Editor’s Note: parts of this post are excerpted from my article “Watching the Watchers: The Astrology of the National Security Agency”, originally published in the October/November 2013 issue of The Mountain Astrologer. -Matt

Mars describes how an entity asserts itself. The NSA’s Mars is in Capricorn, the sign of power and patriarchy, strategy and status, determination and decision making. This is the sign of the President and the Prime Minister, the Authority Figure and the Administrator, the Establishment and the Executive, the Four Star General and the Fleet Admiral, the Master Planner and the Man-In-Charge. Mars in Capricorn is considered an exalted (highly effective) placement because the fiery “charge” of Mars is sustained by the work capacity of Capricorn. Astrologer Raven Kaldera associates Mars in Capricorn with the Afro-Caribbean myth of Ogoun, a highly demanding, highly organized deity whose “area of patronage includes the police and the military”. (Source)

Mars tells us what things a person is willing to fight for. People with Mars in Capricorn (status) are often found fighting for cash, money, or other status symbols of a Capricornian nature such as their VISA black card(s). According to a report in Der Spiegel (Germany’s version of the NY Times), the agency extensively monitors international banking transactions “the transactions of customers of large credit card companies like VISA”. (Source) A number of commentators have expressed concern the agency has used its Ogoun like capacities for financial warfare to go beyond simply monitoring bank accounts and into actively manipulating them. On December 19th, 2013 the popular financial website ZeroHedge.com reported:

Hidden in the report which the White House panel on NSA released today is a stunning implication: that the U.S. government has been using its massive offensive cyber capabilities to change the amounts held in financial accounts and otherwise manipulating financial systems. Specifically, the panel’s report states on page 221 that (1) Governments should not use surveillance to steal industry secrets to advantage their domestic industry; (2) Governments should not use their offensive cyber capabilities to change the amounts held in financial accounts or otherwise manipulate the financial systems. (Source)

The NSA’s Capricorn Mars is in the 6th house of the workplace. Astrologers Sakoian and Acker associate Mars in the 6th house with workplaces which “involve machinery that consumes large amounts of power”. (Source) Given the NSA’s off-the-charts demand for large amounts of both electricity and computing power, it’s very fortunate to that its Mars in Capricorn receives a nearly perfect trine (supportive contact) from Jupiter (expansion) in Taurus (resource accumulation) in the 10th house of government. Jupiter describes where an entity experiences largesse. When placed in the 10th house of “Status Before the King,” the largesse will involve the King and his Court, or their modern-day equivalents: the President and Congress. Jupiter in the sign of Taurus suggests that the largesse will involve cattle and land, or their modern-day equivalents: cash and turf. The NSA’s budget is classified, so nobody knows for sure just how “fortunate” (Jupiter) the agency is when it comes to material resources (Taurus) provided by public officials (10th house); however, Steve Aftergood, director of the government secrecy program at the Federation of American Scientists, has estimated the agency budget to be approximately $10 billion annually.