Rough on Huffington

On Friday evening we watched the season finale of Bill Maher's TV show, "Real Time". At this time of year, waving 'bye 'bye to Bill until summer's end has usually been a cause for regret. This year it's more a cause for relief. Bill, along with most of his carefully selected guests, climbed gleefully onto the Obama bandwagon some time back, jeering at Hillary Clinton and her supporters as it trundles past. One wheel is looking decidedly wobbly these days.

For this season's finale the panel consisted of comedian Garry Shandling (suffering from a damaged knee, pilled-up and waffling); Phil Donahue, a talk show host from years past, the sensible panel member who hardly got a word in edgewise; and lastly but loudly, Arianna Huffington.



I used to be a regular visitor to Arianna's Huffington Post website, before Obamamania infected it and gradually took over. Vitriolic Obama fanatics, writers and commenters, drove more level-headed regulars like me away. I credit Arianna's obvious antipathy towards Hillary Clinton for allowing the infection to spread. The site has become a rabid fan club rather than the purveyor of news from an independent liberal perspective, which it once was.

On Friday night Arianna didn't try to hide her feelings about Senator Clinton. I sensed though that Bill Maher's attitude towards Clinton had softened somewhat. He probably smells change in the air.

Arianna Huffington was born 15 July 1950 in Athens, Greece. According to Astrotheme time of birth was 3pm. Her dominant zodiac sign is Cancer, dominant planet Pluto, ruler of her Scorpio ascendant.



This lady should display clear Cancer and Scorpio traits. Perhaps the reason she finds Hillary Clinton so unacceptable is that they have some traits in common, maybe they are traits she secretly dislikes in herself. Their ascendants, if birthtimes are accurate, are but 3 Scorpio degrees away from each other.

Even more prominent in Arianna's natal chart is Cancer: Sun, Moon & Mercury all within a span of 5 degrees, with Uranus in that sign too. A whopping dollop of the Crab ! Cancer isn't a favourite sign of mine - it's my own rising sign. I find it annoying. My Aquarius and Aries bits don't get along well with Cancer at all.

In Arianna's case, Scorpio and Pluto mesh easily with her Cancerian side. That's a scarey combination in my book! Water water everywhere - as the saying goes - and not a drop to drink. Much too much of a good thing. Cancer and Scorpio mesh a little too well for comfort. There is potential for bringing forth a venomous, hurtful, emotionally charged hybrid.

It's sites such as Huffington Post (there are several others, just as bad and even worse) which offer a breeding ground for dangerous ideas. I noticed, among comments at the site, threats of riots at the Convention in Denver, should Barack Obama not be the Democratic party's nominee. A few bells may be ringing for those who remember the late 1960s. Let's hope that history does not repeat itself. If it does, a certain type of website will have played no small part.



"You say you want a revolution
Well you know
We'd all want to change the world
You tell me that it's evolution
Well you know
We'd all want to change the world
But when you talk about destruction
Don't you know that you can count me out
Don't you know it's gonna be alright

You say you got a real solution
Well you know
We'd all want to see the plan
You ask me for a contribution
Well you know
We're all doing what we can
But if you want money for people with minds that hate
All I can tell you is brother you have to wait
Don't you know it's gonna be alright

You say you'll change the constitution
Well you know
We'd all want to change your head
You tell me it's the institution
Well you know
You better free your mind instead
But if you go carrying pictures of Chairman Mao
You ain't going to make it with anyone anyhow
Don't you know know it's gonna be alright"
(written by John Lennon & Paul McCartney)

Is Via Combusta Scorching Politicians ?

Yesterday I stumbled upon "Separated at birth: Maureen Dowd & Arianna Huffington" ,written by "Luk". It isn't meant to be taken seriously, but it did set me on the track of a new blog entry.

These two women do have similar career records. Journalists, authors, and bloggers, they comment and report in critical and outspoken fashion mainly about politics in the USA. From their natal charts though, I'd say they have little in common personality-wise. There's only one similarity obvious to me, apart from sign positions of the three generational planets.

Maureen Dowd (right) born 14 January 1952 Washington DC
Arianna Huffington (left) born 15 July 1950 Athens, Greece

Both women have personal planets around the middle degrees of Libra. In traditional astrology I understand that the degrees between 15 Libra and 15 Scorpio are known as "Via Combusta" = Fiery Road, or Burning Road. This area of the chart was thought in ancient times to be unlucky or malefic, especially for Sun or Moon to be found there, in horary astrology. If valid in horary astrology, surely there must be something special about those degrees which might be applied also in natal astrology?

Dowd has Saturn at the gate of the Burning Road 14.53* Libra, Mars at 27.29* Libra, and Neptune at 21.41* Libra, several steps into "the fire"
Huffington's Mars is at 15.10* Libra and Neptune at 14.40* Libra, near the start of the Burning Road.

Perhaps these placements are significant in the women's similar desires to speak out so frankly, passionately, and not often kindly. I note that the personal planets involved, Mars and Saturn, are traditionally classed as "malefics".

Trying to remain objective and unbiassed is difficult. Maureen Dowd's style does not appeal to me, I find it cruel. Arianna Huffington's chart (4 planets in Cancer, Jupiter in Pisces) reveals a kinder, softer personality, as does her work, but she retains the ability to be sharply critical. Dowd's Capricorn Sun and Mercury with Jupiter in Aries, are bound to give her a harder edge.

Additionally, I took a quick look at the natal chart of Ann Coulter. She's younger (8 December 1961 New York City), but her career and style follow a similar pattern to Dowd's and Huffington's. Neptune is at 12.18* Scorpio - at the other end of The Burning Road in her natal chart, but no personal planets are there. Even so, could there be some significance here ?