An Outrage. Astrological Website Blocked by ISP

Astrologers' Community

Help Support Astrologers' Community:

piercethevale

Well-known member
Joined
Oct 12, 2007
Messages
9,733
Location
Alta California
Greetings.
I am terribly upset this moment. The hotel I'm renting a room monthly from here in Reno, one of the Siegel properties, has a new ISP as of a couple of weeks ago. I just, moments ago, tried to access the Cornerstone Astrological Encyclopedia, which I have bookmarked for reference purposes for many years now. I was blocked by Fortiguard with the reason being why because it is a website of "Alternative Beliefs".
OUTRAGEOUS...!!!
The company website is siegelsuites.com
If anyone would like to send them a message... I think you know the "drill"
Here's a screenshot of what I encountered. It does have a means of requesting that the website be "reevaluated", but if their reason is "alternative belief", then I don't foresee that any appeal would be given reconsideration. In fact I'm a bit stunned to find that I have been allowed to access A.W. forum, along with Astrodienst, and the Mindfire webpage that has the Sabian Symbols.
But for a reason that it is of an "alternative belief" is un-American, and as I am being, forcibly or face eviction, required to pay for internet access for the room I'm renting then it should be my right to access any damned [or blessed, for that matter] website I wish to. The company was founded and still operated by Steve Siegel. He has six properties, former casino hotels and one that was a Best Western or Holiday Inn, here in Reno and adjacent Sparks. He owns a number of the same in the Las Vegas area and numerous other cities about the U.S.A.
His motto is "Siegel Cares"... what a joke.
Screenshot 2024-11-12 5.04.13 PM.pngScreenshot 2024-11-12 5.04.13 PM.png
 
The actual ISP is Faknet, from what I was told. Fortiguard is some sort of app being used by the ISP... but it is Siegel that subscribed to this censorship.
 
Are they a Christian organization or something? Like, is there a Bible in every hotel room or something? My first instinct would be to try and find out if the hotel chain is affiliated with a specific denomination, and if not whether the ISP they use is.

Like, given the area, I do wonder if the LDS church somehow has a hand in astrology websites being blocked?

It's also possible that that one website being blocked is a weird fluke given you can come online here. I wonder if they also block tarot websites, or numerology, etc? Very odd.
 
I have no words, this is truly shocking. This must be truly upsetting for you.

It's 2024, not the Medieval era! 😡

Have you tried other sites, there are a few good ones out there: Cafe Astrology, Ruby Slipper astrology, Elsa Elsa Astrology, Astrotheme, Star4cast, Astro-seek, Forever Conscious, Jessica Adams astrology, Aquarius Papers. I imagine it's the same for Tarot sites too, one being Steve's Love Tarot (or SLT blog), Biddy Tarot, and Labrynthos.

Try Google searching all those ones, let's see if the same outcome occurs.
 
Last edited:
That's crazy.
"Alternative Beliefs"

  1. A system of beliefs or viewpoints that differ from the mainstream or widely accepted perspectives, often encompassing spiritual, philosophical, or cultural ideas that challenge conventional ideologies.
Many people hold alternative beliefs about the origins of the universe, which differ significantly from mainstream scientific theories.
 
Are they a Christian organization or something? Like, is there a Bible in every hotel room or something? My first instinct would be to try and find out if the hotel chain is affiliated with a specific denomination, and if not whether the ISP they use is.

Like, given the area, I do wonder if the LDS church somehow has a hand in astrology websites being blocked?

It's also possible that that one website being blocked is a weird fluke given you can come online here. I wonder if they also block tarot websites, or numerology, etc? Very odd.
A person with the surname Siegel is most often Jewish. I assume the restrictions were specifically issued by Steven Siegel. There are no Bibles in these hotel rooms as they are rented by the month and have a lot of turnover. A lot of low income, poverty level, folks. Quite a few handicapped, a fair amount of Black/African American-mixed racial that seem to have come here from various parts of the country and aome have the same stigma that I suffer from, I.e 'No credit file.' I've not had a checking account nor possessed any credit cards since the 20th century, 1999 was the last time I wrote a check. Siegel Suites doesn't do a credit check, so some residents have bad credit and evictions. There are a number of impoverished seniors, people that receive very little Social Security and have no other source of income, and there are addicts of all sorts that come and go as they apparently can do without a roof over their heads but can't do without whatever it is they are addicted to.

I did send a request to Fortiguard, last night, to re-evaluate the website along with some rather caustic comments, I may have written that I am curious as to whether the matter might be of interest to the A.C.L.U.
I got a reply this past afternoon. I took a screen shot of the reply. I'm not bound by any obligation of confidentiality, so the disclaimer at the bottom of the email is of no concern to me.

Here it is...
Screenshot 2024-11-14 12.10.42 AM.png
I wrote a reply to them and told them that I find the classification of "Folklore" to be rather insulting. I told them that it is a science, albeit somewhat corrupt but I and many others have been at the rectification process for quite a number of years... 41 years as for myself. I told them that it will one day be so recognized and not only that but also as "The Mother of All Sciece", just as Dane Rudhyar predicted himself.
 
Last edited:
I also found that disclaimer to one of the most blatant cop-outs I've ever encountered. Only a written edict by "Fortinets' General Counsel" is their binding word on any matter... I'd be willing to wager that those written edicts are about as rare as hens teeth.
 
I have no words, this is truly shocking. This must be truly upsetting for you.

It's 2024, not the Medieval era! 😡

Have you tried other sites, there are a few good ones out there: Cafe Astrology, Ruby Slipper astrology, Elsa Elsa Astrology, Astrotheme, Star4cast, Astro-seek, Forever Conscious, Jessica Adams astrology, Aquarius Papers. I imagine it's the same for Tarot sites too, one being Steve's Love Tarot (or SLT blog), Biddy Tarot, and Labrynthos.

Try Google searching all those ones, let's see if the same outcome occurs.
Thanks. I have a number of websites bookmarked and I haven't looked into whether the others are also blocked. I can get on astrodienst, the Mindfire website that has the Sabian Symbols, all of Rudhyar's book, "An Astrological Mandala" actually.
There's https://en.mimi.hu/astrology/index_astrology.html and I just found that I can Encyclopedia of Astrology website at access it
and there's https://www.vedic-astrology-prediction.com/astrology-glossary.html#google_vignette and I can access it
There's https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00407-019-00224-0 which is a page at the Archive for exact sciences and contains an article on Babylonia planetary theory and the planet Venus, no problem getting there either.
There's the Nicholas Devore Astrological Encyclopedia website at http://zaytsev.com/Devore/main.html and no problem getting to that.

...Well now, I now find that the "Glastonbury's Wheel of Life Katherine Maltwood collection" website is being blocked though, they claim it doesn't exist... huh? It did last week and for a number of years prior. Glastonbury is associated with quite a bit of alternative beliefs... particularly the reason that it is the first established church of Christianity, reputed to have been in the year 62 A.D. by some, Trevor Ravenscroft wrote that it was in 42 A.D., but He got that from the archives of Rudolf Steiner... it's also reputed to be the "Home of the Faerie King", Oberon. he Vatican is said to have recognized the church established at Glastonbury, by Joseph of Arimathea, as preceding that of Peter's around the time of the turn of this century, from what I read, but I have to imagine that the matter is a bit upsetting to folks of certain Christian sects, particularly the Roman Catholics.

I do appreciate your sharing these other websites you've listed. Thank you.
 
Last edited:
You need a place to live. You may have to make the choice of what is worth fighting for. Living in an affordable place or living on the street.

It is not fair.

But it is what it is.

Good luck with your endeavour, may you have access to what you requested.
 
Any way of learning whether the same censorship is being applied in the other properties?
It could be just an employee at the place you are staying in.
I did and as it turns out as to his property across the street, the El Cortez Hotel, has no restrictions.
What I heard is that someone living here, or did, downloaded something illegally, and also there was some issue with their gambling illegally.
But gambling illegally in Nevada? I can't imagine what they did but I did find that I was blocked from the kenousa website as for the reason of "Gambling".
It is a website that posts the results, past and present, of the Keno games at a number of casinos, As I occasionally like to play a ticket for 250, or 500 games, and one can play 500 games for a penny a game, at the Cal Neva, [[as they have a minimum bet of $5.00] or one can play five cents a game , or ten cents, as long as the minimum is no less than $5.00 for the entire bet. The Silver Legacy, also nearby, has a minimum bet of $10.00 and takes bets no less than ten cents a game. I never bet more than $25.00 for a multi game ticket and usually go for 250 for ten cents or 500 for five cents a game.
When I found that website blocked I wrote a complaint to Fortiguard and told them that there is no exchange of money through the internet and thus the website is nothing more than like that of the stock report, or box scores from a ball game. I suggested that they change the category to "Games". I was initially turned down but I appealed to the next level of administration, which takes a day or two to get a reply, and my request was approved.
Keno is the one from of gambling that I seem to do well at... well enough, anyway. I've hit 9 out of 10 four times since February. Three times my bet was forty cents which paid just over $800 each time, one other time the bet was ten cents which paid just over $200. I hit 7 out of 7 the second night I was in Reno, and two 6 out of 7, on a four card play, simultaneously, fifteen cents was the bet per card, and I won about $1250. My biggest win to date was just over $4400 about four years ago, got 9 out of 10 on a $2.00 bet from a video Keno machine, as were all the other winnings mentioned above.. I find that buying a multi-game ticket and then leaving the casino, is the best means of keeping any winnings, as there are many temptations to distract me on the way out. But, I've yet to win more than $150 playing regular Keno.
I'm in the midst of a number of casinos and as all my books and notebooks on astrology are stored in bins, making it very difficult to do any Astrological studies, I've been too easily lured into gambling as a pastime and am anxious to move on.
I do have a prospect for another place to live back in California, I'm debating it presently.
 
You need a place to live. You may have to make the choice of what is worth fighting for. Living in an affordable place or living on the street.

It is not fair.

But it is what it is.

Good luck with your endeavour, may you have access to what you requested.
The fellow I identify as "Mitch", in my book, whom has since acquire some property in Oroville, Calif. has offered me a room in his house for very little rent and half the utilities. He has about two acres of land, an "Inheritance gift".
"Mitch" is a "piece of work", to say the least. A believer in Gnostic Christianity, but also one that studies many areas of the occult and has even dabbled in the Black Arts... effectively too, I might add. His birth data is [get this] June 6, 1962 at 6:06 a.m. Kileen, Texas. He has Mercury combust and his Mercury is conjunct, same degree, as my natal 8th House cusp. Thus, I have learned a great deal about matters of the 8th House from the man over the 22 years I have now known him.

According to my clairvoyant friend, Clarisse, "Mitch" and I have some past life association during the time of the Crusades. There is a karmic indebtedness to me, because he cost me my home in that lifetime. It seems that the "Cosmos" may be giving him the chance to absolve that debt?
It's his Mercury combust that does get to be "too much" to be around constantly. It is impossible to watch a movie, the TV, or listen to music with Him in the room... He talks incessantly. Very interesting natal chart though. I initiated a thread on his chart many years ago at this forum. It is the chart of a "shock artist" and he has certainly proven that over the years I've known him. Very creative and always up to something.
I've tentatively agreed to moving in with him this coming month... although I'm dreading having to move everything again... and if it doesn't work out...which I figure I'll know after a couple of months, then I'll have to move again.
I did do a Sabian oracle about what the arrangement will bring [a method using a deck of playing cards. The face cards represent the 12 Signs, Kings are the Cardinal Signs, Queens the Fixed Signs, and the Jacks are the Mutable. Hearts are the Spring Signs, Diamonds that of Summer, Spades those of the Fall, and Clubs are of the Winter. The numbered cards are Hearts, 1 - 10, Diamonds 11 -20, and Spades 21 -30, One proceeds just as if one were using the I Ching.]
I forget, offhand, which degree of the Zodiac I drew but Rudhyar's keyword for that Sign and degree is "Togetherness"... so, it may work out just fine.
 
They count on this. Most people win and then keep playing until they lose it all again!

Do you use astrology to decide when to play?
No, I've tried to find the Astrological "Luck factor" over the years, noting the time and place when I've won a sizable amount, to no avail.
Yet, my life has not been a "typical one", as for the alleged reason that it was "placed on the altar", so to speak. I've seen enough in my 71 years to believe that is true... Which begs the question, "why am I gambling"? Because of a bit of boredom, because it's there. Because I have kind of "burnt out" from so many years of this astrology endeavor, and because I do have a bit of an "addictive personality", which is tough to admit,
I don't lead a noble example of living. I do a few pujas daily, am always generous to those in need, I ask God for guidence and a bit too often for forgiveness. I figure that as long as I am of some usefulness my life will continue. I like non filter cigarettes {Camels or Lucky Strikes] sometimes a cigar [a Macanudo or a Partaga] 12 year old Bourbon [Elijah Craig is preferred] and a bit of self medication once in a while.

I am a yogi in my own way and have been so the last 56 years. I tell people "You've heard of Yogi Bear? Meet Yogi aberrant." According to Swami Sivananda I'm a , sort of, reverse Yogi. I'm to remain immersed in the mundane world and not be a recluse, and the chakras are worked on in the reverse order. Only thing about that is, as I have found out after many,, many, years, those chakras work themselves out. The only other major difference is that I have no guru, nor sat-guru, other than the Word of God, the bij, the OM. From what I gather it is a very rare path and I might be the only such example presently alive... as there are certain criteria that has to be met, which I won't go into, but I do meet all of them.

Swami Sivananda was of the Japa Order and died in 1963. Yet I've had darshan with him twice in my life, In the dream state. The first time was in 1975. I chased gurus for some years trying to find where I fit in. I had darshan with Swami Muktananda twice, He let me know that my path wasn't with him but that I wasn't unnoticed [a demonstration of his powers of sidha.] It was a disciple, an emissary, of Dhyanyogi Madhusudandas, by the name of Suryakant, aka the late Steven Johnson, that made me aware of all of this, in 2003, and that I am [allegedly] the reincarnation of Parsival [as told in Trevor Ravencroft's book, "The Cup of 'Destiny, which he had me read.].
I was 50 years old at the time and I fully realized what it is all about four years later, at age 54. it stunned me to realize that my life up to that time had been a ruse. I owe a lot to my clairvoyant friend, Clarisse Conner, for helping understand it all and keeping me grounded and on task. I was introduced to her about six months before I met Suryakant. She was helping me with a lawsuit I was in a conundrum about, but foretold of a future that would be involved in writing and instruction, demonstrating techniques to others. She wasn't looking for new clients at the time but was told by her "guides" to make herself available,

My natal Part of Soul is in the 10th degree of Aquarius. The Sabian Symbol for which [according to Dane 'Rudhyar's book, "An Astrological Mandala"] is:
"AQUARIUS 10°: A MAN WHO HAD FOR A TIME BECOME THE EMBODIMENT OF A POPULAR IDEAL IS MADE TO REALIZE THAT AS A PERSON HE IS NOT THIS IDEAL."
I was known as "Painter Dave", all my working life up until then.... and then to realize that I was something other than.
...and that's an example of how these Sabian Symbols truly work... but you already know that... I'm just saying for the benefit of others.

I'm now 71 years old but feel as if I've only lived a short time. There's a line from a movie, that I can't remember the name of, that I have found useful as to how to proceed in life, it is, "Expect nothing but be ready for anything."... it serves me well.

Thank you all for your input, kindness, and concern.
 
If anyone is curious, here's the thread I initiated years ago on the fellow I'm considering moving in with.
Post #13 has the best image of his natal chart in which I have emphasized the significant aspects.
Notice the Grand Trine, the Grand Cross and the incomplete Grand Quintile matrices. It's the interconnected, through Neptune, Grand Cross and Grand Trine that bestow him with that "shock artist" persona that he has.
Maybe I should revive that thread? I think that many artistically inclined, and aspiring, members will find it interesting and perhaps helpful.
https://www.astrologyweekly.com/forum/index.php?threads/the-natal-chart-of-a-friend-malakye.58458/I notice that his incomplete Grand Quintile will be completed by transiting Venus and the N. Node at the end of this month...!
Should be interesting times to be getting reacquainted with the man... we haven't seen one another for at least a year and a half... maybe two.
 
Last edited:
Back
Top