Question Everything !

This snip comes from a recent piece by the eminently readable Caitlin Johnstone:
Be Suspicious Of Everyone Who Habitually Defends The Powerful From The Weak

...Generally speaking, whenever you see people loudly and habitually advocating for the powerful side of a power discrepancy, they are showing you that they are servants of power. Their interest is not in truth, justice or compassion, but in helping power maintain itself. Being aware of this gives you a very useful tool for navigating a confusing media landscape that is immersed in propaganda, spin, and disinformation.

This applies across the board. When you see anyone advocating on behalf of the US empire against the latest Official Bad Guy Nation, when you see them advocating on behalf of the plutocrat-owned mass media machine against alternative media outlets, when you see them advocating on behalf of the Pentagon, the CIA and the Democratic Party against Julian Assange, when you see them advocating on behalf of fossil fuel companies against indigenous protesters, when you see them advocating on behalf of America’s increasingly militarized police force against unarmed black men, when you see them advocating on behalf of the wealthy against the poor, when you see them advocating on behalf of the status quo against activists and organizations pushing for change, they are giving you valuable information about themselves.

Illustration borrowed from HERE.


In the USA we need to question all that will be fed to us during upcoming 2018 mid-term elections, and the big one in 2020. In the UK much the same caution applies to what's being fed to the public about Brexit. Having questioned these things though, what then? That is the ultimate question to which I haven't yet found an answer.

Mercury has been in what astrologers term 'retrograde motion' since 26 July, and will continue in that mode until August 19. While the planet isn't actually moving backwards in the sky, it looks that way from our perspective - this occurs when Mercury passes the Earth in its orbit, and happens 3 or 4 times each year. It's really no big deal, but astrologers like to note these times being "something different from the norm", times when things don't always go exactly as planned. I'll not list the various possibilities for hiccups during Mercury retro periods, they are easy enough to find via Google or your favourite search engine. These times offer a useful period for fruitful reflection of things past. With that in mind, to finish off this post, I'm re-airing part of an archived post of mine (lightly edited) which, though some 8 years old points to things no less relevant today, and has connection to Caitlin Johnstone's piece quoted above:

From George Orwell's novel, 1984

"Don't you see that the whole aim of Newspeak is to narrow the range of thought?... Has it ever occurred to you, Winston, that by the year 2050, at the very latest, not a single human being will be alive who could understand such a conversation as we are having now?... The whole climate of thought will be different. In fact, there will be no thought, as we understand it now. Orthodoxy means not thinking—not needing to think. Orthodoxy is unconsciousness."
- George Orwell, 1984, Book 1, Chapter 5

1984 was written long ago. As a view of how Orwell's words still relate to the state of things, I offer a link to a film: Psywar - "The real battlefield is the mind".

The film explores the evolution of propaganda and public relations in the United States, with an emphasis on the “elitist theory of democracy” and the relationship between war, propaganda and class. This is not a high budget affair, but was financed via a blue collar job, and was released online for free. The interviews contained within are original and were conducted by proxy.

The film takes us back, with the guidance of some highly regarded historians and philosophers, over past centuries to illustrate the use of propaganda and manipulation of public feeling...mind control....psyops...call it what you will.

Psyops (Psychological Operations), under one label or another, has been a part of warfare, and used by all countries, for centuries. It has included simple operations such as circulation of propaganda leaflets (as below), posters, radio broadcasts, as well as many more sophisticated and sinister operations. As well as being a part of warfare psyops are used to influence populations that war is necessary - remember those "weapons of mass destruction"? War, of course, is one of the most profitable of all events, but only for the power-wielders. Others lose their lives, their health or their sanity. Families are left devastated, on both sides of that divide of manufactured hatred.



Not always realised, though, is the continual use of a form of psyops on the population at large by those in power (and I don't necessarily mean a country's government).

One theory put forward in the film is that we are being manipulated because "the power-wielders" consider that "the people" (The Great Unwashed) are not fit to have a say in how countries are run in this advanced technological age. All power, and consequently all wealth, must be restricted to "the elite leaders". The power-wielders choose/designate individuals - candidates - for "election". This gives the appearance that these individuals are being "chosen" by the people. In reality the "candidates" are there only by permission of "the elite", and are there to do their bidding. This process is aided by a coordinated psychological operation using elite-controlled media as its front-line to push forward "candidate du jour" and denigrate others.

"The people" are, from time to time, given tid-bits of help, they receive just enough sweetening for those in power to avoid outright rebellion by the masses. Outright rebellion - revolution - is something "the elite" fear and plan to avoid.

Quote from a respected philosopher:

Noam Chomsky, Thought Control in a Democratic Society

“If in some Orwellian future there were One Big Owner, he might be benevolent, in his own opinion, as indeed, Orwell’s Big Brother was – in his own opinion. Big Brother let the public see and hear a variety of things he deemed useful – where there is centralized control, it is the One Big Owner who makes the choices…Each year is more likely that the American citizen who turns to any medium – newspapers, magazines, radio, TV, books, movies, cable, recordings, video cassettes – will receive information, ideas, or entertainment controlled by the same handful of corporations, whether it is daily news, a cable entertainment program, or a textbook…Media giants have become so powerful that government no longer has the will to restrain them…Now that media owners are so large that they are part of the highest levels of the world economy, the news and other public information become heavily weighted in favor of all corporate values. The new corporate ethic is so single-minded about extreme fast profits and expanded control over the media business that it is willing to convert American news into a service for the affluent customers wanted by the media’s advertisers instead of a source of information significant for the whole of society.”

Beware Newspeak! Be forever wary of what you read and hear, especially when what you read and hear will aid or profit "the elite" and the powerful.

My Own Retrograding - Hand in Hand with Mercury

Mercury Retrograde
has spanned he period
May 19 – June 11, 2015. Coincidentally (or not) I've had a bit of a re-tracing exercise going on during this exact span - unintentionally organised too, I should add.

Regular readers might recall my tale of woe about an accident I had while in New Mexico in late March (see here).

I refrained from taking the advice of the radiologist in New Mexico who seemed intent on putting the Fear of Dog into yours truly, by referring to two masses around my throat area, revealed by the CT scan they rushed me into. By the time I'd gathered my senses on the way back to our hotel, I was confident that the problems were not as dire as all that. I'd coughed up a piece of nasty caused by the blow to my throat, which could possibly account for one mass, on my epiglottis, and the other on my thyroid had been investigated several years ago and found to be benign. So...as my voice and throat gradually returned to normal over several days, I resisted going to regale my own doctor with the preliminary findings and disc of the New Mexico CT scan. I already had a Mid-May appointment for twice-yearly blood-work, plus a followup chat with our GP, so I decided to wait for that.

Bloodwork came up all okay. On telling the Doc my tale of woe, he thought for a while and decided it'd be eminently reasonable for me to go see the local ENT specialist. I did so on 28 May. My tale of woe was told - again. ENT Doc inspected my throat closely, flicked with a needle-ish tool a quite large grain of hardened "stuff" from a fold in my left tonsil (maybe the remaining part of the mass on my epiglottis?) He said that such things form from time to time, nothing to worry about. His nurse approached with another dangly tool- with this one he entered my nostril and travelled down into my throat for a "good look around". He declared all to be well, nothing untoward there. His remaining concern was the thyroid thing. He asked had any of my relatives had thyroid cancer. No, they hadn't! I referred him to the fact that I'd had an ultra-scan back in 2006, which had shown no malignancy, but he still felt it necessary to go a wee bit further and have a biopsy done. He explained this procedure to me very carefully - likely to be fairly painless, thyroid entered from outer neck - a fine needle which will "suck" a few cells to be investigated. I wasn't overjoyed at this prospect.

On 4 June, bright and early (well, early) we were at the radiology dept of our excellent hospital. The whole thing was, as the doctor who performed the biopsy said as he bounced into the room, "quick, easy and painless". He uttered the best words of this adventure so far: "these things are usually benign". I did note the word "usually", but the fact that he said the word benign cheered me no end!

Follow-up appointment with ENT Doc for results was yesterday afternoon, 10 June, almost at the end of Mercury Retrograde. Even though I originally felt pretty confident that all was well, I still had lingering doubts, pushing my BP up sky high before I eventually saw the nurse, who kindly reassured me that "there's nothing bad in the report". ENT Doc eventually showed up and confirmed that I have a benign nodule on the left thyroid. He advised that it'd be wise to keep an eye on it via an ultra-scan initially in 6 to 8 months, then maybe annually, to make sure the nodule wasn't growing and causing problems with other bits and pieces in the left throat area.

So...all's well that ends well...and it ended almost in harmony with Mercury's latest back tracking exercise.

Mercury Retrograde Tales

Mercury Retrograde time has come around again. Two coincidences to report. I'll call them coincidences, astrologers might call them examples of the kind of techno-hiccups that are said to be common when Mercury is (apparently) moving in retrograde motion. It isn't really, just looks that way from where we stand.


First coincidence began just before the retrograde period, when we were away from home recently. Listening to an audio book on the car's CD player: Shoot the Moon by Billie Letts, something I'd picked up long ago in a junk store for use on a long trip. We were enjoying Lou Diamond Phillips' entertaining narration. When I reached to insert the next CD, felt a slight, unusual resistance. I exerted a little gentle force (big mistake). With CD inside the whole thing jammed up. Later efforts to retrieve the disc failed. We had to make do with a set of indifferent radio stations for the rest of the trip. Back home, after a week or so, husband took the car to our Chevvy dealer who gave him the sad news that, unless the disc could be released with "a good ol' bang" (it couldn't), the only solution would be a new unit.....upwards of $300. That news served to fire up the husband! When he got the car home he found a suitable slim tool and, with surgical precision, felt around the CD slot opening, lifted and teased until the disc re-appeared. Wondrously, when other discs were tried, the player still worked. The imprisoned CD must have been a rogue disc then - looked fine though, and did play well on our separate CD player. There's nothing like the threat of a bill for $300+ to get things moving! That story began before Mercury Retro, and ended more or less just as apparent Mercurial back-tracking had begun.

Second coincidence: Three or four nights ago our VCR (or is it VHS? ) machine simply stopped working. After attempting a clean-up job and various twiddles and tweaks, nothing improved. It has given good service for more than 8 years, perhaps it has simply worn out. We decided to visit local and neighbouring junk, thrift and pawn stores to find a replacement; we both recalled having seen piles of 'em waiting for buyers in the past. Not so now. We could find narry a one. A Goodwill store had one machine working, but marked "Not for Sale". Although there are mountains of VHS tapes of movies and concerts still around at bargain prices, that which is needed to play the tapes has gone the way of dinosaurs. E-bay does dinosaurs. I found one there - one with no bids and 20 minutes to go before the auction closed. I bid, 1 cent more than the given bottom rung, and won. So we wait, and hope that Mercury Retro will not impede delivery, or receipt of said machine in good, working condition.

Mercury Retro Still Pursuing Me Up Computer Creek?

Mercury Retrograde (or something) hasn't quite finished with me yet!

There I was, yesterday, thinking I was all ready to go, clean machine at the ready, Norton 360, like a big butch bouncer at the gates warding off nasty viruses and malware...."Yipee-ki-yay moth......" well ya know!

Then I tried to use my astrology software.

Didn't work, hung up before displaying the chart with data I'd input. Error message. Decided to uninstall and re-install again in case something hadn't quite "taken". Couldn't find the file to uninstall - not in usual place. Installed again anyway. This time when I tried to use it the software wouldn't bring up the atlas. Husband couldn't help in this case, though he tried. I then recalled, from somewhere in the far recesses of memory, that since I bought the cd for my astro software in 2006 there had been an update, to which I'd been entitled as part of the original purchase price. I'd accessed this via download, maybe 2 or 3 years ago. I still have my customer code number etc, so contacting the firm should solve matters.

Decided to contact the astro software firm this morning. First contact phone number I found online was no longer in use, a further search brought up a different number which worked. The lady who answered, after checking my customer number quickly offered to send me a link to a download for the updated version. She said it would cover the two old installations I have sitting useless on my machine. It didn't, but it seems to work. However, it looks completely different from the version I had. Hmm.....can't remember how I'd managed to keep the old look of the interface. Not to worry, maybe this is a second update of the original I've never had before.

Other minor snags arose too. I'm not too keen to have those ghost files from my old Windows installation, but they're probably safe enough. Norton found 2 viruses and a trojan on a full system scan, so the ghosts are clean enough, just cluttering up the works. A go around with C.Cleaner doesn't seem to have removed them.

My e-mail program was a licence paid-for version but can't find anybody - any human -to offer information on how to re-access the paid-for version. Screw it! I'll just use my internet provider's clunky e-mail program for a while.

Had enough for now. Back tomorrow, I hope.

Up Computer Creek Without a Paddle (aka Mercury Retrograde?)

As noted in the previous post and comments, I have serious desktop computer issues at present. Issues caused by a particularly virulent strain of malware called "Security Check". There's no way to get into my programs, even using nifty backdoor routes advised by experts. Even rescue discs which involve booting into a different mini-operating system based on Linux fail. It's as though the malware trashed and removed the very guts of my computer.

Ah well - onward and sideways! Attaching my keyboard and mouse to the laptop has enabled me to be a bit less buttery-fingered. I might even carry on blogging, though not quite as frequently.

Mercury Retrograde.....yes! Diane, who commented the other day mentioned it. I hadn't been thinking along those lines myself, but now the matter has raised its tricky head...well...According to most astrologers Mercury Retro periods of around 3 weeks duration are times when our thinking can more easily become muddled, causing the kinds of problems we'd normally quite easily avoid. Also, some astrologers advise, among other things, that it's preferable not to buy electronic devices (computers included) when Mercury appears to be in retrograde motion.

Mercury stations today, 12 March, will appear stand still then back-track until early April. See details on a calendar at Powerful Light.com

I'm not planning to be obsessive about Mercury Retro, but Diane's comment did tend to stop me in my tracks when I was considering ordering an online snip-of-a-deal - new desktop PC with Windows7 installed.

According to astrologers the dates of Mercury's stations are possibly the worst of the lot for general "iffiness". Discretion being the better part of valor, I've decided to wait until after 12 March, at least, before ordering a computer. In a practical, non-astro sense anyway, it will allow time to try to re-format my computer myself or, if impossible, consult our local computer store for their techie's opinion on likely costs, whether the infected computer can be healed, or if it's a hopeless case. Armed with that information, by mid- or late-week I'll feel confident enough to order a new machine, if that's what seems to be the appropriate course. A new machine will have at least year's warranty, so all will not be lost, whatever the outcome of possible foolhardiness.

Light research threw up some articles whose authors present a rather different viewpoint about Mercury Retro periods from the standard textbook view. Here are links to a couple of them, for any passing reader who finds themself feeling hamstrung or hemmed-in by Mercury Retrograde.

http://garystamper.blogspot.com/2011/04/myth-of-mercury-retrograde.html

http://practicalastrology.prettyfedup.com/articles2.htm

Mercury Retrograde & Odyssey 5

We're around midway through a Mercury Retrograde period at present. During such periods, lasting 3 or 4 weeks, astrologers expect more communication hiccups of various kinds and transportation difficulties. Reviewing the past is also something in tune with the Mercury Retro "atmosphere".

All of which brings to mind the theme of a sci-fi TV series in which five occupants of a space shuttle have their consciousness sent back to Earth to inhabit the five bodies as they were 5 years earler. The five individuals are to try to re-write history. It takes a while for the full implications of that 5-year leap back, with current consciousness intact, to sink in, I found.

Think about it. Think about being yourself 5 years ago, but knowing what you know now. During some periods of 5 years it wouldn't make a big difference for me, but during certain other periods it would be a horrendous, painful and awkward thing to live through again, knowing the future.

Anyway - a little about the TV series in question -

Showtime cut off the series, Odyssey 5, in its prime after 19 episodes. I bought the "Complete Series" DVD set, knowing it was incomplete, and we'd never know the ending. The storyline sounded intriguing enough to warrant investigation.

On 7 August 2007 space shuttle Odyssey with 6 people on board: 4 astronauts, a scientist, and a TV news reporter is in space on routine duty. Those on board watch with horror as a red glow creeps over planet Earth and it implodes. The shuttle is sent out of control for a while, one astronaut dies. Remaining crew members: Commander Chuck Taggert (Peter Weller) and his son Neil (Christopher Gorham), Nobel Prize winning geneticist Kurt Mendel (Sebastian Roché), newscaster Sarah Forbes (Leslie Silva) and shuttle pilot, Angela Perry (Tamara Crag Thomas) resign themselves to their fate and wait to run out of oxygen.

The survivors accept that their own deaths are inevitable, but then the shuttle is sucked into a kaleidoscopic crystalline object, a humanoid figure appears: "The Seeker", an ancient non-organic being of artificial intelligence. The Seeker tells the five that he has seen 50 other worlds meet the same fate as Earth, but was never able to find survivors in time to help. He explains that he has the ability to send them back in time to attempt to avert the tragedy - but no more than 5 years back, and not their physical bodies, that would not be possible. Their current consciousness can be sent back to inhabit their 2002 bodies.

An extra layer of intrigue is added as the five find themselves back in 2002, five years younger physically, but with an added five years of experience. They have still to deal with physical problems of their younger years: unhappy marriage, corrupt father, drug problem, sick child, high school mentality.....classic cases of "If I'd known then what I know now" - in this case they do!

The 19 episodes document the search for perpetrators of Earth's destruction, and reasons behind it, all played out against the backdrop of said personal problems, and other new ones. Thanks to Showtime the series was not allowed to reach conclusion, so each viewer must invent their own version. No problem really - that's what we have to do in real life..... isn't it?

Mercury Retrograde Delivers.....again!

Mercury Retrograde caught me in its web once again. I say once again because on its last retro spin in December 2010 it caught me in a very similar fashion....with a nasty trojan infestation on my desktop computer. Different trojan this time, but same frustration. (Click on Mercury Retrograde in the Label Cloud to read about the last episode).

The infester this time was a little blighter known as XP AntiVirus 2011. There are several alternative titles for this trojan, depending on operating system etc. All start by trying to scare the computer user into clicking on pop-ups notifying that the computer is badly infected and in a dangerous state then pressing them to buy their software to repair the damage....all fake of course. An array of different notices pop up all over the place, programs are shut down, broswer cannot be used, nor can any software normally used for detecting malware. If I logged off, then on again the fake notices filled the screen in rapid succession.

This happened late on Sunday afternoon. We hauled out the laptop to search for solutions. After 2 hours and several attempts to clear the problem I gave it up, assuming I'd have to shell out another $90 for an online remote techie to rescue me again. However, couldn't sleep that night so got up and read every piece of advice I could find, and every forum relating to this trojan. It appears there has been a spate of infestations recently and even the best virus software has been unable to stop the nasties in many cases.

Solutions range from some rather complex tinkering in the registry - highly dangerous for a klutz like me, or paying an afore-mentioned online techie. The only other alternative apart from trecking to the town's only computer shop and leaving the machine there for who knows how long, or throwing the machine into the garbage, was trying to download some anti-spyware software, using the infected computer in safe mode. I decided to try that - nothing ventured etc.

All went well, surprisingly, as long as I ignored and X'd off the ubiquitous scary notices threatening everything but he apocalypse, these popped up even in safe mode. I installed the software, ran a scan and it found about 7 trojan thingies, along with the usual batch of cookies. Then the fun started.

Before I could remove the malware items I had to pay the piper - Spyware Doctor $29.99. I managed to access Paypal from safe mode and had almost finished the transaction when a spate of the flippin' fake notices blocked out the screen. Couldn't tell if payment had gone through or not. Checked my Paypal account and emails via the laptop - it seemed as though payment had gone through. But where was my licence key? Not in the email receipt. Waited for a further email but none came.

Another long search to find out how to get my $29.99 key! Had to do it via the laptop and PC Tools (Daddy of Spyware Doctor)Help website, then write the yards long key down on paper.

Where to put it though - couldn't find a place, and some tabs wouldn't open. I suspected the malware was blocking me again.

Back to PC Tools and an online support chat screen. Ten minutes of explaining, and a simple remedy had me deleting the nasties and geting out of safe mode at last.

I ran my Malwarebytes software after updating it, and found 4 more nasties. Then I noticed that my Microsoft automatic updates were turned off. Went to remedy that but found I was unable to do so.

Ran yet another full scan using the new Spyware Doctor. No joy.

More research but nothing was suggested that I dared to try. Realising that at least one tentacle of the infestation remained I was afriad it might - as my husband put it "phone home" and bring down all hell on my computer again - so back to the $90 online tech. Sigh. At least now he could access my desktop, which would have been impossible earlier in the day, before my own efforts.

He repaired the infection in an hour or so, and left me with a long-running de-frag tool in full flight, another couple of hours later and things were left as normal as they'll ever be on my Delly.

Next Mercury Retrograde will find me as far away from the computer as I can manage!

In case it might help anyone else who surfs the net a lot, and as a reminder for me, some hints to help avoid thees kinds of nasties. Found it online - somewhere.

When you encounter one of these fake virus pop-ups while browsing, immediately do the following:

-Do not touch any browser window to close it or browse further.
-Immediately press Ctrl-Alt-Del and bring up Task Manager and forcibly end all instances of iexplore.exe, if using Internet Explorer, or the executable for your browser for any other web browser.
--or--
-Go to Start/Shut Down and restart the PC without touching any browser windows.
-If you used task manager to close browser instances, reboot the machine.
-Then go to Control Panel/Internet Options and delete all temporary Internet Files and cookies. If you are using an alternate web browser, open the browser settings to do the same - delete the local cached files and cookies.
-Perform a full scan.

The above steps should prevent the infection from taking hold.

THE WEEK THAT WAS ~ Julian Assange ~ Neptune ~ Mercury Retrograde

Writings and comment on Wikileaks and Julian Assange has filled cyberspace and other public spaces this week with the most words written on a single topic since the BP oil spill.

My (very personal) view of the situation varies from most others I've read. I have a strong feeling that all is not straightforward. There's "something else", some secret motivation ? I don't know. But I can't raise the same level of enthusiasm and support for him this time around. Gut-feeling.

Something about the latest release of hundreds of thousands of diplomatic cables, embarrassing to those in power, but not in the same league as previous whistle-blowing efforts, doesn't strike the same note for me, and I get to wondering.

It's not that I don't have great respect for the courage of Julian Assange and what he had done before the latest scenario. In fact I wrote about earlier Wikileaks "exposures" in a post headed Wikileaks, Pluto & Galactic Center. At that stage Assange's birth data was a mystery, it is now available.

A similar Neptunian fog surrounds Assange as that surrounding President Obama. There's a lot of Neptunian fog around in general just now in the USA. Neptune connects to mystery, illusion and delusion - mental fog. Assange is supposed to be trying to clear foggy areas, but in the process causes the mists to swirl dangerously.

Assange's natal chart ought to provide some clarity on his true personality. The rape charges he faces only add to the fog; they have been, more than likely, "trumped up".

Numerous astrologers have already published interpretations of Assange's natal chart. It does not behove me to argue with what any of them have written. Instead I'll offer links to several pieces I've come across so far, and let any passing reader who has missed these make up their own mind on the matter.

Some articles by astrologers interpreting the natal chart of Julian Assange:

ERIC FRANCIS.....(also Mr Francis's responses to skeptics in this respect at Boing Boing)

MARY PLUMB at Mountain Astrologer ....And a second one relating to the birth time


DARK STAR ASTROLOGY

LYNN HAYES at Belief Net

ASTROPOST

ROBERT PHOENIX

TARA GREENE

Below is the natal chart of Julian Assange constructed from data available. His date and place or birth are said to have been taken from official documents, so ought to be reliable. Even so, I retain a wee bit of doubt, he being in the business he's in! The birth time is the most open to question, but as it's the only one available I've included it below.

My single comment here is to note that (if birth time is near correct) foggy Neptune lay in Sagittarius in the first house of self as he came into the world. Neptune was within a few degrees of Jupiter (the publication and exaggeration planet and ruler of Sagittarius), though in the adjacent sign, Scorpio. For me this is the most significant factor in the chart.

Believe nothing you read and only half of what you see in matters relating to Mr. Assange.

IN OTHER NEWS

Mercury Retrograde - or its shadow - are under investigation, Chez Twilight, for causing chaos on this blogger's computer.

The current Mercury Retrograde period proper started yesterday, 10 December (ends 30th) but the so-called shadow period, when some astrologers consider effects can often be recognised, ran from 22 November (ends 18 Jan. 2011).

I've had a recurring computer problem with viruses and/or trojans (mbr rootkit and alureon) from late November until yesterday. On 1 December, after all my own efforts to eradicate the infections from my system had failed I enlisted the help of an on-line technician who could access my computer remotely. He did what seemed like a good job, it took almost 2 hours (costing $90!) - with a 7-day warranty.

Yesterday, 10 December, the problem returned. I contacted my remote techie who very kindly classed that day as being the last of my warranty period, and went through the whole long rigmarole of catching and killing the virus again at no further charge. He advised me to change my anti-virus software, recommended ESET NOD32, which I have now acquired.

What I probably need, though, is a way to eradicate Mercury Retrograde!

Contemplating Psyops as Mercury Retrogrades

Planet Mercury will appear to be in what astrologers call "retrograde motion" until 12 September. The current episode of backward-seeming movement began on on 20 August. As has oft been repeated, these regular periods of Mercury Retrograde connect to an extra helping of difficulties in all areas of communication. These periods also provide a time when fruitful reflection of things past can be achieved.

With the latter in mind, I started re-reading George Orwell's 1984 and watched, again, the tape of the movie adaptation of his book - the one starring John Hurt and Richard Burton. 1984 struck a chord:

"Don't you see that the whole aim of Newspeak is to narrow the range of thought?... Has it ever occurred to you, Winston, that by the year 2050, at the very latest, not a single human being will be alive who could understand such a conversation as we are having now?... The whole climate of thought will be different. In fact, there will be no thought, as we understand it now. Orthodoxy means not thinking—not needing to think. Orthodoxy is unconsciousness."
- George Orwell, 1984, Book 1, Chapter 5

1984 was written long ago. As a view of how Orwell's words relate to the state of things today, I offer a link to a film I stumbled upon while drafting this post yesterday: Psywar - "The real battlefield is the mind". The full film (around 1 hour 40 mins, ends abruptly, it's possibly to be continued) and is available to view in full, or as a brief 4 and a half minute trailer either at 911 Blogger.com or at Exposure Room. If a passing reader is pressed for time, the trailer is highly recommended, though the full film is far more enlightening.

UPDATE: If the video film has been removed from the above links try THIS LINK .

Its creator said, at the 911 site:

I'm pleased to present the first feature in my documentary series, entitled Psywar ("The real battlefield is the mind"). It premiered on Global Research and should be appearing on some other alternative news websites in the coming days.

The film explores the evolution of propaganda and public relations in the United States, with an emphasis on the “elitist theory of democracy” and the relationship between war, propaganda and class.

This is not a high budget affair, but was financed via a blue collar job, and is being released online for free. The interviews contained within are original and were conducted by proxy.

The film takes us back, with the guidance of some highly regarded historians and philosophers, over past centuries to illustrate the use of propaganda and manipulation of public feeling....mind control....psyops...call it what you will.

Psyops (Psychological Operations), under one label or another, has been a part of warfare, and used by all countries, for centuries. It has included simple operations such as circulation of propaganda leaflets (as below), posters, radio broadcasts, as well as many more sophisticated and sinister operations. As well as being a part of warfare psyops are used to influence populations that war is necessary - remember those "weapons of mass destruction"? War, of course, is one of the most profitable of all events, but only for the power-wielders. Others lose their lives, their health or their sanity. Families are left devastated, on both sides of that divide of manufactured hatred.



Not always realised, though, is the continual use of a form of psyops on the population at large by those in power (and I don't necessarily mean a country's government).

One theory put forward in the film is that we are being manipulated because "the power-wielders" consider that "the people" (The Great Unwashed) are not fit to have a say in how countries are run in this advanced technological age. All power, and consequently all wealth, must be restricted to "the elite leaders". The power-wielders choose/designate individuals - candidates - for "election". This gives the appearance that these individuals are being "chosen" by the people. In reality the "candidates" are there only by permission of "the elite", and are there to do their bidding. This process is aided by a coordinated psychological operation using elite-controlled media as its front-line to push forward "candidate du jour" and denigrate others.

"The people" are, from time to time, given tid-bits of help (eg: the tidbit contained in new healthcare legislation. This could quite easily have been a much bigger portion of assistance, of benefit to more of "the people", but that would have resulted in a reduced share of goodies for the pharmaceutical corporations. Can't have that, can we?! "The people" receive just enough to avoid outright rebellion by the masses. Outright rebellion - revolution - is something "the elite" fear and always plan to avoid.



Quote from a respected philosopher:

Noam Chomsky, Thought Control in a Democratic Society

“If in some Orwellian future there were One Big Owner, he might be benevolent, in his own opinion, as indeed, Orwell’s Big Brother was – in his own opinion. Big Brother let the public see and hear a variety of things he deemed useful – where there is centralized control, it is the One Big Owner who makes the choices…Each year is more likely that the American citizen who turns to any medium – newspapers, magazines, radio, TV, books, movies, cable, recordings, video cassettes – will receive information, ideas, or entertainment controlled by the same handful of corporations, whether it is daily news, a cable entertainment program, or a textbook…Media giants have become so powerful that government no longer has the will to restrain them…Now that media owners are so large that they are part of the highest levels of the world economy, the news and other public information become heavily weighted in favor of all corporate values. The new corporate ethic is so single-minded about extreme fast profits and expanded control over the media business that it is willing to convert American news into a service for the affluent customers wanted by the media’s advertisers instead of a source of information significant for the whole of society.”

Beware Newspeak! My advice: be forever wary of what you read and hear, especially when what you read and hear will aid or profit "the elite". As a recent example, take the speeches and articles telling us that most of the millions of gallons of oil leaked from BP's exploded well, have already disappeared from the Gulf of Mexico. Mustn't upset the oil industry, they still want to drill...drill...drill, to further enrich their corporation - and to hell with the environment. And pause to wonder why more stringent (or any siginficant) measures are not in place to try to slow climate change. Again - it would not profit the corporations and "the elite" power-wielders. Outpourings of manipulative garbage come regularly from what are laughingly called "both sides of the aisle". There is only one side, the corporate side, and no aisle to speak of.

In the USA we need to question, too, all that will be fed to us during upcoming 2010 mid-term elections, and the big one in 2012. But, having questioned these things, what then? That is the ultimate question. I haven't yet found an answer.

"It was curious to think that the sky was the same for everybody, in Eurasia or Eastasia as well as here.
And the people under the sky were also very much the same--everywhere, all over the world, hundreds or thousands of millions of people just like this, people ignorant of one another's existence, held apart by walls of hatred and lies, and yet almost exactly the same--people who had never learned to think but were storing up in their hearts and bellies and muscles the power that would one day overturn the world."
- George Orwell, 1984, Book 1, Chapter 10

Babel & Mercury Retrograde

Periods of time when Mercury appears to move backwards (due to optical illusion) are known in astrological circles as Mercury Retrogrades. We are passing through one of these periods now, and until 11 May. During these times its thought that communication and travel difficulties become more common.

Communication. It's crucial. We take it for granted though and don't think much about it until something goes wrong.

That point was brought home to us this week as we watched one of the DVDs I bought in a junk shop on our last trip. Babel. It tells four interwoven tales of problems, tragedies, chain reactions brought about through lack of communication. It has to be said that there were some thoughtless and stupid decisions involved too. Babel could almost be sub-titled Mercury Regrograde !
The movie's title is a clue to the storyline. According to the Bible's Book of Genesis, Babel (the tower of) was built by Noah's descendants, probably in Babylon. They intended it to reach up to heaven; God foiled them by confusing their language so they could no longer understand one another. Man's different languages and dispersal around the Earth was, the story goes, a consequence.


Babel, a 2006 movie directed by Alejandro González Iñárritu and written by Guillermo Arriaga cleverly intertwines four very different themes, set in different parts of the world. It's pointed out again and again how lack of communication, not only between those speaking different languages, but between people using the same language, can lead to tragedy. There's political allegory involved too. The countries involved are Morocco, Mexico, USA and Japan. Guess which nationalities fare best with the happiest ending to their tales? Guess why!



I watched without first reading the blurb on the DVD cover, and was ready to throw in the towel after a slow first 15 minutes or so. I'm glad my less impatient husband felt we should wait a while longer. It's a movie watchable on more than one level. It can be appreciated simply as four adventures which have a common factor. That's the way we thought about it initially. Messages about lack of communication and political allegories sank in later.



After we'd watched the movie together my first comment to my husband was, "Four sets of people, all good, well intentioned folk, no malice involved, yet they managed to bring about some bad outcomes". "Yes", said he, "and what was at the meeting point of all four stories? A GUN!"


Babel is the third film of a trilogy (known as the Death Trilogy) by the same director/writer. The other two movies are also based on multiple but linked storylines (a format known as Hyperlink Cinema): Amores Perros and 21 Grams. I've already secured a cheapo used version of the latter for future viewing.

Thoughts on Prediction & Mercury Retrograde

The time around New Year is always fertile ground for prediction of one sort or another - astrological, psychic, tarot, cystal ball, entrails of an ox, clouds, tea leaves.....take your pick! It's useful at this time of year to read, or re-read, what Nicholas de Vore had to say about astrological prediction in his Encyclopedia of Astrology.

"Although predictions, as drawn from a birth Figure, often show a high percentage of correctness, the practice teaches a fatalistic philosophy that denies the gift of Free Will and Self Determination. The high percentage of correctness proves only that a high percentage of people permit themselves to be ruled by the emotions instead of the dominance of the reasoning faculties. It is only in the realm of Mundane Astrology, which deals with the mass reaction of large political or geographical groups, that predicting can be indulged in without inculcating a harmful philosophy."

Those are wise thoughts. To become "a slave" to astrology is to give up our freedom to be free. Considering what astrology has to offer is good, but becoming too enmeshed in, excited or worried by, detailed personal or communal predictions isn't good for anybody.


A postscript relating to the current Mercury retrograde which started in earnest on 26 December; the "shadow" period, when effects are also often felt, ran from 15 December. Mercury retrograde periods often bring upsets in communication, travel, and problems with electronic devices, not always, but quite often. You cannot usefully predict what, or if, anything will happen. For me, this time, things happened!

RETRO EFFECT #1 ~I hadn't remembered that we were in the retro-shadow period on 23 December when my computer monitor suddenly gave up the ghost, after more than 5 years' use with never a hitch. With the holidays around the corner, and bad weather forecast, we dashed out to a neighbouring town to replace the monitor.

RETRO EFFECT #2 ~ The bad weather arrived on time next day - worse than expected too, making travel even for very short distances hazardous. Our intended trip on 25th was a complete no-no as road conditions were worse than ever. On the morning of 26th December, while looking up something on Google my computer froze and various messages started appearing, including porn adverts and fake warnings. The dreaded Antivirus Live trojan had got me. It took my husband and me literally all day to find out how to rectify the situation. Luckily we have access to another computer and a laptop, which helped us find a solution. This is a very, very nasty trojan, and must be taking advantage of Mercury retrograde because on various help sites there are dozens of comments all dated this month, from people whose computers have been infected recently.

RETRO EFFECT #3 ~ On Sunday evening (27th) our furnace stopped functioning. We guessed that the problem might be with the thermostat. We have a gas fire in the fireplace - things were not as bad as they might otherwise have been, but it was still too cold for comfort in other parts of the house. The problem was an electronic part - limitation control - and now fixed by husband's son, a heat& air expert.

So this time around Mercruy retro has me in its sights! Mercury is in Capricorn now -so is my natal Mercury, at 21 degrees, just about the point where the retrograde began! Yes - "something is happening here, but we don't know what it is, do we Mr. Jones?"

TRIPPING ALONG WITH ASTROLOGY

We're back from our road trip. Blogging kicks off with chat about sights we encountered, embellished with astrology, and a few of our photographs. It's a long post, so will stand for two days - next post Wednesday.

Mercury in apparent retrograde motion didn't catch us out in any serious way, but I had to wonder when, on the morning of our departure while packing the car trunk, my husband absent-mindedly (Mercury retrograde?) left the soft-sided holdall containing my toiletries, makeup and other fripperies lying under the shadow of the trunk lid or wheel - or something. This has never happened before, though we've taken lots of trips. As we drove out of the garage he said, "What's that noise?" We stopped at the end of the driveway, looked back and saw my bag looking kind of squashed and sad. "YIKES!" was my cry. "There's big mirror in there! If it's broken I'll not be going anywhere today!"

A quick investigation showed the mirror was fine, protected as it was in several layers of bubble wrap. The car had run over and caught the edge of the bag, dragged it and ripped it in two places. I didn't investigate further until we reached our first stopover in Salina, Kansas. There I found that a fat new tube of toothpaste had been squashed and split, the heat of the trunk had spread a pretty pink and white sticky frosting over every item in my toilet bag. Nice! A few other items had sustained minor injury.

"Could have been a lot worse", said I. "We might have left the bag in the garage, then where would I be - makeup-less and smelly on vacation? A fate worse than...."

We stayed two nights in Salina, my husband's place of birth and his hometown as a young man. Mercury Retrograde smiled on us as we re-visited his old haunts, including a vintage Lockheed Constellation aircraft, long ago bought by a private individual and parked at the airfield pending complete refurbishment. Planes like this were built in California between 1943 and 1958, 4-engine, propeller-driven aircraft. Refurbishment on this example is, sadly, still pending for lack of cash and spare time. The plane is called "Starship Connie". The husband, something of an aeroplane enthusiast, was both thrilled to see the plane again, but sad that work on her has stalled.




I acquired a replacement holdall for the princely sum of $5 in an antiques shop in Salina. It's a sturdy leather job, dating back to the 1940s or '50s I think, its former owner's name was still showing on a leather tag - a gentleman from Missouri.

The next overnighter was in a state new to me - Nebraska, at North Platte. This city's claim to fame is that it contains the biggest railyard in the world. It's at the confluence of many railway lines and the yard is, indeed, huge. Another of the city's claims to fame is that during World War 2 the ladies of the
North Platte Canteen served over 6 million servicemen and service women, passengers aboard troop trains, with refreshment. (See and hear story at link). The canteen was world-famous in its day; a memorial remains near the rail lines.




Next leg of the trip led towards our pre-booked place of rest for three more nights, Deadwood, South Dakota. The scenery gradually perked up as we entered South Dakota. Nebraska had been pretty and rural, but South Dakota and its Black Hills, named for their dense covering of dark pine trees, is beautiful.





Deadwood is a convenient center for touring the most scenic and interesting areas of South Dakota. It was named for an abundance of dead trees on the surrounding hillsides, killed or permanently poisoned, perhaps, by the many fires which also destroyed the town on several occasions, the latest in 1959.

We arrived on Saturday, late afternoon and the town was heaving, a music festival, "The Deadwood Jam" sounded to be in its last throes. Parking was a nightmare, it was impossible to drive past our hotel, let alone park nearby. After a few circles of the town we decided to stubbornly park crosswise near the entrance, forcing a flustered employee to approach and assist. We were forced into something we usually avoid like the plague, valet parking. It was a necessity, and quite painless in this venue, the "valets" being helpful young lads dressed in tee shirts and jeans rather than snooty guys in silly uniforms.

Deadwood has become something of a tourist trap, having been turned from an old western gunslingers' and miners' saloon and brothel haven into a modern casino town. Happily the casinos are hidden behind vintage facades in the main street, so Deadwood still has the look of a late 19th century frontier town. I have to report that we didn't touch even one slot machine or visit any casino - not our thing at all. There were lots of senior citizens around though, spending their pensions on the slots, hoping for a windfall.




Much is made of the fact that Wild Bill Hickok had connection to Deadwood, and was shot there, in the back of the head, while gambling at Saloon No. 10. Legend has it that when he died the cards he held comprised what's now called a "dead man's hand": aces and eights. The saloon is still there in Main Street, but re-built after one of several fires entirely destroyed old Deadwood.

Another colorful figure of the old west, Calamity Jane, also had connection to Deadwood and both these fabled western characters are buried in the cemetery there.

An astrological interlude:

Wild Bill Hickok was actor, lawman, gunfighter and gambler, subject of many legends a few of which have a core of fact.

His real first name wasn't William, or Bill it was James, James Butler Hickok. "Wild Bill" is said to have been his own invention, and possibly came from a former nickname "Duckbill", he was so-called because of a protruding upper lip and hooky nose.


(Below: yours truly posing with a sculpture of Wild Bill outside our hotel, Hampton Inn's "Four Aces".)



He was born 27 May 1837 in Troy Grove Illinois. Sun, Venus and Mercury all in Gemini with Jupiter and Mars in Leo describe something of the versatile, risk-taking showman type he must have been. What I find most interesting in his chart is the Yod (Finger of Fate) formed by the sextile between Sun/Venus in Gemini and Pluto in Aries both forming quincunx aspects (150*) to Saturn. Astrologers would say that this implies that the energies of Sun/Venus in Gemini (communication) and Pluto in Aries (intensity, aggression, death) are channeled through Saturn ( relating to the law, but also one of the planets known as malefic to ancient astrologers). In a nutshell, Wild Bill had, inbuilt, a propensity for dealing with the law, and death.

Calamity Jane had connection with Deadwood, and is buried there, next to Wild Bill. She was an amazing character, too. Scout, gunfighter, prostitute, alcoholic, yet compassionate to those in need, notably, when she nursed victims during a smallpox epdemic in the Deadwood area.



Jane was an Earthy Taurean. Sun, Mercury, Saturn, Uranus and Pluto all in the sign of The Bull. Her earthiness was lightened somewhat by Venus in sociable Gemini, Mars in showy Leo and Moon more than likely in Libra, ruled by Venus as is Taurus where the bulk of her planets lie. She could be termed as Venusian, yet that's not what comes across from her life story, but this could be the source of her compassion, I suppose. Jupiter in Scorpio reflects an excess of sexiness - though to our 21st century eyes her curriculum vitae doesn't appear awfully sexy!





From Deadwood we visited its nearby sister town of Lead, site of the Homestake Gold Mine, America's longest continuously operated gold mine. It closed in 2002. It is 8000 ft deep and produced 40 million ounces of gold during its many functioning years.

A further drive of around 35 miles led us to Mount Rushmore and Gutzon Borglum's world-famous memorial sculpture honoring Presidents of the USA - a stunning sight. I'd expected to view it from some vantage point in a field or from the roadside, but the site has been developed into a real tourist trap now, with gift shop, restaurant, etc. I guess this was inevitable. Trivia: George Washington's nose is 21 feet long (one foot longer than the other noses), his eye is 11 ft wide, mouth 18ft wide. 400 workers took from 1927 to 1941 to complete it at a cost of $989,992.32.



17 miles from Mount Rushmore brings the Crazy Horse Memorial into view. This is a Native American endeavour to build something similar to the memorial on Mt. Rushmore, this to honor one of their tribal Chiefs, Crazy Horse. The Black Hills are sacred to the Lakota Tribe, as is the memory of Crazy Horse. The massive sculpture isn't anywhere near completion, only the face of Crazy Horse can be seen as yet. Photo below shows a view of the work so far completed taken from the exhibition center, a bronze sculpture of the finished monument stands in the window.




The sculptor chosen by the Lakota tribe to carry out the work, Korczak Ziolkowski died in 1982. Portrait shows the sculptor and his wife who now carries on directing the work.

An interesting astrological tidbit is that Crazy Horse, born in the Black Hills, was stabbed in the back by an American soldier at Fort Robinson, Nebraska, while under a flag of truce. He died on 6 September 1877 at around 35 years of age. The sculptor chosen to craft this memorial was born on 6 September 1908....omen or coincidence?

A Sun Virgo sculptor was he, and the Virgoan stickler for detail is evidenced in that he left behind very, very detailed measurements and instructions for the completion of the monument, to be carried out by his wife and family of 10 children. Note that Uranus is in exact trine to the sculptor's Sun, reflecting what some might see as the eccentricity of such an enormous, dangerous and difficult undertaking.



Work began in 1948. No financial assistance from the government is, or will ever be involved. It was twice offered and refused because both sculptor and tribe believe the work should be carried out under a free enterprise system, money coming from donations and admission fees. Work is painfully slow and dangerous, entailing much blasting before carving can begin. The sculpture, when finished will show Crazy Horse on his steed, pointing out to the Black Hills, forever repeating his words:
"My lands are where my dead lie buried".

(Scale sculpture of finished monument).



Image below isn't from our cameras, it's from Hemmy.net. It was taken during the unveiling at completion of the first stage of the sculpture - the head of Crazy Horse, c.1998, I think.




We next ventured into Wyoming, the state line isn't too far from Deadwood. We sought and found Devils Tower, famous for its appearance in the movie "Close Encounters of the Third Kind".









After three nights in Deadwood we began the journey back southward. Overnight stops were in Ogallala (end of the Texas cattle drives, and featured in Larry McMurtry's "Lonesome Dove"), and in York, Nebraska (couldn't miss that one, being a Yorkshirewoman myself); then just before the last leg home, we overnighted in Wichita, Kansas.





Some folks might consider these mid-country states to be merely "fly-overs", but every small town and medium-sized city has its interesting tale to tell; often there's a lovely view around each turn of the road. Approximately 150 years ago, very little that's manmade here existed, and nature's wonders hadn't been seen by more than a handful of intrepid travellers and pioneers. That, in itself, is a constant wonder to me. This was a fascinating and varied trip of just under 3000 miles - one of our best, we'd say, apart from an unfortunate flare-up of my nasal/sinus allergy, in spite of taking regular medication. Luckily this only happened during the last few days, so it didn't spoil the best of the trip. I now have what feels like a head filled with shards of glass. I fear my next trip is likely to be in the direction of the doctor's office.