The State of Discourse

MANIFESTO

William F. Buckley was late to the civil rights movements, arguably anti-Semitic, a fan of Fascism and (initially at least) the Iraq war. But, you can disagree with a man and still admire the way he makes his point. Buckley built the modern American conservative intellectual tradition and founded the magazine that was its mouthpiece. At the time of his death, the intellectual/political movement Buckley started and the empire he built are in ruin.

The clips below are from a debate about the Vietnam War between Buckley and Noam Chomsky that was required viewing my freshman year in college. While the two trade barbs there is a charming civility and an intellectual rigor that is all but absent in the political process today.

Part One:


Part Two: