The Huffington Post | February 22, 2010

When Walker Percy won the National Book Award, he was asked why the South has so many great writers. His response was deceivingly simple: because we lost the war. While I think the south’s defeat in the Civil War certainly resonated for generations, when I am asked the same question (though under decidedly less auspicious circumstances) I generally refer to something Mr. Percy probably discounted: air conditioning.

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