William F. Buckley

[DefeatedElitist]

Being a center man, myself, and not feeling strongly tied to either end of the spectrum (I lean left, but consider myself "intelligent" rather than Liberal or Conservative). I find this man to be fascinating. Intelligent people have always captivated me, and where I may not agree with everything I know of him (so far) I'm finding it tremendously interesting learning about him. Without a doubt an incredibly intelligent man. I only wish the right could be more like him today.

[Claronium780]

William F Buckley was a douche compared to people like Norman Mailer and especially G ore Vidal who made more sense and probably (no doubt whatsoever) had higher IQ's !

[davebex13]

Hmmmm... Seems like back then Matthews wasn't a total douche.

[1thruZ]

This is such a dumb reason why not to vote for someone. All politicians are actors even though some are bad at acting like a person of the people. The only thing worth paying attention to are who funds their campaigns and what their policies are with a voting record to back it up.

[kshaq22]

He looks like absolute shit. That doesn't take away from his great argument.

[Snoopies622]

Right - Gore was unbalanced, so instead we got the perfectly sane Bush/Cheney team..

[krane121]

@Snoopies622 What does that have to do with anything? There were no good choices, and won't be until we are free of the damned baby boomers (probably not after that either).

[ParadigmPenguin]

@Humaninsoul

I'm not entirely sure what point you're trying to make. If you're suggesting that my opinions carry less weight because of my age then you misunderstand where I'm coming from. I've heard many people argue that conservatives are out of touch with our youth, and losing relevance. I find that is not the case. Here, I think my young(er) age is more of a positive quality then a liability, as you're suggesting.

[SclafaniBagni]

MSNBC was far less liberal back then. Interesting how the last decade has so polarized the various media outlets

[thedavidwilson]

MSNBC?  I thought they only showed prison shows?

[xcxcxcc]

Buckley had an ease with words, be he was no intellectual, and definitely no renaissance man.

[HouseofBurgessesLR]

@xcxcxcc Exquisite!

[Aaronthegreatest]

@xcxcxcc why do you say that he wasn't an intellectual? He was a great debater and orator, he was the editor of a magazine that guided mainstream conservative thought for decades, he published several books, he argued with the great minds of the time, he put forward his ideological perspective on several occasions, and he certainly had the academic requirements.

[Mrsilenciobackgammon]

Pity for the right that this man has departed, to be replaced by Bill O'Reilly.

[Lipo]

Al Gore, as everyone knows, is a stupid, dishonest, venal, corrupt piece of dog crap.

[MrTruthAddict]

@Lipo You can always tell when Cons know they are losing the culture war, they start lying about liberals and name calling.

The best you could ever do to trash Gore was to put words in his mouth by saying he claimed to have invented the internet. He rightly said that he was involved in passing legislation that was instrumental in bringing about the internet. ARPAnet. Look it up.

[thegreatfearblog]

@Lipo How can you say that about the genius who invented climate change? :)

[vandykjd]

@Lipo he really isn't, why the rage?

[lakeeriejew]

Let's not forget Gore's love for sexually exploiting women sent to his room for massages.

Poor Tipper. He no longer has feelings for her....damn the bracelet.

[l33tpwnzord]

WFB is an amazing man.... but im sorry he looks rough here.

[sleedolfine15]

I love Buckley. He had much to do with rescuing me from liberalism. RIP great man.

[redblugreenjello]

@sleedolfine15

funny.. i think buckley is always somewhat of an ass, very smart and very wrong. A great interviewer is about the most praise i can give the man, he was sharp and had an agenda and pressed his guests, it was always exciting and honest talk, but i have NEVER heard this man win an argument, not once, and then comes in his trademark snide comments and haughty expressions to save face.. honestly if he saved you from anything.. you must be in trouble buddy.

[sleedolfine15]

@redblugreenjello Because of my background, I took it for granted that the left was the font of truth. When I went away to college my room mate introduced me to a slew of right wing writers,including Buckley who wowed me with his erudition, intelligence & tolerant,but passionate advocacy. I loved WFB's zest for life & his talent for friendship--which extended across the political spectrum. I've moved from Buckleyism to libertarianism,but I still owe him.And WFB usually kicked butt in debates.

[ohhrichie]

" Oprah loveeeesss redempion."

[xtrmsprts]

HAHA Bill may have confused al for vidal cause he's obviously describing Bush's maniacal drive to impress daddy using any subversive means - he finally did convince his daddy's buddies in the supreme court and jeb bush and fox news to facilitate the pilferage of the presidency from Al. Bill must have grown senile at this stage no doubt.

[FritzOmnibus]

Spit it out Buckley and stop winding up the pitch with an over-indulged flourish. --E Gad!

[whataburgerfan1]

@FritzOmnibus He has an old school Connecticut accent... pretty rare to hear it anywhere these days.

[Hoopermazing]

@whataburgerfan1 I've only ever heard it from one other person, namely Thurston Howell III.

[sharinganclan213]

@whataburgerfan1 do you know whether or not hs siblings also had the same accent, assuming they grew up together?

[whataburgerfan1]

@sharinganclan213 I don't think I've ever heard any of his siblings talk, but he sounds a lot like my great-grandfather did

[SovereignBeing]

this old shape shifter needs to avoid tv all together - the public might get wind of his true form..

[leapingfury]

@SovereignBeing I have trouble figuring out when these shapeshifters are ignorant of topics, when they are purposefully lying, when they are trying to save face, when they are trying to go against one power structure or fight another etc.

[SovereignBeing]

@leapingfury well they are more often than not, lying. remember serpents are masters of deception, they are sociopaths, they will do anything to get their way, attention and absolve themselves from blame..often in the media, it may look like the two parties are opposed or fighting, but there are not.. they love acting for us, and we got to hand it to them they are entertaining these scaly old bastards.. ugly,immoral and Godless, but certainly entertaining..!

[woody231979]

Must say that I am more of a democrat than republican but I have always respected William F. Buckley. He was good competition for us liberals.

[infinipoop]

2:46 he said do do (doo doo)

[S0vereignty]

Buckley was a class act. Too bad he's been replaced with all of these morons on Fox News.

[ahbevegede]

hahaha politics aside, what a dismantling! i would be interested in seeing that interview..

[itpduder]

ha ha ha, what is with Billy when he leans back and screws with the cameraman's shot? That's HILARIOUS!

[Mr1lapulapu]

Buckley is what the conservative movement misses:  someone who, in his own immortal words, would "separate the right from the kooks."

[ParadigmPenguin]

I'm 19 years old, and I find this man's logic to be incredibly sound. He is an authoritative speaker, even in his later life. Very, very impressed. I'm sorry to have not been politically aware while he was still with us.

God bless.

[atombomb31458]

@ParadigmPenguin

I loved his show firing line.we just dont have shows with that type of rigorous yet respectful intellectual debate anymore.Now its Left wing Right wing shouting

[Nintendomanwill]

@ParadigmPenguin

aAnother 19 year old Buckley fan right here. His grace seems to disturb our leftist comrades, but I think what really jars them about Buckley is his moral integrity which allowed him a grace no presumptuous and moralising, self-righteous leftist can emulate; these people cannot hide their odious immorality, their lack of belief in spontaneous order and morality as creator of productivity and itself therefore being the product of rationality: this is the essence of Buckley.

[Nintendomanwill]

@ParadigmPenguin

And I bet you've noticed what I have: Buckley could have been talking about Obama here, as much as Gore, with these leftist demagogic preeners and self-aggrandisers being all alike in their appeal to emotion and not to reason, their glorification of the base and not of the developed: their call for self-righteous catapulting into political activity without having gained sound knowledge of economic issues; it isn't hard to see why a demagogue can use ignorance to thus gain powa

[acmna]

@ParadigmPenguin I'm 18 and just read his last book, first time I ever heard of him too. A real renaissance man.

[MrTruthAddict]

@ParadigmPenguin I was impressed by him too when i was in my 20's. Later in life I learned more about him and about conservatism, and lost all respect for him.

I found that conservatism has always been nothing but a vain attempt to justify childish selfishness.

[chukmaty]

No it did not, Beck and Limbaugh represent the populist side of the coin and Buckley, Krystol, and Sowell represent the elite intellectuals of the movement.

[Lipo]

That's ridiculous.

What you really mean is that you believe what other people have written about him. I'm absolutely certain you've never heard his radio program.

Naturally, it is very difficult for the American Left to listen to overt, persuasive criticism of their leader Barack Obama and their ideology: Modern Liberalism.

[bmxtra211]

No, I'm a conservative and I despise people like Limbaugh, Glenn Beck and even Sean Hannity most of the time. They do what they do for the ratings, not the cause. People like William F. Buckley would never stoop to such juvenile levels, playing songs like the "Banking Queen" parody of Barney Frank or "Barack the Magic Negro," as Limbaugh did. This is what makes the headlines and serves only to divide us further. I'd much rather listen to someone like Michael Medved any day.

[Lipo]

I don't believe you. A real conservative wouldn't object to anyone spreading the gospel of conservative thought. Rush Limbaugh in particular, does it very well. This is why he is so influential in conservative circles: many people listen to him.

The ideas he promotes are those of Conservatism. This is a good thing and only a Modern Liberal would object for the very simple reason that they do not agree with conservative ideology.

Be honest.

[bmxtra211]

Do you have to instantly label anyone who disagrees with you a liberal? And you are only convincing me further of my original point: conservatives agree with him, non-conservatives detest him. It doesn't matter how many people who already agree with him like him. We need to win a war of ideas, not sit around and talk about how right we are, and this will not be achieved with inflammatory rhetoric. He does nothing but further the divide. I also happen to know a lot of conservatives who agree.

[Lipo]

You have obviously never listened to Rush Limbaugh. Face it kid. You're young and more than a little stupid. I'd suggest you do some reading. Specifically, read The Closing of the America Mind by Professor Allan Bloom.

[bmxtra211]

Haha, whatever man, resort to ad hominem and avoid discussing anything substantive regarding the issue at hand. You argue just like a liberal. Google conservatives against Rush Limbaugh, I'm not the only one.

Also, I read about a book a week, not an earth shattering number, but more then the typical person... and nothing from the Twilight series if that's what you were thinking. Currently in the middle of End the Fed. As for you, The Closing of the "America" Mind? Who's the stupid one again?

[Ylfordt]

@Lipo

FAG

[cronoskronos]

I've heard his radio program. Only a very few times but I've still experienced it. He makes me dislike the Conservative movement because not only is every other sentence out of his mouth some outlandish claim, but he is placed on an ever-growing pedestal by many Conservatives as the head of the movement. As a social and fiscal Conservative I am appalled by him and never want to be associated with him in any way.

William F. Buckley is eons more intelligent than Limbaugh.

[Lipo]

You're not any type of conservative.

[cronoskronos]

If Rush Limbaugh is your idea of Conservative, then no I am not.

[Lipo]

If you dislike the conservative movement because of what one person says on the radio, then you're an idiot because you've chosen to define yourself and your personal view of the world, in opposition to a single individual.

If you happen to be a conservative, you'd find yourself agreeing with many, if not all, of the things Rush Limbaugh says.

Perhaps what you're telling is us that you're simply not a conservative. There's nothing wrong with that.

[cronoskronos]

That's very like a Limbaugh admirer to take a statement out of context. Rush Limbaugh is viewed as many as the head of the Conservative movement, no true Conservative should invite this. A core concept of Conservatism is stability. Limbaugh is unstable, incendiary, uncouth, and an entertainer.

Limbaugh is nothing more than a feckless commentator. He will be the death of the Republican Party (that is if his own body doesn't beat the Party to the punch).

[dmlauffer]

I used to think like you until i started listening to him regularly. I used to hear bits and pieces while riding in a car with my father, I thought just like you. But when you hear him entirely and judge him in the context he's speaking, you can't even call yourself a conservative without at least acknowledgment that he is spot on most of the time. That is why he is a leading voice among conservatives.

[werdorino]

@cronoskronos i'm in the exact same boat as you!!!!

[Lipo]

I like Rush Limbaugh. He really gets under liberals' skin. I love that.

He tells them the truth and they can't stand it.

[joeylodes]

the republicans SO need the next William F. Buckley

its not even funny anymore

[sharinganclan213]

i know, but all they can come up with is palin....i think if buckley was alive right now, he would blatantly say that palin is stupid.

[kaziqbal]

is Buckley talking about Obama? :D

[sharinganclan213]

wow....are you serious?

[italoirish888]

Everyone always claims Buckley was such an intellectual and there is no doubt that some of his work was pretty impressive. Especially compared to the sorry lot of Republican pundits out there today. But here he is bashing Al Gore and defending George Bush. A man as smart as Buckley couldn't possibly see George Bush as anything but a lightweight. His defense of Bush has to call into question his intellectual honesty. It's also well known that Buckley hated Gore Vidal who is Al Gore's cousin.

[jpinkard]

Lesser of the two evils to him. Plain and simple.

[acs5pall]

Watch the video again, Buckley didn't say anything defensive about Bush - in fact didn't mention him at all. Typical reactive liberal, cannot tell the difference (I.E. claims linkage) between a valid distain for gore, and a partiality for Bush.

[italoirish888]

Ok that might be true if you're viewing his comments in a vaccuum. I should have broadened my statement to include his past defenses of Bush. He had defended Bush many times during the election. He is also effectively defending Bush by attacking Gore. There were only two people really competing in the race so by attacking Gore he is defending Bush by proxy since he had made it very clear whom he supported. Also, I'm not a liberal. It seems fairly reactive of you to assume I am.

[Lipo]

If not a liberal, how would you characterize yourself?

[italoirish888]

I try not to get into labels. I supported Bush against Kerry (I came to regret it) and I supported Obama this time around. I'm probably one of the few people I know who actually has a great respect for Richard Nixon (although I think he was at least half way evil). I think JFK was a very overrated President but I think Reagan was nothing great either. Don't know if that helps. I guess I'm fairly socially liberal but fairly economically conservative.

[Lipo]

Don't ever tell anyone that you "try not to get into labels." Because what you're really saying is that you don't know what you think. People will think you are stupid, as I do.

[italoirish888]

Wow what a setup for a horribly unoriginal punchline. You seem like the kind of person who needs a label so you can categorize people as enemies or friends. Instead of just saying "liberal" or "conservative", I told you a little bit about what I think. An astute person might be able to deduce HOW I think, which is more important. That bothered you because that requires you to actually read what I said and "process information". It's so much easier to name call isn't it?

[Lipo]

What you think is more important than how you think. You dummy.

[italoirish888]

ha ha dummy? Ok man you win. No coming back from that one. Poopie head.

[destroyedu]

He truly was an intellectual, it is unfortunate that the teachers (Professors) fail to bring him up as an intellectual.

[kermittheefrog]

Brilliant man

[LoudAnimalAttack]

Mr. Buckley.....you were a scumbag. As myself a libertarian/paleoconservative.­..the obituary that you wrote on Murray Rothbard was a pathetic nasty attack. You were a CIA agent and probably still were when you tried to "clean out" the conservative movement back in the day...Neocon scumbag you were. I spit on your grave you pathetic slimebag..I got to write an obituary for you....jerk.

[Lipo]

Get back in your hole. Creep.

[fctchk]

Buckley built his TV career on catering to an audience who mistook his pompous, vacuous, verbosity for profundity.

His pettiness and hypocrisy is on full display in the underhanded obituary he wrote on Murray Rothbard whom Buckley, who supported segregation, cheer led the Vietnam war, believed creationism and rejected the Theory of Evolution, accused of defective judgment.

[reaguirre]

very nicely stated

[queekers]

lol ralph nader

[sixfigures1]

I need the whole thing.

[Lipo]

Sorry, but I don't think I have it. If I did, I'd have posted it here.

[OrsonWellesGenius]

"They are of course holding hands... " Brilliant. Matthews can barely contain himself!

[mdbarnes21]

so right.

[mayitpleasethecourt]

sick shit

[DermochelysCoriacea]

agreed. i love this.

[RJY4356]

LMAO I love when he says " Oprah loveeeesss redempion." I'm laughing along with Chris Matthews laughing in the background. Even if you don't agree with WFB the way he expresses himself is fascinating to listen to lol.