Editorials category, Page 90
Editorial: Capitol capacity can’t contain protests
Pennsylvania invites its citizens to engage in lively and personal protest at the seat of government. As long as it’s done in small enough groups. As reported by PennLive.com, if you want to marshal your forces and show up at the state Capitol with a contingent of like-minded individuals to...
Editorial: Companies play games with bankruptcy
Bankruptcy isn’t supposed to be child’s play, but too often companies big and small use it as a way to cheat at tag. Remember when you were a kid and someone wouldn’t play the game so much as game the rules? They would taunt “come and get me!” as they...
Editorial: Ms. Monopoly panders to women
Talk about diversifying your portfolio. The makers of an age-old favorite board game have created a new version that celebrates the contributions of women: Ms. Monopoly. That’s great. Women have consistently been unrepresented on the board, which has just one real character — Mr. Monopoly, the top-hatted, cane-wielding image of...
Editorial: Dick’s, other CEOs get to speak up
Who is Dick’s Sporting Goods to ask for stronger gun laws? Who is Gap? Who is Levi Strauss? Who is Credit Karma or Bloomberg or Condé Nast? According to the U.S. Supreme Court, they are people. In the 2010 decision that has rippled through campaign finance, the court decided that...
Editorial: Shapiro right about Purdue Pharma offer
What is the cost of a life lost to drugs? According to Pennsylvania statutes, it is 40 years in prison. That’s the maximum sentence for drug delivery resulting in death. It’s decades in a concrete-block box with a metal tray for a bed. It’s matching jumpsuits that identify you as...
Laurels & lances: Counseling, foreclosure and mobility
Laurel: To helping kids cope. There are things that you might expect at a Friday night football game. Zealous fans. Uncomfortable bleachers. Both sides mad at the referees. What you don’t expect is a man being gunned down outside the field. That happened last week at McKee Stadium. Jeannette City...
Editorial: Stop laughing at Antonio Brown
It is time to stop being amused by Antonio Brown. Oh, sure, it was fun for a while. And it kind of felt like Steelers fans had earned the entertainment, the opportunity to kick back and watch the football player make another team befuddled for a change. There were frozen...
Editorial: On anniversary of 9/11, we must find strength to unite once again
It seemed hard to believe, that day, that it was happening. It seemed hard to believe your eyes, even though you watched the planes hit, the towers fall, the Pentagon burn, the smoke roll off the Pennsylvania field. The nation stared, not the way you might be unable to look...
Editorial: Details matter with rail inspection
The devil is in the details. On Aug. 4, 2018, a Norfolk Southern freight train derailed near Station Square in Pittsburgh. Given the proximity of people at the Port Authority T track below, it is providential that there were no casualties. But there were costs. Local transit riders were disrupted...
Editorial: The real challenge of gun debate
In August, days after shootings in California and Texas and Ohio, Pittsburgh Mayor Bill Peduto issued a challenge to legislators in Washington and Harrisburg: Do something about guns in 30 days. If nothing else, reconvene from recess and talk about what to do. The 30 days have passed. Nothing has...
Editorial: Vaping epidemic can be stopped
Just stop the vaping. Take the little electronic device that you are using to inhale vaporized liquids and put it down. It might not be smoking, but you’re playing with fire. On Friday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention outlined the latest ugly numbers about the health impacts of...
Editorial: Firefighter support is priceless
Putting out a fire isn’t cheap. According to the International Association of Fire Chiefs, that iconic helmet is $350. Goggles are $75. The hood that goes under the hat is $45, and that’s the cheapest thing they wear. The jacket and pants are $1,800, gloves are $75 and boots are...
Laurels & lances: Soldiers, screens and schools
Laurel: To telling the stories of heroes. Sutersville fire Chief Mark Ghion conducted countless hours of research into the lives and deaths of 14 soldiers from that borough who were killed while serving their country in World Wars I and II and Korea. His work, “14 Sons of Sutersville,” has...
Editorial: Threats aren’t pranks
It’s not funny. You can call it a prank or a practical joke. You can say it was all in good fun or that no harm was meant. You can say whatever you want but it doesn’t make it true. The fact is that there is nothing amusing about telling...
Editorial: Is ATV information best safety device?
It’s not against the law for a child to drive an all-terrain vehicle. It’s not against the law for a child to ride on one either. But is it always a good idea? On Thursday, Annabel Whittingham, 5, of Fox Chapel was on an ATV in her yard with her...
Editorial: What will quiet the crime?
Downtown Pittsburgh crime is making a lot of noise right now. It’s not just the loudest alarm bell — a series of knife-related incidents that included a woman being killed right in front of a police officer. There are the more persistent buzzings of everyday problems. There is the panhandling....
Editorial: Science before law in measuring marijuana
Sometimes you need a good scientist to figure out the law. The law can tell you not to speed. It takes science to figure out how fast you are going. The law can tell you not to drink and drive. It takes science to figure out how many beers you...
Editorial: Hand gestures aren’t hand guns
You have a right to bear arms. But maybe not hands. On Tuesday, a state appellate court decided not to overturn the disorderly conduct conviction of Stephen Kirchner, 64, of Lancaster County. Kirchner walked past a neighbor’s home. The man made an obscene gesture at him. He returned the favor...
Editorial: What is a worker?
You can’t replace a worker. A worker isn’t an employee. The words might be listed as synonyms in the thesaurus, but there are big differences. An employee collects a paycheck. Hasn’t everyone known an employee? That person whose main skill involves keeping a chair from floating away? Someone who gives...
Laurels & lances: Scholarship, soil, support and snow
Laurel: To sharing a life and a loss. The family of Terry Ranieri lost him to cancer last week, and that was a hard blow for them. We previously applauded the band for supporting Ranieri in his final days. Now we acknowledge the Ranieri family’s reciprocation. Knowing that Ranieri, a...
Editorial: Grandparents need help raising kids
They say it takes a village to raise a child. More and more, it takes a grandma. “We grandparents who are raising grandchildren, we are the protection for that next generation,” said Charlotte Stephenson in a panel discussion Tuesday with U.S. Sen. Bob Casey, D-Scranton. And it’s true. In Pennsylvania...
Editorial: Opioid verdicts have to hurt
What is the cost of a crisis? The opioid epidemic has been a greedy monster, demanding more and more resources from all levels of government as well as hospitals and insurance companies over the last 20 years. It has eaten lives and devoured communities. In 2013 alone, the Centers for...
Editorial: Just put out the fires
Nothing makes priorities more obvious than a fire. You don’t call the insurance company and file a claim before you call 911. You do the most important thing until it’s taken care of and then move to the next one. That is why everyone needs to take the Amazon rainforest...
Editorial: Women deserve to run safely
Women run for a lot of reasons. They want to stay healthy. They want to get fit. It clears the mind. It strengthens the body. It can deliver a rush of endorphins. What it’s not supposed to do is make a woman a target. Unfortunately, that happens all too often....
Editorial: Vaccination info should be epidemic
Disease is not political. It doesn’t have an ideology. It doesn’t practice religion. It doesn’t espouse an opinion. Disease just wants to grow and spread. And it’s usually pretty good at it. So political arguments about vaccinations don’t faze diseases. The mumps couldn’t care less if you don’t believe your...
