Posts by Alex Miller

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The USA Pluto Return: You Ain’t Seen Nuthin’ Yet

In 2022 the United States is undergoing a profound and deeply transformative period in its development, namely the return of Pluto to its natal degree.  Pluto’s orbit is roughly 248 years, so this is a cosmic event that no human has ever experienced, but it can occur for longer-lived entities such as nation-states.  The historical record for what transpires at these times is mixed at best, and subject also to such interruptions and mutations as major political reorganization.  (Is it really valid, for example, to continue using a chart for the Norman Conquest of England for today’s United Kingdom, a different political entity entirely, albeit with a titular head-of-state whose ancestry dates back to those days?)  As well, when such charts are used, we may see recurrent themes under successive Pluto Returns for the same country, but not necessarily among all countries.

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B is for Bridge, C is for Cat: A Biden Astro-Primer

Don’t you ever wonder how this all works?  I know I do.  After 15+ years of intense engagement with asteroids, I’m no closer to an answer, but sometimes I like to revel in how even the most mundane of mundane events can be reflected in the stars.  On January 28th, two Biden-related stories made the news – a bridge in Pittsburgh, PA collapsed just hours before a presidential visit touting the need for repair of crumbling infrastructure; and the White House acquired a new furry occupant, a grey tabby cat with jade-green eyes named Willow.

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Breyer Resigns

A huge sigh of audible relief went up from progressive circles on Wednesday, 26 January, 2022, when the story broke that Stephen Breyer, Associate Justice of the US Supreme Court, would resign at the end of this term.  Breyer, 83, had been balking at political pressure to remove himself from office while the Democrats still marginally control the Senate, so his seat would not pass into conservative hands at a later date. 

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The Russia-Ukraine Crisis

Tensions continue to increase on the border between Ukraine and Russia, where more than 100,000 Russian troops have recently been stationed, in what appears to be a build-up to an invasion.  Russia began a piecemeal takeover of its neighbor in 2014 with the annexation of Crimea, followed by further border incursions into adjoining Ukrainian enclaves dominated by its military and local separatist groups wanting to reunite the two nations, as they were under Soviet hegemony.  Reports that families of Russian diplomatic staffers in Ukraine were evacuated in early January heightened the sense of impending crisis.

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Oath Keepers Leader Charged in January 6th Insurrection

On January 13, 2022, a year and a week after the event, the US Justice Department issued its first indictments for seditious conspiracy related to the Epiphany coup attempt in the final days of Donald Trump’s presidency.  Elmer “Stewart” Rhodes, founder and leader of the right-wing militia group Oath Keepers, was among eleven members of the group charged in what prosecutors described as an organized, preplanned plot to storm the Capitol on January 6th last year, to disrupt and prevent the certification of Joe Biden’s electoral victory.

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Vaxman vs The Djoker

Serbian tennis phenom Novak Djokovic may have thrown a spanner into his quest for a new world record as the winningest Grand Slam champion of all time.  Djokovic is in a three-way tie with Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, with 20 titles each, but he may have stubbed his toe with his COVID anti-vax stance, which may prevent him from competing in the Australian Open, beginning January 17.  Australia’s response to the coronavirus pandemic has been notoriously strict, with county-wide lockdowns and stringent protocols on entering the country. 

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