We knew we were in for another round of the cardinal T-square this year, but I didn’t think we’d start seeing any real effects until Uranus entered Aries in mid-March.

So, it would seem like all hell is breaking loose again, with a strong pattern of authoritarian rule (Pluto) suppressing rebellion. The Jupiter-Pluto square is implicated, but only if you put it in the context of the ongoing T-square.

We also need to remember the rare lunar eclipse that occurred on December 21, 2010, just hours before the Sun entered Capricorn. With the Sun at 29 degrees Sagittarius, the eclipse was close enough to 0 degrees Capricorn to be included in this power game. Jupiter and Uranus were both back in late Pisces at the time, having dipped briefly into Aries over the summer before turning retrograde. Jupiter is now well beyond his retrograde point, and Uranus is sitting at 29 Pisces, the final degree of the zodiac, ready to enter Aries on March 11. Although he’s not in Aries yet, he is in a near-exact square with the solstice eclipse, so we’re feeling this forceful energy.

Often, earth events correspond to eclipses, although not necessarily at the time. I tied last year’s mega-quake in Chili to an eclipse that hadn’t happened yet. So last week’s tragic earthquake in New Zealand can’t be attributed to the Jupiter-Pluto square.

Other events, however, can. The two that come immediately to mind are the civil war in Libya and the showdown in Madison, Wis., over workers’ rights. In both cases, an authoritarian ruler is suppressing opposition. It doesn’t seem to me that there’s much difference in principle between Moammar Gadhafi’s vow to fight to the last bullet and Gov. Scott Walker’s vow to bust the unions regardless of massive protests at the Wisconsin Capitol and other cities across the country. Tyranny has many faces.

I’m encouraged by the protests, as people finally are willing to fight for their rights. A while back, I lamented in a post that I didn’t know what it would take to get Americans out in the streets, the way citizens in Europe and other countries do. Well, now we know, and I’m gratified the trigger is as substantial as workers’ rights. Unionized labor has a long history in this country. Assaulting these basic rights is a hostile act, the first shot in a class war that has been brewing for years.

In an article for CounterPunch, author Andrew Levine writes, “The problem, in short, is that to survive, capitalism must expand – and, with so few areas left for expansion, the public sphere has become a target too tempting to resist. What is under attack is the public sphere itself. Public unions are its first (and last?) line of defense.”

Another headline grabbed my attention this past week, about a landmark decision handed down in a class action suit against Chevron in Ecuador. What struck me most was the name leading the list of plaintiffs. Maria Aguinda is a grandmother, an indigenous villager fighting a giant multinational oil company. I immediately looked for Ceres in the chart. Sure enough, Ceres was in Aries opposite Jupiter when the first version of the lawsuit was filed in November 1993. Ceres was conjunct Pluto in Capricorn at the peak of last year’s T-square.

This week, there are yet more shifts. On Tuesday, Venus enters Aquarius, sign of rebellion and human rights. Just before making her move, she sextiles Uranus, ruler of Aquarius. I’m hopeful that this transit will bring some resolution into conflicts worldwide. It may be too late in Libya, where so much blood has been shed already, but there’s still an opportunity for legislators in Wisconsin to do the right thing by compromising.

On Thursday, the lunar North Node leaves Capricorn and enters Sagittarius. At 29 degrees Sagittarius/Gemini, the nodes will be at the degree of the solstice eclipse, further activating this critical degree. The North Node also will begin approaching conjunction with the Galactic Center, which will be exact at the end of March. I’ll have more on this development, which I believe will create another portal for mass awakening.

Also on Thursday, Mars forms a compatible sextile with Pluto. This pair offers yet another possibility for working hard to reach a compromise or, if that’s not possible, for the losing side to accept defeat and regroup to form a new strategy.

Friday is the New Moon in Pisces. The planets are all bunched on one side of the chart, with Saturn on the other side (view chart here). As the singleton planet, Saturn has a powerful influence, and he’s at an irritating inconjunct with the Sun and Moon. Even though he’s retrograde, Saturn is exalted in Libra, the sign of fairness and balance. As much as we may wish to have things our way or fantasize about how we would like them to be, we’re going to have to get real, act on our own behalf, and do what’s necessary to maintain our integrity.

Speaking of which, I’m still working to catch up with my backlog of consultations, so I won’t have a New Moon post this week. I know many of you have been searching for them, but I’ve had to set priorities, and my first duty is to my paying clients. If I were independently wealthy or won the lottery, there’s nothing I’d love better than to write blog posts every day. Unfortunately, that’s not my reality, and so I will post as I can, between writing reports and meeting life’s demands.

Wishing you all much love and courage,
Pat