Remembering Again

Princess Di's death, JFK's assassination and 9/11, all spawned major conspiracy theories; a slew of other incidents, accidents and tragedies did too. In early instances theories travelled mainly via subversive magazines, some newspapers or TV programmes. With wider availability of the internet by 2001, conspiracy theories on the events of 9/11 spread ever wider, ever deeper.

Would an astrological configuration relate to conspiracy theories? C.E.O. Carter's Encyclopedia of Psychological Astrology is of no help in this; there's no entry under "conspiracy" or "conspiracy theory". I doubt that it was a term in common use when his book was first published in 1924. Something in the communal consciousness must have shifted between then and now - in line with the developments in technology and communications.

A generational quirk? A good bet for starters would be the Neptune in Scorpio generation. Neptune represents imagination and mystery. Scorpio represents secrets, paranoia and death. The generation born between 1957 and 1969 (now aged mid-40s to mid-50s) had it in them to dream up, or expand upon a creative idea with a touch of paranoia thrown in - the conspiracy theory - and have it (in today's terms) "go viral". This particular generation may be, or have been, instrumental in spreading the theories and nurturing them.

Back in 2014 now.... quoted at Counterpunch yesterday in a piece by Cesar Chelala: An Unlearned Lesson from 9/11

Rami G. Khouri, a contributing editor to the Beirut Daily Star, and a keen observer of international politics recently wrote, “Dear Mr. Obama, Mr. Biden and Prime Minister David Cameron of the United Kingdom: before you launch a new global war on terror and another coalition of countries to fight ISIS, please note that the last three decades of your global war on terror have sparked the greatest expansion of Islamist militancy and terrorism in modern history. This partly, maybe largely, because your military actions in Islamic lands usually destabilize those lands, allowing your enemies to organize and take root, and also provide the greatest magnet that attracts mostly fringe and lost young men to give meaning to their lives by joining what they see as a defensive jihad to save Islamic societies from your aggression.”

But the beat (of war drums) goes on...and on.

Neptune in Pisces - or Is It a Conspiracy?

Neptune has been transiting zodiac sign Pisces for over a year now, with around 13 years still to go. Maybe because Neptune is edging close to my natal Jupiter at 6 Pisces I'm feeling I ought to be writing something on Neptune and/or Pisces just now.


I like Pisces, as a sign, think of it as gentle, non-threatening, sweet rather than bitter, sensitive but not clingy, emotional but not paranoid. That's a stripped down version, various possibilities and potentialities are there. Keywords such as spiritual or religious, dreamy, prone to addiction, creative.....on and on have been attached to Pisces the sign.

Neptune, the other "blue planet", astrologically has been laden with keywords relating to aspects of its name: the sea, water, liquids, oil, then, for some reason, illusion, delusion, fog, mist, mystery, creativity - maybe because the sea sometimes brings fogs and mists to its coastlines; fog or mist can cloud judgment, lead to some type of addiction, or illusion.

Conspiracy theory can be seen as a very Neptune in Pisces thing - very Neptune anyway, and in fertile Pisces likely to become a shade or two more deeply creative, without Earth, Air or Fire biting in critically.

We, "the great unwashed", started to hear more and more about conspiracy theories with the coming of the internet. What used reach us, occasionally, as whispers have now become almost daily shrieks.

I've wondered in the past what astrological configuration might relate to a penchant for conspiracy theories. C.E.O. Carter's Encyclopedia pf Psychological Astrology is of no help in this. There's no entry under "conspiracy" or "conspiracy theory". I doubt that it was a term in common use when the book was first published in 1924. Something in communal consciousness shifted between then and now, in line with developments in technology and communications. I came to the conclusion that a generational quirk could be involved. Neptune in Scorpio generation? Did this generation, born between 1957 and 1969, (now approaching middle age) pick up and fall in love with the very idea of conspiracy theories? Maybe. Neptune represents imagination and mystery. Scorpio represents secrets and death.

In a New York Times article last year: Why Rational People Buy into Conspiracy Theories, by Maggie Koerth-Baker the author tells us that psychologists, in particular Viren Swami, a psychology professor who studies conspiracy belief at the University of Westminster in England, have concluded that "conspiracy theories appear to be a way of reacting to uncertainty and powerlessness".... “If you know the truth and others don’t, that’s one way you can reassert feelings of having agency,” Swami says. It can be comforting to do your own research even if that research is flawed. It feels good to be the wise old goat in a flock of sheep.

 H/t Assailed Teacher.com

Commenter "DJ" beneath that article observed that:

A lot of what gets categorized as “conspiracy theory” is often people just trying to make sense of things in a world where we have seen both our government and the media, liberal and conservative, inform us in a way that best suits their agenda. Not lies, per se, because their goal (at least from their view) serves a higher purpose. And with corporate America influencing our lives from all angles, spoon feeding us their Kool-Aid on how they benefit us while our dollars line their pockets - as long as we live in a country where we are so blatantly manipulated, we will continue to doubt the “official” story and try to figure it out for ourselves.

Another commenter, "Marino" puts forward a point which makes good sense to me:

The silliest element in most conspiracy theories isn't the facts of the conspiracy -- it's the competence of the execution. The U.S. government can't blow up a terrorist in Pakistan without taking out a birthday party half the time...you think it can engineer and cover up 9/11? Many news reporters can't spell your name right...you think they're all pulling the same way for a hidden agenda? The IRS gave out a billion dollars in unwarranted refunds last year...you think it's auditing organizations on the orders of a high-level cabal?

Believing somebody is pulling the strings in secret would certainly be comforting -- if nothing else, it means somebody in charge know what they're doing. But in reality, the vast majority of people most conspiracy theorists think are after them are remarkable for their blunders, not their skill. Most of the time, the world turns on a blend of misfortune and mundane incompetence. It's not as comforting as many people might like, but it's not as actively antagonistic, either.

I found a rather good video on this very topic at YouTube, presented by astrologer Armand Diaz Ph.D. I've embedded it here. It is third of a set of three, links to the two others are below, the astrologer's website, Integral Astrology is HERE.



Neptune in Pisces Part 1
Neptune in Pisces Part 2


Ending, again, with words of David Foster Wallace, who had Sun in Pisces. (He came up in a post and comments here at the weekend).

“Because we’ve been lied to and lied to, and it hurts to be lied to. It’s ultimately just about that complicated: it hurts. It denies you respect for yourself, for the liar, for the world. Especially if the lies are chronic, systemic, if hard experience seems to teach that everything you’re supposed to believe in’s really a game based on lies. Young Voters have been taught well and thoroughly. You may not personally remember Vietnam or Watergate, but it’s a good bet you remember ‘No new taxes’ and ‘Out of the loop’ and ‘No direct knowledge of any impropriety at this time’ and Did not inhale’ and ‘Did not have sex with that woman’ and etc. etc. It’s depressing and painful to believe that the would-be ‘public servants’ you’re forced to choose between are all phonies whose only real concern is their own care and feeding and who will lie so outrageously with such a straight face that you just know they have to believe you’re an idiot. So who wouldn’t fall all over themselves for a top politician who actually seemed to talk to you like you were a person, an intelligent adult worthy of respect?”
~ David Foster Wallace, The Best American Essays 2007

Conspiracy Theories ~ Neptune in Scorpio

There are, in each lifetime's span, a few indelible time-markers. JFK's assassination, man landing on the Moon, death of Princess Diana, 9/11 - such events slice through our communal consciousness like a knife through butter. Conspiracy theories have since emerged around each of the mentioned events.

If we are on the outside, we assume a conspiracy is the perfect working of a scheme. Silent nameless men with unadorned hearts. A conspiracy is everything that ordinary life is not. It’s the inside game, cold, sure, undistracted, forever closed off to us. We are the flawed ones, the innocents, trying to make some rough sense of the daily jostle. Conspirators have a logic and a daring beyond our reach. All conspiracies are the same taut story of men who find coherence in some criminal act. ~ Don DeLillo

Conspiracy theories have mushroomed in the past few decades. I guess that they were around before that, but shared only between the high and the mighty. We, the Great Unwashed, only started to take part in these theories when, thanks to new technology, easy communication became widespread and whispers rose to a crescendo.

The events and related theories already mentioned are still being argued about, decades later. New theories spring up regularly, too. The ascent of a US president of African American background was another of those indelible time-markers, and true to form, conspiracy theories on the topic abound. These relate to his birth certificate, place of birth, identity of his father, whether he was "helped" into USA's hottest hot seat by hidden forces.

What astrological configuration might connect to conspiracy theories? C.E.O. Carter's Encyclopedia of Psychological Astrology is of no help in this. There's no entry under "conspiracy" or "conspiracy theory". I doubt that it was a term in common use in 1924, when Mr Carter's book was first published. Something in the communal consciousness must have shifted between then and now. A generational quirk? Perhaps.

A good bet for starters would be a connection to the Neptune in Scorpio generation. That group, born between 1957 and 1969 (now in their 40s and 50s) may be more in tune with conspiracy theories than earlier generations. Neptune represents illusion, delusion, imagination and mystery. Scorpio represents secrets, darkness and death. The Neptune in Scorpio generation could well be key to growth of the conspiracy theory phenomenon.

I belong to the Neptune in Virgo generation, not given to believing easily in wild theories, without some clear (to me) proof. I have to admit though, that in the cases mentioned, there is always room for doubt about official explanations. It's always good to keep an open mind.

The popularity of conspiracy theories is explained by people’s desire to believe that there is some group of folks who know what they’re doing.
~ Damon Knight

Conspiracy Theories and Astrology.

I'm not sure what led us to watch "The Murder of Princess Diana" on TV, Friday night. I was never much interested in Princess Di and the royal family, but we watched the movie anyway. It's hard not to be affected when a young life comes to such an abrupt end - whether it's that of a princess or a pauper. As a piece of fiction, which the film largely was, making use of the conspiracy theory which grew out of the event, I found it quite an absorbing tale.

The death of Diana was one of those indelible time-markers for many people. JFK's assassination and 9/11 are two others, events which sliced through our communal consciousness like a knife through butter.

It's significant that conspiracy theories have emerged from all three of the events I've mentioned - Princess Di's death, JFK's assassination and 9/11. Conspiracy theories have blossomed (if that's the correct verb) in the past few decades. I guess that throughout history they were around, but in the past only the high and the mighty were privy to them. We, "the great unwashed", only started to hear whispers about these theories as easier communication became widespread. The whispers rose to a crescendo with the advent of the internet.

I wonder what astrological configuration might relate to conspiracy theories?

C.E.O. Carter's Encyclopedia pf Psychological Astrology is of no help in this - there's no entry under "conspiracy" or "conspiracy theory". I doubt that it was a term in common use when this book was first published in 1924. Something in the communal consciousness must have shifted between then and now - in line with the developments in technology and communications.

A generational quirk? Perhaps. A good bet for starters would be the Neptune in Scorpio generation. Did the generation born between 1957 and 1969 (now aged around 38 to 50) pick up the idea of conspiracy theories and, in boardroom-speak "run with them"? Neptune represents imagination and mystery. Scorpio represents secrets and death. This particular generation may well be instrumental in keeping these theories alive and well.

My own natal Neptune in Virgo is not given to believing easily in wild theories without a bit of concrete proof. I have to admit though, that in all three cases mentioned, there is room for doubt about official explanations. It's always good to keep an open mind, but never wise to become paranoid. That is as far as I'll ever be able to travel on the conspiracy bandwagon.