Feel like diagramming a sentence? Try the lead to The New York Times’s William F. Buckley obit:

“William F. Buckley Jr., who marshaled polysyllabic exuberance, famously arched eyebrows and a refined, perspicacious mind to elevate conservatism to the center of American political discourse, died Wednesday at his home in Stamford, Conn.”

Prewritten obits sound a lot stronger when you read them in the back of the newspaper (toward the bottom of a cup of coffee on a Saturday morning), rather than on the front of a breaking news Web site. I need to know how the fellow died, please hold the polysyllabic exuberance.