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You're steering a 2,000-pound projectile of flying metal, but you're in control. You feel the power of self-direction and solo mastery; you're king of the road. You are, quite literally, on an ego-trip. Suddenly, you become aware that you're not really alone. Other vehicles are inexplicably slowing down. Because you're part of the amorphous mass of traffic, you obey the flow and ease your foot from the pedal. The reason soon becomes apparent a car accident. As traffic slows to a crawl, you observe the scenethe smashed vehicle, the emergency rescue squad, the fire truck, the police. Your daydream of personal power evaporates. You're suddenly "at effect" of the situation. You're no longer the one in controlthe accident is. You have just witnessed what astrologers would call a Mars-Neptune event. Astrologically, Mars is identified with your confidence and aggressive driving, the speeding vehicle, the uniformed authorities, the flashing red lights and, of course, the crash itself. Neptune is associated with your dissolved fantasy, the semiconscious merging of traffic, the victims and rescuers and their eventual destination, the hospital.
A 1997 study by the American Automobile Association (1) that reported a shocking increase in road rage incidents revealed the personality profile of the typical aggressive driver as a "relatively young male with a criminal record, history of violence and drug or alcohol problems." This certainly sounds like the afflicted MarsNeptune of the U.S. chart. (Mars is linked to violence and testosterone, while Neptune is associated with prisons, drugs and alcohol.) Another study (2) compared the personalities and driving records of men who had died in car accidents, and found that the victims were "more belligerent, more talkative and more hyperactive than the average man." Again, this description corresponds to the Mars-in-Gemini problems of our national birth chart. In a 1999 study of auto accident deaths (3), astrologer Martin Piechota found that the most common placement of the victim's Sun was in Aries and Scorpio, the two signs ruled by aggressive Mars. A similar conclusion was reached by an international insurance company (4). Their research showed that drivers born with the Sun in Aries are more likely than any other sign to have car accidents.