This blog post is in response to a recent opinion piece by David French in the New York Times.  French describes himself as an Southern-born evangelical Protestant. I identify myself likewise, and I’m certain that he and I must agree on many things.  However, I strongly disagree with many of his statements in this article.

French writes, “the economy is growing, the stock market is at historic highs, and the unemployment rate is near a 50-year low.”

Response: I see the nation’s economy as being extremely shaky.  We are overly dependent on foreign suppliers for so many products.  We have lost much of our manufacturing base, and worker displacement has become a serious problem in many regions of our country.  Although the unemployment rate has returned to its pre-Covid rate, most of the new jobs are part-time, and many of them are going to new immigrants.  Too many workers ceased looking for work, are no longer classified as unemployed, and have found ways to live on the dole.  The cumulative effect of high 2021-22 inflation rates persist, and those who continue to work often find their salaries insufficient to support their needs and must seek more than one job.  Two incomes are the family norm, and young couples are handicapped by the excessive cost of childcare.  The birth rate continues to crash.

French writes, “Crime in America is too high . . . But crime rates have dropped after pandemic-era increases, and overall crime rates are substantially lower than they were in the relatively recent past.  Violent crimes and property crimes are occurring at less than half the rates they were in the early 1990s.”

Response: I don’t trust French’s statistics.  Many crimes are not being reported.  In some of our large cities police are being told to no longer respond to certain types of crime, and policemen are reluctant to pursue offenders when they know there will be no prosecution.  Also, policemen are fearful of civil or criminal charges as they attempt to enforce the law.  It is becoming very difficult to hire qualified law enforcement officers, and many urban police departments are seriously understaffed.  Some areas in cities like Chicago and Baltimore are almost unlivable.  Smash-and-grab mobs attack major retail stores with impunity, and retailers are beginning to withdraw from crime-ridden cities.  I lived through the 90s (and the 30s-80s), and I’m convinced that crime is a much greater problem now than it was then.      

French writes, “Catholic post-liberals believe that liberal democracy itself is problematic. . . Protestant Christian nationalists . . . claim that the Constitution is essentially dead, replaced by progressive power politics that have destroyed constitutional government.”

Response: I know many religious conservatives, and I am one of them.  French might even call me a Christian nationalist, though I reject that label. We have great respect for the Constitution, including the Bill of Rights and the other amendments, but we are very concerned with the current state of the Federal government and the concentration of power therein. Many would prefer to see more power to the states.  Also, most of us would delight to see two things that would immediately improve the situation in Washington  — term limits and the line-item veto.  A more immediate worry for many conservatives is the inequitable administration of justice by the DOJ.  It’s heavy-handed actions in pursuit of Donald Trump, his supporters, the Jan 6 offenders, and abortion clinic protesters stand in stark contrast to its treatment of the Joseph Biden (the documents case), Hillary Clinton, and the BLM rioters of 2020.  In their effort to retain power, the progressives are destroying our legal system

French writes, “Through much of American history, various American states protected slavery, enforced Jim Crow, suppressed voting rights, blocked free speech, and established state churches.”

Response: I believe French exaggerates.  Yes, slavery and Jim Crow laws were wrong, but those things came out of beliefs and attitudes that were present before the founding of our republic.  They persisted longer in certain states because of demographic and economic reasons, but I pray now that these things are now relics of the past.  Other than their handling of the racial problem, French’s condemnation of the states is not justified.  There have been many instances of bad state governance, but I doubt that state governments are more susceptible to error than the Federal.  Contrary to the views of many progressives and their congressional representatives, all wisdom does not reside in Washington.

French writes, “At their core, right wing attacks on the modern Constitution are an attack on liberty for the sake of power.  An entire class of Americans looks back at decades past and has no memory (or pretends to have no memory) – of marginalization or oppression.  They could do what they wanted, when they wanted and to whom they wanted.  Now they don’t have that same control.  It’s not just that Catholics and Protestants have equal rights (a relatively recent development) it’s that Muslims, Sikhs, Jews, Buddhists, and atheists all approach the public square with the same liberties.  Drag queens have the same free speech rights as pastors, and many Americans are livid as a result.”

Response: Our nation was founded on the bedrock of religious faith, English law, and basic Judeo-Christian concepts forged over centuries of Western civilization.  It was understood by our founding fathers that the success of our nation-state was dependent on our citizens subscribing to these bedrock principles.   Sometimes reluctantly, America opened itself to a flood of immigrants from all over the world.  Under the Constitution, these immigrants were granted equal rights.  That was right and good. It was understood, however, that it was incumbent upon these immigrants to conform themselves to our values and practices rather than the other way around.  Muslims Americans are free to worship Allah, but they are governed under our laws, not Sharia law.   Drag queens are free to do their thing, but they have no more right to do a story hour in a public library than a pastor or rabbi has the right to perform a religious service there.  A person may proclaim himself a transgender, but that should not qualify them to participate in women’s sports. LGBT activists wish to control our schools and indoctrinate our children with wicked lies about sex and gender, and progressives support them.  There are reasons for many Americans to be livid. I myself am angry and concerned.

Altogether, French paints a very dark picture of American history.  I reject that.  America is not perfect.  It never will be.  Yet, I believe that there is much we can be proud of.  If we continue to work together in a spirit of goodwill we can continue to build that more perfect union – our shining city on a hill.

Defend the truth!