Exegesis Volume 3 Issue #50


From: "William D. Tallman"
Subject: Re: Exegesis Digest V3 #49


Exegesis Digest Thu, 06 Aug 1998


Date: Tue, 4 Aug 1998 23:41:34 -0700
From: "William D. Tallman"
To: exegesis
Subject: Re: Exegesis Digest V3 #49
 


 > Dear Exegesis Members:
 >
 > I'm a new member of the list. I am providing for your infor-
 > mation and discussion a copy of my article on the August
 > 1999 eclipse, which I expect to have a trememdous im-
 > pact on the culture, and which may raise to the forefront
 > issues of astrology and astrological prediction.
 >
 > The event is the coincidence of an eclipse, a Nostradamus
 > prediction, some symbolism from the Book of Revelation,
 > and the flyby of a very controversial space probe containing
 > 72 pounds of plutonium, all within about one week.
 >
 > I look forward to your comments.
 >
 > -- Eric Francis
 > Backnang, Germany

Hello all,

I'm back online and up for more discussion, at least of astrological theory and philosophy. This post is the first I've gotten since I left months ago, and is perhaps the only one while I was gone; that the list went dormant is sad, I think.

The astrological configuration cited here is, of course, the Grand Cross in Fixed Signs, and the eclipse in July would seem to make a singular statement about the significance of that Cross. The figure involves an opposition between the Sun and a Moon/Neptune conjunction that is square an opposition between Mars and both Jupiter and Saturn, where Mars transfers the light from Jupiter to Saturn.

An interesting statement is being made here, I think. The Sun in Leo opposing a Moon/Neptune conjunction in Aquarius speaks of a forced recognition of the collective (spiritual?) aspect of the individual, such that the potential for "spiritual achievement" is clearly seen as also the potential for the loss of identity. These are pseudo-psychological usages, but I use them as a shorthand here to communicate.

At cross purposes here is the apparent movement from a general mode of expansion and growth to a general mode of contraction and consolidation (to put it euphemistically), as a Scorpio Mars passes the light from Jupiter to Saturn in Taurus.

It would seem reasonable to see these two axes as mutually defining, such that the context in which the individual is forced to contemplate submission to the collective is one of a rather deep change in modality. And that this modality change is made manifest in the context of the individual's struggle to comprehend the potentials that lie hidden within the collective (this last being the result of the eclipse, or unseen full Moon).

All this would truly seem a rather dire portent from the viewpoint of expected continuance of tranquillity, etc.. In any case, the suggested changes are likely to be less than desirable, it would seem. It is therefore perhaps relevant to contemplate what is expected to be of major import during that time.

I can't speak to Nostradamus, and I can't confirm the threat of nuclear disaster that is cited by Mr. Francis, but I can confirm that there is indeed a cataclysm of immense proportions that will be likely undergoing explosive manifestation at that time. That cataclysm is known as the Y2K, or Millennium Problem.

It's not relevant to go into detail in this post, but suffice it to say that it is now fairly well understood that the entire technological substructure of modern civilization is in danger of malfunction and collapse because of a failure of the computers that are an essential part thereof to process the date rollover from December 31, 1999 to January 1, 2000. It's probably appropriate to give the basic issues here.

For very good reasons, computers until recently have used a six-digit date field to express the date part of the time parameters of the processes they control. Two digits for the date, two for the month, and only two for the year, as the first two digits are assumed: thus, the format [ddmmyy] expresses only the last two digits of the year. When the assumed first two digits of the year change, the computers will immediately begin to process faulty date information and when the faults are detected, the computers will malfunction.

We've been told that the Y2K problem exists only on large computer systems and that they can be reprogrammed, solving the problem. This is no longer the total scope of the situation. Millions (literally) of digital controllers with small microprocessors and date-time chips (with six digit date fields) are embedded in the electronic infrastructure that supports the functions of communication, data transfer, distribution, automatic industrial control, etc. These controllers are of a wide variety of ages and manufacture, and most are no longer in manufacture even though they are still in use. It is generally now held that it will be impossible to address this situation. All of them cannot be identified and located, and even if they were there is now no way short of disabling the entire system to fix the problem; they cannot be fixed and in the vast majority of cases, no new replacements are available.

This means that as the year 2000 approaches, the systems upon which the world now depends for business, government, finance, distribution of food, electricity and fossil fuel, and communication is all forms, will begin to fail in a seemingly endless number of ways, as these electronic components malfunction as a result of wrong date data.

We've been told that these problems will be addressed and resolved before the year 2000, but it is now obvious this cannot happen. The result? We don't know, but the loss of those systems will give you an idea and its pretty bad, I think. And because we are not generally aware of this situation, there is likely to be panic as that awareness is created in the coming months. In fact, I look for that panic to begin well before that date, and so the astrological figure of interest here may well foretell a specific situation within that context. I don't know.

I do know, however, that given what we now know, it will be wise to be prepared as best as possible if one wishes to survive the lack of availability of food, power, fuel, money, and communication. Enough said.

I'd be more than happy to answer any questions I can, or seek the answer to those I cannot.

Perhaps astrology can, at least for astrologers, provide a meaningful context for the next year or so. At least, I hope so.

Regards,

wtallman


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