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  • Essay / Documentary The Best of Enemies: A Personal Reflection

    'Best of Enemies' revolved around two very intelligent but completely opposing ideologies in the ideologies of William F. Buckley Jr., a conservative, and Gore Vidal, a liberal, then let them fight They showed wit at the 1968 Republican and Democratic Conventions. They truly despised each other, as evidenced by their debates, until they both committed ad hominem when Vidal called Buckley as a “crypto-Nazi” while Buckley hit back and called Vidal a “faggot.” » and threatened to kick him in the face. This is a great example of the fact that no matter how intelligent a person is, they always have triggers, as this encounter led to the lifelong clash between Buckley and Vidal . Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an original essay In the documentary, the phrase "law and order" was mentioned several times, including by Buckley and Nixon. They used the phrase to enforce peace in America, but it was really just a euphemism to classify people and sort them according to their socioeconomic status, religion, and most importantly, race. Although these debates took place in 1968, history is repeating itself as this apparent settlement is making a comeback not only in the United States but also in the Philippines, amplified by the current Duterte administration which is undoubtedly anti-poor. The current administration claims that its policies are aimed at improving the general welfare of the Filipino people, but why is the economy at its lowest in years, is the inflation rate at its highest, lumads are dispersed from their own lands, most of the drug lords are acquitted in this "war on drugs", and people like Mocha Uson are paid for their stupidity. Obviously this “law and order” is NOT working. It is important to note that the Buckley–Vidal debates took place because ABC, being the least watched network at the time, was expected to overtake NBC and CBS; and they actually did. Of these debates, the pinnacle was when they called each other insults (crypto-Nazi, queer). It was the most popular because it showed that although they were respected and civilized gentlemen, they had this violent side as evidenced by their twitching eyes and trembling lips when these hurtful words were spoken. The profanities of these political pundits entertained people and so ABC's ratings were up. This may be a parallel to Philippine politics as to why Duterte has so many loyal supporters, even with his constant ad hominem tendencies, misogynistic tendencies, open threats towards people, and foul mouth. This is because people find him entertaining and different from all other presidents and we all know that Filipinos like to be entertained by what they see on television. Keep in mind: this is just a sample. Get a personalized article from our expert writers now. The clash between Buckley and Vidal began in the 1950s, peaked in the 1960s and lasted throughout their lives. Although they had similarities in that they had posh upbringings, they showed and embodied the best of the political theory they believed in, conservatism and liberalism. Their debates were brutal and that is something lacking in today's politics; there are simply no more passionate, articulate representatives as people choose who is more entertaining to them (e.g. Trump, Duterte). In truth, Buckley and Vidal are the..