I grew up on William F. Buckley, Jr. My parents loved him. I thought anyone that could talk like that must be onto something. Hell, the guy was preaching the good gospel of Conservatism before America had discovered AuH2O64.Mr. Buckley was impressive, brave and stalwart in the face of the cloying pervasiveness of the Liberal tsunami called politics in the 60’s.
He wrote novels on scraps of papers while flying off to God knows where, sailed the open sea with the teeth and eye glint of FDR and, he even built his own harpsichord for goodness sake.
Penny is my favorite waitress where I get my gruel locally. She always has had pearls of wisdom whether you wanted to hear them or not. A hangover got you a lecture of seismic proportion which was made up of “Ya did to urself nidiot” exclaimated with a glare and spilt coffee preferably splashing your wrist.
The woman could carry ten plates slathered with food, barking orders to the younger staff, greeting customers, comforting those still waiting for their food with a friendly “Don’t git urn nads flamed, I’m gittin there”, all while surveying what had to be completed next.
Bill thinks the GOP is on the wane. Penny thinks their done. Bill creates a symphony of historical allegories to bolster why his thinking has a raisons d'être. Penny thinks the “assholes shoulda been done with it” and just bombed them back to the stone age.
One is a figure of national importance while the other is an indicator of local importance. They both are exhibiting what their lives have opposed; a lack of resolve.
Bill states, “The generation of Christians moved by their faith overwhelmed the regimented reserves of the Roman state.” While Penny has always tutored, :Ya want, git it, otherwise quit crappin yerself.”
I ask myself why have these two changed a lifetime of inner-wisdom. The one is the press and the other hates the press. Bill has an education that is the envy of many. Penny has an education that Bill could not match. Bill works in an environment of privilege and beauty. Penny works in a swirl of people, smells and the movement of people who just don’t want to be late, but they do want to be full.
William Frank Buckley, Junior is a Irish Roman Catholic. Penny’s mother used to go to church.
They both are pragmatists who have lost their faith and have lost the faith in what they have most believed, the American spirit.
I have seen two icons fall.
