Opinion category, Page 216
Letter to the editor: Thankful for all who improved Route 28
I have been traveling to Pittsburgh from Natrona Heights since 1981, and I would like to thank the designers, construction workers and agencies who funded the work on Route 28 in these past 42 years. I started at the Bradford School and worked a co-op position at PPG when they...
Joseph Sabino Mistick: George Westinghouse knew how to take care of people
Westinghouse Air Brake was more than just another industrial plant in the Turtle Creek Valley east of Pittsburgh, and the recently announced plan to close the 134-year-old Wilmerding factory now known as Wabtec reminds us of an earlier corporate philosophy that we need today. If you grew up in that...
Counterpoint: Jan. 6 was a protest and riot — not an insurrection
On Jan. 6, 2021, as Congress was preparing to certify officially the results of the 2020 presidential election, a melee took place at the nation’s capital, temporarily stalling the certification process. Later that evening, after the calm was restored, the Electoral College votes were cast, paving the way for another...
Point: Confronting the stain of an insurrection on American democracy
The chaos and fear wrought by the insurrection on Jan. 6, 2021, still stings fresh in the minds of millions of Americans — and particularly mine, as someone who served as a congressional staffer that day. But, as a country, I don’t think we’ve adequately grappled with the gravity of...
Letter to the editor: ‘Iran-backed militias’ — IBMs the new WMDs?
Regarding President Biden’s latest authorization of airstrikes on an “Iran-backed militia” that injured a serviceman in Iraq: Why are U.S. servicemen still in Iraq? U.S. attacks on supposed Iran-backed militias in Iraq, Syria and Yemen are becoming an all-too-familiar news item lately. Will “IBMs” become the new go-to-war acronym to...
Sounding off: Guns, Gaza, Steelers on readers’ minds
We have plenty of gun laws The usual misleading statistics were mentioned in the letter “Immediate action needed on gun safety” (Dec. 24, TribLive), with the same tired lack of context and use of carefully selected data points. Not mentioned is that the CDC gun death numbers include not just...
Letter to the editor: U.S. support of genocide must stop
Just like this time last year, President Biden spent a week in the Caribbean. Back then, it was while 10,000 migrants a day were flooding to our southern border. This year (yes, still 10,000 migrants a day), while flip-flopping around the Virgin Islands, Biden has arbitrarily rubber-stamped a $147.5 million...
Editorial: The ups and downs of Westmoreland pay raises
Westmoreland County has cut a new deal with its lawyers. The county salary board approved the four-year agreement Tuesday. It starts new attorneys at $65,000 a year. Lawyers hired in 2023 would be likewise adjusted. More senior lawyers would see comparable salary increases, according to human resources director Alexis Bevan....
Letter to the editor: We have plenty of gun laws
The usual misleading statistics were mentioned in the letter “Immediate action needed on gun safety” (Dec. 24, TribLive), with the same tired lack of context and use of carefully selected data points. Not mentioned is that the CDC gun death numbers include not just homicides but also suicides and accidents....
Gary Franks: Where have you gone, Clinton, Bush and Obama?
I am asking the living and healthy past presidents of the United States, except for candidate Donald Trump, to step up, help and contribute to America again as advisers or as prominent and experienced Americans who can influence others. Unconventional times warrant unconventional solutions. Long after leaving office, former Secretary...
S.E. Cupp: Haley is failing to bank on Iowa’s independents
With less than two weeks to go until the Iowa caucuses, the 2024 presidential election just shot into high gear. Former President Donald Trump still overwhelmingly leads the Republican pack, despite the fact that he’s facing more than 90 criminal charges and four different indictments and may, at some point,...
Daniel DePetris: Is the Middle East in danger of spinning out of control?
There is only so much a single person can do to control the events around them. Joe Biden is learning in real time that one of life’s golden rules also applies to the president of the United States. Despite holding the most powerful position in the world, Biden is finding...
Peter Morici: Bad news for Biden — Americans feel worse about the economy than they should
The U.S. economy has recovered from the covid pandemic reasonably well, yet President Joe Biden is getting little credit and could even lose his job in 2024. Third-quarter GDP growth scored at 4.9%; the Federal Reserve has enjoyed considerable success pulling down inflation. Jobs are plentiful, and the misery index...
Letter to the editor: Steelers fan rooting for the Browns
The end of the world must be near. As a lifelong Steelers fan, I never in my wildest dreams ever thought that I’d cheer for Cleveland or anyone associated with them. Having said that, I find myself rooting for them and enjoying their success. Go Browns and go Joe Flacco....
Letter to the editor: Keep focus on important issues like elections, environment
It’s good business to learn what strikes a chord with readers (customers), but never stop highlighting critical topics like election issues, the East Palestine train crash, gas drilling, etc. — the reason that many of us still read the Trib. With the water shortage out of Beaver Dam, the drilling...
Letter to the editor: End violence to stop more violence
I would like to offer a corrective to the “Paw Patrol” vision of global conflict in the letter “Cease-fire won’t work in Gaza” (Dec. 24, TribLive). The writer invokes the term “bad guys” multiple times, without identifying who the “bad guys” are and why they keep fighting Israel. The reason...
Laurels & lances: Hello, goodbye, God bless
Laurel: To a fresh start. So many people start out Jan. 1 with the intent to be a whole new person. The only people who really accomplish that are the babies born after midnight. “New Year, new me!” actually applies to Jonathan Mrockosky and Emily Hibling’s daughter Madison, who showed...
Letter to the editor: Resolve to take climate action
The new year is a time to reflect on the past year and decide what to change. 2023 was the hottest year on record. Antarctic sea ice hit a record low. Historic wildfires in Canada kept Pittsburghers indoors with a code red air quality alert. Phoenix suffered a record-shattering heat...
Paul Kengor: Putin’s ominous message for 2024
Vladimir Putin this week gave his customary year-end speech. What he said should give us pause. Interestingly, the speech was considerably shorter than usual; in fact, it was quite brief, running just under four minutes. Also quite curious, some media sources noted that Putin “made little mention” of Ukraine, at...
Lori Falce: Minimum wage, self-worth and pizza
My first job was babysitting. In 1983, at 12 years old, I made $5 an hour. Minimum wage in Pennsylvania was $3.35 at the time. By the time I was 15, I had a regular client that paid $10 an hour plus pizza. Minimum wage hadn’t budged. When I had...
Cal Thomas: President Gay is a symptom, not the cause
The resignation of Harvard president Claudine Gay after “facing national backlash for her administration’s response to Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack and allegations of plagiarism in her scholarly work” does not solve the problem at America’s oldest college and other elite schools. She and many other university presidents are only a...
Vanessa Lynch: Celebrating EPA’s new oil and gas safeguards
Clean air advocates — and those of us living in front-line oil and gas communities — have something to celebrate as we start a new year. New Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) safeguards are poised to significantly slash methane pollution from the oil and gas industry. Parents across Pennsylvania are ecstatic....
Letter to the editor: Tax hike will hurt struggling Westmoreland County
Shocking that the property taxes in Westmoreland County are going up by over 30%. Yes, 30%. Nothing was said during the recent election by the incumbent commissioners who were reelected. Strange strategy or … ? They don’t seem to be as honest and forthcoming as we might want! Maybe an...
Letter to the editor: Westmoreland County seniors deserve better
I’ve been a nurse at Westmoreland Manor for 26 years. Like every year, caregivers like me spent the holidays with your loved ones at the nursing home. We love our residents like they’re our own family. My only wish is more time to care for them. Our elderly spent their...
Editorial: Cybersecurity is important to infrastructure
Infrastructure is one of those words that we think we know. Then something happens that shows us infrastructure is a lot bigger and a lot more complicated than we believed. When a bridge falls in Pittsburgh on the morning the president is due to visit for an infrastructure speech, that...
