Deadliest Days Ever for U.S. Forces

Last month, we mentioned two times in the course of October when the transits would be particularly severe due to the Full Moon of October 3rd being conjunct U.S. Saturn in the tenth (government and administration) while the subsequent New Moon was close to the U.S. Mars-Neptune square; this as transiting Neptune, Chiron, Uranus and Eris were also aspecting this important set of points, presaging further troubles at that time, especially with regard to the military.

Indeed the headlines and key stories from these two periods reflect these trends. The first weekend of the month saw one of the deadliest days ever for U.S. forces in Afghanistan, just as the recent Afghan election was set to be overturned due to accusations of fraud, and as the administration was considering sending in more troops.

Leading up to the New Moon weekend of October 17th, it was decided that Afghanistan would need to hold a run-off election, and that places the U.S.-appointed president Hamid Karzai in danger of losing his power. Meanwhile President Obama hesitates to give a response to the local commander of U.S. forces in his request for up to 40,000 additional troops. It was also revealed at this time that drone attacks in Afghanistan and neighboring Pakistan have tripled from the days of the Bush administration, revealing a policy of supposed targeted killing of terrorist personnel. This policy results in collateral damage accounting for the deaths of civilians at many of the strikes.

Meanwhile, a survey of President Obama's efforts in New Orleans gave him only a D+ in improving the situation there, after 9 months on the job, where 60,000 abandoned properties attest to the lack of meaningful effort at restoration. Dozens were arrested in protests of health insurance companies as civil unrest in this country grows.

In the last month of the year, hotspots will continue to be represented by the New and Full Moons at the beginning and middle of the month. On November 2nd, the Full Moon aspects the U.S. Sun degree, just as transiting Uranus squares U.S. Mars and opposes U.S. Neptune, and while transiting Pluto continues to square the U.S. Midheaven. There could be sudden activity at this time along the road of thorough-going transformation that the country is certain to traverse over these next few years. The New Moon of November 16th activates these same sensitive points, and emphasizes the Neptunian factor of deception and confusion, so that issues of misleading statements from the government and within the military might once again arise. These years leading up to 2012 will prove a time of great change for this country, indeed the world; and that will indeed be difficult. But it is change that has in many ways been long overdue, and this society will ultimately be the better for it.