Five months have passed since my last newsletter, entitled The Most Scandalous Presidency Ever, expressed my view from the high cliffs of Los Acantilados, Mar Del Plata, Argentina on political events taking place in the U.S. I have been back to the U.S. in the midst of things since March 24th, but my forecast of America’s and the world’s future for the next four years has remained the same.

Gloom without Doom

This is what I posted in my article, Post Election Syndrome, on December 6, 2016: “In reality, this planetary aspect (Uranus/Neptune semi-square-45°) cannot produce any great disaster.” “It can only invoke in some the false sense of forthcoming doom; this doom will never materialize, the wheel of time cannot be reversed, Trump will not start a nuclear war, and the U.S. will never become a racist or a fascist state.” Indeed, five months into Trump’s presidency this forecast seems to be correct. Yes, a few hundred people experienced major inconveniences due to Trump’s failed travel ban, and a few thousand were deported. Unfortunately, these policies are nothing new. The presidents who preceded Donald Trump, including Barack Obama, George W. Bush and Bill Clinton, imposed immigration restrictions. Besides, the Obama administration deported a record number of illegal aliens. Yes, we have a considerable reduction in tourism from the Middle East, and our political influence in the world is eroding. Yes, a few thousand Americans got well-paying jobs, and a few European countries increased their military budgets a little. However, for the vast majority of Americans nothing has changed since Trump’s inauguration on January 20, 2017. As I have written earlier, Neptune is a planet of Hollywood; its influence is smoke and mirrors, even in semi-square to Uranus it has not produced any major disaster and never will.

Those who believe Trump’s promise of a glorious revival of America’s greatness with plenty of well-paid jobs and affordable health care will be disappointed. He has not been elected Emperor, just President, and every U.S. president since Bill Clinton had less power to implement his campaign promises than the one preceding him. Thus, the Congress will be blocking Trump’s initiatives even more than it did Obama’s. Besides, even if Trump were politically all-powerful, he could only accomplish what Uranus/Neptune semi-square would allow him. As I mentioned earlier, this aspect can inspire a Hollywood style political drama on our TV screens. In all other areas of Trump’s domestic agenda, his successes and failures will be unremarkable. However, he may be able to accomplish a lot in improving our relationship with Russia and China, as did Nixon under Uranus/Neptune semi-square in the 1970s. He is also likely to stop our military involvement in Asia, as Nixon did in Vietnam.

Russian Spies

In truth, I cannot really say if Trump or any of his representatives collaborated with the Russians. Perhaps I could find out in a few months, if someone would finance my research. Alas… Nevertheless, I do have a few astrological insights that may shed some light on the subject.

Neptune/Pluto septile (51.4°, 1/7 of the circle) is a stressful aspect traditionally associated with espionage. The duration of this aspect in 1999-2016 coincides with the rise to power of Vladimir Putin, a former KGB operative. Indeed, it is the unanimous opinion of the western counter espionage experts confirmed by former Russian spies turned defectors that the activities of Russian intelligence in Europe and the U.S. dramatically increased during this period. I read interviews with two former Russia’s high-ranking spies whose responsibilities included recruitment. They stated that Russian intelligence does not spare cash in recruiting politicians of all political persuasions. They also said that Russia had been supporting extremists on the far right as well as on the ultra left of the political spectrum in order to destabilize western nations. Besides, Russia has been able to recruit or at least partially control some influential representatives of the mass media. Based on this circumstantial evidence, it appears that there is a fairly good chance that Russia had collaborators inside Trump’s election campaign, and also inside Clinton’s campaign as well. Based on the history of espionage, it is reasonable to assume that Russia does have spies among American and European officials, while the U.S. and Europe hopefully have spies among Russia’s. This how it has always been for centuries, I do not think this has changed now.

Uranus/Pluto square (90°) lasted from May 2011 through June 2016. Among other things, Uranus stands for computers, the Internet and electronic communications, while Pluto stands for all things hidden, clandestine and subversive. You put these two planets together in a stressful aspect and get an electronic espionage as a result. Indeed, the frequency of cyber attacks on our vital computer networks dramatically increased since 2011.

Uranus/Neptune semi-square (45°) also stands for electronic espionage among other things. Indeed, since Uranus and Neptune came close to this aspect in June 2016, the spy activities by the Russians as well as their American counterparts have acquired a Hollywood flavor of Neptune, while losing the deadly sting of Pluto. With “fake news,” classified documents leaked to the press, and dramatic accusations and counteraccusations spread on social media and reported live worldwide, espionage and counter espionage now have become a show for mass consumption to glue us to our TV screens and sell commercials in the process.

Enters McCarthy. Based on astrological and historical parallels, I suspect that most if not all people suspected of collaborating with Russians are innocent while the real Russian spies continue their dirty work. And here is why:

In 1952, U.S. Senator Joseph McCarthy became the most influential politician in the nation second only to President Eisenhower. He acquired this power by accusing high-ranking U.S. officials as well as mass media personalities of being Russian Spies. In 1954 however, he was exposed as a fraud, which ended his career. Indeed, there were Russian spies in the U.S. at the time, but none of them was exposed by McCarthy. As far as we know, all the people persecuted during the McCarthy era on suspicion of spying for Russia were totally innocent. The zenith of McCarthy’s activities falls on 1952-54 during Uranus/Neptune square, its influence somewhat similar to Uranus/Neptune semi-square in 2016-21. Indeed, accusations of collaborating with the Russians and other forms of anti American activities without any evidence to support such accusations are routinely hurled across the political divide, and we are likely to continue witnessing this spectacle till the end of Uranus/Neptune semi-square in 2021.

Impeachment of Trump

At this point, I do not know for sure if Donald Trump will ever get impeached. I do know however, that his impeachment will not happen this year. I will finish my research soon, and in three months I will share my prognosis in my forthcoming book, President Trump Impeached? An Astrological Forecast.

Terrorism

“The number of terrorist attacks by Muslim extremists will significantly increase. Paradoxically however, the number of victims of such attacks will significantly decrease. Instead of well-organized terrorist attacks like the recent ones in Paris, we will observe senseless murders of innocent civilians committed by loners prone to mass psychosis common during stressful aspects of Uranus and Neptune. Most of these attacks will happen in the Middle East. They will also occur in Europe, USA, Argentina, and Russia.” The preceding was published on my website on March 22, 2016 in the March 2016 Update. Unfortunately, this forecast has come true in the U.S., Europe and Russia. Fortunately, Argentina has been spared so far. The frequency of such attacks is likely to increase in August-October 2017, October- December 2018, July 2019, and January-February 2021.

Economy and Stock Market

I still stand by my previous forecast that a worldwide economic recession will begin this year or next. Due to “fake news” and creative accounting common these days, we may not know that we will have entered a recession until mid-2018 or later.

The Stock Market will enter its bear mode fairly soon, and will decline most of the time through April 2020. The first bottom of this decline will occur at the end of September 2017. During the first leg of the Bear Market, the Dow will lose about 13% of its value. NASDAQ losses will amount to 30-40% or more.

Meanwhile, the price of precious metals will at least double by 2021.

On a Positive Note

I would like to end this update by paraphrasing a quote from my previous forecast: “Your successes and failures in 2017-21 will depend on your Karma reflected in your astrological chart and on your own free will, and Donald Trump, or anyone else for that matter, will not be able to do anything about it.”

For my articles on related subjects log on to www.AstroEconomicCycles.com. Your comments and questions are welcome.

Until my next update, “Live long and prosper.” and “May the Force Be with You.”

Published on June 28, 2017.