economist Adam Smith; has this year released several films, plus his own directorial debut of Glenrothan with Alan Cummings, as well bizarrely as fronting a reality show  007: Road to a Million; continued his long-running radio series McLevy; and was planning a touring one-man show called It’s All About Me! Until his family suggested he might be overdoing it.

 In a decades-long career he’s played Winston Churchill, Pablo Picasso, Titus Andronicus, Stalin, Göring, Trotsky, J Edgar Hoover, King Lear and Hannibal Lecter but it was Logan Roy in the television Succession which brought him international recognition. It was popular with critics and award-givers, less so with audiences, but was a publicity juggernaut

 Cox, born 1 June 1946, had a fractured upbringing with his father dying when he was eight, and his mother, often hospitalised with mental-health problems. One of his three elder sisters looked out for him but he often slept at the local theatre where he started work at 14.

 He says: “The irony was, I was very free. I had no parents and nobody to tell me what to do, so I just got on with it. I had to make up my own rules, and I think that’s why I have the sort of drive that I have, because I realised there was nobody around to help me. It was very exciting – I had a great time as a kid.”

  He has a much travelled and communicative 9^th house Gemini Sun, Mercury, Uranus sextile a heavyweight 11^th house Pluto and Mars in Leo. His 10^th house Cancer Moon conjunct Venus suits him for a public career and gives him a modicum of charm to offset his bombastic Mars in Leo. His Moon squares a 1^st house Neptune and his Venus squares Jupiter so he will have an actor’s chameleon-like ability to inhabit different characters. His Jupiter is trine his Midheaven and North Node and sextile Mars for high-vitality and luck. His Saturn in Cancer in his 10^th makes him a good organiser; though in square to Jupiter he will be more prone to ups and downs than his robust remarks suggest.

  He has Trump’s mouthiness, perhaps boosted by his Mars in Leo, and Gemini Mercury sextile Pluto, but despite his Logan Roy success in Succession dislikes Trump and the wealthy, being a resolute socialist.

 At the recent Edinburgh Book Festival he was letting loose about Mel Gibson’s Braveheart movie in which he played the uncle of the 14^th Century William Wallace who fought for Scotland’s independence. He described it as a “lie”,  reinforcing the general view that it had been historically inaccurate. Despite which it won multiple awards and boosted the Scottish nationalist cause.

  He signed off a recent interview with a memorably Mars-in-Leo salvo: “People snipe at me but I’m too old, too tired and too f—ing talented to care.”

  His actor’s 15th Harmonic is certainly outstanding with a New Moon in a T square to Venus and Saturn; Jupiter, Neptune Mercury tied together in another T square; the Midheaven boosted by Jupiter and Pluto; plus a strained yod of Mars sextile Mercury inconjunct Pluto.

 He has been married three times, the last since 2002 and has several children.

 With Saturn rising above his Descendant and an extra-successful Jupiter moving through his career 10^th for the next year he does not look like slowing down much. Though tr Saturn Neptune square his Moon may give him pause for thought.

George Reid, former Presiding Officer and founder member of the Scottish Parliament, who has just died at 86, was that rare animal, a politician with a background in the real world.

 Initially an award winning journalist and TV producer, he became an SNP MP for several years, campaigning for devolution, before prompting a no confidence motion against the Labour government which led to Margaret Thatcher winning in 1979. He lost his seat and went back to television,  producing the reportage by Michael Buerk of the Ethiopian famine of 1984 that inspired the Band Aid and Live Aid charity campaigns. This led to his being headhunted by the International Red Cross where he spent 12 years as head of information for the Red Cross and then director of its International Campaign for Victims of War, working worldwide in conflict and disaster zones. He headed the international relief effort in Armenia after the 1988 earthquake which killed up to 50,000 people and left 130,000 needing medical attention.

  His second political stint saw him elected as an MSP for the new Holyrood government, serving as presiding officer during the troubled construction of the new building. An obituary said: “his intellect, talent for diplomacy and personal charm made him at once an establishment figure and a politician beloved of the national movement.”  Latterly after a bout of ill health, he became a visiting academic, an independent reviewer of public bodies, and the Queen’s representative to the Church of Scotland.

  Having worked under George in his stint in STV in the late 1960s what fascinated me about his later career was his knack/talent for being in at the centre of the zeitgeist – whether being the trigger for Labour losing the 1979 election, Live Aid, global disasters, and devolution.  I did not agree with his politics but he was a pivotal figure.

   He was born 4 June 1939 near Stirling, Scotland and had an extraordinarily tough chart that belied his looks. His journalistic talents came courtesy of a communicative Gemini Sun and Mercury sextile Jupiter.  That was part of a Half Grand Sextile of Mars in determined Aquarius opposition Pluto sextile Mercury conjunct Aldebaran sextile Jupiter. His formidable Mars opposition Pluto was square Saturn in self-reliant Aries which gave him courage and a hard core. His Venus Uranus in Taurus trine Neptune was restless and innovative.

 It was a chart which suited his work with the Red Cross since Mars Pluto Saturn is designed to cope in crises.

  His communicative Mercury in Gemini exactly conjunct the Fixed Star Aldebaran is interesting since it can give “honor, intelligence, eloquence, steadfastness, integrity, popularity, courage, a responsible position, public honors and gain of power”. “The star is said to presage individuals who are “restless and riotous, always stirring up popular dissent and revolution.” The star is also said to inflame the minds of the people with furious quarrels, and to be an enemy of quiet and peace, “madly desiring civil and domestic wars.” [Astrology King.]

Henry Kissinger also had Mercury conjunct Aldebaran, as does Prince William.

 The original Act of Union which bound Scotland to England has Saturn exactly conjunct Aldebaran, which is not considered positive.

  My political prejudice may be showing through but I never understood his fascination for the SNP since he was an internationalist at heart and his chart does not gell with the SNP chart. Maybe his emphasized self-reliant Saturn in Aries persuaded him that the country of his birth needed to stand on its own two feet.

  He said of devolution that Scotland was now a country where “if we make mistakes they are our mistakes, and we can no longer blame anyone else”. Pity Nicola Sturgeon was/is not listening.

There are fears of a retreat away from a civilized stance on same sex marriage in the USA with a plea to the Supreme Court to overrule a 2015 landmark decision making it a fundamental right.

 Kim Davis, a former Kentucky county clerk who was jailed for six days in 2015 after refusing to issue marriage licenses to a gay couple on religious grounds is on the legal war path seeking to overturn the Obergefell v Hodges ruling which extended marriage rights for same-sex couples under the 14th Amendment’s due process protections.

 There have been various steps along the way of legalizing same sex marriages across all states in the USA since 2004. The most recent 26 June 2015 is showing signs of distress with the Mars Sun conjunction in early Cancer catching the tr Saturn Neptune square exactly now and into 2026; continuing into 2027. Plus over this winter tr Uranus opposition the Saturn in Scorpio pitting progressives against reactionaries.

 Kim Davis, 17 September 1965 9.45pm Morehead, Kentucky,  belongs to a fundamentalist Christian movement, which favors a literal interpretation of the Bible. She has said she believes that “we are living in end times.” And reinforced her view that the Bible is infallible.

 Despite her piety she has been married four times to three husbands with a variety of children, some born within wedlock, others not. Shortly after the same-sex marriage license controversy, she switched from the Democratic Party to the Republican Party.

 She was born 6 days after Bashar Assad, the former Syrian dictator, and has Saturn in Pisces in her 10th opposition Uranus Pluto in Virgo conjunct Mercury in her 4^th square a Gemini Moon on her Ascendant. Highly strung, emotionally reactive, scattered, erratic.  She also has Mars Neptune in vengeful Scorpio square her Midheaven and trine her Saturn.

 Her Mercury conjunct Pluto echoes the USA’s dogmatic, intransigent Mercury opposition Pluto, making the country susceptible to rabble rousers with dinosaur brains.

  Tr Saturn and Neptune are square her 1^st house Jupiter across the winter denting her confidence. Further ahead she will face a life-changing series of devastating calamities in 2027/28 as her Solar Arc Uranus Pluto conjunct her Mars Neptune.

  Although her plea to the Supreme Court seems outlandish and absurd, there are worrisome crossovers. Both she and SCOTUS, 24 September 1789, have Saturn in Pisces (= regretful about the past); both have Venus in early Scorpio; and her determined, publicity-seeking Mars Neptune is conjunct SCOTUS North Node and square its Pluto – though that could swing either way.

 Her relationship chart with SCOTUS points to movement over the winter though not maybe in her favour but there looks to be continuing pressure for two/three years ahead. Given the justices who are “originalists”, sticking to the mandates issued 250 years ago, anything is possible.

  Davis’ relationship chart with the USA looks deflated in 2026 but again is likely to be still causing ripples into 2027.

  I know Cancer clings onto the past (tho’ I know several who are very forward looking) but I struggle to understand why the USA is so vulnerable to ??? – creationism for heaven’s sake; and other whacko religious zealots plus anti-government militias. All western countries have all these bizarros in odd pockets but nowhere near as visibly.

Princess Anne, having her 75^th birthday this week, is catching rave reviews in contrast to her younger brother Andrew.  In the course of 2024, she was the busiest royal, carrying out 474 official engagements despite being hospitalised in June for concussion. Reliable, unfussy, devoted to her late mother and a reassuring support for her elder brother King Charles, she shows no signs of flagging.

 Born 15 August 1950 11.50 am London, she has an influential and controlling 10^th house Sun Pluto in Leo; with a dutiful, socially conscious Moon in Virgo conjunct Mercury and Saturn in her 11^th.  She also has a self-protective Water Grand Trine of a confident Jupiter in compassionate Pisces in her 5^th house which rules sport and children trine an adventurous-travel 9^th house Uranus trine a formidably determined Mars in Scorpio in her 1^st house.

 Her Solar Arc Sun was conjunct her Mars in 2022 when Queen Elizabeth 11, her mother, died with her Solar Arc Pluto following behind to hit the conjunction to her Mars in late 2026. So a longish period of high stress and frustration – which her accident, being kicked in the head by one of her horses at grass would be part. It happened when her Solar Arc Sun/Pluto midpoint crossed over her Mars. She has also had her Progressed Moon moving through her 8^th house for almost two years exiting in February 2026 which can be heavy-going and a time of serious inner reflection.  

  At the time of her accident which appears to have been more serious than advertised, tr Neptune was just into her 6^th house and over the conjunction to her late Pisces North Node, being joined by tr Saturn from April of this year. She always looks incredibly healthy but she will be more aware of her physical limits through this phase until Saturn exits her 6^th in early 2028. She does have tr Jupiter moving through her 9^th at the  moment to lift her enthusiasm and then across her successful 10^th from July 2026 for a year thereafter. But that runs alongside tr Pluto opposing her Midheaven through 2025/26 which will bring forced changes in her direction. Tr Pluto then moves into her 4^th house from 2026 onwards when she will be faced with ongoing emotional changes within herself and her the family and domestic setup for many years to come.

 Tr Uranus square her Jupiter will bring luck and moments of confidence and enthusiasm in 2026/27 which will reverberate round her Water Grand Trine to good effect.

  Although she was supposed to be closer to her father, her relationship with QE11 was the crucial one with her mother relying heavily on her after the Buckingham Palace break in and Anne’s obvious sorrow in 2022 when she accompanied the Royal coffin from Balmoral to London. Her mother’s Taurus Sun fell in Anne’s 7^th for a close partnership with her Neptune Moon falling in Anne’s 10^th conjunct her Sun and Pluto.

 Their relationship chart had a reassuring composite Moon opposition Jupiter square Venus North Node; plus a steady composite Sun trine Saturn and trine Jupiter.

 Anne sat with her mother in the 24 hours before she died in September 2022 when the transiting Virgo Sun was exactly conjunct Anne’s Moon.

  All of her close family relationships will be undergoing challenges in the next several years. Andrew, I suspect, she wrote off earlier this year when tr Uranus was conjunct their composite Sun square Pluto. With Charles there will be continuing concerns from now onwards peaking in 2028 if not before. With Prince William, she has an up and down connection, veering from highs to critical lows. Again there will be a drift of uncertainty over the next two years.

Edward, her youngest brother, she finds tricky with a cool composite Sun opposition Saturn square Pluto and there will be tensions on that front through the next four years.  

 Her Solar Return for the year ahead catches the volatile Kite of the moment with Uranus in the 7^th trine Pluto in the 3^rd trine a hard-working Mars in the 10^th opposition Neptune Saturn in the 4^th. Which looks exhausting frankly.

  Tr Uranus square her Sun/Moon midpoint in 2026/27 hints at either changes in her marriage or an internal psychological shift. She has been married to naval officer Tim Laurence for 33 years. There are some adjustments ongoing in that relationship over the coming year – so she’ll have her hands full coping with tensions on various fronts.

Gaza is an unbearable horror show; stalwart Ukraine is no nearer expelling the invaders; the USA is being dismantled under a military dictatorship; UK is in despairing chaos under a rudderless (and control-freaky) government; the EU are up against the wall, southern locations under threat of overheating/wildfires and on and on and on. It was not supposed to be like this.

  Pluto and Uranus into Air signs should have brought intellectual insight, awareness and enlightenment – Saturn Neptune in Aries the urge to improve society and support the underdog.   

 Netanyahu, Trump and Putin are on a might-makes-right high, all selfish ambition and just-because-I-can. Elsewhere there is an unnerving lack of effective leadership.

  Grasping at straws, might it be Neptune’s swansong in Pisces conjunct the shipwrecking Fixed Star Scheat, in place till late January 2026, which is in part the chaos creator?

 Scheat can bring – stubbornness, is headstrong of a combative nature, wins and loses friends, may be unfortunate, a changeable, unpredictable nature, has high enterprise, and may be subject to violence. Fantasizes. [Astrology King]

  The March 2025 Solar Eclipse had the North Node, Venus and Neptune all conjunct Scheat in a violent Saros series.

  The approaching September 2025 Solar Eclipse has the New Moon in final degree Virgo in a downbeat opposition to Saturn, Scheat and Neptune in Aries in a worrisome, health-related, low energy Saros Series. Plus a can-be-ruthless/violent Pluto square Mars as well as three yods onto focal points Neptune, Mars and Venus respectively – which sounds stressful, indecisive, and much of the same as went before.

  Which reflects the paralysis in the Israel/Gaza, Ukraine charts and indeed the USA chart which is battling headwinds from the Solar Arc Sun square SA Saturn colliding with the natal Mars square Neptune from last year until early 2027.

 Where the eclipse effect brightens is by February 2026 with the Aquarius Solar Eclipse in a high-energy, constructive Saros series, bringing unification within relationships and idealism. It still won’t be wonderful with Algol conjunct Uranus square the Sun; and Scheat lingering close to Saturn Neptune in Aries – but slowly slowly it will get better.

  By late August 2026 the North Node reverses out of Pisces (and away from Scheat) into Aquarius staying till early 2028 which will also help, since it is likely to promote causes and humanitarian activism.

 It will take till 2027 for the USA to sail into calmer waters. By early 2027 the UK will be clear of the disruptive tr Uranus square Pluto and even better tr Uranus will be moving out of the UK 8^th house into less erratic financial circumstances. The EU will have cleared the punishing Solar Arc Pluto opposition its Moon and square Uranus of the moment; and the upheavals of tr Uranus square Pluto in 2026 (though their challenges will not disappear as the decade wears on.)

  It all sounds like jam tomorrow but there are astro-hints that once over the hurdle of Neptune loosening its grip on Pisces, and Scheat receding into the distance there should be gradual improvements through next year – with hopes that the benefits of Pluto Uranus in Air and Neptune Saturn in Fire may start to bear fruit into 2027 and beyond.

Six journalists were killed in a targeted Israeli attack that brought condemnation from the UN’s human rights office, Reporters Without Borders, the Foreign Press Association and the Committee to Protect Journalists. Five were Al Jazeera journalists, one of whom the Israeli military alleged had “served as the head of a terrorist cell in Hamas”. The CPJ said: “Israel has a longstanding, documented pattern of accusing journalists of being terrorists without providing any credible proof.” The lead journalist killed in some of his recent social media posts had criticized Hamas. CPJ says at least 186 journalists have been killed since the start of Israel’s military offensive in Gaza in October 2023 – the deadliest period for journalists since it began recording such data in 1992.

 Al Jazeera was founded on 1 November 1996 in Qatar, as a satellite TV channel delivering Arabic news and current affairs, but has since evolved into a multifaceted media network. It receives public funding from the Qatar government. While critics view Al Jazeera Arabic as being influenced by Qatar’s foreign policy, Al Jazeera English is seen as editorially independent. The network has often been targeted by foreign governments upset with its reporting.

 It has a penetrating, determined Scorpio Sun and Mercury in an upbeat sextile to Jupiter on one side and sextile Mars on the other; with tough-minded Pluto trine Saturn in Aries sextile Uranus in Aquarius (and Neptune). A high-drama, good-in-crisis Mars square Pluto; and a wideish yod of Mars sextile Mercury inconjunct Saturn.

 When the October 7^th Hamas attack took place tr Saturn in Pisces was exactly opposition the Al Jazeera Mars and moving to square the Pluto – pulling Al Jazeera into the centre of the action.

The Israeli government does not allow international news organisations, including the BBC, into Gaza to report freely, so many outlets rely on Gaza-based reporters for coverage.

  With the Al Jazeera yod focal point Saturn in Aries assailed by tr Saturn conjunct for its Return into early 2026; and tr Neptune conjunct the Saturn on and off till early 2027, it will continue to move through highly uncertain times. Tr Uranus is exactly square the Mars for this killing and that will be in place also through 2026 until early 2027.

  The Al Jazeera/Israel relationship chart, always hostile and fraught at the best of times, with a toxic composite Mars Pluto conjunction; and doubt-ridden, suspicious Saturn opposition Neptune will be worsening dramatically through this winter and on as tr Uranus squares the composite Mars and the Mars/Pluto midpoint; and opposes the Neptune throughout 2026 – nerve-stretched and high risk.

  There seems to be no end to this deathly quagmire in any direction.

‘Britain is not a broken society’ runs one viewpoint – in complete contrast to ‘ many of the preconditions for civil war exist in Britain today.’

 The first stance says crime is way down from the 1990s, there are no blackouts, fewer strikes and an economy which is better than our close neighbours. “The country has serious problems but the right’s vision of it has become hysterical.”

The second complains that ‘the British state will now imprison locals over online bursts of purely rhetorical frustration, while giving rapists a rap on the wrist.’ Plus immigration that is wreaking demographic havoc, bringing in clashing traditions. Unfairness about a free water-taxi service, putting low-skilled, overwhelmingly male foreign citizens in four-star hotels. Ten million working-age inhabitants on benefits, over a million are foreign-born.’ (Lionel Shriver, now in Portugal).

  David Betz, an in-vogue academic of the moment has looked at studies on social cohesion, civil war causation theory and social attitudes surveys. He argues that elite overreach ( most recently Boris Johnson’s turbo-charging of immigration against the wishes of the electorate), factional polarization (Muslim v white nationalism), a collapse in trust, economic pressures, and the perceived downgrading of the majority population in a previously homogeneous society, are all present in contemporary Britain.

 Mercifully he concludes ‘Britain is unlikely to reach phase three: the offensive phase. This is when the insurgent groups are strong enough to challenge government forces.’

 Two astro-influences are eye-catching on the UK chart. The first is tr Pluto in Aquarius trine the UK Uranus in Libra, through 2024/25.

Previous Pluto in an Air sign; In Libra in 1971 for a conjunction with the UK Uranus – introduction of decimal currency, the first postal workers’ strike, and the start of the Open University.

Pluto in Gemini in 1882 –  the beginning of the Anglo-Egyptian War. Attempt to assassinate Queen Victoria. The Married Women’s Property Act passed, granting women the right to own property.

 Nothing too outstanding.  What is much more to the point is tr Uranus moving to square the UK Pluto at 2 degrees Pisces picking up from June 2026 and running to April 2027.

Looking back at previous Uranus hard aspects to that Pluto – and the record is replete with riots.

Uranus Pisces conjunct the UK Pluto: In 1919, significant social and political upheaval in the aftermath of World War I – race riots in major port cities, widespread industrial unrest, and the lingering effects of the Spanish Flu pandemic.

Uranus in Pisces 2003 –  most notably just as Uranus moved into Pisces, 1.5 million turned out on the streets in London to indicate their opposition to Tony Blair’s involvement in Iraq; and there were other widespread anti-war protests. 

Uranus in Gemini square the UK Pluto: In 1858 – riots in Belfast, sparked by a procession following a funeral. The clashes between Protestants and Catholics involved stone-throwing and continued for several days, leading to a strong police presence. Additionally, there were incidents of machine-breaking and wage-related unrest in Kent and Sussex during the same period. 

In 1941 – intense bombing raids during the Blitz. Rationing was introduced, and conscription expanded. 

Uranus Sagittarius square the UK Pluto: 1981 the Toxteth riots in inner-city Liverpool, which arose in part from long-standing tensions between the local police and the black community. They followed the Brixton riot earlier that year and were part of the 1981 England riots.

In 1897 – protests related to women’s rights and vaccinations. The Cambridge protest, fueled by opposition to women receiving university degrees, involved the public mutilation of a woman on a bicycle effigy and celebrations with confetti, fireworks, and other items. 

Uranus in Virgo opposition the UK Pluto:In 1961  protests and racial tensions, but no large-scale riots. The Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND) organized marches, including one from Wethersfield to London. 

In 1878 – the Bury and Blackburn riots, cotton mill workers’ protests over low wages, and the Bristol riots, triggered by the House of Lords rejecting the Reform Bill. The Bristol riots involved looting and burning of buildings, while the Bury and Blackburn riots saw workers attacking factories and homes. 

 On the basis of past experience 2026 looks to be a year when there will be social unrest and widespread demonstrations and possibly riots.

The arrests after the Palestine Action demonstration, many of them over sixty, are a nonsense and an outrage. See previous post: Palestine Action – rights and wrongs 24th June 2025.

 “A phrase that is circulating in various fraught debates at the moment – “when good people fail to act, bad men take over” – seems relevant. Anger over the plight of Palestinians is more than legitimate. But the mainstream frowns, winces and does nothing creating a vacuum into which the zealots leap, carrying on the fight in often anti-social ways.”

Putting a finger on cultural pulse of the moment throws up depressingly pointless stories. One such is actress, model and brand promoter Syndey Sweeney, lauded to the heavens by Trump as “hot” and a Republican to boot, ruffling feathers with her comments on her blue-eyed genes to sell – ahem – jeans, and promoting the kind of boobs and hair image that #metoo was supposed to have banished.

  The pro-Maga lobby have adopted the advert as being another triumph in their war on woke. Sweeney is a “registered Republican”, according to Donald Trump, while liberals have accused the jeans firm American Eagle of promoting eugenics and endorsing white supremacy. Feminists also say the relentless, regressive objectification of Sweeney’s body has set back their cause.

 None of which matters a jot but she does have an intriguing chart which is anything but frothy.

  Born 12 September 1997 12.42pm Spokane, Washington, with her mother a former criminal lawyer, she started young in acting, becoming known as Cassie Howard, a promiscuous teen, in the Gen Z favourite Euphoria, was in the first series of The White Lotus.  As leading lady, her first romantic comedy Anyone But You grossed more than $220mn. She has also amassed a string of endorsements: Baskin-Robbins, Guess Originals, Miu Miu, Laneige as well as the “natural personal care” brand Dr. Squatch.      

  She has a career-oriented 10^th house Virgo Sun North Node conjunct Midheaven sextile an uber-determined Mars in Scorpio inconjunct Saturn in Aries in her entertaining 5^th house. A yod focal point Saturn can trip up and be self-defeating if it transgresses society’s rules (the sensible ones). With Saturn in the 5^th she sounds more likely to become a mover and shaker in the organizational side of the dramatic business.

  She has a defensive, difficult-to-get-to-know Pluto on her Ascendant; and a quick witted 3^rd house Uranus and Jupiter in Aquarius as well as a vague Neptune close to her 2^nd house Capricorn Moon.

 She will be facing a few hitches and glitches ahead with her Solar Arc Saturn (yod) opposing her Mars in 2027 which will bring a life changing moment – a setback to shift her onto a different trajectory. Which may or may not having anything to do with her entanglement with Trump/MAGA. Her relationship chart with Trump is extremely odd for someone who professes support. There is a power-struggling, can-turn-toxic composite Mars Pluto sextile Sun Mercury and trine Saturn – and that is heavy duty. The composite Mars Pluto also opposes Uranus and squares the composite Moon which doubles the jeopardy. With Saturn opposition Neptune. That will also be seriously rattled before the end of his present term. She may come to regret being held on high as a Trump “hottie”.

  Apropos of not much, I never understand why models have this vapid look in photos with dead eyes as if they (or the photographer) thinks is sexy.

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Photo: 10 month old Jack Russell Bertie having a stand off with a snow leopard in a David Attenborough documentary. Cats, dogs, horses and anything furry gets an immediate response.