R.I.P.
The present times dim with the passing of an institution at our Conservative heart. But our mentors who passed would offer a different hope than the ersatz chump pretenders of today, so we may see a few rays of sunshine while the skies cloud over.
Sometimes we receive news with a little grace in the way we hear it. When Tim passed, I was blissfully unaware even as word leaked out, until his wife called to tell me. In the case of William F. Buckley, I knew nothing until I turned on the radio and heard it from Rush Limbaugh. Listeners to Rush over the years know along with his own father Rush revered William F. Buckley as the greatest force shaping his life.
Many on our Terri List and FreeRepublic heard his touching tribute to the man and to the role he played, but fewer would connect Rush's inadvertent tribute to Tim.
Rush compared Mr. Buckley to our Founding Fathers, to another half of the Conservative phalanx of Ronald Reagan, like a phoenix growing through the ashes of shame and destruction brought about by that little Jimmy Carter and his kind.(I take liberties here with my memory as I sure can't remember the words, only the image he stamped...)
Rush described how he was touched as a kid, reading the Buckley column, the early National Review magazines and how he nervously got finally to visit the giant, William F. Buckley , and the most brilliant people in the world, those editors and cronies close to Mr. Buckley. Bold unflappable Rush stood in awe, nervous in the presence of these people, and repeated his impressions again and again. I can readily imagine the scene as Tim fit that mold perfectly, looked the part, tall, imposing, dignified and smart.
William F. Buckley in that seminal time brought in to his small coterie a man with huge talent and like humor, to be editor of the early National Review. Soft spoken Tim shied from the limelight, but carried much influence and friendship. And he must have been one of those impressive fellows named by Rush as part of the most brilliant minds in the world! They both would see our present day valley of tears in that light of optimism and humor even as their own creation was to some extent usurped and morphed into a form less clear.
William F. Buckley and company left us all a legacy. They planted the seed for us to nurture.
"We will not be silent. We are your bad conscience. The White Rose will give you no rest."
