(This is the second part of my piece on the UK. There is much more to say, but for now, this will suffice.)
Sometimes it feels like Britain is a boxer still upright after 10 rounds but punch drunk: standing up because of a combination of will power and show business. One blow after another has knocked our confidence in the establishment and the systems that run society.
For most people in Britain, the deepest underlying questions are about the economy. As a nation we are massively in debt. How are we going to get out of this? And what is it exactly that we do to earn money?
When the Big Bang took place in 1986, tr Uranus, the planet of explosions, free markets and electronics, was conjuncting the UK natal Mercury who, of course, rules markets, in Sagittarius, the sign of expansion and big ideas. The Big Bang essentially did two things. It deregulated the financial markets in London, and it computerised them.
For most people in Britain, the deepest underlying questions are about the economy. As a nation we are massively in debt. How are we going to get out of this? And what is it exactly that we do to earn money?
The two key houses to look at for economic questions are the second house of income, and the eighth house of debt. Clearly Saturn, the planet of restriction, going through the house of income for the coming two years means tough times ahead. Belts will be tightened. But it may also indicate a tightening of rules, and a better organisation of money and banking.
Printing money has its limitations (no kidding), the soon-to-be new head of the Bank of England said yesterday. Like the archbishop, he comes into office with Jupiter still in the 9th house of priests. Money is the modern religion. The head of the Bank of England, its high priest.
Printing money has its limitations (no kidding), the soon-to-be new head of the Bank of England said yesterday. Like the archbishop, he comes into office with Jupiter still in the 9th house of priests. Money is the modern religion. The head of the Bank of England, its high priest.
The initial result of these changes was the rise of the financial sector as an economic driver in the UK. Since so many other industries had gone to the wall, it seemed to be something of a godsend – here was an industry that was truly world class. Then came the banking crisis, the collapse of RBS and Northern Rock, the Libor scandal, the revelations of tumescent pay-packets. And the realisation that those pay-packets had made London unaffordable for nurses, teachers, tradespeople, and anyone working in publishing, and this inflation of property prices had rippled out across the country.
The UK progressed Moon is also back where it was during the Big Bang, in the 8th house of debt. The pr Moon is on a 27-year-cycle. In a human life, this lunar return is a Janus moment, when you look back at your life and you look forward, and you ask yourself: "Is it worth going on?" (Amy Winehouse, Jim Morrison, Jimi Hendrix and Janice Joplin thought not.) I'm not suggesting that the deregulated City of London is about to OD on smack, but it could be a moment when the rules change. What comes after the Lunar Return is always the Saturn Return, which is a time of taking responsibility for one's actions. Perhaps the City will finally do that. (Much eye-rolling in the office. ed)
Pluto's imminent move into the fourth house of property may well have an affect on housing prices. These are unsustainably high, unless we sell the whole country to the Bank of Qatar. Pluto transits can be empowering but they can be fatal. The Sun in Capricorn (large international institutions) in the fourth could also represent the immense clout of the banks which underwrite political power in Britain. In a worst case scenario, Pluto conjuncting the Sun could represent a quiet takeover by plutocrats as the country sinks under its debt (also ruled by Pluto).
I realise I could write a book about this, but I'm going to curb my enthusiasm and simply try to point out where a couple of Britain's economic strengths are.
For a start, arms dealing has been a big money-maker for Britain for centuries. That would be Mars (war) ruling the second house of income. But yuck, who wants to earn a living creating machines of death. The other obvious money-maker is imagination: Neptune in the second. Britain's creative industries are our meal ticket: specifically those that explore childhood, darkness and vision. That'll be Venus and Pluto in the fifth and Neptune in Scorpio. (Sounds a bit like the opening ceremony of the Olympics.)
Saturn contacting that Neptune could be putting these industries – film, publishing, gaming – on a more solid footing.
There is much more to say, but I think I'll stop and see what you have to say. I'll be taking a week off but do go ahead and comment. The new system means you should be able to get your comment published as long as you're a real human being.
For a start, arms dealing has been a big money-maker for Britain for centuries. That would be Mars (war) ruling the second house of income. But yuck, who wants to earn a living creating machines of death. The other obvious money-maker is imagination: Neptune in the second. Britain's creative industries are our meal ticket: specifically those that explore childhood, darkness and vision. That'll be Venus and Pluto in the fifth and Neptune in Scorpio. (Sounds a bit like the opening ceremony of the Olympics.)
Saturn contacting that Neptune could be putting these industries – film, publishing, gaming – on a more solid footing.
There is much more to say, but I think I'll stop and see what you have to say. I'll be taking a week off but do go ahead and comment. The new system means you should be able to get your comment published as long as you're a real human being.
