Aftermath

I was as freaked as you by the election results, believe me.  Successful astrological prediction requires objectivity, and I didn’t have that, so I didn’t attempt an election prediction.  But I was lulled into a sense of security by the prevailing wisdom that Hillary would win, in spite of a lingering feeling of dread whenever I considered the alternative. 

Now that dread has taken a more concrete form, and like everybody else in the world, I’m looking at least four years of backwards motion.  I’m accustomed to dealing with backwards motion, since all the planets go retrograde occasionally.  Sooner or later, they always go direct again, and move forward into new territory.  I have no doubt that this will happen in the US as well. 

But I’m still feeling a lot of grief.  I’m devastated that we’ll have a racist in the White House, after eight years with the first Black president.  I’m sorrowful that the president will be a misogynist, after a woman came so close to shattering that glass ceiling.  And I’m traumatized by the election of a confirmed con man, during a time when so many are calling for real change. 

Astrologically, I blame it on Neptune, the planet of confusion, illusion and hypnosis.  I feel that a large chunk of the country has been under a sort of spell, and I didn’t credit it because it didn’t touch me, or most of the people I know. 

Yes, for a large part of the last year, Neptune has been squaring Saturn, and so everyone has been looking for a messiah.  Trump was an unlikely leader, all surface and no content, but he recognized that it’s all about the energy you generate, and he was good at exciting crowds, especially through corralling and focusing anger.  Seen from the outside, his rallies looked eerily like the Third Reich, but experienced from the inside, they must have been as satisfying as a good work-out (although I’m sure for some people, some sick feelings lingered a while). 

People egg each other on.  And when a huckster can tap into mob mind, and get everybody yelling and screaming the same words, he’s got a lot of power at his fingertips.  With the election over, this energy is still emerging in the increased amount of harassment on the street.  This is not a myth.  A friend of mine, an almost-bald cancer survivor, has been threatened on the street because some men saw her as too androgynous.  This was in Maryland, but there are reports like this from all over the country.   

Will Trump keep fueling this anger during his presidency?  Will he keep his mob focused on a common enemy?  He’s more likely to cause pain to his own followers than to actually hurt the objects of their ire.  There will still be as many brown-skinned people sending their kids to school, as many women calling out sexual harassment, as many gay people marching, but it will be many of his own supporters who suddenly lose their health insurance or their Medicare benefits. 

But there are ways, used by all politicians, to distract voters from all the ways they’re being screwed.  One is war.  Trump may not be smart enough to think of that, but the people around him will.  So that does worry me. 

The upcoming aspect activity is setting a tone for the coming year.  There are two exact aspects in December, and both of them will be repeated twice more during 2017.  Both involve Uranus, the planet of change.  One aspect riles Uranus up, while the other settles it down.  So this is the pattern in December, and a continuing pattern.  One day, everybody is in an uproar, and the next day, calmer minds prevail.  Then, a little while later, there’s another uproar. 

The calming influence is the trine between Saturn, planet of structure, and Uranus.  This is a fiery trine, so it’s not exactly mellow, but it does harness the innovative energy of Uranus, and move it towards organizing, building systems, and long-range planning.  

This could be a description of what progressive people will be doing.  It’s a slow, steady campaign of anchoring a particular philosophy to real-life consequences.  It involves taking responsibility for specific things, educating yourself and others, and combining new technology with established wisdom.  Everyone will be practicing and teaching, but even with many shared objectives, this is not about buying into a group mind. There’s a lot of scope for individual freedom and initiative. 

This aspect doesn’t just influence political movements.  There will be plenty of business people who are able to combine a structured plan and an exciting vision of the future.  Even if the US government maintains a regressive approach to global warming, there are many individuals who will carry on towards a cleaner, greener future.  There will be both independent efforts and some loose coordination.  This movement may not involve as much screaming and yelling as the other side, but it could still be a pretty exciting place for a young innovator.

And then there’s the other aspect, the one that shakes things up, an opposition between Jupiter and Uranus.  This is all about the rebellious, restless energy of Uranus, so it signals some pitched battles.  The confrontations that are forming in December will be forerunners of those we’ll see in 2017. 

For one thing, the legal challenges that the Trump administration will have to parry may be considerable.  Already, there’s a bump in questions about Trump’s conflicts of interest, the relationship between his businesses and his new position, and some of these come from sources that are harder to ignore.  Would Trump give up his businesses to keep the presidency?  Somehow, I don’t think so.    

For progressive movements, this Jupiter/Uranus opposition signals situations in which the message can be broadcast more dramatically, through action.  We already see this at Standing Rock, where people are protecting their homes and water supply, but also making a powerful statement against additional oil delivery infrastructure.   

I’m not sure how this can end well, however, once we have a Trump presidency.  I worry that an unsympathetic president will use the indigenous people as political footballs, reviving that old cowboy vs. Indian storyline for his own use.  Remember, his supporters are happiest when they can vent their rage at a target.   

But if anything, the explosive Jupiter/Uranus opposition shows that people will not take suppression lying down.  People will be standing up and fighting for the things that matter to them.  And whether we win or lose the open battles, the organizing work will resume, a vast underground network of practical, concentrated intention.  

Storms can come along and shake a tree, and sometimes they can topple it.   But it’s the length and depth of the roots that give it stability.  So for this month, and for the next year, my advice to everyone is to find your place somewhere in those roots.