
LA Mayor Karen Bass Weathers Criticism on Wildfire Response
By Sue Kientz
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass is getting a lot of heat about taking an international trip just before the recent Pacific Palisades fire began on January 7, 2025. Bass flew to Ghana to attend its new president’s inauguration on January 4, a day after a fire-weather watch was issued for Los Angeles.(1) The next day, that watch notice was upgraded to a red-flag warning. By January 6, the situation was considered exceptionally dangerous as winds were strong, but as yet, no fires were spotted.(2) Bass attended the inauguration as planned, keeping tabs on conditions, and it was a few hours after the inaugural ended that a fire began in the Palisades. A half-hour later, Bass was on a military flight back to the US via Washington, DC, on which she was in communication with her office about this very serious development.
This isn’t the only criticism of Bass’s handling of the multiple fires that rampaged through Los Angeles County beginning on January 7, and perhaps after investigations are concluded, blame may justifiably be placed on her shoulders. But it’s easy to see why the public settled on Bass as a target for blame, since Bass’s Mercury(3) was in the firing line of a slow-moving celestial Grand Cross that cued numerous tragic events on January 1, 2025.(4)
That Grand Cross from New Year’s Day, with Mars opposite Pluto/Moon, and Eris opposite Vesta/Haumea, was reenergized a week later when the Moon moved from Pluto’s position in Aquarius to join Eris in Aries. That is when, on January 7 at 10:30 a.m. PT,(5) Mayor Bass’s Mercury (28 Libra) was opposed by the Moon (27 Aries) and Eris (24 Aries), in 90-degree squares to Mars (29 Cancer) on one side and Pluto (1 Aquarius) on the other, and conjunct large asteroid Vesta (1 Scorpio), the latter an uncanny indicator of disaster.(6) Mars (representative of alarm, flight, fire, and physical harm) opposite Pluto (emblem of fear, the need to control dangerous situation, as well as the loss of control) was in conflict with the Grand Cross’s other axis: Moon/Eris (Moon representing emotions, one’s home, memories of the past, and Dwarf Planet Eris symbolic of Other People, concern about others and community(7), which together represent an emotional community crisis involving homes and precious belongings) opposite large asteroid Vesta, symbol of work and service, which in disaster situations represents first responders, helpers and workers of all kinds who evacuate, protect, and aid victims, as well as clean up and restore order. The pressure remained firmly on Mayor Bass in the succeeding days, as Mars moved (retrograde, or backward in degrees as observed from Earth) more tightly square her Mercury, as accusations were lobbed at her many decisions aimed at fighting the numerous fires that sprang up, driven by the catastrophic winds.
Now two weeks after the first fires began January 7, this troublesome Grand Cross is breaking apart as Mars moves further away from opposite Pluto, and Vesta moves farther into Scorpio, no longer opposite Eris. Mayor Bass can perhaps catch her breath.
Title Image credit: Background image, Rep. Karen Bass at roundtable with African ambassadors; photo attribution: Senator Chris Coons, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons; flames added by author.
Notes and References
- Ingram, Julia, et al., “Timeline shows what we know about L.A. Mayor Karen Bass’ trip to Ghana as fire crisis developed,” CBS News, 15 January 2025, https://www.cbsnews.com/news/la-fires-mayor-karen-bass-trip-ghana-timeline/
- The author has lived in California since 1987 where high-wind warnings are a fact of life. When “Santa Ana winds” are forecast, sometimes the winds duly pick up, with a constant wind speed punctuated by higher gusts, sometimes 50-60-75 mph or more, while other times, the winds don’t show up or are quite tame. People nevertheless secure outside plants, furniture, wind chimes, etc., and keep an eye out for trouble, especially when there are drought conditions, because the chance of fire makes such weather considerably more dangerous. But if a fire doesn’t materialize, a Santa Ana wind is a fleeting concern.
- Bass, Karen, 3 October 1953, 2:27 a.m., Los Angeles, CA (Birth Certificate), https://www.astro.com/astro-databank/Bass,_Karen
- Kientz, Sue, “Shocking New Years’ Attacks, 2025,” Astrology News Service, 4 January 2025, https://astrologynewsservice.com/articles/shocking-new-years-attacks-2025/
- Pacific Palisades Fire, 7 January 2025, 10:30 a.m., Pacific Palisades, CA, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palisades_Fire
- Kientz, Sue. “Tidy Vesta Can Warn Us of Messy Disasters,” Journal of Research of the American Federation of Astrologers, vol. 15 (April 2015), https://moreplutos.com/articles/VestaCanWarnofDisasters-SueKientz_AFAJournalofResearch-vol15.pdf
- Kientz, Sue, “Eris, the Discomforting Other,” Astrological Journal, September/October 2014, pp. 35-40, https://moreplutos.com/articles/Eris-SueKientz_AstrologicalJournal-Sept-Oct2014.pdf
Sue Kientz specializes in astrology’s mid-sized planetary bodies, the largest asteroids and massive trans-Neptunian dwarf planets Eris, Makemake, Haumea, Sedna, and others discovered this century. Her experience researching the latter led to her book More Plutos, which received a 2016 eLit Award. More Plutos also addresses how resonance, fractals, and intuition can explain how astrology works. Sue argues that the dwarf planets are astrology’s great breakthrough, equivalent to what microorganisms did for medicine. She currently serves as Assistant Editor for the Astrology News Service.
Website: MorePlutos.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/MorePlutos
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Articles News Tags: astrology, Eris, Grand Cross, Karen Bass, la wildfires, Pluto, Vesta