David French
@davidfrenchjag.bsky.social
NYT Columnist, visiting professor at Lipscomb University. Married to @nancyfrench.bsky.social.
Iraq vet, Grizzlies fan, born in War Eagle Country and raised in Big Blue Nation.
Iraq vet, Grizzlies fan, born in War Eagle Country and raised in Big Blue Nation.
"It was Christ’s humble birth that set the stage. It was the first lesson in a series: to oppress others is to oppress Christ, to hate others is to hate Christ, and to love your enemies can be the most dangerous and revolutionary act of them all." www.nytimes.com/2025/12/21/o...
Opinion | Christianity Is a Dangerous Faith
www.nytimes.com
December 21, 2025 at 9:09 PM
"It was Christ’s humble birth that set the stage. It was the first lesson in a series: to oppress others is to oppress Christ, to hate others is to hate Christ, and to love your enemies can be the most dangerous and revolutionary act of them all." www.nytimes.com/2025/12/21/o...
Reposted by David French
@davidfrenchjag.bsky.social understands that to oppress others in the name of your God or religion is to refuse the command of imitatio Christi. He also understands that to engage in true imitatio Christi is to antagonize those who patrol the boundaries to keep heretics out.
Funny how that works.
Funny how that works.
Opinion | Christianity Is a Dangerous Faith
www.nytimes.com
December 21, 2025 at 1:16 PM
@davidfrenchjag.bsky.social understands that to oppress others in the name of your God or religion is to refuse the command of imitatio Christi. He also understands that to engage in true imitatio Christi is to antagonize those who patrol the boundaries to keep heretics out.
Funny how that works.
Funny how that works.
Fundamentalist faiths make religion dangerous to others, but Christianity properly lived is dangerous to Christians. It’s dangerous to people who refuse to hate those they are told to hate, to people who refuse to oppress, to conquer, to exploit — even when they’re told to conquer in the name of God
Opinion | Christianity Is a Dangerous Faith
www.nytimes.com
December 21, 2025 at 3:50 PM
Fundamentalist faiths make religion dangerous to others, but Christianity properly lived is dangerous to Christians. It’s dangerous to people who refuse to hate those they are told to hate, to people who refuse to oppress, to conquer, to exploit — even when they’re told to conquer in the name of God
Why the heroes of Bondi Beach mattered so much:
"The presence of evil doesn’t break people. From a young age, we learn that there are wolves in our midst. It is the absence of courage that plunges us into crisis." www.nytimes.com/2025/12/18/o...
"The presence of evil doesn’t break people. From a young age, we learn that there are wolves in our midst. It is the absence of courage that plunges us into crisis." www.nytimes.com/2025/12/18/o...
Opinion | The Righteousness of Ahmed el Amhed
www.nytimes.com
December 18, 2025 at 4:25 PM
Why the heroes of Bondi Beach mattered so much:
"The presence of evil doesn’t break people. From a young age, we learn that there are wolves in our midst. It is the absence of courage that plunges us into crisis." www.nytimes.com/2025/12/18/o...
"The presence of evil doesn’t break people. From a young age, we learn that there are wolves in our midst. It is the absence of courage that plunges us into crisis." www.nytimes.com/2025/12/18/o...
“Even worse, parents and kids learned together to use their phones. We all experienced these new technologies at the same time, and we often behaved no better than our teenage sons and daughters. Our kids were taking notes as social media broke our brains and hardened our hearts.”
Opinion | What Happens if You Refuse to Recognize That We Are in a Death Spiral
www.nytimes.com
December 14, 2025 at 5:32 PM
“Even worse, parents and kids learned together to use their phones. We all experienced these new technologies at the same time, and we often behaved no better than our teenage sons and daughters. Our kids were taking notes as social media broke our brains and hardened our hearts.”
Reposted by David French
@davidfrenchjag.bsky.social, a former Army Reserve major who got a Bronze Star for 2007 service as a squadron judge-advocate, is "still haunted by decisions I made in Iraq."
"But I can't imagine the guilt of criminal conduct, of deliberately killing the people I'm supposed to protect."
* Gift link⤵️
"But I can't imagine the guilt of criminal conduct, of deliberately killing the people I'm supposed to protect."
* Gift link⤵️
Opinion | Pete Hegseth Is Doing Something Even Worse Than Breaking the Law
www.nytimes.com
December 6, 2025 at 7:44 PM
@davidfrenchjag.bsky.social, a former Army Reserve major who got a Bronze Star for 2007 service as a squadron judge-advocate, is "still haunted by decisions I made in Iraq."
"But I can't imagine the guilt of criminal conduct, of deliberately killing the people I'm supposed to protect."
* Gift link⤵️
"But I can't imagine the guilt of criminal conduct, of deliberately killing the people I'm supposed to protect."
* Gift link⤵️
"The end of the Trump era is coming into view, and too much attention is focused on what Republicans think of Trump and too little is focused on what Republicans think of one another." www.nytimes.com/2025/12/07/o...
Opinion | What Do Republicans Have to Fear? Ask Tennessee.
www.nytimes.com
December 7, 2025 at 4:29 PM
"The end of the Trump era is coming into view, and too much attention is focused on what Republicans think of Trump and too little is focused on what Republicans think of one another." www.nytimes.com/2025/12/07/o...
It was predicted that Ukraine would collapse in hours or days, but it has stood strong for years, inflicting devastating losses on Russia. It would be an intolerable and catastrophic failure if the Trump administration delivers Putin a victory through diplomacy that he could not achieve in war.
Opinion | ‘We Are Going to Have to Fight Three Wars’
www.nytimes.com
November 27, 2025 at 4:38 PM
It was predicted that Ukraine would collapse in hours or days, but it has stood strong for years, inflicting devastating losses on Russia. It would be an intolerable and catastrophic failure if the Trump administration delivers Putin a victory through diplomacy that he could not achieve in war.
"Trump has put the military in an impossible situation. He’s making its most senior leaders complicit in his unlawful acts, and he’s burdening the consciences of soldiers who serve under his command. " www.nytimes.com/2025/11/23/o...
Opinion | Trump Has Put the Military in an Impossible Situation
www.nytimes.com
November 23, 2025 at 4:32 PM
"Trump has put the military in an impossible situation. He’s making its most senior leaders complicit in his unlawful acts, and he’s burdening the consciences of soldiers who serve under his command. " www.nytimes.com/2025/11/23/o...
"Authoritarians want you to follow their will, not the law; they value personal loyalty over party loyalty ... Competent and conscientious people tend to often shun such an environment, but corrupt opportunists love it. They wallow in it. It is, after, all the best place for them to thrive."
Opinion | The Comey Case Is a Comedy of Errors
www.nytimes.com
November 20, 2025 at 2:29 PM
"Authoritarians want you to follow their will, not the law; they value personal loyalty over party loyalty ... Competent and conscientious people tend to often shun such an environment, but corrupt opportunists love it. They wallow in it. It is, after, all the best place for them to thrive."
To quote Pope Leo, “justice, solidarity, and a genuine reverence for life” ought to be the touchstones of our public engagement. There is another spiritual victory to be won — this time over the forces of hatred, division and cruelty in these United States. www.nytimes.com/2025/11/16/o...
Opinion | Pope Leo Doesn’t Want to Be the Anti-Trump. But He Is.
www.nytimes.com
November 16, 2025 at 5:17 PM
To quote Pope Leo, “justice, solidarity, and a genuine reverence for life” ought to be the touchstones of our public engagement. There is another spiritual victory to be won — this time over the forces of hatred, division and cruelty in these United States. www.nytimes.com/2025/11/16/o...
"I shudder to think of the outright criminality that Trump and his allies could resort to during the 2026 midterms, much less the 2028 presidential election. One doesn’t have to imagine wild fantasies of a Trump third term to imagine systemic abuses of power to suppress or miscount dissenting votes"
Opinion | Pardon Me. I Am Not Done Committing Crimes.
www.nytimes.com
November 13, 2025 at 2:00 PM
"I shudder to think of the outright criminality that Trump and his allies could resort to during the 2026 midterms, much less the 2028 presidential election. One doesn’t have to imagine wild fantasies of a Trump third term to imagine systemic abuses of power to suppress or miscount dissenting votes"
"A movement, especially one that verges on an outright cult of personality, is defined by its leader, not by its rank and file. And when the leader is lawless and depraved, then efforts to contain his influence while preserving his power are doomed to fail." www.nytimes.com/2025/11/09/o...
Opinion | Cruelty, Bigotry and Rage. What’s Not to Like?
www.nytimes.com
November 9, 2025 at 4:19 PM
"A movement, especially one that verges on an outright cult of personality, is defined by its leader, not by its rank and file. And when the leader is lawless and depraved, then efforts to contain his influence while preserving his power are doomed to fail." www.nytimes.com/2025/11/09/o...
If there is a word that describes the second Trump administration, it’s brazen. While I certainly hold open the possibility that dark deeds are being done in secret, one thing that is remarkable is how open and obvious he is with his self-dealing. www.nytimes.com/2025/11/02/o...
Opinion | Why Trump Can Do No Wrong
www.nytimes.com
November 2, 2025 at 4:13 PM
If there is a word that describes the second Trump administration, it’s brazen. While I certainly hold open the possibility that dark deeds are being done in secret, one thing that is remarkable is how open and obvious he is with his self-dealing. www.nytimes.com/2025/11/02/o...
Reposted by David French
Trump Can't Bomb That, Can He? | Roundtable
YouTube video by The Dispatch
youtu.be
October 27, 2025 at 3:16 PM
Reposted by David French
@davidfrenchjag.bsky.social
David French (on MSNBC just now), in one sentence, reminds us that human beings are not naturally equipped to confront authoritarians, and what is now needed from us all:
"Courage is going to preserve this republic - - and 'only' courage."
David French (on MSNBC just now), in one sentence, reminds us that human beings are not naturally equipped to confront authoritarians, and what is now needed from us all:
"Courage is going to preserve this republic - - and 'only' courage."
October 27, 2025 at 7:47 PM
@davidfrenchjag.bsky.social
David French (on MSNBC just now), in one sentence, reminds us that human beings are not naturally equipped to confront authoritarians, and what is now needed from us all:
"Courage is going to preserve this republic - - and 'only' courage."
David French (on MSNBC just now), in one sentence, reminds us that human beings are not naturally equipped to confront authoritarians, and what is now needed from us all:
"Courage is going to preserve this republic - - and 'only' courage."
The evidence is now in. The explosive growth in sports gambling is bad for sports, and it has proved to be bad for the millions of Americans who gamble past the point of prudence and directly to the point of pain. The sports gambling revolution needs more regulation. It may even need termination.
Opinion | ‘I’m Shocked, Shocked to Find That Gambling Is Going On in Here’
www.nytimes.com
October 26, 2025 at 1:26 PM
The evidence is now in. The explosive growth in sports gambling is bad for sports, and it has proved to be bad for the millions of Americans who gamble past the point of prudence and directly to the point of pain. The sports gambling revolution needs more regulation. It may even need termination.
Reposted by David French
“There are villains in every new right story, and in this case the villains are women, and the crime they commit is … being themselves.” @davidfrenchjag.bsky.social www.nytimes.com/2025/10/23/o...
Opinion | How Women Destroyed the West
www.nytimes.com
October 23, 2025 at 1:35 PM
“There are villains in every new right story, and in this case the villains are women, and the crime they commit is … being themselves.” @davidfrenchjag.bsky.social www.nytimes.com/2025/10/23/o...
The new right groans under the weight of its nostalgia for a nation that did not exist. And in writing about a false enemy that destroyed a fake past, Andrews and the many other architects of the right-wing gender wars are committing the very sins they attribute to the enemies they detest.
Opinion | How Women Destroyed the West
www.nytimes.com
October 23, 2025 at 1:07 PM
The new right groans under the weight of its nostalgia for a nation that did not exist. And in writing about a false enemy that destroyed a fake past, Andrews and the many other architects of the right-wing gender wars are committing the very sins they attribute to the enemies they detest.
What happens when the most successful politician of the last decade is cruel, immoral, and corrupt?
It creates a push-pull dynamic that pushes good people out of the party and pulls in new people who share the leader’s ethos. Decency becomes rarer, and decent people feel more isolated.
It creates a push-pull dynamic that pushes good people out of the party and pulls in new people who share the leader’s ethos. Decency becomes rarer, and decent people feel more isolated.
Opinion | Trump Is Dragging Us Down to His Level
www.nytimes.com
October 19, 2025 at 4:07 PM
What happens when the most successful politician of the last decade is cruel, immoral, and corrupt?
It creates a push-pull dynamic that pushes good people out of the party and pulls in new people who share the leader’s ethos. Decency becomes rarer, and decent people feel more isolated.
It creates a push-pull dynamic that pushes good people out of the party and pulls in new people who share the leader’s ethos. Decency becomes rarer, and decent people feel more isolated.
True revival begins with the people proclaiming, by word and deed, “I have sinned.”
MAGA Christianity has a different message. It looks at American culture and declares, “You have sinned.” www.nytimes.com/2025/10/16/o...
MAGA Christianity has a different message. It looks at American culture and declares, “You have sinned.” www.nytimes.com/2025/10/16/o...
Opinion | Something Is Stirring in Christian America, and It’s Making Me Nervous
www.nytimes.com
October 16, 2025 at 1:49 PM
True revival begins with the people proclaiming, by word and deed, “I have sinned.”
MAGA Christianity has a different message. It looks at American culture and declares, “You have sinned.” www.nytimes.com/2025/10/16/o...
MAGA Christianity has a different message. It looks at American culture and declares, “You have sinned.” www.nytimes.com/2025/10/16/o...
“Earlier this month, a federal judge appointed by President Trump in 2019, did the worst thing you can do to Trump in a court of law: She took him seriously. She read his words, found them disconnected from reality and acted accordingly.” www.nytimes.com/2025/10/12/o...
Opinion | How a Trump Judge Exposed the Trump Con
www.nytimes.com
October 12, 2025 at 4:25 PM
“Earlier this month, a federal judge appointed by President Trump in 2019, did the worst thing you can do to Trump in a court of law: She took him seriously. She read his words, found them disconnected from reality and acted accordingly.” www.nytimes.com/2025/10/12/o...
Reposted by David French
@davidfrenchjag.bsky.social and I would likely disagree on many points of theology (I'm a mainline Protestant, he's an Evangelical); I agree with him fully that we've seen some remarkable displays of genuine Christlike behavior in the last couple of weeks.
Opinion | The Grace That Gives Us Hope
www.nytimes.com
October 5, 2025 at 11:52 AM
@davidfrenchjag.bsky.social and I would likely disagree on many points of theology (I'm a mainline Protestant, he's an Evangelical); I agree with him fully that we've seen some remarkable displays of genuine Christlike behavior in the last couple of weeks.
“Last Sunday, the shadow came for the men, women and children of a church in Michigan. But there is still light and high beauty, and last week the light that flooded America came from people of faith who were determined to demonstrate the character of the Savior they love.”
Opinion | There’s a Path Out of This Divide
www.nytimes.com
October 5, 2025 at 4:21 PM
“Last Sunday, the shadow came for the men, women and children of a church in Michigan. But there is still light and high beauty, and last week the light that flooded America came from people of faith who were determined to demonstrate the character of the Savior they love.”
Countless Americans are enduring Trump’s vengeance. Far too few experience Christian kindness. It is a great tragedy of our time that so many Christians see Trump’s malice as an instrument of God’s divine plan. www.nytimes.com/2025/09/23/o...
Opinion | How Can You Cheer Love and Hate at the Same Time?
www.nytimes.com
September 23, 2025 at 3:44 PM
Countless Americans are enduring Trump’s vengeance. Far too few experience Christian kindness. It is a great tragedy of our time that so many Christians see Trump’s malice as an instrument of God’s divine plan. www.nytimes.com/2025/09/23/o...