Views from Crestmont Drive

• And Trump is certain about his own moral authority;
• And how the long-anticipated End Times have yet to appear;
• Paul Krugman on how Pete Hegseth is being deliberately dumb;
• Short items about Erika Kirk, Hegseth’s Bible reading, money spent on the war so far, Trump gives his staff ill-fitting shoes they fill obliged to wear;
• And the last two movements of Philip Glass’ Symphony #5.

I think I may have just said this, in so many words: Certainty is the enemy. Because others are just as certain about opposite things. And the world will not survive such conflicts of moral certainty; survival of the human race, in the long term, is about getting over tribal mentality. The morally literate, responsible, thing to do is to be certain of nothing, live your life by principles instead, and let others judge your moral maturity by your actions, and principles, not your commitments to this or that god or holy book.

Salon, Chauncey DeVega, 10 Mar 2026: Trump’s moral crusade is dangerous for America — and the world, subtitled “The president casts himself as the ultimate authority on good and evil — and believes it is his job to enforce it”

Donald Trump imagines himself as a moral crusader fighting the forces of evil at home and abroad. But his morality is not guided by ethics, humanism or respect for the common good. The president instead relies on himself, something he made explicit in a January 2026 interview with the New York Times. “My own morality,” he replied when asked if he observed any constraints on his power to use the military, including invading other countries. “My own mind. It’s the only thing that can stop me.”

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