Notes From D.R. | Random Thoughts on the Passing Scene

Bill Buckley is dead only in theory.

Officially, he has passed on at the age of 82, but in reality, he has achieved immortality. His words will be read and re-read as much as William Shakespeare’s. In addition, he created a legion of devotees who will continue to maintain his conservative legacy.

Buckley was intellectually promiscuous, fathering scores of conservative sons and daughters who embraced his optimistic vision. There would be no Rush Limbaugh, no Laura Ingraham, no Sean Hannity, no Michelle Malkin without Buckley. He created an intellectual industry that still returns tremendous profits every single year.

Every conservative commentator, talk-radio host and newspaper owes Buckley a gigantic debt of gratitude, one that can never fully be repaid. He made conservatism fashionable and saved the Republican Party from falling into the ash heap of history.

Buckley also helped the left as well. In response to his strong intellectual conservatism, the left was forced to refine its arguments, sharpen its own message and redouble its efforts to reshape the culture. The only reason George Soros and Moveon.org spend millions trying to get their message out is because of the effectiveness of the Buckley-amplified conservative voice.

It’s amazing that one man could have so much influence. Yet he had that much influence! There’d be no pro-life movement without him…no movement to limit taxation….no border-security movement…no center-right movement at all.

His ideological heirs will carry on his legacy. You can hear traces of Buckley in the monologues of Hugh Hewitt, in the writings of Jonah Goldberg, in the remarks of William Kristol. Buckley gave birth to talk radio, to the conservative blogosphere, to the center-right presence on television. Buckley was a tycoon of thought, the Founding Father of the “New Right”…he was the granddaddy of ‘em all.

He was so good on television. He was a rhetorical Tiger Woods, an intellectual Michael Jordan, an ideological Muhammad Ali. He was De Niro on the set, Marvin Gaye in the studio, Brando on the stage. He wasn’t just ahead of his time: he was the time.

Did he make some bad calls? Sure. So did Reagan. So did Goldwater. Buckley was human, and there were times when he didn’t get things right. Those times were few and far between. In certain obituaries, Buckley’s mainstream-media enemies are using the few times he was wrong to discredit the many times he was right. It’s a shame…but they can’t stop him from shining in history’s limelight.

He had so much influence. His reach extended to every aspect of American media. Buckley started when excellence was still embraced in American culture, and he kept going even after excellence became unpopular.

No one should cry now that he’s left his body. He still lives! Every time you pick up a copy of National Review or The Weekly Standard, you read him. Every time you listen to Dennis Prager or William Bennett, you hear him. Every time you watch Fred Barnes on Fox or Monica Crowley on The McLaughlin Group, you see him.

William Buckley is as vital as ever. Like Jim Morrison, Jimi Hendrix and Kurt Cobain, he will now become even more influential than he was during his years on this planet. The grown-up right will embrace him as firmly as the college left embraces Che Guevara.

Like Ronald Reagan, Buckley’s presence transcends death. He’ll always be there, watching over us as we discuss and defend our principles. He’ll always look over us like a saint as we confront obstacles and challenges to our vision. He cannot truly die. He will not truly die. In our hearts and minds, he will live on forever.