The news began to come in from Ferguson again yesterday, March 11, “fast and feverish,” as the saying goes, in a hint of the buildup we’ll be seeing this week from the rising tensions of Saturn’s shift in direction, the Uranus-Pluto perfected square on the 17th of March (yes, the 17th, not the 16th as some are saying–unless they’re in PDT, that is), and the triggering of the perfected square taking place early on Sunday morning, the 15th of March. And certainly the view of the week’s events gave us a little more than a hint as the Mars-Uranus portion of the stellium to Venus all in Aries comes to perfection this coming week!
March 11: With Mars and Uranus now conjunct the MC and Pluto already in square, is there really any surprise to learn on the heels of the City Manager’s and a municipal’s judge’s resignations in addition to the firing of two court clerks and two police supervisors for racist emails having been sent and noted in the Department of Justice report–that the Chief of Police, Thomas Jackson, will have his resignation annnounced today?
New York Times: Ferguson Police Chief Thomas Jackson Steps Down
The time I’m using is when the New York Times breaking news alert showed in my mail, and the Moon in Pluto-ruled Scorpio is in a 4-minute partile trine to the Cancer Ascendant it rules. The Moon is also conjunct Saturn in Jupiter-ruled Sagittarius in square to Neptune in the 8th house. Jupiter Rx is also coming into play here with a 19-minute partile trine to the Midheaven.
I’d venture to say that with the Western hemisphere, above-the-horizon dominance and no quadrant showing emphasis (rather a lack of emphasis with only Jupiter in the 1st quadrant), the top cop had a bit of help in coming to this decision. Certainly there has been a lot of activity in the public sector, and he’s taken a lot of heat.
While I don’t ordinarily speak of the Vertex (Vx) in a chart, even the Vx is making a 28-minute partile trine to the MC, which seems to imply the matter of this having been a fated conclusion. I doubt anyone would really disagree with that. The Moon is also making a square to Mercury in Uranus-ruled Aquarius in the 8th, which is interesting since all these developments have come as a result of Michael Brown’s tragic death last year.
Take note, btw, that there are two quindeciles: Mercury to Jupiter (justice!) and Pluto to the Ascendant. This is one time when the US Department of Justice held on to this case like a vicious dog on a leg in getting to the heart of the matter. Great timing for the “obsessive” driving force that wouldn’t let go till all pieces fit together!
The heartbeat of this chart lies in Mars and Neptune, offering a chilling reminder of the shooting as well as collusion that the DOJ seemed to imply in its report. Or perhaps I should say “did” say. The news alert says much. Whew! What a way to move toward the upcoming transits of Saturn in its shift to Retrograde motion on Saturday the 14th, the Uranus-Pluto perfected square in the wee hours of March 17, and the trigger of that square this coming Sunday, the 15th of March!
And the times they are a changin’!
PART II
March 12: Shortly after midnight this morning, March 12, just hours after Ferguson Police Chief Thomas Jackson announced his resignation, effective March 19, the peaceful protests that had been going on since the announcement had been made hours earlier, suddenly turned chaotic as four shots rang out.
I decided to have a look at this chart to see how things were playing out. The time I used was fairly random in the sense that the time was just stated “shortly after midnight” with an additional comment noted as “1 am ET.” So if this chart is as accurate as it appears, it would seem that Jupiter and Mercury are not only making a 9-minute partile quindecile aspect but are also intercepted in the respective 9th and 3rd houses. Interesting placement there alone: the 9th is the house of legal matters and the third is related to the local neighborhood. The Sun is also forming a quindecile aspect to the Midheaven, which seems to emphasize the idea of the drive for resolution, for perhaps the act of serving the people since Virgo is the 6th house in the natural zodiac.
With the Mercury-Jupiter quindecile, we’re looking at the rebellion itself, the gathering for a cause, which can certainly point to a protest. Consider the upheaval of Uranus in its role as the ruler of Mercury’s transiting placement in Aquarius–and the current Uranus-Pluto square nearly at perfection–in opposition to Jupiter in the 9th, Jupiter’s own home rulership. In this chart, however, Jupiter is in Sun-ruled Leo, bringing out the concept of law and order, “to protect and serve.”
In addition, look at the 23-minute partile conjunction of Mars and Uranus now! It seems as if the shootings had been a spontaneous act although certainly borne out of the anger of the moment. I remember hearing on the news this morning that the dismantling and restructuring of the Ferguson Police Department is not out of consideration. Surely this would fit the picture we’re seeing here with the protest and shootings chart. The shooter was clearly aiming at police officers. One was shot in the face, the other in the shoulder. Both are in serious but non-life-threatening condition.
And then there is the Moon-Saturn conjunction in the first with the Moon rising and both in square to Neptune conjunct the IC. In fact, Saturn is squaring the IC by 1 minute.
A Western below-the-horizon 2nd quadrant dominance with a singleton Jupiter shows the momentum as it built last night. Emotions were running high especially with that singleton Jupiter ruling the Moon-Saturn 1st house conjunction. It would seem then that emotions simply got out of hand, although perhaps the impulse to resist was too great with Mars and Uranus so close by then. According to the New York Times, “Officials said the police made three arrests — at about 9 p.m., 10:30 and 11:15. By the time of the last arrest, the protest was dying down, Chief Belmar said, and when the shooting occurred, there were about 75 demonstrators left in front of the station, down from about 150 earlier in the evening.”
Intense feelings are still deep below the surface in Ferguson even after last night’s shooting of the two officers. But if order is going to be restored to Ferguson, it probably would be wise to do more than simply ponder the possibility of dismantling and reorganizing the Ferguson Police Department. The horizon is fixed, but the MC/IC meridian is fluid and mutable. City officials would be wise to take counsel and to act quickly. The Solar Eclipse of the 20th of March is in just a little over a week, and Saturn makes its turn to retrograde on Saturday. While the perfected square between Uranus and Pluto takes place early on the 17th (12:02:06 am CDT, 1:02:06 am EDT), the trigger will take place before dawn on the 15th, the Ides of March. The exact trigger will be around 4 to 4:30 am, but the timing is so close, it could be as early as 2 am or as late as 5 or 6 am. I expect it will be before 5.
Be safe and smart, Ferguson. The wheels of progress move slowly, but they are finally turning again.
NY Times: 2 Officers Are Shot Outside Ferguson Police Station
NBC TV News: Two Officers Shot During Protest Near Ferguson Police Department
©2015 Michelle Young
Update, March 15, 2015: Suspect Arrested in Shooting of 2 Officers in Ferguson, Police Say
The CNN news conference in Clayton, Missouri, with Robert McCulloch, St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney, is ongoing as I’m writing. Here are my notes from the conference as Mr. McCulloch continues to speak. The suspect was claiming to be targeting someone else, but that hasn’t been proven yet.
Jeffrey Williams, 20, who had been on probation for receiving stolen property, has been charged with the shootings of the two officers. From information provided by the public. 40 mm handgun. Assault, Firing from a (red) vehicle, Class A Felony .
Take note of the 3-minute partile conjunction of the Moon in Capricorn in square to the Uranus-Mars conjunction in the 10th house. In addition, Venus is squaring the Moon, and Saturn in the 5th house–retrograde as of yesterday–shows a beautiful 51-minute partile trine to the Midheaven. The Western 3rd quadrant above-the-horizon dominance shows the authorities’ pleasure in stating this was a public support effort that enabled them to arrest Williams so quickly.
©2015 Michelle Young