Critics were abound, when it came to chastising Buckley for using words that were not in daily use, or understood by many Americans. However, he didn't let that dissuade him, because he really believed that people need to be challenged, in order to better themselves, even if that was only simply mastering their own language.
As he once noted, restricting a writer from using certain words, simply because they are not often spoken every day, is like telling a composer that they could not use diminished cords in their their next composition.
Although I found myself looking up words that he used in his writings, I agree with his way of thinking. If we do not use certain words, because they are not often used, we are simply ensuring that our vocabulary, and the English language, in general, will slowly become "limited". Not enough words would be available or known that would allow one to express a whole spectrum of feelings, emotions, conditions, etc. it'd be just black-or-white.
I may not have agreed with many of his views, but we need more writers like him, to preserve the language.
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