Tribute to North Carolina

There have been times where the Heath Post has been somewhat critical of the two premier college basketball programs in the state of North Carolina. But the day after North Carolina was ripped by horrific storms that sent 60 tornadoes ravaging across the state, it is important to express our great sadness over the suffering in that part of the world, and to acknowledge all of the great things that North Carolina has done for the rest of us.

There are states that I almost forget about for months or even years at a time -- states that simply blend into the backdrop of American life, and simply follow fashions that are set elsewhere. But not North Carolina. The ambitions and talents of her people ensure that she plays an outsized role on the American stage. It's impossible to imagine modern America without Billy Graham, James Taylor, Andy Griffith, Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt, Jesse Helms, or Michael Jordan -- without Tobacco Road, the Research Triangle, Pinehurst # 2, or Look Homeward, Angel.

North Carolina is also a spectacularly beautiful state -- even to someone like me, who prefers the oaks of Kentucky and northern Virginia to the piney woods of states like North Carolina. Whether you are driving to the beaches and islands so beloved by DC suburbanites, poking along the pretty towns in the middle part of the state, or enjoying the spectacular views of the mountains -- almost every type of natural beauty that exists on the East Coast of North America can be found in North Carolina. And it is particularly sad to me that nature -- which has blessed North Carolinians in so many ways -- turned on them so viciously yesterday.

But they will rebuild. For North Carolina is blessed by people who love her, and who want her to be great. They will clean up the damage, they will bury the dead, they will plan for the future. And they will understand that even though everything man-made is ultimately built on sand, that should not prevent us from building as strong and true and noble as possible.

And so we wish God Speed to everyone in North Carolina. Thank you for all your contributions to the nation in the past, and for all you will do for the rest of us in the future. We will keep you in our prayers.