News Watch

Hillary on the brink2008 US Presidential Election

(Updated May 7, 2008) Things are again looking very precarious for Hillary Clinton after Tuesday's primaries. Hillary Clinton did manage to split by winning Indiana but overall the night belonged to Barack Obama as he easily won North Carolina and increased his delegate and popular vote lead. Most pundits are now saying the race is essentially over and even Clinton supporter George McGovern has now suggested that she leave the race. My central focus last night was on how the tr Venus transiting over the Obama campaign chart's ascendant would manifest. Since this was a clear signal for happiness and rewards for Obama, I thought it might have meant a sweep for him. As it turned out, he did basically carry the evening by increasing his delegate and vote lead and stopped whatever momentum Hillary had as a result of the Wright controversy. read more election update...

Weekly Stock Market Forecast

(Updated May 11, 2008) New York is coming off a moderately negative week and opens at 12,745/1388. While I had thought the market would finish somewhat higher by Friday, these levels are in line with my worse-case intraday expectation of 1390 on the SPX. With Jupiter now retrograde, I think we are going to see some fundamental shifts in sentiment in the coming weeks as the glass will begin to appear half-empty to more market players. I don't think the market will go straight down from here though, since a rally of some size is likely heading into mid-June. read more weekly forecast...

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Olympic protests

(Updated April 7, 2008) China's problems are not getting any better as pro-Tibetan protests caused the Olympic flame do go out at least five times today in the relay through Paris. The rest of the relay through France has been cancelled.

This is more or less in keeping with my prediction that China's international reputation would be sullied as transiting Mars squared all of its 9th house planets in early April. I can see this tarnishing of China's image continuing for the rest of the week at least, as tr Mars at 21 Gemini will activate the natal Neptune-Ketu conjunction. April 12-15 looks especially damaging to China as the Ketu aspect is more exact. This maybe a outbreak of significant violence in the relay which may intensify calls for a boycott, at least of the opening ceremonies. read more...

Iraq War

The execution of Saddam Hussein marks a turning point in the history of Iraq. And yet it is unlikely to change the downward spiral of sectarian violence and civil war in the foreseeable future. The new horoscope of Iraq (June 28 2004 10.26 am) is a nightmare of affliction. There's no way any sane astrologer had a hand in picking the time for the signing on the new constitution. So that pretty much limits the improvements one can expect in this war-ravaged country. read more...

Gold's Bull Run

January 23 2008 Update Yesterday's surprise rate cut by the Federal Reserve pushed the US dollar down sharply which made gold more attractive. It broke the recent losing streak that had seen it fall from a peak of $913 to $865. The decline can be partially attributed to the transit of Rahu (North Node) over the Ascendant of the Gold Futures chart. The sentiment on gold reversed as transiting Venus joined Pluto near the 11th equal house cusp. Yesterday it came exact to that cusp in the 10.00 am futures chart.
read more...

Oil hits $100Oil Market Forecast

January 25 2008 UPDATE Oil futures have fallen from their $100 USD highs in the Fall. Current prices around $88-90 appear to be a relatively solid price support. I believe oil and other commodities will go a bit of a run here as confidence in the world economy is restored following the Fed rate cut. Next week looks strong, so expect price rises from Jan 29-31. The market will maintain a bullish bias until at least Feb 18. But my predictive model is not looking good in the medium term. Saturn is moving retrograde towards the IC which will cast its 3rd house (60 degree) aspect to the Moon-Saturn aspect in the Oil futures chart. This is a depressing effect on prices. read more...

ENTERTAINMENT

Heath Ledger 1979-2008

Movie fans around the world have reacted with shock and sadness with the untimely death of Australian actor Heath Ledger in New York. While the cause of death is not yet known, Ledger's depression and mental difficulties is widely believed to have been a factor. The Brokeback Mountain star was recently separated from his girlfriend Michelle Williams and had a long history of abusing illegal and prescription drugs. As is often the case with situations of stress and hopelessness, Saturn played a crucial role in reflecting Ledger's final moments of despair. read more...

Rihanna's Breakout Year

With the release of her third album Good Girl Gone Bad in June 2007, pop singer Rihanna has achieved worldwide fame as it hit #1 in many countries. Although she emerged as a popular artist in 2006 with the previous release A Girl Like Me, her star has risen higher than ever this year. Is it just because "Umbrella" was a catchy song, or were the planets on her side as well? Her horoscope shows a very creative and artistic person as Moon and Venus, the planets of beauty and art are closely conjoined in sidereal Pisces, a watery sign associated with aesthetics and imagination. read more...

Superbad's Michael Cera

The 20-year old star of this summer's hit movie Superbad is known for his unassuming and quietly comic manner that he first crafted in the cult TV series Arrested Development. Born in Canada, Michael's career in Hollywood has followed an upward trajectory and shows no signs of slowing down. After co-starring in the funny and touching teenage coming of age Superbad, his new movie Juno also received rave reviews at the Toronto International Film Festival in September. Although we don't have a birth time for him, even his Chandra lagna chart gives a hint of the success that he has enjoyed this year. read more...