Letters to the Editor category, Page 343

I would like to thank Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald, Allegheny County Council District 7 Representative Nicholas Futules and Allegheny County workers for a job well done. The job they did on getting the potholes on Crawford Run Road repatched shows county taxpayers our tax dollars at work. This quality...

I was 18 years old when I had my daughter, but that wasn’t going to prevent me from getting my diploma. I made it a top priority and I swore to myself that neither I nor my child would ever become a statistic. But I could only accomplish this goal...

Should noncitizens have say in making our laws? Counting illegals could add more representatives to the House; do you want noncitizens having a say in the laws that you have to live under? Clem Zahrobsky Delmont...

Flattering Trump If I were advising Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khameini, I would tell him that he is on the wrong track if he wishes to prevail over Donald Trump and the United States. Although a case can be made in his accusing the American administration of mental retardation,...

Recent letters have proclaimed the legitimacy of hating President Trump. Webster defines hatred as prejudicial hostility, with such synonyms as loathe, detest, abhor and abominate. Claims implying that many loyal supporters of our duly elected president are “moonshine-swilling hillbillies” who will probably lose their immortal souls (i.e., go to hell)...

Letter-writer Ron Slabe has demonstrated a total misunderstanding of the functions of the Supreme Court (“Pa. Supreme Court fails us on fracking,” June 28, TribLIVE). He says that they “put their money and voices where it was supposed to count, our judicial system.” The judicial system is specifically designed to...

The political climate is indeed divisive, as evidenced in our conversations, the media and our letters to the editor. Perhaps one way to temper this divide is to first seek commonalities in terms of our visions of how caring and respect should be evident in our interactions with each other....

The situation at our southern border is not a humanitarian or human rights crisis. It is a law enforcement matter. Those people have been detained for violating our borders and laws. They are owed nothing but criminal prosecution. No matter their political motivations, congressional Democrats visiting border patrol stations for...

Thank you for your coverage of Europe’s efforts to cut greenhouse gas pollution in the steel industry. If the world is to achieve near zero greenhouse gas emissions by mid-century (which is what scientists say is needed to keep the earth’s climate in the range that has supported human civilization),...

I was most fortunate to be one of the more than 8,000 fans in St. Clair Park June 28 for the marvelous concert by Leonid and Friends (“Russian Band covering Chicago tunes packs SummerSounds in Greensburg,” June 28, TribLIVE). Words can’t accurately describe the energy and excitement of the event....

Those who claim food and health care are human rights are dangerous tyrants. The right of one individual does not place an obligation upon another. For example, I have a right to express myself, but I cannot demand that the government force you to listen or build me a stage....

Letter-writer John Ventre (“Liberals & abortion”) says politicians “don’t see the bigger picture” because they allow fetuses to be aborted while we are losing population. George Wandell (“Logical, truthful sex-ed lesson”) seems to feel similarly. But the really big picture is that this earth simply cannot sustain so many people....

Joe Mistick’s column “Life’s struggles hit single moms hard” lists among those struggles finding clothes at Goodwill, looking for family hand-me-downs and taking the kids to public parks. Really? I don’t doubt that single moms face all kinds of struggles, but what kind of society believes shopping at Goodwill or...

Thank you for the editorial ”Gerrymandering doesn’t represent us.”Gerrymandering can be a complicated subject, but you focused on the essence of the problem with the sentence, “Representative democracy doesn’t work if it’s not representative.” This assessment sums up the reason our state and federal governments are dysfunctional. If we can’t...

According to the latest Mercatus Center Senior Research, the top 50% of taxpayers pay 97.3% of the total. The top 1% pay over 38%. Leaving under 3% for the bottom 50%! Either the Democratic candidates who are calling for tax fairness flunked math or they just like beating up the...

Letter-writer John Ventre (“Liberals & abortion”) says politicians “don’t see the bigger picture” because they allow fetuses to be aborted while we are losing population. George Wandell (“Logical, truthful sex-ed lesson”) seems to feel similarly. But the really big picture is that this earth simply cannot sustain so many people....

Regarding the article “Sen. Toomey lauds Trump for calling off Iran strikes, supports stricter economic sanctions” (June 21, TribLIVE): More sanctions are absurd to Iran. How would we like it if someone took our medicines away? That’s what happened in 2013 before the Iran nuclear deal. Iran rightfully fears that...

The recent decision of the Trump administration to curtail fetal tissue research is detrimental to the further development of life-saving therapies (“Trump administration imposes new restrictions on fetal tissue research,” June 5, TribLIVE). Fetal tissue research not only helps scientists develop therapies to prevent disease, but also treat existing diseases....

My neighbors and I attended the June 17 Penn Hills council meeting at which the subject of a memorial for fallen firefighters was brought up. It was noted that a committee has raised $12,500 for the memorial, which must have certain dimensions according to municipal codes. Deputy Mayor Catherine Sapp...

Are we a country that wants to become like President Trump? To lie, cheat, break laws and become an immoral nation, where winning is everything and the ends justify any means? Where mercy, compassion and understanding are replaced by hate? Are we a nation under God? We pit the rich...

According to the fake news media, President Trump would lose the election if it were held today. Not only would Trump be beaten by Joe Biden, but also by fellow Democrats Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren, Kamala Harris and Pete Buttigieg. Does the fake news media really expect us to believe...

I don’t know of any restrictive laws being considered by our Pennsylvania legislative reps that would control use of polluting plastics that threaten our very existence. You bet they wouldn’t take action with the Beaver Shell facility nearing completion. Our representatives continue to change laws to favor the drilling industry....

Honor is dead. Truth is alive, but on life support. Willful ignorance (aka denial) is thriving and growing stronger. Why? Because truth can create anxiety. Once you buy into denial, you tend to defend it as you plunge deeper into it. Like quicksand, it gets more difficult to escape. Freedom,...

Many thanks to the FBI, which thwarted a terrorist attack on a North Side church (“Syrian refugee charged with plotting to bomb Pittsburgh church”).President Trump has disparaged the organization because of its scrutiny on his criminal activity, but its never-ending vigilance is appreciated by every decent American. Joe Lucas South...

Recent media articles and commentary, either directly or by implication, project that inadequate child care or security at the southern border are the fault of the U.S. This is unfair and irresponsible reporting and opinion. No country or people in the world have shown more commitment and support to troubled...