Wednesday, February 27, 2008

Bill Buckley, RIP   [John J. Miller]

It's hard to know what to say about Bill Buckley. Was he the second most important conservative of his time, second only to Ronald Reagan?

I can't claim to have known him very well. I can't recall ever seeing him in NR's Washington office. I was certainly around him from time to time in social settings, mostly at his home in Manhattan. People often ask me what he's like or how he's doing. Just last night, at the Caps game in DC, a friend inquired about him. With respect to what he's like—I'm having trouble using the past tense here—I always say: He's probably the most gracious man I've known. He is of course a legend on the Right, and legends can be intimidating. The first time we met, my agenda was simply to avoid saying anything dumb in his presence. Yet he instantly sought to put me at ease. He asked what I was writing about and seemed genuinely curious to know. He listened to me, rather than the other way around. To my surprise, I was comfortable around him—because he had a special ability for making folks like me feel that way.

I'll remember him with fondness and appreciation—and in the knowledge that everything we do here at NR and NRO is possible because of him.

02/27 11:52 AMShare