Opinion category, Page 108
Lisa Jarvis: Bird flu is about to crash flu season. It could get ugly
It’s been nearly eight months since avian flu was first detected in U.S. dairy herds, and cases in both cows and humans continue to pile up. That slow burn of infections through our nation’s livestock, a new vessel for the virus, has never been good for public health. It creates...
Paul Kengor: A tragic 9/11 love story
Early in the morning of Sept. 11, 2001, Barbara Olson, a Washington-based author and pundit, sweetly gave her husband, Ted, a kiss goodbye. She was 45 years old, a well-known media personality and critic of the Clintons. She was a happy person who knew how to laugh with folks on...
Peter Morici: Trump’s long to-do list includes increasing border security, extending tax cuts
A full inbox awaits President-elect Donald Trump when he returns to the Oval Office. Most individual tax reductions in the 2017 tax overhaul expire at the end of 2025. He has promised to extend and enhance those. But even if he let those lapse, the federal deficit would rise from...
Letter to the editor: Republicans must come together
Now that the election is over, and the American people overwhelmingly chose capitalism over socialism, it’s time to come together and repair the damage done to the nation over the past four years. We don’t need to agree that the right candidates won the elections, but the vast majority of...
Letter to the editor: God help us survive Trump
I was astounded and saddened that over half the voters in our country chose for president a convicted felon who I feel has no belief in integrity, democracy or truth, acts like a 3-year-old, lies every time he opens his mouth, is a confirmed misogynist, cheats on his taxes and...
Editorial: Teaching English as Second Language turns immigrants into community
There are places where the cultural mix of a community makes you expect to hear a chorus of different languages. Along the southern border, Spanish makes sense. So might a smattering of Portuguese or the odd native tongue like Quechua. Closer to Canada, there could be some French. But Westmoreland...
Letter to the editor: Social connections save lives
Western Pennsylvania’s “deaths of despair” — suicide, addiction and overdose — highlight the need for mental health solutions that go beyond therapy’s traditional, one-on-one approach. Rather than centering solely on individual resilience, effective mental health policies must regenerate the community institutions — churches, Little Leagues and civic groups — that...
Rachel Marsden: Trump’s shock and awe cabinet picks are everything that America needs
Many of U.S. President-elect Donald Trump’s cabinet nominees just don’t have the gravitas or institutional experience in dealing with giant bureaucracies to serve effectively, critics say. That whining you hear is the sound of progress. Trump, who has spent his entire business career in real estate taking a wrecking ball...
Cal Thomas: Trimming obese government
Fifty years ago when Ron Paul (father of Sen. Rand Paul) was running for Congress from Texas, a billboard featured an obese Uncle Sam with the caption “let’s put big government on a diet.” Since then, the federal government has grown even more obese. To seriously address the problem, President-elect...
Letter to the editor: Allegheny County budget threats
Regarding the article “Innamorato defends proposed budget and Allegheny County tax increase” (Nov. 13, TribLive): I am not happy with the reasoning of Allegheny County Executive Sara Innamorato and county Manager John Fournier, who said if the tax hike isn’t passed, consequences could include closing all county pools, eliminating after-school...
Letter to the editor: Progressives have ruined Democratic Party
The progressives are the bane of our country’s existence. Look at how the they went on a cavalier political campaign for president of the United States by spending over a billion dollars. If you look realistically at the last three-plus years the progressives time and again did the same thing...
Letter to the editor: Noah’s Ark replica thought-provoking
I recently went on a trip to Williamstown, Ky., to visit the Ark Encounter, a life-sized replica of Noah’s Ark based on the story in Genesis. The ministry that operates the ark, Answers in Genesis, provides information to explain climate change, natural selection and spaces made for dinosaurs. Though its...
Editorial: Courts need to decide election question on more than a race-by-race basis
Pennsylvania needs an answer — once and for all — on mail-in ballots. The ability to use the voting alternative without a reason like being out of town or having a medical condition was given blanket approval with the passage of Act 77 in 2019. It promptly got its first...
Letter to the editor: Therapy best for gender dysphoria
I agree with President-elect Trump’s plan to end hormone and surgical treatment for children diagnosed with gender dysphoria. There has been a disturbing trend in our society of the increased diagnosis of gender dysphoria from 2017 (28,847) to 2021 (42,167) — a tripling from 2017 (Komodo Health Inc.). Medical treatment...
Letter to the editor: Economy and the election
This election was lost due to economic problems. It is hard to comprehend that with all the issues Donald Trump has that he would win , but economy always wins over the other party. I just shake my head like so many. I find it sad that so many in...
Beth Dale: Working together on gun violence
Schools in Pennsylvania are back in full swing, but with the excitement that comes with a new school year comes growing concern to ensure our school communities are kept safe from gun violence. In March, a statewide survey found that nearly half of Pennsylvania parents are more worried about gun...
Lawrence McCullough: Pittsburgh arts rise to the political moment
A hallmark of live theater is presenting plays that offer audiences the opportunity to examine important social issues of the day in a fresh, often provocative light. That recently transpired in an unexpected manner when Fowlerville Community Theatre’s production of “The Diary of Anne Frank” was menaced by a masked...
Letter to the editor: Election positives — no fraud claims, no violence
I work at trying to have a positive attitude and see the bright side. Good results from the presidential election? No claims of voter fraud! Transfer of power in January is likely to be free of violence! That’s all the positives I can see for now. Secretly I am ready...
Letter to the editor: As Thanksgiving approaches, let’s strive for unity
Thanksgiving is around the corner and as we reflect on the recent election, know that some of us are celebrating a victory and some of us are mourning a loss. A thought: By Thanksgiving, let’s bring our focus to our great communities that we all love with a good gesture...
Letter to the editor: Where did all those votes go?
The total popular vote in the 2020 presidential election was 155,506,285, according to the Federal Election Commission. Joe Biden received 81,282,916 popular votes. Donald Trump received 74,223,369 popular votes. As of this writing, the total popular vote in the 2024 presidential election was 145,567,700. Kamala Harris received 70,916,946 popular votes,...
Letter to the editor: Our tax system is not fair
Paul Kengor’s column “Trump’s tax cuts for fat-cat billionaires?” (Oct. 24, TribLive) did not give us the whole picture. He states that the bottom 50% of income earners in America pay only 2.3% of federal income tax. But he fails to mention that nearly 50% of full-time workers do not...
Editorial: Regionalization could rescue volunteer fire departments
Pennsylvania has 67 counties. Those counties contain 2,560 municipalities of various sizes, each with its own internal organizations. There are 2,400 fire departments, according to the Office of the State Fire Commissioner. More than 2,300 of those are strictly volunteer. Another 72 are a mix of volunteers with at least...
Letter to the editor: Democrats won’t win again unless they change
It’s fun, however pathetic, to watch Democrats eat themselves alive as they race to place blame for the catastrophic election loss. I have a clue: Maybe it’s their arrogance, or maybe it’s their assumption that they are intellectually superior over millions of racist, fascist, Nazi, homophobic pieces of garbage known...
Letter to the editor: Trump’s mob won’t ‘Make America Great Again’
Why did Trump supporters vote for a criminal mob to take over our government? I suspect ignorance. In my opinion, the GOP has been using 1930s Nazi-style tactics to promote their agenda for a long time. The only difference is instead of targeting Jews, the GOP victimizes immigrants. How ironic,...
Colleen Friend: My school district has saved over a million dollars by going solar. With Solar for Schools, your district could be next
As a superintendent for Carlisle Area School District, I have a lot to balance. CASD encompasses 77 square miles, with seven elementary schools, two middle schools and a comprehensive high school boasting its own Career and Technology Center. We educate approximately 5,200 students, and our student body is diverse and...
