PUMA - Reflection of Eris?

When dwarf planet Eris entered the astrological scene a couple of years ago I was cynical about the way some astrologers immediately began to use the symbolism of Greek and Roman myths associated with Eris, goddess of strife/striving, and discord, to interpret the planet's meaning. I felt much as astrologer Jack Fertig describes:

"I want to caution here that I don’t really hold with the notion that the name that astronomers give a planet necessarily defines it. Remember that according to the astronomers, Pluto and Eris aren’t even full fledged planets right now.

Uranus could have appropriately been named Prometheus, and I do think Bacchus would be a better name for Neptune. We relate a lot to the mythological gods through our experience of the planets, and we attribute a lot to Uranus that frankly had nothing to do with the Greek Myth. We also see a lot to Neptune that the Greeks and Romans didn’t. And it’s perfectly fine to update the myths to contemporary realities.
...........We are starting from scratch and can at least use the mythic Eris as a touchstone for beginning investigations."

The astrologer discusses possible rulerships and relates briefly the mytholgy of Eris.

That is just background to what I'm getting around to saying. I can see Eris mythology personified in a current (mainly)women's poltical movement in the USA. There's an article in the Washington Post today which explains it well.

Several blogs have sprung up in support of the movement, three which come immediately to mind are:

PUMA (Party Unity My Ass), at the Confluence

Just Say No Deal

I OwnMy Vote

These groups, made up of large numbers of disaffected Hillary Clinton supporters are now resisting the call to unify the Democratic party by supporting Barack Obama as nominee.

From Jack Fertig again (who surmises that Eris might rule Libra, odd as that might sound):

"But what I do see here with the so-called goddess of strife, is in fact striving, competition. I see her as an agent of group dynamics, how we define ourselves vis-à-vis others, not just as individuals but also as Libran team-mates, as members of a group within a larger group. At the wedding of Peleus and Thetis she introduced a competition that set off the Trojan War. But she’s only directly responsible for the competition; not the war!"

PUMA and associated groups are symbolically throwing an apple into the Democrats' wedding party, causing potential chaos. If events do not change current circumstances, and the groups remain strong in their intention: vote McCain, or a third party candidate, or stay home on November 4, chaos for the Democratic party might well ensue. That well worn phrase "snatching defeat from the jaws of victory" could once again prove to be apt.

More strength to PUMA! I'll enthusiastically join in once I get my vote.

Postscript: Last night I saw evidence that several PUMA-type blogs on Blogger have been locked out, "pending review", causing their owners to have to consider opening a blog elsewhere. (SEE HERE) This is thought to be the result of Obama supporters' mischief-making. Is this sort of thing likely to encourage unity?

If my page doesn't appear tomorrow, chances are not that I'm locked out due to the subject matter of this post, but that we have decided to stay overnight at a venue near to a Route 66 Festival we intend seeking out - but you never know....

The Week That Was - and Is

Pulling together a few of the week's news items which particularly appealed to me:

# 1: Dennis Kucinich (aka The Best President America Never Had) introduced into the House of Representatives a resolution to impeach President Bush. It took him five hours to read the lengthy Articles of Impeachment.

Rep. Kucinich had already presented impeachment articles in respect of Vice President Dick Cheney some months ago, those currently reside with the House Judiciary Committee. No action has been taken, thanks mainly to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's determination to avoid impeachment action at all costs.

Dennis Kucinich has natal Sun in Libra, but with Mars, Jupiter and Mercury in Scorpio and Aries rising he has the energy and determination to stick to his political guns. Clicking on his name in the Label Cloud will bring up a selection of relevant posts, as well as the one already linked above.

Action by Congress on impeachment might not follow, but Dennis Kucinich's efforts will go into the record, so that in decades to come, historians will realise that there was one politician in the early 21st century with his eyes wide open.

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# 2:
Representative Dan Boren is Oklahoma's only one Democratic Representative and we have no Democratic Senator. He was in the news this week after declining to endorse Barack Obama. He said Obama was not his first choice as Democratic nominee, and he is not the candidate for whom the majority in his constituency voted. He will, however, vote for the Democratic nominee in the General Election.

Oklahoma's zodiac sign is said to be Scorpio, by the way, because of the date of its statehood. Okies are a warm-hearted, kindly bunch, but there is an air of Scorpio passion and determination blowing through the wide open spaces of this lovely state.

Rep. Boren's decision rattled the cages of a few of the more rabid Obama supporters, calling forth bitchy comments about Oklahoma and its inhabitants. Clinton supporters are well used to such attacks. One commenter had the temerity to say that many Oklahomans have probably never seen a black man, so would never vote for one. As it happens, our town in SW Oklahoma has a black mayor, who won the position running against two white male candidates and a white female candidate. Obama supporters do their candidate no service at all by antagonising many of those they should be trying to appease.

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# 3
There's a large and growing on-line community who declare they will not support Barack Obama to be the USA's next president "under any circumstances". For confirmation see this entry at No Quarter PUMA ROARS (PUMA = Party Unity My Ass). A long and growing list of blogs, have formed a coalition: "Explosion of rogue grassroots organizations coalesces overnight to form Mega-Coalition: JustSayNoDeal.com"

I see this as a reflection of the polarising opposition in the USA Armistead Chart, mentioned HERE and HERE. Some of Barack Obama's personal planets connect to that opposition.

As I don't write a purely political blog, I can't add mine to their list, but am pleased to offer what support I can with this brief mention and future updates.

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# 4
A certificate of Barack Obama's birth appeared on-line yesterday, said to have been obtained from the Obama campaign by the owner of Daily Kos (an avidly pro-Obama blog). The time of birth stated is 7.24pm. Astrologers had originally been working on a birthtime of 1.06pm , then from a later source of information, 7.11pm.
So we now know that Aquarius was the zodiac sign coming over the horizon as Obama drew his first breath. It's odd that I feel zero empathy. My re-located rising sign is Aquarius, as is my Sun sign.

The rising sign or ascendant is often described as a person's astrological mask. Looking back, there was an initial impression of Aquarius about him in the early days of the primaries, but I think that, even before the emergence of this new birthtime, I'd realised it was superficial.

I note also that Neptune, planet of illusion, now lies at the top of his natal chart, not actually on the midheaven angle, but still with some prominence, in 9th house (connections with philosophy and religion). I've mentioned before that I suspected Neptune would be close to one of the angles - not a bad guess for a beginner!