(Photo Credit: London Real via Youtube)

Editor’s Note: The following profile of Washington D.C. based human rights attorney Jesselyn Radack appears in our premier issue. Radack represents NSA whistleblowers Edward Snowden and Thomas Drake. She has also assisted CIA torture whistleblower John Kiriakou. She presents an interesting astrological case study for a number of reasons, not the least of which is that as the common denominator between multiple whistleblowers, she might be as high or higher on the government’s “list” as any of them. A copy of her natal chart can be found here. -Matt

Sagittarius Sun, Gemini Moon: The Roughneck Mahatma and the Robin Hood Ringleader

The Sun symbolizes a person’s conscious identity while the Moon symbolizes their deeper, unconscious emotional needs. These are the two sources of light (energy) in a chart, and together they comprise a person’s basic psychological architecture.

Radack’s Sun (identity) is in Sagittarius, the sign of the Traveler and the Truth Seeker, the Scholar and the Sage, the Philosopher and the Prophet, the Professor of High Adventure and the Department Chair of Intellectual Beatdowns. Astrologer Austin Coppock refers to Sagittarius as the “Doom Super Soldier” of the zodiac who “will stop at nothing once possessed by the spirit of a crusade.” (Source) Stella Hyde says this is the sign most likely to find work in highly dangerous professions such as bounty hunting, car-jacking, or crocodile wrangling. (Source) Radack is obviously not a literal bounty hunter, car-jacker, or crocodile wrangler. However, given that many of her clients are at the absolute top of the government’s hit list there is no doubt she is possessed by the spirit of a “Doom Super Soldier,” one willing to deliver intellectual beat-downs and brave extraordinarily dangerous situations in her crusade to defend clients, colleagues, and the Constitution itself.

Her Moon (emotional needs) is in Gemini, the sign of communication and cross-pollination, quick witted instigators and street smart information brokers. This is the zodiac’s resident Mercurial Mad-Hatter and the Multi-Lingual Multi-Tasker. For people with their Moons (emotions) in Gemini (communication), exchange of data rises to the level of a survival need. Radack, for instance, has an extraordinarily active Twitter feed with almost 21,000 followers. She’s also had to tap her instincts (Moon) for mental multi-tasking and mad-hat communication tactics (Gemini) in order to thwart the government’s efforts at surveilling her. According to a recent profile in Verge magazine, her professional survival now depends upon the use of highly dexterous, street smart communication tactics including the use of encrypted laptops, burner phones, and only paying in cash. (Source)

Combine a Sagittarian’s propensity for intellectual super-soldiering with a Gemini Moon’s instincts for dexterous communication and the result is a sun/moon pairing that is highly spirited, intellectually adventuresome, and can enthusiastically (Sagittarius) converse (Gemini) on pretty much anything. According to astrologers Suzi and Charles Harvey, this combination is something of a Robin Hood type who can “play the devil’s advocates to the nth degree” and is “quite capable of making jokes at the vicar’s expense.” (Source) While working for the Department of Justice back in the early 2000s Radack attempted to blow the whistle on serious ethical violations committed by the FBI. For her efforts she was subjected to numerous criminal and civil investigations at the hands of shadowy vicars working in the employ of an extraordinarily evil king and his corrupt national security court. Today she speaks on behalf of others who find themselves targeted by equally shadowy vicars in the employ of another, equally evil king. Given that her clients such as Ed Snowden and Thomas Drake have been portrayed by the U.S. government as practically being in league with Satan himself, one could say Radack is the ultimate “devil’s advocate,” one willing to go to the nth degree for those she defends.

Sagittarius is ruled by Jupiter, the planet of philosophy and truth seeking while Gemini is ruled by Mercury, the planet of communication and information transmission. The Sagittarius Sun, Gemini Moon pairing thus expresses much like a Mercury/Jupiter aspect which Adrian Ross Duncan describes as follows:

In Radack’s case, her hunger for knowledge and understanding first led her to Brown University where she was a triple major in American civilization, women’s studies, and political science prior to enrolling at Yale Law school where she graduated with honors. It was during her time in college that she begun to speak out about gross injustices. While at Brown she became a leading defender of the university’s “rape list” in which female students who had been sexually assaulted would scrawl the names of their perpetrators on bathroom walls as a way of warning other women. As a result she ended up on The Phil Donahue show, an appearance which is now archived on YouTube. From the position of hindsight she was easily 20 years ahead of her time in regards to both civil rights and free speech issues.

Venus in Scorpio: Queen Inanna and Her Entourage of Professional Demon Spawn

Venus is the planet of love, style, self-worth, and values. Radack’s Venus is in Scorpio, the sign of Shaman and the Spy, the Special Agent and the Super Sleuth, the Covert Op and the Deep Cover Cop. Astrologer Raven Kaldera associates Venus in Scorpio with the myth of Inanna, a Sumerian goddess who must “go down to the bottom of the pit and back up again, over and over, until it is a familiar place and has no power over her.” (Source) When Inanna finally emerges from her trip to the bottom of the pit she is accompanied by “an entourage of chittering underworld demons” Kaldera tells us. In Radack’s case, her work on behalf of whistleblowers has forced her to go down and confront the pit that is the modern American police state so many times that she is now totally familiar with it and able to effectively counter its power. She is not surrounded by an entourage of actual chittering underworld demon spawn, but she is known to cavort with dissident journalists such as Laura Poitras, Glenn Greenwald, and James Spione—all individuals who have hounded the Bush/Cheney and Obama/Biden administrations as passionately and relentlessly as anything from Hades itself.

Radack’s Venus in Scorpio is conjunct (merged) with her Mars (how a person fights) and her Jupiter (planet of law, philosophy, and publishing). Mars/Jupiter conjunctions are considered absolute powerhouse combinations that confer enormous amounts of physical and intellectual stamina. Astrologers Frances Sakoian and Louis Acker associate this placement with “zeal, energy, and enthusiasm” when it comes to “defending the less fortunate.” (Source)

North Node in Aquarius: Point of Ultimate Fulfillment in the Sign of the Sh-t Disturber

Radack’s North Node—representative of her truest, highest, and most fulfilling path—is in Aquarius, the sign most likely to stir the pot or shake things up in service of democracy, freedom, teamwork, and humanity. Aquarius is the zodiac’s resident sh-t disturber and pretty much any reasonable person agrees there’s a whole lot of sh-t in this country’s socio-political power structures that really needs disturbing. Fortunately there are people like Jesselyn Radack who have fearlessly and ferociously jumped into the muck on behalf of us all—exactly what somebody with an Aquarian North Node has incarnated to do.

About the Author: Matthew David Savinar is a California licensed attorney (State Bar #228957), voluntarily inactive as of June 2013. He can be reached for questions, comments, or astrological consults via Twitter, his first YouTube channel, his second YouTube channel, SoundCloud, LibSyn or this site’s contact page.

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Editor’s Note: audio/visual versions of this article have been uploaded to YouTube and Libsyn. -Matt

Along with being the most health conscious sign of the zodiac, Virgo also excels at writing, analysis, and forensic research due to its eye for detail, accuracy, and love of footnotes. In medical astrology, Virgo is associated with the intestines which through their power of analysis and discretion decide what stays with the body and what is discarded as waste. Virgo’s penchant for analysis and association with the intestines is also why you’ll find a disproportionate number of muckrakers born under this sign. Journalist Upton Sinclair, whose 1903 book The Jungle exposed the horrors of the early 20th century meatpacking industry, is a representative Virgo Sun. Combine the intellectual leanings of a Virgo Sun with a Leo Moon’s instincts for showmanship and the result is a Sun/Moon that is capable of doing muckraking journalism (Virgo) in a fashion that’s highly theatrical (Leo). To illustrate: using its on-air premier date as its date of birth, the 2003 ESPN television series Playmakers is a Virgo Sun, Leo Moon. (Chart)

Yes, Playmakers was about football but don’t let that dissuade you from giving it serious consideration. The series was absolutely riveting, receiving acclaim from critics (Virgo) and sky high ratings (Leo) from viewers; a well crafted, smartly written (Virgo) piece of theater (Leo) that was to professional football at the turn of 21st century what The Jungle was to the meatpacking industry at the turn of the 20th. The show was designed for male football aficionados yet brought in huge numbers of both women and non-sports fans because it depicted the most human of dramas: depression and drug addiction, unsettling power dynamics and deeply troubling family legacies. The plot lines were thought-provoking (Virgo) yet entertaining (Leo), featuring multi-faceted characters cast into complex ethical dilemmas with no easy solutions. The show’s story arcs were fictional but highly realistic and more than a bit prescient: a star quarterback keeping his painkiller habit from his doctor, a young running back trying to escape a family curse, a respected veteran player covering up un-respectable actions from the past, a team doctor caught in an ethical quandary, a head coach keeping his cancer diagnosis from his family, and a Catholic wide receiver keeping his homosexuality from everybody — all issues that the NFL has done its best to deny or dismiss over the last 15 years. The show was a hit because it depicted the players not as caricatures but as human beings, exactly what Upton Sinclair did with meatpackers in The Jungle a century earlier.

Unfortunately, despite sky high ratings and critical acclaim, the series only lasted for one season as it absolutely enraged the NFL who pressured ESPN to kill it. Amazingly, one team owner said he felt the NFL was as wholesome an institution as Disneyland but that Playmakers had depicted it as being akin to the Medellin drug cartel. That’s a strange analogy to make since the NFL is arguably responsible for more heads being bashed and lives being shortened than Pablo Escobar himself.

The theme for Playmakers includes a line “Still on beat, showin’ love to the streets come on you know me” — which just so happens to describe this pairing’s combination of conscientious mindfulness (Virgo) and full-hearted bravura (Leo Moon). In her book Love Signs, Linda Goodman describes the Virgo/Leo pairing as being exceptionally well suited for taking the beats to the streets and doing so with lots of love:

Goodman goes on to describe high functioning Virgo/Leo pairing as “miracle set to music”. To illustrate: music journalist and hip-hop legend Fred Brathwaite is a Virgo with his Moon in Leo. (Chart) Braithwaite, best known as “Fab Five Freddy”, started off as rapper and street artist in New York’s early 1980s underground hip hop and punk scenes. In 1988 he came to public attention as the original host of Yo! MTV Raps, the first television show dedicated specifically to rap music. Freddy has likely never played the ukulele or piccolo but as the host of Yo! he did put in a lot of work getting hip hop music onto to the multi-billion dollar Yellow Brick Road of mainstream acceptance:

These days hip hop music is nearly ubiquitous. In fact, it’s such a part of contemporary culture that there are now a not insignificant number of police officers who grew up listening to rapper Ice Cube belt out “F–k Tha’ Police” while KRS One’s hit “Sound of the Police” is now used to sell internet services. At the time Freddy started hosting Yo! things were a good deal different. Back then hip hop was seen by middle America as occupying a space between fadish and irrelevant, dangerous and criminalistic. Freddy’s work as the host of Yo! helped bring it from the fringes of the party to being the party itself. In 1988 there was no Twitter or YouTube or Soundcloud for independent artists to get their work in front of the public. If you were an up-and-coming rapper who aspired to be a real playmaker, your best bet at the time was to score an appearance on Yo! with Fab Five Freddy where you’d get a chance to “stay on beat” while “showin’ love to streets”.

Yo! may not have been a literal “miracle set to music” as per Goodman’s description of the Virgo/Leo pairing but with Freddy at the helm it definitely served as a working class (Virgo) home for entertainment (Moon in Leo) at its finest. Numerous household names in the hip hop game ranging from Fresh Prince (Will Smith) to Queen Latifah to Salt-N-Pepa’ made their television debuts alongside Freddy on Yo!. Once there they were free to serenely sing their songs, blow their notes, and be as melodious as they wanted (or didn’t want) to be.

According to astrologer Stella Hyde, Virgos make for great homeopaths and life coaches while Leo Moons are nourished by highly theatrical jobs such media mogul, circus ringmaster, and WWE wrestler. YouTube health and fitness celebrity Brandon Carter is a Virgo Sun, Leo Moon. (Chart) Carter is, in effect, a life coach (Virgo Sun) with the stage presence of a WWE superstar (Leo Moon), a statistician-homeopath (Virgo) whose the circus ringmaster of a social media empire (Leo Moon), a DIY nutritionist (Virgo) surrounded by an entourage of compatriots (Leo Moon) — some hailing from the halls of high society, some straight from the ‘hood, some sophisticated, some scurrilous. If you haven’t seen his YouTube channel it’s the sort of thing you’d expect to see if Tony Robbins (“Awaken the Power Within”) collaborated with John Shaft (“He’s a Bad Mother . . .”) or Tim Ferris (“Four Hour Body”) co-hosted a seminar with rapper Too Short (“Born to Mack”). It’s one part Dr. Axe, one part LL Cool J:

Carter’s best known for helping to popularize what are known as “street workouts”, an insurgent exercise movement that is one part old school calisthenics, one part freestyle break-dancing. Unlike expensive memberships at corporate owned globo-gyms or the over priced pretentiousness of many yoga studios, street workouts require nothing more than access to an outdoor park and a good attitude. The workouts are a highly efficient (Virgo Sun) form of exercise that rewards stagecraft and creativity (Leo Moon), one whose adherents are to mainstream gym chains what crypto-currency investors are are to the Federal Reserve or what builders of “tiny homes” are to the Toll Brothers corporation. Some samples are viewable at this link:

Don’t be too distracted by the shirtless theatrics, there is more to this pairing then keeping the body fat low (Virgo) and the drama quotient high (Leo Moon). According to astrologer Raven Kaldera, Virgo/Leo is the Sun/Moon of “The Bard” whose job is to speak truth (Virgo) to power (Leo):

Kaldera tells us that in addition to speaking truth to power, the Virgo/Leo Bard can often be found speaking, writing, or reading “eloquent and inspirational political writing and thinking deeply about how it moves them.” (Source) Prior to becoming a fitness (Virgo) celebrity (Leo), Carter had gained some traction in the independent music scene. Like the music of any good Bard, his lyrics were aimed at putting a check on the tyrannical rule of various out of control Kings. Consider, for instance, these excerpts from his 2010 single “Blood Money”:

Carter’s video for “Blood Money” was released to YouTube where it quickly racked up 200,000 views before YouTube removed it from their site for reasons that are not totally clear.

Carter released “Blood Money” during the heyday of the Occupy Wall Street movement, a brief time during which it seemed the forces of decency might be turning the tables on the forces of tyranny. Unfortunately, that era did not last long. By the fall of 2016 autocracy was on the rise and hate on the offensive. Despite the efforts of Bards throughout the country, Donald Trump ultimately ascended to the office of the Presidency via a campaign of garish misogyny and race based grievances. Furthermore, a number of respected outlets suspect the Trump family is funded by blood money while it’s now become clear they intend to bleed the country dry.

An ad-hoc, Aquarian-era network of groups has since coalesced into “the Resistance”, a series of loosely affiliated tribes who seek to oppose the Trump family and turn back the damage they’re doing to the country and world. The Resistance has scored some definite victories in recent months, mostly by rallying together the targets of Trump’s scapegoating: women, immigrants, members of the LGBTQ community, and others. However, it has also struggled mightily to connect with the disaffected young males that form the backbone of the “alt-right” — the internet era, social media shock-mob that propelled Trump into power.

Purusing his YouTube channel, it appears that Carter has pivoted from his more politically oriented, Occupy Wall Street era musical projects into selling sports supplements and providing life success tips. That sort of pivot is certainly understandable given how difficult it is to monetize one’s creativity in the current media environment. That goes double if you don’t have family money, a fat curriculum vitae, or flush Silicon Valley stock options to fall back on. At the same, it’s really unfortunate. The forces that have mobilized to oppose the alt-right eventually must connect with at least a portion of those disaffected males if they hope to turn back the tides of fascism. Running 76 year old Bernie Sanders or establishment wonder-boy Joe Kennedy out there is only going to get “the Resistance” so far. If they really want to win they’d be wise to consider enlisting the services of some legitimate playmakers who can “stay on beat while showing love to the streets” ala Brandon Carter.

About the Author: Matthew David Savinar is a California licensed attorney (State Bar #228957), voluntarily inactive as of June 2013. He can be reached for questions, comments, or astrological consults via Twitter, his first YouTube channel, his second YouTube channel, SoundCloud, LibSyn or this site’s contact page.

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(Image: U.S. Air Force Pararescue, found via YouTube)

Like their animal symbol the crab, Cancer Suns often identify with the creatures of the seashore. Like their animal symbol the horse, Sagittarius Moons must roam free in the great outdoors if they are to feel themselves. Combine a security seeking Cancer Sun’s love of the seashore with a Sagittarius Moon’s need for adventure and the result is a Sun/Moon pairing that makes for a fabulous lifeguard. Expansive, explorative, and extremely concerned about the welfare of others, this pairing is one part Den Mother (Cancer), one part Super Crusader (Sagittarius). To illustrate: using the day of its activation as its date of birth, the U.S. Air Force’s Para-Rescue squad is a Cancer Sun, Sagittarius Moon. (Chart) Originally established shortly after World War II to rescue downed U.S. airmen, they’re also the folks you see retrieving astronauts when they splashdown in the ocean after coming back from space:

Cancers are notoriously home-bound but that’s not the case with this one. Of the 144 Sun/Moon pairings this is the one most likely to make its home (Cancer) on the high seas or in far off frontiers (Sagittarius). Most Cancers stay close to home, this one prefers to make its home on the range. To illustrate: Sir Walter Raleigh is a Cancer/Sagittarius who established the first English colony in the New World. (Chart) Of course he also was responsible for the “Lost Colony” on Roanoke Island, an endeavor that definitely could have used the services of a para-rescue squad.

Where-ever they decide to call home, Cancer/Sagittarians will often be found rendering assistance to those in need. Astrologer Bill Tierney says both signs “share a common desire to help the helpless” with Cancer willing to share its food and Sagittarius willing to share its camping gear. (Source) The pairing thus also makes for a great park ranger, outdoor adventure guide, or wilderness paramedic — a point which this promotional poster from an Air Force Para-Rescue unit’s public relations office makes quite clear:

Linda Goodman says the Cancer/Sagittarius pairing is often found having a “jolly good time” while Suzi and Charles Harvey cite its “wry sense of humor” as one of its strengths. (Source) Curiously enough the unofficial morale patch for Para-Rescue jumpers features a Jolly Green Giant who goes by the wry motto “You fuck up, we pick up”:

In addition to its sense of humor, this pairing is often profoundly sensitive (Cancer) to issues of right and wrong (Sagittarius). Many Cancer/Sagittarians will, at some point in their life, come face to face with gross injustices which his or her culture of origin (Cancer) judges to be perfectly moral (Sagittarius). To illustrate: using its premier date as its date of birth the 1992 film Universal Soldier is a Cancer Sun, Sagittarius Moon. (Chart) The film stars Jean Claude Van Damme and Dolph Lundgren as soldiers who killed each other in Vietnam only to be reanimated in the 1990s as part of a Pentagon program to develop zombie like super soldiers. Their programming is designed to wipe their memories clear but like all Cancers, this one never forgets. Upon completing his first mission as a reanimated “UniSol”, Van Damme’s character experiences a flashback in which he remembers attempting to stop Lundgren’s character from committing Nazi-like war crimes:

Universal Soldier is a fictional film but there are more than a few Cancer/Sagittarians who can relate to the emotional (Cancer) journey (Sagittarius) of Mr. Van Damme’s character. To illustrate: Jesse Ventura is a Cancer Sun, Sagittarius Moon. (Chart) A Navy Seal during the Vietnam War, Ventura famously went on to become a professional wrestler, movie star, and politician. These days he’s best known for his outspoken views on corporate criminality and government corruption. For instance, in this 2009 interview with Larry King he explains that #1) in his opinion Guantanamo Bay is the U.S. version of the Hanoi Hilton, the infamous Vietnam era prison and #2) if he was president he would prosecute George Bush and Dick Cheney as war-criminals for their roles in making torture a sanctioned component of U.S. foreign policy. The Harveys say this pairing will live its life with “moral integrity” and won’t back down from speaking its mind. You’ll be hard pressed to find better examples of either trait than this interview with Mr. Ventura starting at 1:18:

Cancer is considered the comedian of the zodiac while Sagittarius is known for its outrageous proclamations. The Cancer/Sagittarius pairing thus has a knack for making folks laugh even when speaking defiantly and candidly about important moral issues. When Ventura proclaims to Larry King in the above interview, “Give me Dick Cheney, a water board, and one hour and I’ll have him confessing to the Sharon Tate murders” it’s impossible not to let out a righteous chuckle even though what he’s discussing is anything but a laughing matter. More recently, he appeared on the Alex Jones show to discuss the presidency of Donald Trump. According to Ventura, “If Trump builds that wall of his I’m going over the top and staying in Mexico”. Some of Ventura’s other media appearances have been so pregnant (Cancer) with flaming arrows of truth and forthrightness (Sagittarius Moon) that it’s amazing he’s ever allowed on mainstream television.

Aries is thought to be the warrior of the zodiac but Cancer’s association with the “Great Mother” makes this sign absolutely ferocious when it comes to defense of home, family, clan, and country. Paired with the crusading spirit of a Sagittarius Moon and you get a Sun/Moon pairing that can be a true “universal solider” — one who fiercely defends (Cancer) universal principals of human rights (Sagittarius Moon), something that’s needed now more than ever before.

About the Author: Matthew David Savinar is a California licensed attorney (State Bar #228957), voluntarily inactive as of June 2013. He can be reached for questions, comments, or astrological consults at his contact page.

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