William F. Buckley, Jr. Memory eternal!

I never had the good fortune to meet the man, but from my college days when I began to develop grave doubts about the 'New Left', through my embracing American conservatism, Buckley's influence on my own thought has been strong.

National Review was the singular voice of conservatism in those days, and even after it had been joined by Human Events and the less sober American Spectator, remained a beacon to the movement.

The formality of Buckley's style sometimes lapsed into pomposity, but on the whole was more positive than detrimental, lending a gravitas to his speech that befit the seriousness of his thought.

He will be missed.

As we say in the Christian East: Memory eternal! Memory eternal! Memory eternal!