One of the reasons Buckley and his successors were so successful is that they refused to play the victim. Buckley didn’t organize sit-ins. Will didn’t call out the media as biased sycophants. Both had Orwellian (in the best sense) smiles from knowing that no massaging of message could keep their plain sense from resonating with the American people.

Playing the victim, alleging you lack success because the big bad powers that be are stacked against you, is the progressives’ game. It has no place in conservatism. There are times when disparate treatment of conservatives needs remedy, when ugly and dangerous attacks on them are ignored while slights against liberals are punished. But none of this new.

We draw too bright of a line between social media and plain old media. They aren’t as distinct as we think. Both employ similar gatekeepers who monitor what can be said. It’s as old as Buckley and Will, and it has not stopped conservatives from racking up incredible electoral success. When a conservative is targeted or shut down by a social media company, sure, complain about it, and bring in others to aid you. But in the grander scheme of things, don’t freak out.