The Roaring 20s
Yesterday I came across an article in the last addition of the Economist titled “The Roaring 20s – Why a dawn of technological optimism is breaking” As you can imagine, it relates to a dawning of an age of technology, just as in my 2021 astrology book, I dubbed this year the dawning of the Age of Aquarius, and as you know, Astrology is the sign of…technology.
While the article focuses on the rising optimism about technological advances, I thought it was worthwhile sharing some of the ideas from the piece and place them in an astrological preceptive. Here are the main arguments of the article:
In the last decade, there was a slowdown in technological advances, the smartphones and social media did not help the slow economic growth after the Great Recession. In addition, promising technologies such as self-driving cars did not live up to expectations and some even suggested that the world is finally running out of useful ideas.
The writer then describes how a new era of innovation is upon us. The race for vaccine made scientists heroes as well as the adoption of many digital technologies that helped people continue working from home. The article gives some examples of recent discoveries with transformative potential: Messenger RNA (Pfizer and Moderna vaccines), an Artificial Intelligence program created by Deep-Mind (part of Google’s Alphabet) that can predict the shape of protein, and since October, driverless taxis began carrying passengers in Phoenix AZ. In addition, the pandemic and reduced oil prices gave a big push to renewable energy, with China promising to be carbon neutral by 2060.
The article includes another reason for the surge in Aquarian optimism: in the 2nd and 3rd quarter of 2020, American private sector spent more on technology (computers, software, research) than on buildings and industrial gear for the first time over a decade. This year, the newly crowned world’s richest man, Elon Musk, made his money from electric cars and space rockets. Investors are regaining their enthusiasm for technology, medical diagnosis, logistics, biotechnology, and semiconductors. In addition, the pandemic accelerated the use and popularization of digital payments, e-commerce, telemedicine, and industrial automation.
That was the gist of the sensible argument of the article, and I astrologically speaking, concur. All that has been described in the article is part of the zeitgeist (spirit of the time) of Aquarius, the new era we are stepping into.
From March – July of 2020, and then again from Dec of 2020, Saturn transits in Aquarius, the sign associated with innovation, technology, scientists, democracy, and equality. Indeed, the pandemic have made scientists and researcher a household name. Last year we witnessed the reality-show style public battle between uneducated politicians (who suggest bleaching the virus away) versus scientists who were trying to save lives. Thank our lucky stars (especially Jupiter and Saturn grand conjunction in Aquarius) that declared Dr. Anthony Fauci the undisputed hero and winner, with Time Magazine naming him and frontline workers as the Guardians of the Year. In fact we are now experiencing what has been dubbed the “Fauci Effect,” with record number of medical school applications. For example, Stanford University School of Medicine reported a 50% jump in applications. That is indeed a Jupiter Saturn Aquarian affair.
I have always been fascinated with history, maybe because diving into events that took place in the past is the best way to experience spontaneous past lifetime regressions. For example, when I was reading Jason Goodwin’s Lord of the Horizons, covering the rise and fall of the Ottoman Empire, I experienced dreams of past lives I had in Istanbul, which made my connection to Turkey so much more profound.
After reading the Economist article, I started thinking of other times in history when after a plague or a pandemic, a new world emerged. Of course what comes to mind is the Roaring 20s that followed the aftermath of the Spanish Flue in 1918. Another example is the Bubonic Plague of the 14th century, which many historians believe helped Europe shake off the leftover of feudalism, resulting in the birth of the 15th century miracle of Renaissance. After all, the last time Jupiter and Saturn were conjunct in Aquarius was 1405, right at the end of the Black Plague and the beginning of the Renaissance.
There are always undercover blessings, walking in disguise, waiting to show their true colors at the end of a calamity. And I think we can be assured that a new Aquarian era is upon us. It will take decades to adjust as well as learn how to flow in the new tech laden reality: cars driving on their own, vacuum cleaners that talk back, teleportation, colonizing planets, quantum computing the meaning of life and nanotechnologies erasing wrinkles and making us immortals. Perhaps we will face caravan of aliens, wanting to become citizen of Earth? Or human babies born on different planets and therefore boasting a chart with different signs and planets to guiding them. A new system of trade, economy and finance? Maybe new sources of food and energy?
Imagine, as Lennon said…
Some Astro-News
Below is a slide form today’s Check-Up meeting. I thought it was interesting that the only president in history that was impeached twice is a Gemini born on an lunar eclipse. But then I noticed that the second impeachment took place right on the new moon in Capricorn, meaning that it was a good time to start (new moon) but it would take a long time (Capricorn is late blooming) and it will have to be carried out by the Republicans (Capricorn is the sign of conservatives).
In my 2021 Book, on page 84, I list a few dates that would be auspicious to start your New Year’s Resolution. One of them (see below) was Jan 13, the day of impeachment. As you can see, I suggested that it a good time to start a resolution that involves a change of direction in life (in this case, the direction of the nation) and politics…
De-Platforming To Combat the Tree of Knowledge Good and Bad
The internet is the Biblical Tree of Knowledge Good and Bad. The World Wide Web was created 30 years ago, which means it is going through a Saturn Return reckoning. Is the internet good? Yes! Many of us are able to work, study, create and survive thanks to the URL Tree, but, alas, as it had been very evident since 2016, and especially in 2020, the internet is also bad and had produced many rotten fruits of misinformation and disinformation: QAnon conspiracy theories, NewMax, and an endless string of unpresidential tweets.
However, something happened after Saturn and Jupiter moved into Aquarius at the end of 2020. The Tree of Knowledge Good and Bad is undergoing trimming and pruning. The de-platforming of Trump from Twitter and Facebook, as well as the pushback against dangerous apps like Parler with its hate speech cacophony, started to bear fruit.
Online misinformation about the presidential election decreased by 73% after Twitter and other social media networks banned or suspended Trump and key supporters. Claims of election fraud (Stop the Steal) dropped from 2.5 million mentions to 688,000 mentions in several social media sites in the week after Trump was banned by Twitter (Research by the San Francisco-based analytics firm Zignal Labs).
In 2020, when disinformation and fake news climbed into new heights, Jupiter, the ruler of Sagittarius, which is the sign of truth, was in Capricorn where it is fallen. What is Jupiter fallen? Imagine the archetype being depressed, refusing to come out of bed. In other words, in 2020, truth lost its greatest defender, Jupiter. In addition, the South Node is in Sagittarius, the sign Jupiter rules, which is the archetype of truth. When the South Node is located in a sign, it disables the flow of whatever it rules. In the case of Sagittarius it is truth, mass media, and education. Not only we did not have Jupiter banishing the darkness spread by QAnon and the like of Tucker and Hannity, but also Sagittarius is out of commission, allowing liars to reach the highest post of the land.
In Dec 2021, Jupiter moved into Aquarius, the sign of democracy and things started changing. For Sagittarius to be free from the binds of the South Node we will have to wait until 2022. But hey, rejoice and be jovial at least Jove is with us.
Since we are in the theme of interesting articles, in Jan 16, The Atlantic published an intriguing piece called, QAnon is Destroying the GOP from Within. The writer of the story, Ben Sasse, writes, “Until last week, too many in the Republican Party thought they could preach the Constitution and wink at QAnon. They can’t.” I know a lot of people are saying that blocking Parler goes against the 1st Amendment. But that is not true as many constitutional scholars assert.
The 1st Amendment states:
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.
As you can see, unlike the argument of Parler’s which markets itself as the “free-speech” app, there is nothing in the 1st Amendment that allows for hate-speech, call for the assassinations of politicians, and encouraging insurrections. Taking into consideration that Benjamin Franklin and other Founding Fathers and Mothers were practicing astrology, it is not a coincidence that the 1st Amendment was passed by Congress on September 25, 1789, making it a Libra (balance and justice) with Moon in Sagittarius (sign of truth) and was Ratified in Dec 15, 1791, right when the sun was transiting Sagittarius, as we saw earlier, the sign of truth.
Conclusion:
The period between Jan 19-21 is arguably one of the most challenging days of 2021. Mars (war) conjunct Uranus (revolution, disruption) and Lilith (seeing the worst in each other) all under the sign Taurus (values). Last time these three were hosted by Taurus was 1605 when there was an attempt to blow up King James 1 and the parliament in London (check out my last newsletter about the subject).
History, like planetary cycles, repeats herself, so let us take heed in our person life as well as social and global life and tread carefully this next week.
May the guiding hand of Maat, the Ancient Egyptian goddess of Truth and Balance, be with us. Below is the recording of the free weekly Astro Check up which I covered some of these points.
Love, gahl
Recording Meeting of Astro Check-Up Jan 17
https://tinyurl.com/yxfjfve6