PREVIOUS THOUGHTS FOR THE DAY April 28 2008 to May 4 2008 Monday April 28 Predicting Once I have made a prediction, I never retract it. I try, too, not to reiterate it. Sometimes, though, I find myself overwhelmed by temptation. Cliffhangers like the American election seem to demand regular revisiting as do economic issues that worry us all. I stick to my forecast about a recovery that begins in August and I still maintain that inflation, in the western world at least, will not escalate too dramatically. This week's awkward alignment from Mars to Neptune, though, reminds me of one exception to that rule: the price of oil. That's already gone up a lot lately and I fear that it's going to get higher still. Tuesday April 29 Resources The high price of oil will trigger demand for alternative energy sources. This sounds like a green dream. Actually, it's a nightmare. Bio-fuels have been much touted as the clean, sustainable way for us to keep on driving. It's good, of course, to run cars on used cooking fat. But if we are growing vegetables just so we can put them in our tanks, it's unfair on the starving who would rather put them in their stomachs. Pluto, as it edges into Capricorn, is forcing us all to think more deeply about our relationship with the earth and its resources. Wednesday April 30 Vegetarians Cars and cows both emit noxious gases that deplete the ozone layer. Cars, we now know, can be fuelled by plants, just like cows. The trouble is, there are billions of people on this planet who are rather fond of eating. An acre of land can grow up to 20,000 pounds of potatoes but, when that same acre is used to grow cattle feed, it produces just 165 pounds of "edible cow flesh". Cows and cars both put pressure on the planet's scant resources. I predict that as Pluto moves further into Capricorn, we'll see more vegetarian bicycle riders! Thursday May 1 Albert Hofmann, inventor of LSD, died yesterday, aged 102. He said 'Catastrophic consequences... can ensue when its profound effect is misjudged and the substance is mistaken for a pleasure drug'. Since then, pot has become much stronger... while street LSD has weakened to the point where it no longer opens Aldous Huxley's 'doors of perception', becoming the very 'pleasure drug' its inventor feared. Mind you, each time I think about taxpayers shelling out billions to prop up banks just so they can keep charging us all billions in mortgage interest, I wonder whether we haven't all been secretly spiked. Friday May 2 Buildings and structures are ruled by Capricorn. So too, are farms and agricultural businesses. Capricorn also traditionally governs banking. Pluto governs 'what we are all feeling fearful of'. Last year, the world's big anxieties were all about the impact of global warming and the potential catastrophes that could be caused by terrorism. Both relate to Pluto in Sagittarius, which signifies extravagance and extremism, zealous religious belief and speculation without thought for consequence. Now, Pluto is in cautious Capricorn and the global fear is of shortages - specifically shortages of money and food. Not everything we fear though, comes to pass. Saturday May 3 Your Weekend Mercury spends most of the month in Gemini. Venus and the Sun are mainly to be found in Taurus. Mars, the ruler of Aries, passes from Cancer to Leo. Saturn remains in Virgo and changes direction, liberating energies that have been blocked in all walks of life. There are no planets in Libra or Sagittarius at the moment, but the Moon will pass through them all during the course of the Month. It will be New in Taurus on May 5, and Full in Scorpio on May 20 at 2AM GMT. Jupiter and Pluto remain in Capricorn, Neptune in Aquarius and Uranus is still in Pisces. It all adds up to a time of real hope and opportunity for everyone. Sunday May 4 May Mercury spends most of the month in Gemini. Venus and the Sun are mainly to be found in Taurus. Mars, the ruler of Aries, passes from Cancer to Leo. Saturn remains in Virgo and changes direction, liberating energies that have been blocked in all walks of life. There are no planets in Libra or Sagittarius at the moment, but the Moon will pass through them all during the course of the Month. It will be New in Taurus on May 5, and Full in Scorpio on May 20 at 2AM GMT. Jupiter and Pluto remain in Capricorn, Neptune in Aquarius and Uranus is still in Pisces. It all adds up to a time of real hope and opportunity for everyone. Back to Index   Click here for Jonathan Cainer's Daily Zodiac Forecasts