Is John Reid the right person to be in charge of the Home Office, and is he likely to be able to live up to his reputation as Blair's Mr Fix It? No, and no, respectively.

Some reckon that Reid is a possible future contender for the leadership role of the Labour Party, once Blair's long overdue departure has taken place, but his track record as a (self-professed) 'hard man' should disqualify him from any public office, if logic were how decisions are made in politics.

Former UK ambassador, Craig Murray, wrote this about Reid: "A hardened Stalinist with a long-term reputation for personal violence, at Stirling University he was the Communist Party's 'Enforcer', (in days when the Communist Party ran Stirling University Students' Union, which it should not be forgotten was a business with a very substantial cash turnover). Reid was sent to beat up those who deviated from the Party line."

To find out what influence Reid is likely to have on the Home Office (HO) we need to put their charts together and see how they interlock. One of the primary interconnections that leaps out is Reid's Neptune in close opposition to the HO's Sun, sesquiquadrate the HO's Mars, conjunct HO's Neptune, and trine HO's Pluto.

This means that Reid strongly activates the HO's Sun-Neptune-Pluto configuration. On the one hand, this configuration speaks of the hidden machinations of power. On the other, it represents a self-destruct mechanism. Reid's Neptune tightly locking into this natal configuration symbolises his undermining of the institution, his erosion of its power and its integration, and his washing away of its identity.

Reid also has Uranus square the HO's Mercury, and this symbolises his capacity to fragment the institution, shattering it.

Reid has a couple of astrological connections with the HO that suggest strengthening: Saturn trine the Sun, and Jupiter opposite Mars. Unfortunately his Saturn is also opposite the HO's Pluto, curtailing its power and/or making it more negative, and the Jupiter opposition to Mars suggests bad judgements and over-zealousness in matters of fighting crime.

So, then, the astrology strongly suggests that Reid is a bad choice to head this institution.

References:

http://politics.guardian.co.uk/labour/story/0,,1877939,00.html

http://www.fifth-estate-online.co.uk/comment/theukterrorplot.html

On television the other night was a programme called 'New Labour's Gambling Addiction', about the government's policy of encouraging 'super-casinos' and casinos in general to spring up across the UK as a 'wealth-creation' technique. Whilst there is criticism of the 'gambling panic' too, the astrology generally backs the idea that this rise in gambling is indeed detrimental to the UK, designed as it is purely to increase revenues for the government in a 'get rich quick' manner, rather than a longer-term, slower-but-surer, substantial innovation-based way.

During Neptune's transit of the UK's Venus the government produced a new gambling law to allow this industry to get bigger. The higher potentials of a Neptune transit to Venus are more about all the various art forms, creative expression, inspiration and imagination. Gambling is, quite simply, one of the lowest manifestations of this sort of transit. Encouraging gambling as a way of increasing government revenue is a lazy cop-out for this transit.

The potential of an astrological configuration like this is tremendous. Live8 barely scratched the surface, but it gives a flavour of how humanitarian this aspect can be at its best. We could look back at the 1840s for other examples of what we could do with a transit such as this, and in an article on the Astrology for the 21st Century website written over a year ago a look back at that decade was indeed taken [link is here: http://www.astrology21.co.uk/c1ukneptunevenus.html]

The issue of the coarsening of society is arising. The Celebrity Big Brother arguments, the so-called ''Chav' culture', the so-called 'ASBO culture', the prison issue, are all coming together and leading us to the point of choice. Is it really so ridiculous to ask that we treat each other with a measure of dignity? Not deference, not fawning, not forelock-tugging, not passive victims of others' aggression, not looking down on people who are 'uncouth' but simply acknowledging that, if we want to live in a shared space with a reasonable amount of pleasantness and co-operation, we must have a broad and general consensus on how we are going to treat each other, and surely humanity is at the very heart and soul of that question?

An article in the Guardian sums up the less constructive social and economic uses we have so far made of this Neptune-Venus transit: "Alongside the bullying there is a materialist crassness that we might have hoped would have receded after a decade of centre-left government. In most ways, the show-off materialism of the 80s has been supercharged."

As well as creating new legislation, the government has set up a Gambling Commission, supposedly to 'regulate gambling in the public interest'. Leaving aside for a moment the obvious fact that this is nonsense, let's have a look at the astrology, which is, after all, what this web log is about. The commission 'froze in time' the Neptune transit of the UK's Venus in the 5th house. In effect, this tells us that the net result of the Gambling Commission - even if their intentions are good - will not be to regulate the industry at all, for Neptune is the very antithesis of regulation. Neptune symbolises the action of the Commission on the UK's leisure industry (Venus in the 5th house) which is to to loosen the industry, to blur boundaries, to encourage spiralling debt, to run rampant, to enlarge and enlarge without limit, to cut away all common sense and precautionary measures, and to do all this in the self-deluded state so typical of human beings and hubristic politicians.

In short, Neptune is the planet of addiction, Venus is the planet of leisure, put them together and do you have regulation and safety? No you do not. Let's look at the rest of the Gambling Commission's own statements about its purpose and 'mission':

"It does so by keeping crime out of gambling, by ensuring that gambling is conducted fairly and openly, and by protecting children and vulnerable people from being harmed or exploited by gambling. The Commission also provides independent advice to government on gambling in Britain."

This is, once again, nonsense. Where there is Neptune, all is not what it seems and very little is transparent or 'open' - on the contrary, things tend to be conducted in secrecy. As for independent advice, Neptune is a planet of subjectivity and projection, not objective reality.

The Commission - no matter its good intentions, which of course paved the way to hell in any case - has been created during a peak of this Neptune transit, and thereby resonates with Neptunian issues. Protecting vulnerable people is very Neptunian, and children are indeed associated with the 5th house, however the question is does the chart show the capacity to protect? Neptune is not a protective planet because it has no real boundaries to keep out harmful influences, so we have to look elsewhere in the chart. The only other planet in the Gambling Commission chart that aspects the UK's Venus is Mercury, and this again is a planet that does not impose boundaries or regulation nor is it of a type that symbolises the bringing of safety. It is, rather, a planet of fast transactions and trade. At its worst it is the trickster.

The Gambling Commission's Saturn would represent its regulatory function - does it aspect the UK's chart in a way that symbolises the regulation of gambling? No, not at all. Over the next few years as the Labour government's plans are put into practice, Neptune will in fact be opposing the UK's Saturn, symbolising an undermining of the safeguards and lifejackets that we have in place. We can change this course, but only if we abandon these kinds of self-destructive plans.

To return to the social aspects of this transit, upon which the economic side is built: If we - consciously or unconsciously - take the view that we are nothing more than customers, buyers and sellers, making transactions in a giant market machine, then we will have precious little human dignity to speak of. If we consider ourselves and each other citizens in a shared civic space, with equal rights and equal need to be acknowledged as people in our own right, rather than as commodities to be hired, bought, sold, sacked in accordance with the dips and rises of our 'market value', we will then, quite naturally and without struggling against each other, go about creating a society that is based on a different model.

Ultimately, the choice is ours, but if we tally much longer we'll miss this opportunity and have to wait until other transits come along to signal another crossroads in our societal direction.

On 27th March 2007 the Home Office will be 225 years old. The MP currently responsible for - or is it irresponsible about? - the Home Office is one of Blair's loyal henchmen, the rather aggressive John Reid.

Labour's solution to many things appears to be to break it up: for example, the NHS, or England itself (regionalised government, which Blair's team has pushed ahead with despite an overwhelming 'no' in a referendum by the people).

Last year John Reid was appointed head of the Home Office and he quickly acknowledged and announced that the department was 'dysfunctional'. His own ministerial dysfunctions and that of his fellow Labour government - bound up in appearances, accusations, and investigations of lying, and fiddling finances, not to mention numerous criticisms of damaging and foolish policies - seem to be lost on him. Splitting the Home Office into two is his idea of a solution.

The Home Office chart has numerous major transits at the moment:

Transiting Saturn - in Dec 06 Saturn stationed and turned Direct in square to the Home Office's Mars. It's now moving through that square aspect, and also a sesquiquadrate with the Home Office's Sun. These aspects symbolise a knuckling under, an almost punishing discipline on the department, and a hardening and toughening stance.

Transiting Neptune - forming a semisextile with the Home Office's Mercury, suggesting blurring of clarity and issues around being (or not being) a 'joined up government' department.

Transiting Pluto - square to Venus, conjunct Jupiter, opposite Uranus, and in the next few years about to conjoin Saturn, this is the 'biggie'. The Home Office was 'born' with Jupiter opposite Uranus, with Venus at the midpoint of the two, forming a T-square. This shows tackling justice issues and the legal system, however it also indicates a proneness to splitting and united, marrying and getting divorced, never settling. The transit of Pluto is thus reflecting the triggering of a divorce phase in an attempt to give the Home Office a new lease of life. From 2008 onwards Pluto will conjoin the department's Saturn reflecting a massive shake-up in law enforcement, order, and the structure and government of the department. Pluto takes 248 years to go once around the chart, which means that the Home Office is due a once-in-its-lifetime period of institutional change.

Transiting Node - conjunct Mercury, again shows issues around 'joined up' government versus duality-that-divides.

Since the middle of 2006 the news media has reported that Fidel Castro has had health problems, leading to him temporarily handing over power to his brother. Castro and others have dismissed reports that he is dying, however.

Taking an astrological view, transiting Neptune in Aquarius was directly opposite Castro's Sun at 19 Leo 46 throughout last year, and remains so at the time of writing. This often symbolises a time for letting go of your role in the world, focusing more on what's going on inside you and letting your attention move away from what's going on in the world outside you, hence it often correlates with job losses or periods of illness, both of which call for a time of reflection, non-doing, and gentle reassessment of values and priorities. This transit will continue in 2007, and will be exact in February, September, and December, before spending 2008 gradually moving out of orb.

Looking at the chart for when Castro took power in Cuba, transiting Pluto is the one to watch. It tells us that 2007, 2008, and to some extent 2009 are times of great institutional, administrative and governmental changes as transiting Pluto will conjoin the Castro government's Saturn at 29 Sagittarius 37. 2007 is the preparation time, with 2008 being the most intense period for the current government's status quo, and 2009 is the post-alteration cool down.

The Celebrity Big Big Brother drama between Shilpa Shetty and Jade Goody serves as a pointer to the India-UK relationship.

Last year and this the UK has been experiencing its Saturn Return, which is when Saturn returns to the same position it occupied when a person or nation was born. It is a sort of birthday, except that it is an extremely significant moment in a person's or country's life.

When India was gaining independence from the UK, the UK was also experiencing a Saturn Return. Thus, the rebirth of India and the birth of the UK have a similar Saturn position.

For India, Saturn is at 13 Leo 14. For the UK, Saturn is at 23 Leo 22. At the time of writing, Saturn is at 23 Leo 31.

Saturn in Leo is about class snobbery - the basic issues of superiority and inferiority. Genuine self-esteem is in short supply, for those who seem to display confidence or arrogance as much as for those who seem to be insecure and 'weak'.

In Leo, Saturn's structures can find expression through societies based on the ideas and images of kings, queens, princes, princesses, lords and ladies, noblemen and the gentry.

A society that is so stratified can only crumble because it has no real foundation in the recognition of the sovereignty, uniqueness, and specialness of every single person that has ever lived, is alive, and ever will live.

Just as no two snowflakes are exactly alike, no two humans are alike either, but the question is do we let our differences calcify into 'I am above you, you are below me, so you will serve me as I command you' or 'I am below you, you are above me, I will serve you as you command for I deserve no better'?

Midway between India's Saturn and the UK's Saturn is 18 Leo 29 measured along the shortest route around the circle, and 18 Aquarius 29 measured along the longest route. Both are the midpoints of the two nations' Saturns. Neptune currently occupies 18 Aquarius 40, and is therefore on the India-UK Saturn/Saturn midpoint. This, while Treasurer Gordon Brown is visiting India to celebrate business links - business and government both also being symbolised by Saturn, with Neptune here representing the idealisation thereof, and the 'service industry.... exploitation' aspects of the relationship.

Where Saturn represents barriers, Neptune represents washing them away. Where Saturn symbolises resistance, Neptune symbolises wearing it down. Where Saturn indicates the breeding of rigid hierarchical relationships, Neptune indicates the need for equality, inclusiveness, and a salving balm.

This is perhaps the message behind the apparently personal quarrel. The Neptunian part of us is whispering a message..... "Come together, drop your rigid class systems, you are closer together and more alike than you think."

How do we want to respond?

In the USA just before Christmas Donald Rumsfeld's replacement was sworn in as Secretary of Defence. Much discussion ensued about whether Robert Gates, Rumsfeld's replacement, would make much of a difference compared to the war-mongering Rumsfeld.

Bush said: "Don Rumsfeld has been a superb leader during a time of change. Yet he also appreciates the value of bringing in a fresh perspective during a critical period in this war."

CNN reported that "Gates, a former CIA chief, was a member of the Iraq Study Group, a bipartisan panel that is making recommendations to Bush on how to proceed in Iraq. Gates traveled with the panel to Iraq earlier this year, an experience, Bush said, that will enable Gates to come up with "new ideas on how America can achieve our goals in Iraq.""

And Gates himself said that he had accepted Bush's nomination because "the United States is at war" and "I believe the outcome of these conflicts will shape our world for decades to come."

So everyone is clear that this is very much a war-focused appointment, not a standard defence appointment.

Turning to the astrology, the first thing to note is that Gates was sworn in on the day of the Sun-Pluto conjunction, aligned with the Galactic Centre. This symbolises a new start in the war project, upping it to a new level, beginning - or trying to begin - a new phase. It speaks of the need for comprehensive renewal. The question is, is Gates going to be any different to Rumsfeld, or is he going to be more of the same?

The short answer is 'more of the same'.

Rumsfeld's chart has several close contacts to Bush's of the type that indicate being on the same wavelength, being quite comfortable with one another, but also of egging each other on to take more risks.

Gates's chart shows a similar risk-taking connection - Mars conjunct Uranus (Rumsfeld's Mars is at 12 Gemini and Gates's is at 15.5 Gemini - Bush's Uranus is at 19 Gemini). There are other similarities: Gates has his Sun closely conjunct Rumsfeld's Moon, for instance, and their Jupiter's are conjunct, so they are not exactly miles apart when it comes to wavelengths.

This is simple stuff, but backed up by looking at midpoints and other aspects, omitted from this outline to keep it brief.

On 15th December last year the government announced that it was stripping GNER of its franchise to run the east coast mainline railway route which goes from London to Edinburgh, the most valuable train franchise in the UK. Instead of operating the route until 2015, as originally agreed, GNER will be replaced in mid-2008.

GNER got off to a good start in 1996 when it first won the franchise: the chart for that moment shows the Ascendant linked directly to the UK's Mercury in Sagittarius in the 3rd house, symbolising transport and journeys. Unfortunately, Neptune and Uranus in the 2nd house of finances and assets aren't so straight-forward...... the price paid for the franchise was inflated beyond realism (Neptune).

In January 2002 when the franchise was extended transiting Pluto was exactly conjunct the 1996 franchise Ascendant, reflecting new life, but also survival issues. At the same time, transiting Neptune in the 2nd house was exactly square the 1996 Sun, showing the potential to lose one's way, to dissolve.

Over the next months transiting Pluto would come into orb of opposing the 1996 Venus, showing that a potential financial crisis needed to be dealt with head-on.

The latest franchise agreement came into operation in April 2005, with transiting Neptune in semisquare to 1996 Saturn suggestive of an undermining process that washes away secure-footing. Neptune was slowly edging its way towards being within orb of its trine to 1996 Venus, indicating the potential for financial dissolution.

In December 2006 when GNER was stripped of the franchise, the Neptune transit to Saturn was just passed exactitude. Transiting Pluto (life/death changes) was almost exactly trine 1996 Mars (survival) and quincunx 1996 Mercury (transport, travel, journeys, trading). Most appropriately, transiting Saturn had been stationary in square to Mercury - hitting the buffers, no less, as the planet of limits and endings stopped moving as it aligned with the planet of movement.......

(The date of Saturn's exact station was 6th December, although a fortnight either side of that date is when the cessation of motion is evident.)

During 2006 and 2007 Pluto has been and will be conjunct the centre of our Galaxy.

Some astronomers posit that at the core of our Galaxy is a Black Hole, but no-one knows for certain.

Astrologers interpret the Galactic Centre is a kind of 'higher Sun'. The reasoning behind this is that the Sun is what our Solar System revolves around, and the Galactic Centre is what our Galaxy revolves around, therefore the Galactic Centre is the 'Sun of our Sun', the centre of our centre.

Pluto doesn't line up with the Galactic Centre very often - only once every 248 years, in fact. This rare event means that all the issues and themes of Pluto that we humans are struggling with require plugging into a higher centre. So what are our Pluto themes?

They are, quite simply, the most extreme experiences that humans deal with: Sex. Death. Money. Power. Possession. Control. Surrender. Grief. Loss. Greed. Fear. Regeneration. Being reborn. Starting all over again. Recycling. Nuclear fusion. Pollution and cleaning up. Spring cleaning. Taxation. Insurance. Relationships with ancestral lines, and grandmothers/greatgrandmothers in particular. Blood feuds. Investigation. Scrutiny. Penetrating through to what's normally secret. Taboos. The unspeakable. The underworld in every sense.

On a personal level how can you use this rare opportunity? You can sift and sort through your childhood conditioning on these sorts of topics and throw out what is no longer doing you any good to hold onto. You can reconstruct yourself with renewed vigour. You can discard what you used to revolve around but which you've outgrown, and re-centre yourself around something that is better suited to your life now. You can spring clean like you've never spring cleaned before. You have a chance to clear out anything that drains you or blocks you but which has previously felt insurmountable. You can also practice consciously surrendering to something larger than you and finding your place within that bigger picture.

Here are the dates when Pluto will be (and has been) within about half a degree of the Galactic Centre. You needn't limit yourself to these times though, they are an approximate guide to when the energy is peaking, not an 'outer limits' cut-off point.

24th February 2006 to 23rd May 2006
16th December 2006 to 14th January 2007
25th June 2007 to 14th August 2007
1st October 2007 to 15th November 2007