Whoopsie!

Occupy Wall Street: Canadian Special Forces provocateur leaves wallet behind  Censored News.  Excerpts:

Canadian Special Forces Agent Dylan Spoelstra, 24, of Toronto, left his wallet behind exposing his identity, after he was arrested at Occupy Wall Street scaling a sculpture on Saturday morning. The police said that after his arrest, he was brought to Bellevue Hospital for a psychiatric evaluation after surrendering just after 9 a.m.



Occupy Wall Street media coordinator Thorin Caristo said when Spoelstra began climbing the reddish-colored Joie de Vivre sculpture in Zuccotti Park, on Saturday at 5:30 am, Caristo said he knew it was staged.

Caristo recalled the event, first saying to himself, “I can’t believe he’s climbing the sculpture."

Police arrived and began inflating airbags. Earlier, families had gathered on Friday at Occupy Wall Street with their children to camp, so it was a special time. However, police cleared them all out during Spoelstra's stunt.
And:
Then, on Saturday night, Occupy Wall Street security found Spoelstra's wallet, revealing that Spoelstra is a member of Canadian Special Forces.
 
Remember:  From now on out, the really disruptive ones at all peaceful protests will be regarded with suspicion.  I will be totally shocked if this story has legs.  But, mass exposure or not, lots of people seem to have figured this ruse out.  I really hope this movement continues to remain (relatively) peaceful, but the global signs seem to predict otherwise..  How long the peace remains will probably be determined by the public's response to even more provocatuers, staging ever larger provocations..
 
2011.  So far, so intense.

The Game in Syria

Or:  Why Assad Isn't Going Anywhere..  From Information Clearing House.  Bottom Line/Excerpts:

The situation in Libya, for example, should not be taken as a measure of anything significant when it comes to a country like Syria. The departure of Libyan leader Moammar Qadhafi will not leave a dramatic regional political vacuum, while the departure of Assad and his government will have significant repercussions in neighboring countries, whether it’s Iraq, or Lebanon, or elsewhere. So far, Washington is offering tacit support for Assad, despite the news flashes that one might hear from time to time. The U.S. is not in a position to take the risky move of choosing sides, and is aware that Assad’s government, in its own way, offers the kind of “security” that Washington and other foreign capitals are anxious to see.

The most important lesson from this week is that the Arab peoples who are engaging in courageous public protests should focus on the internal requirements of their actions. They should not wage on the outside world to help them, because history has shown that only interests, and nothing else, guide such policies.

(fuse burning..)

And Now, To Greece..

Greece: Prime Minister George Papandreou survives by just 12 votes

GREECE'S prime minister survived a key confidence vote, keeping alive a government bid to avert a debt default that could spark a financial maelstrom around the world.

MPs voted 155 to 143 along party lines last night to back George Papandreou, who now faces a critical vote next week on a massive austerity package that Greece's international creditors have said must pass by the end of June.

He is seeking 28 billion euro (s24.8bn) in budget cuts and new taxes and 50 billion euro (s44.3bn) worth of privatisation of public assets. Unless the new measures pass, Greece will not receive the next batch of bailout funds worth 12 billion euro (s10.6bn), and will face a disastrous default in July, when it runs out of money.

A default by Greece could drag down Greek and European banks and renew fears over the finances of other eurozone countries such as Portugal, Ireland and Spain.
And:
As deputies voted, several thousand protesters gathered outside parliament chanting "Thieves! thieves!", shining green laser lights at the parliament building and into the eyes of riot police. Continuing strikes by electricity company workers objecting to privatisation caused a second day of rolling power cuts.

This anger doesn't seem to be factored as a tangible power.  But it is, and it's just begun to fester.

Libya Roundup, March 9, 2011

Gaddafi's scorched earth: Libya's skies turn black as desperate dictator blows up oil pipes and turns his tanks on civilians


Colonel Gaddafi's forces today blasted an oil terminal to smithereens as Libya's bloody civil war entered its blackest day.


Rebels retaliated by firing back with rockets as a fireball exploded from one of the oil tanks and the sky above the Es Sider terminal, in the east of the country, filled with hideous smoke.


A witness said one of the smoke plumes was the biggest he had seen in the conflict so far.


The fresh onslaught came as Gaddafi deployed tanks and snipers to 'shoot anything that moves'.



Forces loyal to the Libyan dictator poured into the city of Zawiyah in a desperate bid to oust the hardcore band of protesters and army defectors who have taken control.
 
 Unrest in Libya has cut oil output to about half a million barrels per day from 1.6 million bpd as many foreign and local workers left the oil fields, the country's top oil official said on Wednesday.


Rebels and Gaddafi forces battle in eastern and western Libya  Excerpts:


BENGHAZI, LIBYA - Rebel forces in Libya engaged in intense fighting on two fronts Wednesday, claiming to break through a three-day standoff with government fighters in the town of Bin Jawwad but suffering another day of heavy casualties in the besieged western city of Zawiyah.


In Zawiyah, government forces were heavily shelling the main square, residents said, with airstrikes, tank and mortar fire, machine guns and artillery.


"We need some international aid here," said Mohammed, an opposition spokesman in the city, which was bombed for a sixth consecutive day by forces loyal to Moammar Gaddafi. "At least stop them from having airplanes fly over us."

The Libyan paradox

Most likely he is desperate and over the years he must have been haunted by the fantasy that he really created a country of his own and therefore no one has the right to challenge his ownership of Libya. He must believe what he keeps repeating: that he is neither a president nor a king to resign; he is an uncontested leader of a revolution, who possesses nothing but his gun and he will use it to regain control. He also claimed that he turned power to the people to govern themselves, a form of democracy superior in his view to any other system of government yet devised. If he is truly insane, it is just because he believes this hallucination.

Libyan rebels' mood darkens amid fears revolution has stalled

Nearly three weeks after Libyans surprised themselves by revolting against Muammar Gaddafi's brutal 42-year rule, euphoria at the prospect of swiftly deposing the dictator has given way in the rebel capital, Benghazi, to the grim prospect of a popular uprising evolving into a drawn-out military conflict.

That is stoking fears about the consequences of losing, as Gaddafi's forces use tanks and artillery to crush the revolutionaries' takeover of the city of Zawiyah, near Tripoli, and stall the rebel advance from Benghazi hundreds of miles short of the Libyan capital.

Western powers exploit Libyan crisis to step up intervention plans

Inside Libya, Gaddafi’s former justice minister, Mustafa Abdel Jalil, who now heads the opposition National Libyan Council in Benghazi, called for foreign air strikes and a no-fly zone. Citing sources within the council, the New York Times reported that this stance was adopted at a heated council meeting where “others strongly disagreed”. There has been deep opposition to such a call within popular protests against Gaddafi, because of fears of a return to neo-colonial rule—fears that Gaddafi is exploiting to posture as a defender of Libyan sovereignty.

A Major Milestone In The Spreading Middle Eastern Uprisings Just Occurred, And Went Un-Noticed.

Anti-government protesters may have been hit with nerve gas, doctors say..  This marks a Huge uptick of evil from the Saleh regime to Yemeni Anti-Government protesters. Gaddafi hasn't even gassed his people..  Yet..  From The Australian.  Excerpts:

DOCTORS from the scene of violent anti-government protests in Yemen's capital said that what was thought to be tear gas fired by government forces on demonstrators may have been nerve gas, which is forbidden under international law.

Military personnel opened fire on Tuesday night and used what was originally assumed to be tear gas to disperse a group of demonstrators who were trying to bring additional tents into the protest area outside Sanaa University.
And:
Earlier reports indicated that the gas used was tear gas, but doctors who have been treating the wounded refuted that claim today.

"The material in this gas makes people convulse for hours. It paralyses them. They couldn't move at all. We tried to give them oxygen but it didn't work," said Amaar Nujaim, a field doctor who works for Islamic Relief.

"We are seeing symptoms in the patient's nerves, not in their respiratory systems. I'm 90 per cent sure its nerve gas and not tear gas that was used," said Sami Zaid, a doctor at the Science and Technology Hospital in Sanaa.

Mohammad Al-Sheikh, a pathologist at the same hospital, said that some of the victims had lost their muscular control and were forced to wear diapers.

Yeah; That's nice..  And the rest of the country seems to be collectively gearing up for a fight..  From the Chicago Tribune.  Excerpts:

"This is the moment. We cannot go back from here," said protester Wael Sakkif, pointing to the blood on the pavement. "This is all Yemen's blood."

The unrest followed a large riot in the nation's largest prison as inmates added their voices to demands for Saleh's removal, news reports and human rights groups said.

Prisoners set mattresses and blankets on fire Monday and marched into the central courtyard of the facility in Sana, the capital. Police used tear gas and fired live ammunition to disperse them. Twenty-five inmates were injured, said Amal Basha, chairwoman of the Sisters Arab Forum, a rights group.

And:

Protesters and opposition figures say the government is trumping up internal threats to gain domestic and international support for Saleh, a key U.S. ally in the battle against Islamic Islamist militants. The Yemeni government has long fought an armed separatist movement, a rebel insurgency and the growth of Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, an Al Qaeda offshoot based in Yemen's tribal areas.
And:
.. negotiations collapsed late last week, and there has been "a total breakdown of talks" between opposition leaders and Saleh, said Aidroos Naqeeb, head of the Yemeni Socialist Party.

The number of police vehicles, soldiers and trucks armed with water cannons deployed in Sana increased this week.

A government news release stated that the increased security measures were in response to "multiple terror attacks on security and army personnel" last weekend, but tension at the anti-Saleh camp increased anyway.

"It looks like the government is getting ready for a fight," one protester said.

The use of nerve gas, IF true, is a major escalation as to what Saleh (And the rulers of the next country to fall, and the next..) is capable of, what will be utilized, and how far he'll go, all for the sake of retaining power.  Saleh has shown his hand.  What will happen next? 

In Other Middle Eastern/North African News..

Yemen on agenda as PM lands in Oman  Psst..  Yemen.  You're freaking England out.  PM David Cameron's talking to Oman behind your back..

The threat of terrorism from an unstable Yemen will be high on the agenda for Prime Minister David Cameron as he ends a four-day Middle East tour in neighbouring Oman.
..
Mr Cameron met with Omani Sultan Qaboos Bin Said last night in part to thank the country for its key logistical role as a "bridge" for UK armed forces deploying to Afghanistan.

Yemen leader defiant; Oman officials booted

Yemen's besieged president defiantly rejected a proposal Saturday to leave office early and possibly end weeks of protests and bloodshed, while Oman's ruler pushed out three more top-level officials in attempts to quell widening demands for economic reforms and justice for the killing of a demonstrator.

Turkish Defense Exports To Mideast Unaffected By Revolts 

Just when Turkey’s local industry thought it caught a niche in several Middle Eastern markets, the region began to shake with popular revolts, but Ankara's export planners say "it is business as usual."

A senior procurement official dealing with exports of Turkish-made systems mostly to Middle Eastern and eastern markets said that previous contracts would not be affected by the revolts in Tunisia, Egypt and Libya.

"Egypt is a market and partner with previously signed contracts. Tunisia and Libya were prospective markets. They still are for the longer term. As the dust settles we will roll up our sleeves to help the (Turkish) industry for new contracts," he told Hürriyet Daily News & Economic Review Thursday.

Kuwait awaits protests but is no stranger to upheaval

Kuwait has the Gulf's most powerful parliament, and opposition lawmakers already have taken bold shots at the ruling emir's inner circle, including two no-confidence motions since December 2009 that nearly brought down the prime minister. The plan now is to take demands for a political overhaul to the streets.
..
Libya and Yemen are all-or-nothing fights to bring down the leadership. Oman seemingly has cooled after an angry start — with protesters staging sit-ins to push for more jobs while being careful not to speak ill of the lute-playing sultan who has ruled for 40 years. Bahrain's protests tap into deep-rooted claims of discrimination by the majority Shiites against the Sunni monarchy.

The rumblings in Saudi Arabia — where protesters have called for a show of force Friday — seek even small breaks in the absolute control in the ruling House of Saud.
..
Kuwait joins the protest roster with quite a bit of experience. Its opposition bloc in parliament — a mix of Islamists and reformists — has gone toe-to-toe for years with the hand-picked government of the emir, Sheik Sabah Al Ahmed Al Sabah, over allegations that include financial mismanagement and attempts to roll back political freedoms. The dissident lawmakers draw heavily from the desert provinces outside Kuwait City, where many feel cut out of oil wealth.

The most significant change this week could be adding pro-reform youth groups into the fray. At a strategy meeting last week, some organizers of new youth-oriented factions — including one called Kafi, or Enough, in Arabic — pledged to occupy a main square in Kuwait City to copy the round-the-clock stand by demonstrators in Bahrain's Pearl Square.

This is Western Africa,  but it's relevant..  Ivory Coast 'forgotten emergency'

Chals Wontewe, Oxfam's Country Director in Liberia said: "This could become Africa's latest forgotten crisis. Thousands of civilians are fleeing for their lives yet the international community is failing to respond adequately. The world risks being seriously unprepared for the escalating crisis in West Africa.

"For more than three months now the people of Ivory Coast have been living with the threat of violence, intimidation, economic collapse and sexual assault. The situation is now deteriorating rapidly and urgent action is needed to avert a humanitarian crisis. The conditions for refugees and communities hosting them in Liberia are extremely worrying. People are in dire need of the very basics - clean water, food and shelter."

Tensions ignited in Ivory Coast following the contested presidential election in November 2010 and has resulted in months of instability and a steep increase in violent clashes in the past week. As well as rising political and military tensions, many banks remain closed, prices of basic goods are rocketing and more than 500,000 people have lost their jobs.

It' on..  Rebel violence, looting continue to spread in Ivory Coast

Rebels opposed to the strongman Laurent Gbagbo seized a town near the Liberian border yesterday, a rebel spokesman said, in a further sign of Ivory Coast’s possible slide toward civil war.

A top commander of Gbagbo-allied forces in the west, near the border, declined to comment, but the head of a leading civil society organization in the region confirmed that the town of Toulepleu had fallen to the rebels, extending an advance in which they have taken several small towns on the Liberian frontier in the past 10 days.

A weeklong campaign of looting and burning in Abidjan aimed at the homes of ministers allied with Gbagbo’s rival, Alassane Ouattara, continued yesterday, underscoring the growing lawlessness in this sprawling economic capital.

Ouattara won a presidential election in November, according to most of the international community, but Gbagbo refused to step aside. The standoff prevailing here since then has taken an increasingly violent turn.     

Activists on Facebook call for March protests in Saudi Arabia

Activists on Facebook call for March protests in Saudi Arabia  This is interesting and troubling, but I won't discuss why right now:  Only in retrospect.  This is more of a reference/time stamp.

England Thinks Gaddafi's Already Dead, Too..

Libya Now, Iran Then: How Close Are We to 1979?  Gonzalo Lira.  Excerpts:

Today, the UK’s Telegraph is reporting that British government drones in Whitehall are figuring out the legal means to seize Muammar al-Gaddafi’s assets in Britain, which are said to total some £20 billion.
..
That these assets are going to be seized is, according to the story, a done deal: The only issue seems to be the legal means by which to do so—


—which means that the British government isn’t worried about pissing off Gaddafi—


—which means that Gaddafi’s days in power are numbered: Whitehall would never dare seize his UK assets, unless they were sure that Gaddafi won’t be around to exact revenge or retribution. After all, the Brits let the Lockerbie Bomber go in 2009, in order to shore up relations with Gaddafi.


Lira's article continues by exploring a comparison of economic/global circumstances between '79's Iranian Revolution and and Now.  Short answer?  2011 does not fare well, as circumstances in 1979 were way better.  Way better.

My point being, England has assessed that Gaddafi is, without a doubt, going down.  Killed or Captured or Captured Then Killed, they're sure he's not going to talk, so they're going for his cash.  Not the worst thing in the world, right?  Lira then brings up the possibility of the beginnings of what could be many oil shocks, the likes of which America can't survive..  Excerpts from original article..

Now, what happened after 1979’s Iranian Oil Shock? Like I said: Severe inflation, unemployment, and a Fed that had to raise rates catastrophically, in order to stop an inflation that was spiralling out of control.

But back in 1979, there was no kindling for that inflationary fire. Federal Reserve money policies were fairly responsible. The Federal government’s total debt and liabilities was less than 50% of GDP. Back in 1979, the U-3 unemployment rate was about 5%, compared to over 9% today.

Back in 1979, there was no ZIRP, no QE2, no $1.6 trillion deficit. There weren’t so many freshly-minted dollars sloshing around, looking for yields like army ants looking for dead meat. There wasn’t a total government debt that was bigger than the total gross domestic product of the United States.

In short, back in 1979, the economy, the fiscal situation and the monetary policy were far healthier than they are today.

Yet the 1979 Oil Shock brought us the worst recession since the Great Depression.

And that is very, very bad for us today, in 2011.

Seriously:  Shouldn't we be taking all the alternative energy projects off the back burner and fast tracking Every Bit Of It right now?  We as a society can see the potential cataclysm in front of us:  Shouldn't we start talking about directions away from disaster, or at least trying to cushion the impact? 

Then again, it was Way Too Late way before I wrote these words. 

The Tsunami Approaches, and we stare; transfixed.

Global Unrest Beginning In South America?

Could be bad news for Evo Morales.. Thousands Protest in Bolivia Over Rising Prices. Again with the Reuters "intellectual property" crap, so here we go.. Summary:
Bolivian Unions have been protesting higher food and fuel prices for the last five days. President Evo Morales announced he's going to raise gas by 73 percent and diesel by 83 percent. Even though Morales raised the minimum wage, people are still angry. Bus and taxi drivers and the Workers Union are striking.

Looks like Bolivia's fixin' to go hot. The take-away? Whatever your political affiliation(Morales is a major Populist/Leftist who began his career within the Coca growers Union and usually supported by Unions), when you have to raise prices for Necessary Commodities, people Flip Out. How Morales responds to the increasing pressure from economic setbacks, criticism and action from factions usually aligned with him, and mounting pressure from his political enemies remains to be seen.
Will the unrest seen towards authoritarian regimes in the Mid-East extend to Socialist governments in South America?

I'm sure Hugo Chavez is monitoring and analyzing the events in Bolivia very carefully.

Bahrain Massacre: The World Bears Witness In Horror And Disgust..

When Bahrain's al-Khalifa royal family is overthrown, I hope the trial is broadcast internationally. Their response to their people's peaceful demonstrations have sealed their fate, and their subjects have shown more courage than the royal family could ever muster. Bahrain protesters didn't run away. They faced the bullets head-on. Excerpts, doubling as future testimony at the World Court:

"Massacre – it's a massacre," the doctors were shouting. Three dead. Four dead. One man was carried past me on a stretcher in the emergency room, blood spurting on to the floor from a massive bullet wound in his thigh.
A few feet away, six nurses were fighting for the life of a pale-faced, bearded man with blood oozing out of his chest. "I have to take him to theatre now," a doctor screamed. "There is no time – he's dying!"
..
Eyewitness testimony from a hospital orderly at the demonstration..
"We decided to walk to the hospital because we knew there was a demonstration. Some of us were carrying tree branches as a token of peace which we wanted to give to the soldiers near the square, and we were shouting 'peace, peace. There was no provocation – nothing against the government. Then suddenly the soldiers started shooting. One was firing a machine gun from the top of a personnel carrier. There were police but they just left as the soldiers shot at us. But you know, the people in Bahrain have changed. They didn't want to run away. They faced the bullets with their bodies."
..
The demonstration at the hospital had already drawn thousands of Shia protesters – including hundreds of doctors and nurses from all over Manama, still in their white gowns – to demand the resignation of the Bahraini Minister of Health, Faisal Mohamed al-Homor, for refusing to allow ambulances to fetch the dead and injured from Thursday morning's police attack on the Pearl Square demonstrators.

But their fury turned to near-hysteria when the first wounded were brought in yesterday. Up to 100 doctors crowded into the emergency rooms, shouting and cursing their King and their government as paramedics fought to push trolleys loaded with the latest victims through screaming crowds.
..
Five ambulances sent to the street – yesterday's victims were shot down opposite a fire station close to Pearl Square – were stopped by the army. Moments later, the hospital discovered that all their mobile phones had been switched off. Inside the hospital was a doctor, Sadeq al-Aberi, who was himself badly hurt by the police when he went to help the wounded on Thursday morning.
..
Why has the royal family of Bahrain allowed its soldiers to open fire at peaceful demonstrators? To turn on Bahraini civilians with live fire within 24 hours of the earlier killings seems like an act of lunacy.

But the heavy hand of Saudi Arabia may not be far away. The Saudis are fearful that the demonstrations in Manama and the towns of Bahrain will light equally provocative fires in the east of their kingdom, where a substantial Shia minority lives around Dhahran and other towns close to the Kuwaiti border. Their desire to see the Shia of Bahrain crushed as quickly as possible was made very clear at Thursday's Gulf summit here, with all the sheikhs and princes agreeing that there would be no Egyptian-style revolution in a kingdom which has a Shia majority of perhaps 70 per cent and a small Sunni minority which includes the royal family.
..
And the stakes here are high. This is the first serious insurrection in the wealthy Gulf states – more dangerous to the Saudis than the Islamists who took over the centre of Mecca more than 30 years ago – and Bahrain's al-Khalifa family realise just how fraught the coming days will be for them. A source which has always proved reliable over many years told me that late on Wednesday night, a member of the al-Khalifa family – said to be the Crown Prince – held a series of telephone conversations with a prominent Shia cleric, the Wifaq Shia party leader, Ali Salman, who was camping in Pearl Square. The Prince apparently offered a series of reforms and government changes which he thought the cleric had approved. But the demonstrators stayed in the square. They demanded the dissolution of parliament. Then came the police.
..
A doctor who gave his name as Hussein stopped me leaving the emergency room because he wanted to explain his anger. "The Israelis do this sort of thing to the Palestinians – but these are Arabs shooting at Arabs,".. "This is the Bahraini government doing this to their own people. I was in Egypt two weeks ago, working at the Qasr el-Aini hospital – but things are much more fucked up here."

The Shia make up 70% of Bahrain's population, controlled by the Sunni Royal Family. As you can see by this 2009 article, Shia dominated Iran has an affinity for Shia-majority-but-ruled-by-minority-Sunni Bahrain. Now that Iran has ships cruising the Suez Canal, is it beyond the scope of possibility that Iran might come to the aid of the Bahrainis and do a little ass kickin' on the Bahraini military, if the opportunity arises? How would the Saudis' react to such provocation, or more accurately, how quickly would this crisis escalate to a regional inferno? Note: Bahrain is also home to America's 5th Fleet, so the U.S. is involved with this uprising whether we like it or not. "On the one hand, Bahrain is a flash point between the United States and Iran," he told CNN. On the other, it's "a flash point between Saudi Arabia and Iran."

The potential for more bloodshed is almost assured. It's really a matter of how this plays out, and how the three outside interests proceed. This very well could be the country that turns this regional unrest into something much, much bigger. And the actions of the bloodthirsty thugs who(for now) rule Bahrain have inflamed their people and won't be forgotten.

File Under: Cyber War: This Could Be Big, or Dry Run?..

Foreign hackers attack Canadian government Excerpts:
An unprecedented cyberattack on the Canadian government from China has given foreign hackers access to highly classified federal information, and forced at least two key departments off the Internet, CBC News has learned.
..
Highly placed sources tell CBC News the cyberattacks were traced back to computer servers in China.
But they caution there is no way of knowing whether the hackers are Chinese, or some other nationality routing their cybercrimes through China to cover their tracks.
And:
..Sources have confirmed the attackers successfully penetrated the computer systems at the federal government’s two main economic nerve centres, the Finance Department and Treasury Board.
The hackers apparently managed to take control of computers in the offices of senior government executives as part of a scheme to steal the key passwords that unlock entire government data systems.
And:
For years, experts including the federal auditor general have been warning that security on the government’s networks is woefully inadequate and open to cyberattack. (This is why it will be disastrous for many, many governments and organizations is some full scale cyber war does erupt..)

For a trial run, this was pretty successful, as the next several attacks on slow-to-non-responsive governments or organizations targeted by these hackers will be. I'm guessing the next attack will be larger in scope, "show-ier," and more widely covered in the press. This is not to say that this attack won't be heavily covered in the press: It's fairly new, and has not completed one news cycle yet, but having said that, each time these hackers strike, the impact will be larger than the time before..

Astrology: The Beginning of A Widespread 21st Century Revolution

From Aquarius Papers. Robert Wilkinson breaks down the astrological energies in place during the initial events that sparked the revolutionary movement taking hold in the Mid-East, which began in Tunisia as an altercation between a street vendor and a policeman. Wilkinson uses Dane Rudyhar's Sabian symbols to illustrate more clearly the meaning of not only the house location of individual planets, but the different aspects those planets make to each other, fully fleshing out the implications and meaning of the astrological forces at work. Excerpts:

It is generally known that the beginning of the revolutionary spark began in Tunisia, when police seized a fruit and vegetable cart run by a vendor who then set himself on fire. After that, within 48 hours of the initial incident, crowds gathered, riots broke out, things got out of hand, and a revolution broke out in short order.
..
What follows is an examination of the astrological factors in play during the critical moments the morning of December 17 that set up a spark that lit a revolution.
..
The initial confrontation occurred "less than an hour" before his self-immolation at 11:30 am. At 10:45 am we see 19 Aquarius (the "forest fire"!) on the Ascendant, so we can assume that the Ascendant of the initial incident was somewhere between 17 and 22 Aquarius.
..
The act of self-immolation at 11:30 am shows us 4 Pisces on the Ascendant and 15 Sagittarius on the MC. The ruler of the Ascendant is Jupiter in the 1st conjunct revolutionary Uranus. Jupiter also rules the Sun in the 10th at 26 Sagittarius, a degree of "the flag bearer," a symbol of selfless dedication to a greater collective ideal.
..the Solar degree is where things of "enduring significance... overshadow the more immediate interests or wholely selfish concerns of man, and the emphasis... on the natural supremacy of common ideals over mere individual ambitions." He says this degrees "is the call for a high self-sacrifice... (to) permit the self to realize its transcendental aspirations." The keyword is NOBILITY, and he states "the degree is spiritual exaltation through some dramatic or vital service to all."
..One major revolutionary indicator is the Sun just off the square to Jupiter while still forming one to Uranus. This would definitely indicate things evolving at breakneck speed, where change can happen in a heartbeat.
And:
It's interesting to note that at the inception of this revolution, Mercury was retrograde at 2 Capricorn, a degree of seeing how violence or wrong use of force damages compassion. This was certainly the case with the policewoman who confiscated the vendor's food, spit on him, and insulted his dead father.
And:
He goes on to say that 8 Taurus is about "using knowledge and skill" to meet a future event, and "independence of the will of the self from outer circumstances," and the "power to mould life upon the pioneer's prophetic vision." 9 Taurus is a "symbol of the promise which outer life offers to the pure in heart; of immortality through giving of self to the race." We are told it offers us the chance to create "inner happiness in dark hours" through sounding a counter-tone to harshness or barrenness in the outer world. Sounds like Tunisia before and during these events!

And no, Wilkinson is not implying that astrological forces caused the unrest or the revolution in the Mid-East, these were the energies in place at the time of the initial event in Tunisia. They could have been just as easily not acted upon. After all, Free Will is still the most important factor in human events. These energies are part of the Cardinal Crisis and Grand Irrationality, subtle planetary forces that have been around for several years now. This is simply his analysis of those energies at work in relation to recent events, through the event's ending in 2012. Remember, the forces that facillitate great change can also cause great instability. What we just witnessed were examples of both.. Welcome to the birth pangs of the Age of Aquarius!

Oppressive Regimes To People: If Everyone Else Was Overthrowing Their Governments, Would You?

To which Algeria and Yemen reply: Why, yes! At the moment, Algerian protests have been stifled by the police, but the desperation is just as palpable as it was in Egypt.

''They can't kill us because we are already dead,'' said jobless Bilal Boudamous, 29. ''At 30 we are unemployed, we live with our parents, and we have no future.''

Algerians didn't really buy the token concessions from their government, so the regime shut down Facebook and the Internet, and gave the hackneyed Ike Turner response: If things turn violent, it's all your fault. Damn it baby, you made me hurt you..

Meanwhile, in Yemen, the dynamic seems to be playing out a bit differently. For now, the protests are still smaller, but the clashes between pro and anti-government protesters are already marred by violence, as both sides(not counting the police) are fighting with sticks and knives.

Also, 23 million Yemenis are hooked on Qat, so demonstrations fizzle out by the afternoon so everyone can get high. It'll be interesting to see if The People can give up the HappyHappy for a few weeks in order to rid themselves of a soul crushing regime. We shall see.

Egypt: Meanwhile, Not In Cairo..

Egypt: Unrest Spreads to Sinai Excerpts:

A Bedouin youth casually spreads out a piece of cloth before a police headquarters in Sheikh Zwayyed town in Sinai, the vast desert area to the east of Cairo across the Suez. "I will leave when Mubarak leaves," he says.

He joins hundreds of others. They have broken through into the police station already, and are now camping there to demand a change in government. Most youth are Bedouin, originally a nomadic tribe in the desert, who’ve been fighting for their rights for years. Over the last few days they feel they’re winning.

The police are rapidly leaving their posts, but some still appear in uniform. One uniformed policeman stands quietly to a side. He is in danger, he seems no danger to others at all. What would he do if attacked? "Just take my uniform off and join the protest," he tells IPS. "Or maybe just go over to the Palestinian side."
..
New groups have taken charge, and it’s hard to say who these are. Several check-posts have been set up all the way between Cairo and Sinai. "Who are you," says a man at one of these checkpoints. This IPS correspondent offers him his Palestinian passport. He glances at it, upside down, and pockets it. After some time he gives it back.

State security in plain clothes, riot police, secret police, the army, Bedouin youth, protesters who had come from Cairo to spread the word – no one seems to know who the people at these check-points are.
And:
The area appears to have drawn many powerful and armed groups that have converged to free their associates and relatives from the prisons. They look determined to succeed. Some of the men carry heavy weapons.

The groups mingle freely with local Bedouin youth. The deprivation across this area is greater than Cairo has ever known. And the anger seems greater too.

With the anger, Bedouin youth now present a face of triumph. "It is a revolution," one says simply.

This (national) event is still in escalation. The media has concentrated on Cairo and Alexandria, leaving outlying areas out of their coverage, unfactored into the national sentiment. This conflict has developed and bloomed in less than ten days, with no sign of conclusion. Of course, that could change abruptly, but events could continue to play out for weeks, possibly months. Cairo is the visual, but smaller but no less fervent protests are happening elsewhere, too..

The March has already started. Whatever happens, tonight will look much different than last night..

The Tipping Point Has Passed: Sweeping Change is at Hand

From Activist Post Excerpts:
When so many diverse forces converge and conflict, a tipping point of global awareness to the human condition is reached. The momentum must spill over into a time of sweeping change.
..
Our age is one of extremes: one can see this in our entertainment, our politics, our solutions to the spectrum of problems we face . . . and even our physical climate. This would indicate that it is a time for choosing sides -- anathema as it is for those who are inclusive by nature. It is a challenging time for those of us who would like to see all sides of every issue, liberally interpreting the dialogue in a collective mantra for the human race. Such a being is branded with any one of the scarlet letters assigned to the prevailing political parties of our modern world. For those of us who would like to preserve a once-great nation, a political dogma, a religious instruction, or a fixed set of guiding principles, we find ourselves on a runaway train of manipulated change, environmental change, and technological change. From either left-right spectrum, the stage upon which we have been told we can act is a moving one. So, from where exactly can we act our part?
And:
We are in this struggle due to the profound nature of our ability to discern the stimuli of our environment. We are not animals, and we are not (yet) robots. Some of us are; others wish to be; most are not even close. No other being, so far as we can tell, has been able to harness their abilities and flaws to produce such world-encompassing results. Perhaps this is what is worth saving, and why our destructive capacities haven't yet overwhelmed us. Perhaps this is why global "elites" who feel that their breeding and master planning are the symphony of humankind haven't yet hit the correct note. Amid the vast attempts at government-run oppression, there has never been a more empowering time for the individual. Across the globe, the average person has far more access to information and creative technology than at any time in human history. This is a genie that cannot be put back into the bottle, save a physically catastrophic event that forces humanity back into the dark ages. The human intellect is expanding and evolving in a way that is rendering divide-and-conquer strategies much less effective.
And:
Free humanity finds itself at center stage between the left-right forces of radicalism, as it seeks to find a point of stability and growth. It is further proof that the essence of what humanity is has expanded its importance. So, choose your bible; choose your party; or choose none of it. One way or another massive change is coming. Where do you wish to stand?

The key to the Age of Aquarius is discernment. Information is literally flowing all around us, and it is up to us to use all of our critical facilities to determine our own truths. So many easily-made mistakes just ahead, and such a narrowing path to Awakening. It is becoming clear that at this axis point in "time," our collective consciousness could just as easily explode as our physical bodies could.

We will all have to choose..

Evolve or Devolve?
Nirvana, or Gehenna?
Star Trek, or Mad Max?

There is no guarantee.
What.. Will happen.. Next?

This Week In "Other Protests Than Egypt"

Thousands of Albanian protest despite warnings Summary: A peaceful response to a violent reaction. Excerpts:
Tens of thousands of demonstrators gathered in the Albanian capital Tirana Friday for a silent protest closely monitored by police, a week after another demonstration turned deadly. The opposition went ahead with the protest in defiance of international appeals and police warnings, insisting it would be a peaceful gathering to honor the three people killed last week.

The demonstrators headed by the leadership of the opposition socialists and the families of the victims started their march on the government buildings, passing by the spot where the people were shot, placing flowers at the scene in silence.

Organizers said there were 200,000 protesters but AFP journalists put the number at several tens of thousands. Police would give no figure.
And:
Last Friday, tens of thousands of people turned out for a protest rally organized by Rama, calling on the government to resign over allegations of corruption and electoral fraud.

The subsequent clashes between demonstrators and the security forces left three people dead and a fourth critically wounded.

This is the longest ever political crisis in Albania, which began after the opposition disputed the results from the June 2009 parliamentary election.

Not big enough to be close to critical, tensions in Jordan, nonetheless, could flare up from growing discontent with Prime Minister Samir Rifai. Excerpts:

Thousands of people in Jordan have taken to the streets in protests, demanding the country's prime minister step down, and the government curb rising prices, inflation and unemployment.

In the third consecutive Friday of protests, about 3,500 opposition activists from Jordan's main Islamist opposition group, trade unions and leftist organisations gathered in the capital, waving colourful banners reading: "Send the corrupt guys to court".

The crowd denounced Samir Rifai's, the prime minister, and his unpopular policies.
Many shouted: "Rifai go away, prices are on fire and so are the Jordanians.''

Tame, for the moment.. We'll see, won't we? Any finally, the most desperate and volatile of the three, Yemen.. But.. Maybe the Yemeni government has learned a little something from the events of previous weeks. Calls for talks with opposition, warns of conflict Yemen ruling party urges dialogue to halt protests Excerpts:

Yemen's ruling party has called for dialogue with the opposition, the country's state news agency said late on Friday, in a bid to end anti-government protests fuelled by popular unrest across the Arab World.

Thousands of Yemenis have taken to the streets of the capital Sanaa in recent days demanding a change of government, inspired by the overthrow two weeks ago of Tunisian President Zine al-Abidine Ben Al Ben Ali and spillover to Egypt.

"We ... call for the halting of media propaganda and urge all political parties to work together to make the dialogue a success and arrange for upcoming elections," a committee of the ruling General People's Congress (GPC) party was quoted as saying on the website of the Saba state news agency.
And:
Saleh, a key ally of the United States in a war against a resurgent al-Qaeda wing in Yemen, has ruled the impoverished Arabian Peninsula state for over 30 years.

Yemen is trying to quell a secessionist rebellion in its south and cement a truce with northern Shiite rebels.

Security measures at the demonstrations appeared relaxed, but were tight around the interior ministry and the central bank.

The political heat in the Mid East continues to intensify, growing hotter and faster in some areas over others, but growing nonetheless. Day Five in Egypt is already underway. It's gonna get hotter 'fore it cools..

Pick Up That New File Marked: Global Revolution; Yemen And Hand It Here, Please..

Thousands in Yemen Protest Against the Government Excerpts:
Yemen, one of the Middle East’s most impoverished countries and a haven for Al Qaeda militants, became the latest Arab state to witness mass protests on Thursday, as thousands of Yemenis took to the streets in the capital and other regions to demand a change in government.

The scenes broadcast across the Arab world were reminiscent of demonstrations in Egypt this week and the month of protests that brought down the government in Tunisia. But as they climaxed by midday, the marches appeared to be carefully organized and mostly peaceful, though there were reports of arrests by security forces. Predictably, the protests were most aggressive in the restive south.
And:
While the marches were not marked by violence, the potential for strife in the country is difficult to overstate. It is beset by a rebellion in the north and a struggle for secession in the south. In recent years, the regional Al Qaeda affiliate has turned parts of the country, a rugged, often lawless swath of southwestern Arabian Peninsula, into a refuge beyond the state’s reach. Added to the mix is a remarkably high proportion of armed citizens.
..
He said a phrase often heard these days is that Yemen faces “tatasawmal” — the Somalization of a country that witnessed a civil war in the mid-1990s.

Part of Mr. Allaw’s worries sprung from the inability of the opposition to forge a unified message. Some are calling for secession, he said, while others are looking to oust the president, Ali Abdullah Saleh, through popular protests. Yet others, he said, simply wanted Mr. Saleh to undertake a series of reforms before elections in April.

Khaled Alanesi, a colleague of Mr. Allaw’s at the human rights group in Sana, said: “The opposition is afraid of what would happen if the regime falls. Afraid of the militant groups, Al Qaeda, the tribes and all the arms here.”

And the reason Yemen's demonstrations might have the least effect..

The demonstrations on Thursday followed several days of smaller protests by students and opposition groups calling for the removal of President Ali Abdallah Saleh, a strongman who has ruled this fractured country for more than 30 years and is a key ally of the United States in the fight against the Yemeni branch of Al Qaeda.

The next few days will bear watching throughout the entire region. Discontent transitions from simmer to boil. How quickly, and how far, will that discontent spread?

Revolution Roundup, Egypt Edition - Day Two

Protesters in Egypt defy ban amid crackdown Excerpts:

CAIRO Clashes erupted again Wednesday in downtown Cairo, where riot police had used rubber bullets and water cannons overnight to disperse a huge anti-government demonstration. Hundreds of protesters defied a government order and gathered in Cairo and other cities, vowing to topple the U.S.-backed authoritarian Egyptian regime even as momentum appears to have dissipated since the first wave of demonstrations.

The Egyptian stock market plunged Wednesday as investors reacted to rumors of an impending revolution.

Skirmishes between protesters and security forces broke out at two small gatherings - in front of the lawyers' and journalists' union offices - but columns of riot police prevented crowds of more than a few hundred from amassing anywhere downtown. One chant that rose from a group of protesters posed the question of the hour: "1, 2, Egyptians, where are you?"

The modest turnout, just a day after demonstrations of a size unseen since the 1977 bread riots, raised serious doubts as to whether Egyptians will seize the moment and demand a new government. Large-scale protests planned for after midday prayers Friday will be a key test of the opposition's ability to turn widespread frustration into real street power.

Egypt Tightens Security in Cairo to Prevent Further Rallies Excerpts:

Jan. 27 (Bloomberg) -- Egyptian authorities banned protests and tightened security overnight to prevent demonstrators from repeating the rally of Jan. 25, when thousands took to the streets of Cairo and major cities to denounce President Hosni Mubarak, inspired by the revolt that toppled Tunisia’s leader.

Truckloads of riot police were deployed yesterday in central Cairo after demonstrations in which at least three people were killed, sending Egypt’s benchmark EGX30 index tumbling the most since November 2009. Security forces clashed with several hundred protesters outside the country’s lawyers’ association and restricted access to Tahrir Square, the scene of the largest protests the previous day.
And:
Egyptian police detained 860 protesters during two days of anti-government demonstrations, the Associated Press reported, citing officials who weren’t identified by name. About 2,000 people gathered late yesterday in central Cairo, with some saying the protests would continue. A Facebook page with more than 405,000 members that called for the Jan. 25 protests has called for another mass outing on Jan. 28.
And:
Egypt, Algeria and Yemen all rank in the bottom half, well below 59th-placed Tunisia, in Berlin-based Transparency International’s 2010 Corruption Perceptions Index of 180 nations. All Arab countries except Lebanon and Iraq are classified as authoritarian regimes in the Economist Intelligence Unit’s 2010 Democracy Index.

Risks of global instability are rising as governments cut subsidies that help the poor cope with surging food and fuel costs to ease budget crunches, the head of the United Nations’ World Food Program said three days ago.

“We’re in an era where the world and nations ignore the food issue at their peril,” Josette Sheeran said in an interview at the agency’s Rome headquarters.

Secretary of State Clinton only pretends to be neutral..

Egypt Protests LIVE Updates: Mubarak Protestors Fill Cairo's Streets Excerpts:

There were signs that the crackdown on protesters was taking a toll on Egypt's international standing. In Washington, White House Spokesman Robert Gibbs would not say whether President Hosni Mubarak, the target of demonstrators' anger and a close U.S. ally, still has the Obama administration's support. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said the government should allow peaceful protests instead of cracking down.

A Manifesto for Change in Egypt by Mohamed ElBaradei Read this, please, but here's the excerpts:

Then, as protests built in the streets of Egypt following the overthrow of Tunisia’s dictator, I heard Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s assessment that the government in Egypt is “stable” and “looking for ways to respond to the legitimate needs and interests of the Egyptian people”. I was flabbergasted—and I was puzzled. What did she mean by stable, and at what price? Is it the stability of 29 years of “emergency” laws, a president with imperial power for 30 years, a parliament that is almost a mockery, a judiciary that is not independent? Is that what you call stability? I am sure not. And I am positive that it is not the standard you apply to other countries. What we see in Egypt is pseudo-stability, because real stability only comes with a democratically elected government.

If you would like to know why the United States does not have credibility in the Middle East, that is precisely the answer. People were absolutely disappointed in the way you reacted to Egypt’s last election. You reaffirmed their belief that you are applying a double standard for your friends, and siding with an authoritarian regime just because you think it represents your interests. We are staring at social disintegration, economic stagnation, political repression, and we do not hear anything from you, the Americans, or for that matter from the Europeans.

So when you say the Egyptian government is looking for ways to respond to the needs of the Egyptian people, I feel like saying, “Well, it’s too late!” This isn’t even good realpolitik. We have seen what happened in Tunisia, and before that in Iran. That should teach people there is no stability except when you have government freely chosen by its own people.

Egypt: Truly, a nation on the brink. Can this form of change be instituted peacefully? More importantly, can the Mubarak regime stop this movement of change even remotely peacefully? I don't think they can. And now, the world watches..