July 12, 2007 Airstrike on Baghdad / Collateral Damage Video

Bradley Manning is the information specialist responsible for copying the video of a U.S. air strike on civilians in Baghdad back in 2007. He was tattled on by a hacker named Adrian Lamo and the tape was released in part by Wikileaks earlier this year.

Manning has been kept in isolation in jail since June 2010 which is now subject for debate. I looked a bit at his chart. He has a Sagittarius Sun which is caught up in a big outer planet configuration which shows that he somehow "speaks" for his peers. He struggles very deeply with all matters relating to ethics and law and philosophy. Sun is conjunct a Saturn-Uranus conjunction which trines Jupiter in Aries. Sun is also in conjunction with Mercury. Such an emphasis on the mental planets (Mercury, Jupiter, Uranus) and Fire shows a person who is freedom loving and also very idealistic. But, people who have Saturn-Uranus conjunctions are trying to balance an ever conflicted set of mindsets, the old v. the new, what is v. what ought to be.

Nothing like a t-square transit which uses all those heavies to really bring a big event into such a natal chart's life. And that's what's happened to Manning this year. And then there's Manning's Pluto.... Pluto, Pluto, Pluto. Manning's Pluto is in Scorpio, possibly in conjunction with his Scorpio Moon. The army made a good choice in sticking this guy in intelligence, but I think they underestimated his need to win all wars against evil.

I wasn't supposed to talk about Manning. I wrote something about him a while back, it probably sucks, that just snuck up on me.

What I really wanted to look at is the chart of the actual Attack in Baghdad. I found a blog post on Wikipedia which runs through the verbal interactions between teh Helicopter pilot(s) and their commander. Apparently the pilot was not relaying honest information back to command. You can read it here: http://willyloman.wordpress.com/2010/04/09/wikileaks-video-shows-apache-gunner-lied-to-command-at-least-8-times-to-gain-permission-to-kill-unarmed-civilians/

From the wikipedia post about the actual attack I believe that this is the timing for the attack. I only have "start" times. The video is 39 minutes long but does not include some parts of the attack. Apparently the gunner did engage in real combat with real combatants. This may account for his apparently irrational behavior, the type of behavior that Malcolm Gladwell describes in one of his books (the psychology behind what becomes police brutality, there's some chemical situation that trips on that's difficult to control).

Apache Helicopter Crazy Horse 18 (why name Crazy Horse? that's so rude) left camp Taji

July 12, 2007 9:24 am

Crazy Horse 18 arrives New Baghdad at 9:53 am

Sun 20 Cancer (H11); Moon 21 Gemini (H10); ASC 7 Virgo; MC 5 Gemini; NN 10 Pisces (H7 c. DESC)

The blog article and the comment reactions constantly describe Neptunian types of problems in this particular event. "The Fog of War" The out right lies of the gunner to the command, about killing people with cameras, shooting at photographers because mistaking their cameras for guns.

So, it's pretty interesting that this event occurred during the big Saturn-Neptune opposition. At the point that the helicopter reached New Baghdad this opposition had just passed over the ASC (Saturn-Venus in Leo) and Desc (Neptune). The Nodal Axis with North Node in Pisces was in conjunction with this Axis with North Node on the Descendant. This was squaring Jupiter in its own sign, Sagittarius, and Retrograde down in the 4th House along with Pluto (not in conjunction). Two Reuters journalists were killed in the fire. There was a coverup (Neptune) by the Government as Reuters was denied access to the video back in 2007 while they were trying to investigate the deaths.

I'm not sure what sign rules "Unarmed Civilians." I believe Helicopters would be ruled by Uranus and Uranus here is on an angle in H7 in the sign of Pisces.

It's always good to look at Mars in these situation what with him being the God of War. Mars is very weak in this chart at 13 Taurus (H9), but is also emphasized. He had no major aspects to other planets and is in minor aspects to Jupiter and Pluto in the 4th House and he is squaring Chiron in Pisces (H6). The gunner was just going "off."

And helping the gunner out with this was the Moon which rules the irrational. The Moon was way out of bounds at 28 degrees 03 minutes and was traveling fast 14 degrees 13 minutes. It was elevated in the chart and would have been passing over the Midheaven soon after arriving at the location. Interesting about the communication snafus and lies with Moon in Gemini.

Wikileaks released the video on the day that transiting Jupiter hit the spot where Uranus had been in this chart, 19 Pisces. Pisces also represents Jail and Isolation and all 3 of the key players in this exposure have spent time in jail now because of their involvement. Even the hacker who snitched on Bradley Manning was forced to spend 9 days in a Mental Hospital this year.

Supposedly Bradley Manning's health is suffering because of his extreme isolation. I suppose that he must be punished for treason in some way, but it would make me feel better if he were to be convicted before this level of torture engaged.