The Earth is Flat Award
A celebration of the inane, insipid and asinine...
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There is an old Serbian proverb that says vinegar in freedom tastes better than honey in slavery. This award is meant for events and people Enter Stage Right considers to be positive.
It is rare that a man who advocated and fought for strongly held political principles would earn universal praise on the news of his death. Men like William F. Buckley, however, don't come along every day.
The tributes and obituaries were united in listing his multitude of achievements, his dignity, formidable intelligence and unofficial but acknowledged leadership position in the conservative movement. As two of our writers tell in this issue, Buckley didn't just concern himself with grand issues and lofty personalities, he generously answered the letters and notes of almost anyone who took the time to write him.
It is in part thanks to Buckley that Enter Stage Right exists. Back in the early 1990s when the editor of this magazine began his transition to a politically conservative identity, the paucity of a Canadian conservative establishment forced him to look south to his American cousins for guidance. Along with Ayn Rand's writings and Rush Limbaugh's television and radio programs, it was issues of National Review which served as the higher education of a young man, prompted him to begin writing for his university newspaper and eventually launch this web site.
William F. Buckley, Jr. is gone, off to be rejoined with his beloved Patricia, but the millions of lives he touched and inspired are his ultimate legacy. U.S. President George W. Bush said it best when he eulogized Buckley thusly: "He influenced a lot of people, including me. He captured the imagination of a lot of people."
Sleep well WFB.
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