William F. Buckley Jr. appreciation thread

[Goo For You]

Did you know that the Hoover Institution is in the process of digitizing their Firing Line broadcast archives, and that more than 100 episodes are already available through Amazon? At $0.99 per episode, why not join in on the fun?

My favorites so far:

http://www.amazon.com/Firing-William...ng+line+sowell

(^ That sociologist lady served such softballs that she HAD TO be a plant!)

http://www.amazon.com/Firing-William...g+line+chomsky

[Goo For You]

Also, on a somewhat ambivalent note, the one where he sided with Creationists in invoking the metaphysical concept of materialism to insinuate that evolution is a communist ploy was quite a riot.

Any WFB aficionados care to comment on that one?

[HeinousMark]

Very well educated and intelligent man. I could respect him even when I disagreed with him, unlike the majority of current right wing talking heads, and frankly, I thought he was kinda funny sometimes, too. I don't remember watching him enough to cite specific debates, but what I'll never forget is how, when he was getting excited, his tongue would flick around and with his bad skin, he looked like a Gila Monster

[Goo For You]

I bet his detractors hated every single thing about his quirky looks and affected behavior. He even kind of looked like Mr. Burns when he opened his eyes really wide.

The man was a true personality...

And smart, no doubt about it.

Thinking about the quality of current TV shows, he managed to be almost unbelievably engaging with his guests' worldviews, somehow managing to ask an amazingly poignant question after another, even though he tried real hard to seem more learned than he really was. This was very obvious; the smartest guests preyed on it relentlessly. Chomsky destroyed him (albeit going too far, at least with hindsight, on praising freedom in China), and Groucho nailed it by saying "you're not a philosopher, or a senator!"

That jab must have hit home...

I love it how WFB didn't get all pissy when he was taken a peg down. That's class. Can't imagine a better TV host. Need to watch more.

[Goo For You]

Even though I've yet to hear WFB challenge his conservative comrades (notice how he's basically a straight man to Sowell), I love how relentless he was with libertarians. Ron Paul had literally

______NOTHING______

on him.

RP put all his efforts into sidestepping a barrage of devastating questions that shook the foundations of his thinking from every possible angle. WFB's assault exposed him as the clueless demagogue that he really is: His random hodgepodge of radical ideas has really nothing to do with conservatism, or libertarianism. A fair check-mate if there ever was one.

(PS. I just hope that woman in the Sowell interview wasn't a plant... It bugs me to no end when people as smart as WFB use their wits to circle jerk, when they could be using them to expose shitty thinking in their own camp. I think that's the ultimate test of intellectual courage and honesty.)