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September 01, 2005
The Ultimate Riposte
An article in the Wall Street Journal recently reminded me of my all time favorite insult. Author Cynthia Crossen profiles John Wilkes, an 18th century English politician and writer who was a champion of liberty and an expert at rubbing the royal establishment the wrong way. With his anti-(revolutionary) war rhetoric, he earned the admiration of American revolutionaries such as John Adams.
Wilkes was a hero of liberty, who had challenged the absolute power of the British monarchy and lived to write about it. The settlers named Wilkesboro, N.C., and Wilkes-Barre, Penn., in his honor. Later, some parents, such as Junius and Mary Ann Booth, would name their sons for him.
Perhaps his greatest gift, as a politician and a journalist, was his ability to drive other people almost insane with anger while rarely becoming ruffled himself. When Lord Sandwich predicted to Wilkes that he would die either "of a pox or on the gallows," Wilkes replied, "That depends, my lord, on whether I embrace your mistress or your principles."
Now that's thinking on your feet.
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Comments
Too bad we don't have Wilkes doing press conferences these days.
Posted by: AcademicElephant at September 2, 2005 02:31 PM
I'd purely love to see John Wilkes vs Helen Thomas.
Posted by: Jeff at September 2, 2005 03:59 PM
That would be a little unfair.
Posted by: AcademicElephant at September 2, 2005 04:33 PM
