AS floods hit Iowa and other parts of the corn belt, the price of corn rose above $7 a bushel. The rains were not the only reason, though.

The national policy decision to promote the use of corn for ethanol as an automotive fuel has driven up demand for corn, which in turn drives up the price of corn.

Congress meanwhile has doubled the corn ethanol requirement by 2012. This drives up the cost of meat, cereal and even movie theater popcorn.

A backlash is brewing. A consortium led by the Grocery Manufacturers Association is lobbying Congress to reverse course and stop raising the requirements for corn ethanol, which even some environmentalists admit is a poor source of "renewable" energy.

West Virginia's congressional delegation should back this return to sanity. Americans have far better uses for corn - say, as whiskey.

THE North-South football game began before World War II but was discontinued years later due to disinterest, which was a shame.

The annual all-star game was always fun for fans and players alike.

But some alumni of the game got together and brought it back. NFL great Sam Huff, along with Fred Wyant, Gene Lathey and Mike Dunlap, worked to re-institute the game.

Huff was instrumental in getting the Marriott chain of hotels and resorts to be the lead sponsor of the game.

AS floods hit Iowa and other parts of the corn belt, the price of corn rose above $7 a bushel. The rains were not the only reason, though.

The national policy decision to promote the use of corn for ethanol as an automotive fuel has driven up demand for corn, which in turn drives up the price of corn.

Congress meanwhile has doubled the corn ethanol requirement by 2012. This drives up the cost of meat, cereal and even movie theater popcorn.

A backlash is brewing. A consortium led by the Grocery Manufacturers Association is lobbying Congress to reverse course and stop raising the requirements for corn ethanol, which even some environmentalists admit is a poor source of "renewable" energy.

West Virginia's congressional delegation should back this return to sanity. Americans have far better uses for corn - say, as whiskey.

THE North-South football game began before World War II but was discontinued years later due to disinterest, which was a shame.

The annual all-star game was always fun for fans and players alike.

But some alumni of the game got together and brought it back. NFL great Sam Huff, along with Fred Wyant, Gene Lathey and Mike Dunlap, worked to re-institute the game.

Huff was instrumental in getting the Marriott chain of hotels and resorts to be the lead sponsor of the game.

Huff and Wyant played for the North in the 1952 match-up, and they will be inducted into the North-South Hall of fame.

They gave their all in that game, and it is good to see them still giving their all for the state 56 years later.

The decline in the value of the dollar is not the only reason American exports are

on the rise. Education has played a small role in one export.

In this case, it is not what happens in the classroom that matters. It is what happens at school outside the classroom.

The Wall Street Journal reported that American prom dresses are being exported to England, where proms have become all the rage thanks to movies such as "American Pie" and TV shows such as "The O.C."

Out are the "leavers discos" in which kids show up at the dance in jeans. In are tuxedos, stretch Hummers, tiaras and yes, prom dresses. A $100 American prom dress can fetch $275 in London.

American parents are not alone in finding their daughters' prom budgets to be budget busters.