GIULIANI, EDWARDS QUIT: Air Sucked Out of Campaign

It is hard to resist an astrological comment on the day that both Gemini candidates for the U.S. presidency drop out of the race. As the only "air sign" candidates in the campaign, their departure is noteworthy as a general indicator of the mood of the electorate. Distilled to its essence, voters seem to be affirming the message that "talk is cheap."

The air signs in astrology---Gemini, Libra & Aquarius---are said to be consecrated to the activities of the mind. While they can become distracted or overly abstract, their prime metier is the social exchange of ideas and they most often evince a talented facility for communication. For a politician born under the influence of an air sign, victory is attached to word-crafting that thoughtfully and inspiringly captures the collective requirements of the broad cultural moment...think Lincoln, FDR, Reagan, and JFK...and compels the electorate to think it's all going to work out fine.

As I've taken some pains to argue elsewhere, this week's movement of Pluto into the sign of Capricorn, a generational and cultural marker of significant import, is turning the zeitgeist towards an earthy preoccupation with materials and methods, and away from airy ideas and philosophies. Not only is this a difficult overarching enviornment for a Gemini politician, but other astronomical events were not going to make it easy for Giuliani or Edwards right now. For one thing, the planet Mercury (the planet of communication and the ruling planet of Gemini) is currently retrograde (moving 'backwards' in the sky from an earth perspective); for a Gemini a time when past seems more appropriate for contemplation than future. Also Mars, the planet of energy, has been retrograding in the sign of Gemini since the 1st of this year, creating a kind of blocked activity flow for most of the sign's natives. (Perhaps ironically, this is the very morning when Mars 'turns around' and starts moving in its usual direction, which is likely to have two effects on the departing candidates: 1) they are really going to feel like they can get on with their lives; and 2) the sudden energy surge may create a little early-withdrawl remorse.)

The candidate who might be most well advised to study on all this is Barack Obama, especially now that he has taken up with the Kennedy clan (John F. Kennedy being the classic example of gifted Gemini leadership). While Obama is clearly a spellbinder with exceptional intent, it is the continued supposition here that hard-edged reality will trump fancy rhetoric in this year's presidential election. Net-net the air has been let out of the room, and it seems more than ever a moment for getting down to earth.

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