• February 12, 2012

Dead William F. Buckley Jr. has penned a RATHER RIBALD essay for Kathryn Jean Lopez’s National Review magazine about the year 1976, when the Buckley plutocrats invited the Reagan plutocrats to their 2,000-year-old chateau, “Great Elm,” in Connecticut colony, for the annual Thanksgiving bank holiday. Then! Drama! “…Ron Jr., in his first semester at Yale, had decided to quit college — more or less immediately. I expressed doubt that he was having academic problems, which indeed he was not, and his parents brought me to the heart of the matter. What moved him was a voracious desire to dance professionally.” Grandmother must never hear of this, she would be most dismayed! Later: “Ronald Reagan was as determined to subject his son to poverty as Ron Jr. was to live in it.” And that’s when dead W.F. Buckley knew that Ronald Reagan had fathered a Welfare Queen, the end. [National Review]

{ 48 comments }

TJBeck November 26, 2008 at 1:16 pm

Well, at least Ron turned out better than Rahm Emmanuel.

grendel November 26, 2008 at 1:18 pm

You can dance, you can jive, having the time of your life
See that girl, watch that scene, dig in the dancing queen

TGY November 26, 2008 at 1:22 pm

Goddammit, professional dancing is for slimy bastards…and me! Don’t be treadin’ on my turf, Ron Jr.

coolcatdaddy November 26, 2008 at 1:23 pm

At that time, at least to conservatives like Reagan, it wasn’t the thought that “dancing” was something “queer” that made it so bad – it make you look like you were some Communist Pinko.

SayItWithWookies November 26, 2008 at 1:24 pm

When Ron Jr. went on to reject his father’s political positions, ruing the Reagan presidency, it was not necessarily the result of alienation from the family per se. Weight by the son to his father’s principles is here given, here withheld, after thought is paid to them, cursory or profound, and how they figured in the allegiances of the parent.

My Buckley-to-English translator just gave up and died.

mattbolt November 26, 2008 at 1:26 pm

Twinkle-down economics?

hockeymom November 26, 2008 at 1:27 pm

Here’s the guest list at our Thanksgiving meal:

My uncle, a world famous economist who also is allergic to nuts and usually has to be rushed to the hospital because he eats something he shouldn’t.

My cousin, an adult “performer”/performance artist who has fangs, sleeps in a coffin and once made national news for disrupting Willie Brown’s inaguration as mayor. Also, seen on HBO’s Real Sex. Goes without saying she has a little methadone habit.

Three sisters….any two who will be in a knock-down, drag out fight. Most likely the one who is president of the Country Club and the one who is the tattooed ex-lesbian.

My mother. Insane. She’ll probably start talking about elder sex.

Various children who will be scarred for life.

freakishlystrong November 26, 2008 at 1:29 pm

Welp, like Father(s), like Son(s)..I believe BOTH of the scions of these revered Conservatards have left the fold…in the immortal words of Nelson Muntz; HA HA!

Anonymous Office Zombie November 26, 2008 at 1:30 pm

[re=186527]grendel[/re]:
I’m sorry, but there can be only one Dancing Queen.

http://internetqueen.ytmnd.com/

freakishlystrong November 26, 2008 at 1:31 pm

[re=186549]hockeymom[/re]: What? No Drunken Uncle? Who instists upon “dancing”? You must not be Irish!

Servo November 26, 2008 at 1:34 pm

Ronnie’s biggest turkey was Oliver North.

hockeymom November 26, 2008 at 1:37 pm

[re=186562]freakishlystrong[/re]: No, Italian. Worse…because there’s no dancing, only yelling and guilt.

Oh, and the secret pool on when mom is going to get rid of her latest husband.

The non-Italian men who married into our family think we are all insane…my sisters and I think everyone else is just boring as shit.

monty November 26, 2008 at 1:39 pm

with the exception of hockymom these comments are confusing. ill just wait for the next post to try and say something useful.

Rush November 26, 2008 at 1:39 pm

What is it about CT oxygen that fosters the need for gay dancing / marriage?

mattbolt November 26, 2008 at 1:40 pm

Reagan’s kid could’ve turned out fruitier. Reagan’s Canadian counterpart (and BFF), Prime Minister Brian Mulroney, had a kid, Ben Mulroney, who’s now the host of Canadian Idol. So, imagine if Reagan’s kid had been Ryan Seacrest.

V572625694 November 26, 2008 at 1:40 pm

[re=186549]hockeymom[/re]: And no sullen teenagers bored to death by adult talk of (if you were having Xgiving @ Wonkette World Headquarters) TruckNutz, SecDef, and Palin turkey-slaughter-videos? And no one in a tryptophan coma in front of the teevee tuned to a bore-ass football game?

You sound like an elitist!

V572625694 November 26, 2008 at 1:41 pm

[re=186574]hockeymom[/re]: Ah, that explains much. “Real” (as in ex-pat) Italian, or second-generation?

Joey Ratz November 26, 2008 at 1:43 pm

[re=186549]hockeymom[/re]: How did she become an ex-lesbian? Was she healed by Michele Bachman’s husband?

mattbolt November 26, 2008 at 1:46 pm

I’m still at the “kids table” for thanksgiving, by virtue of not being married. The kids table ranges in age from 5 to like, 33. The conversations generally revert to what the 5 year olds want to discuss. Who would win in a fight between Dora the Explorer and Hannah Montana? The answer’s Dora, always bet on the magic backpack.

hockeymom November 26, 2008 at 1:51 pm

[re=186590]V572625694[/re]: Second generation.
[re=186592]Joey Ratz[/re]: I think she was a faux-bian. She lived in San Fran at the time, so maybe it more geographical than sexual.

charlesdegoal November 26, 2008 at 1:53 pm

Ron Jr. used to live (with his girlfriend) in a brownstone on West 10th Street. There were Secret Service Agents in the lobby around the clock. He didn’t seem exactly poor at the time.

sezme November 26, 2008 at 1:56 pm

I thought Buckley was dead… Does he come back at holidays to reminisce?

SayItWithWookies November 26, 2008 at 1:57 pm

[re=186612]hockeymom[/re]: I believe the correct term is wasbian.

SayItWithWookies November 26, 2008 at 1:58 pm

[re=186626]sezme[/re]: Buckley is the Tupac of the conservative movement — he will continue producing his oeuvre well into the next decade.

ManchuCandidate November 26, 2008 at 1:58 pm

No wonder these Conservatives are so miserable.

If Buckley wrote “A Christmas Carol”, a grouchy from lack of sleep Scrooge would have fired Bob Crachit and forced him to sell Tiny Tim to Scrooge for the main course of Xmas dinner. The moral of the story wouldn’t have been “Merry Xmas” ,but “It’s okay to feast on the flesh of the weak as per the law of the jungle to celebrate the birth of his Lord Baal.”

ManchuCandidate November 26, 2008 at 1:59 pm

[re=186629]SayItWithWookies[/re]:
Explains why it’s a lingering aftertaste on sashimi.

Kos November 26, 2008 at 2:01 pm

Wow, didn’t know Wedding Crashers ripped the whole Reagan Buckley story.

Kev-O-Tron November 26, 2008 at 2:04 pm

[re=186549]hockeymom[/re]: Jeebus we’re a disfunkshunul lot around here. Tell your cousin to call me.

obfuscator November 26, 2008 at 2:05 pm

[re=186630]SayItWithWookies[/re]: I’m looking forward to inevitable the Buckley/Goldberg remixes, backed by a Bruce Hornsby & the Range sample.

Keram2 November 26, 2008 at 2:09 pm

As hard as it is to believe, Ron is alledgedlt straight. From Wikipedia:

Reagan lives in Seattle with his wife, Doria (née Palmieri), a clinical psychologist whom he married in 1980. They have no children.

freakishlystrong November 26, 2008 at 2:32 pm

[re=186574]hockeymom[/re]: Jebus, sounds like a jewish wedding. We have many Italians in our extended family, because for some reason the Donkeys and the WOPS tend to git along. I guess the drinking numbs the yelling and then everyone can wake up the next day guilty.

sanantonerose November 26, 2008 at 3:30 pm

[re=186540]SayItWithWookies[/re]: [re=186547]mattbolt[/re]: It’s a tie for win.

populucious November 26, 2008 at 3:51 pm

In a shocking revelation, it appears that there is filmed footage of that infamous Turkey bank holiday at the Regans:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g3YiPC91QUk

How Ronnie wept to lose those open tracts of land!

populucious November 26, 2008 at 3:53 pm

[re=186662]Keram2[/re]: Well, you know what they say about closet gay ballerinas who marry clinical psychologists…

FMA November 26, 2008 at 4:09 pm

[re=186549]hockeymom[/re]: So, how are things on Walton Mountain?

bitchincamaro November 26, 2008 at 4:24 pm

Ron Junior knew he was an atheist at age 12? At that age I still believed in immaculate conception, but I could dance a credible fox-trot.

The Station Manager November 26, 2008 at 4:26 pm

Why is it that conservatives in high office have so many gay babies? And by “so many” I mean the Cheney Gay and the Reagan Gay.

If Republicans are really worried about the next generation turning out to be Big Gays, they should stop putting themselves in high office and concentrate more on beating The Gay out of their fruity little kids.

S.Luggo November 26, 2008 at 4:41 pm

Has Chris Buckley huddled back to the fluffy bosoms of K-Lo or was he pushed?

eekahil November 26, 2008 at 5:10 pm

Y’know that “perfect captions for all New Yorker cartoons” thingie?
Well, by gum, that selfsame caption works here ever so handily:

“christ, what an asshole”

justthisonce November 26, 2008 at 5:34 pm

In all fairness, Buckley knew Ron Jr. was queer when he was in highschool.

hobospacejungle November 26, 2008 at 6:06 pm

[re=186803]The Station Manager[/re]: “If Republicans are really worried about the next generation turning out to be Big Gays, they should stop putting themselves in high office and concentrate more on beating The Gay out of their fruity little kids.”

Thank you for making me laugh.

Fivetree November 26, 2008 at 6:26 pm

[re=186556]freakishlystrong[/re]: Not only that, but Ron Jr. is an atheist and pretty matter of fact about it. I am not sure about him being gay, but Phyllis Schlafly’s son is gayer than a beaded handbag. Obviously conservatives have a hard time imparting their right-wingery to their offspring. It must be a recessive trait – like hemophilia (but in some cases more like homophilia).

populucious November 26, 2008 at 6:35 pm

[re=186892]Fivetree[/re]: “Phyllis Schlafly’s son is gayer than a beaded handbag.”

Stop…please…seriously…if one more beautiful, glorious, hopey bit of news like this escapes into the world Libtards like myself might just self immolate with joy.

Fivetree November 26, 2008 at 6:58 pm

[re=186896]populucious[/re]: It’s actually pretty old news – which means that some of the beads have fallen off (or out as the case may be). This is from Wikipedia “In 1992, her eldest son, John, was outed as homosexual by Queer Week magazine.[41][42] Schlafly has declined to comment on the matter in interviews.”

Fivetree November 26, 2008 at 7:02 pm

[re=186803]The Station Manager[/re]: Let’s not forget the Gay Sibling of Famous Conservative Phenomenon personified by Candace Gingrich.

Fivetree November 26, 2008 at 7:09 pm

[re=186803]The Station Manager[/re]: Maybe we could get Nate Silver to come up with a metric by which he could calculate the percentage of homosexual offspring of right-wing conservatives. You, have ‘em fill out a survey. I am sure that the stronger the aversion to same-sex marriage or some similar issue, the higher percentage of “gay” in the sperm and/or ovaries as the case may be. Why bother with all those pesky run-offs and recounts.

S.Luggo November 26, 2008 at 9:55 pm

Photo:
Buckley: So you have Alzheimer’s, a-heh?
Reagan: Never liked the Germans. Your question was?

J November 28, 2008 at 12:28 am

Of course the real tragedy in this story is witnessing one Kathryn Jean Lopez having to read a story about children. The sad, pudgy, unibrowed perpetual virgin will NEVER have a husband, which means (being one of Jesus’s brides) she will NEVER have a child (that whole no-sex-outside-the-holy-bonds-of-matrimony thing). The poor fat shit is destined to be forever barren, forever pudgy, foreber unibrowed, forever untouched by a man. Poor, sad K Lo.

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