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The Constitution, Articles 6 and 7

The final articles of the Constitution, Articles 6 and 7, establish the Supremacy Clause, the oath requirement, the No Religious Test Clause, and the rules for ratifying the Constitution. In Article 6, the Supremacy Clause says the Constitution and federal statutes always take priority over conflicting state laws. If the directives Congress enacts are authorized by the Constitution, they take priority over both the ordinary laws and constitution of each individual state. Courts are given the power through judicial review to examine actions of the government and declare when they are ...

Welcome to the real world!

A few years ago, Lynnda and I were on vacation in mid-July with our youngest son and his family. Lauren, his second-oldest, was getting ready to go off to college. She was working a part-time summer job. During the vacation, she announced she wanted to quit because “they want me to work three days in a row.” My son responded, “Lauren, that is what it is like in the real world. Your mother and I work five days a week and sometimes on Saturdays.” Lauren stared at her dad. “I don’t know how you do it!” Lauren has grown a lot in the last four years. She worked summer jobs ...

The PACE storytelling approach for learning

The Prereading Activity for Concept Enhancement (PACE) is a storytelling approach to teach children a lesson. With the use of the PACE strategy, a child is introduced to concepts, themes, or topics through the medium of succinct, motivating, adult-presented narratives. This approach enables children: ¯ To set a purpose for reading. ¯ To be aware of the primary concepts, themes, or topics. ¯ To learn vocabulary pertinent to target concepts, themes, or topics. ¯ To discuss stimulating prequestions. ¯ To tap prior knowledge and experiences. Before describing the PACE ...

Suggestions for our children

It is always a great idea to present ideas and suggestions to our children and hopefully that they follow them. Children have different levels, with some extremely talented, some smart but without common sense, and some very dedicated and determined to succeed. Therefore it becomes important that we always advise them and help them choose the right path to succeed and accomplish their goals in life and at the same time we must take care that we are leaving a good example for our children. Below I am listing a few ideas that you might want consider: ¯Good things happen to those ...

Marquis de Lafayette: Marietta connections

Woody Allen said “80% of success is in showing up.” French nobleman Marquis de Lafayette, showed up in 1777 and brought success to the American Revolution and himself. May 23 will be the 200th anniversary of his 1825 visit at Marietta. Check out the special Lafayette exhibit at Campus ...

MOV Climate Corner: Fairmont’s Chernobyl

Last fall, I received an email from a group concerned about public health, informing me of an important event scheduled for Nov. 14, 2024, in Fairmont, W.Va. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency would be holding their first “Public Meeting” (caps per EPA) to explain the hazard at the site of the former Fairmont Brine Processing facility. The EPA’s “2024 Radiological Health Update” was the topic of the meeting. Because my granddaughter is a student at nearby Fairmont State University, I was very interested. That evening, her mother and I drove to Fairmont for the ...