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OH Canada!

This week, Lynnda and I were in Toronto at the SelectUSA Canada Roadshow. The event is hosted by the U.S. Commerce Department Commercial Services to encourage direct foreign investment in the USA. We had a business dinner in Morgantown last Friday with our friends from Israel who are looking for a location for their U.S. R&D Center. They flew home Saturday after a productive week and meetings with the governor, secretary of state, secretary of commerce and business leaders. The state people, business community and people of West Virginia were helpful and welcoming. Hosting foreign ...

Abner’s Rant

The handwriting was elegant, as though written by a calligrapher. But the mottled inscription was barely legible. It came from a family bible belonging to early Marietta businessman Abner Lord. I stared at the image. What was the message and who wrote it? As I deciphered the words, strong ...

Gratitude, truth, and a warming world: Reclaiming the real story of Thanksgiving— and what it teaches us about living in balance with the Earth

This time of year brings with it one of America’s most enduring stories — one we tell ourselves to feel better. The story of the “First Thanksgiving,” as many of us learned in school, is false in nearly every detail. The myth tells of colonists and Native Americans meeting peacefully to share a meal. The truth is far more complex — and far more painful. Oral histories place the Wampanoag and other Native nations of the northeastern coast in their homelands for thousands of years. Archaeological evidence confirms that the Wampanoag have lived in the region for at least 12,000 ...

The tentacles of history extend to the present

If you have read my column for any amount of time it will come as no surprise to you that I love history. I’ve always felt that if you don’t understand what took place before, it is harder to figure out what will happen in the future. As a journalist, I have been able to witness a ...

The 22nd Amendment to the U.S. Constitution

Why are presidents limited to two elected terms in office? The 22nd Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, ratified in 1951, limits the president to two elected terms in office (or for a maximum of 10 years if they assumed the presidency mid-term). In 1796 President George Washington chose not to run for a third term, setting an informal precedent that presidents would step down after two terms. Although the U.S. Constitution did not limit the number of presidential terms, this became a widely respected tradition, followed by all presidents for 144 years. President Franklin D. ...

Powering the USA, keeping our lights on

This week, we have an Israeli delegation visiting West Virginia. They are looking for a site for their U.S. HQ & Research Center. Ido, one of the delegates, asked if there was a place he could buy a fishing rod for his son. I took them to Cabela’s. Ido was overwhelmed as soon as he saw several aisles of fishing rods: “I’m going to need some help.” He bought two collapsible rods, one for his son and one for himself, along with tackle. They loved the stuffed game animals and large fish tank. Another delegate was amazed at the variety of firearms. He commented, “You can buy ...