Source: In These Times
by Kim Kelly
“The ancient Greeks told of a proud young hunter called Narcissus, son of a river god and a nymph, famed for his great beauty. His was a cautionary tale, like Icarus with a sharper jawline, and it was from his story the word ’narcissism’ sprang. Centuries later, his namesakes — narcissus flowers — still poke their nodding heads out of the soil every spring, and his character flaws remain just as prevalent among the mortals and self-designated demigods who rule over us now. Pride, cruelty, hubris and ignorance rule the day, but we have no winged Nemesis to restore the cosmic order. Instead, we in the peasantry are consigned to the machinations of a mad king, his scheming courtiers and a cold, preening pretty boy. Handsome, hollow and obsessed with aesthetics, Pete Hegseth, the current secretary of defense, is a modern-day Narcissus.” (10/22/25)
https://inthesetimes.com/article/american-narcissus-hegseth-war-secretary-trump-toxic-masculinity