also, he has ran for congress, and his family has a history most american families do not. coming from a line of a senator and other political figures, id say he knows a thing or two, and is more than capable of shaping an opinion on things, hell EVERY american is entitled to this form of expression.
'Vidal's grandfather, Thomas P. Gore, was a popular (and populist) senator from Oklahoma - the state's first senator, and the Senate's first blind member. He served from 1907-1920 and again from 1931-37, losing in '36 because of his opposition to the popular FDR. As a child, the young Vidal would often accompany his grandfather to the floor of the Senate, occasionally being permitted to sit in the chair reserved for the vice president.'
http://www.pitt.edu/~kloman/politics.html
instead of being held over an alligator mouth, he was on the floor of the senate as a child....