Opinion category, Page 241
Letter to the editor: MAGAs can display their hero’s mug shot
I have been told that there was a time when the walls of coal miners’ patch homes held pictures of two much-admired men of that almost forgotten era. Then-President Franklin D. Roosevelt was one, and United Mine Workers union head John L. Lewis was the other. I never personally saw...
Editorial: Do we need more gator laws?
“Jurassic Park” is a heck of a movie. Indeed, it is a great franchise of movies. Michael Crichton’s bestselling book as the skeleton and Stephen Spielberg’s 1993 blockbuster thriller brought us all face to face — or screen to face — with reptilian claws and teeth. Five more movies followed....
Letter to the editor: Spino deserves vote for Greensburg mayor
Residents of the city of Greensburg will elect a mayor Nov. 7. G. Domenic Spino is running for the position. He is a dedicated, passionate and honest candidate. Dom serves humbly, like his parents. His father, the late Dr. Pascal D. Spino, was just a pure joy to be around....
Raymond Scheppach: Congress needs to pass 12 funding bills in 11 days to avert a shutdown — here’s why that isn’t likely
U.S. senators and representatives returning from their summer vacations will need to shake off their suntans in quick time and get down to business. Congress has just 11 days when it’s in session before the next federal fiscal year begins on Oct. 1 And in that time, it will need...
Elwood Watson: Jacksonville and the continued assault on Black people
As segments of the nation remembered the 60th anniversary of the 1963 March on Washington, we simultaneously witnessed another horrendous, senseless act of racially sadistic violence occur in Jacksonville, Fla. Armed with an AR-15 and a handgun decorated with a swastika, 21-year-old Ryan Christopher Palmiter carried out a racist mass...
Tom Pike: Leaders aren’t helpless and must take action on fracking
On Aug. 15, researchers with the University of Pittsburgh and the Pennsylvania Department of Health announced they had found strong links between lymphoma and fracking, as well as asthma and fracking. Lymphoma was found to be 5-7 times as common in people who lived near fracking well pads as those...
Letter to the editor: Jail for the leading candidate?
What surprises me most is how average Democrats seem perfectly fine with our government attempting to jail the leading opposition candidate. Thomas Wagner Murrysville...
Letter to the editor: Grateful for Morabito in Allegheny Township
We have lived in Allegheny Township for 32 years. We believe Supervisor Jamie Morabito is the best thing that has happened to our township in a number of years. He has infused new blood and new ideas into this stagnant township. Community Days was a great success thanks to his...
Editorial: Pennsylvania legislature runs secrecy machine
To borrow a device from the recent Republican candidates’ debate: Raise your hand if you think that lobbyists influence politicians, officeholders and public policy. Raise it again if you think that the public should know how those lobbyists affect policy. Pennsylvania’s 203 representatives and 50 senators disagree with you. They...
Letter to the editor: Find humane solutions to deer problems
Shame on Pittsburgh Mayor Ed Gainey and City Council member Barb Warwick for orchestrating the cull of deer in Frick Park (“Pittsburgh looking to allow limited deer hunting in some city parks,” Aug. 29, TribLIVE). I am a native of Somerset County, and some of my earliest memories are of...
Letter to the editor: Government excess in Maui
The federal government response to the Maui wildfires has been abhorrent. DHS/FEMA personnel are being housed in 5-star luxury resorts, where the lowest cost for a room at one of them is $1,300 per night. They are spending at least $200,000 per night for Washington bureaucrats to be housed. Why...
Tom Purcell: Jimmy Buffett was a super-spreader of happiness
There’s a reason the name “Jimmy Buffett” elicits immediate joy in the hearts of millions: Happiness contagion. A study conducted by Harvard University and the University of California followed 5,000 people for 20 years to determine if happiness was contagious. The study’s finding: It most certainly is. If you smile...
Julie Su: Why I’m spending Labor Day in Pittsburgh
America is home to a strong and storied labor movement that has fought many battles to empower workers and protect the rights of hard-working families. That includes in the proud union town of Pittsburgh, where I’m marching today in one of the oldest and largest Labor Day parades in the...
Mallard Fillmore cartoons for the week of Sept. 4
Mallard Fillmore cartoons for the week of Sept. 4....
Letter to the editor: West Deer priorities
Where are the priorities in West Deer? Infrastructure seems to have been overlooked in many areas within the township. It’s 2023 and there are residents that have no access to public water or natural gas, and some have not had their roads reconstructed or properly repaired for more than 20...
Letter to the editor: We need an honest president
Our country has been blessed with country-loving leadership until recently. We, until recent times, believed in justice. If you commit the crime, then do the time. I would submit to you the following examples of poor leadership. President Trump knew on Jan. 5, 2021, that some citizens were spoiling for...
Editorial: State needs to join federal and local efforts to address predatory real estate companies
Predators in the wild prowl around the edges of a herd of animals, waiting to pick the vulnerable. They may lie in wait, camouflaged until it is time to pounce. In real estate, the wolves and hyenas are corporations that buy up properties from the desperate. The bait can be...
Letter to the editor: Are Amazon’s jobs worth its baggage?
When I read the article “Westmoreland officials hopeful Amazon warehouse portends future growth” (Aug. 16, TribLIVE), I had mixed feelings. New jobs for the area are always welcome. On the other hand, Amazon comes with baggage. Its anti-union stance is legendary. The workers in New York voted for a union...
Joseph Sabino Mistick: Allegheny County executive race — looking for real change
When you are swimming upstream, it is best to get an early start, and Joe Rockey, the Republican nominee for Allegheny County executive, has run the first television ad in his race against Democrat Sara Innamorato. Innamorato is favored to win in the heavily Democratic county, but Rockey is defining...
Chris Kelly: Shapiro must rally rescue posse
Sometimes, spurring the cavalry to saddle up is a matter of poking the right rumps. In response to Lackawanna County Department of Health and Human Services Director Bill Browning’s desperate plea for help staffing his desolate Office of Youth and Family Services, state officials said consultants — free agents who...
Letter to the editor: Better under Trump or Biden?
Tangible is real, not imaginary. Be honest: Were you better under President Trump or President Biden? This should be an easy answer. A tangible vote in 2024 is crucial for our country. God bless America — we need it. Regis Farrell Greensburg...
Sounding off: Books, police, inflation, war on carbon among week’s topics
On books, whose beliefs matter more? When I read the article “‘It’s a small number of people who are very loud’: Local libraries grapple with book challenges, bans” (Aug. 22, TribLIVE), I was somewhat taken back by the headline and further by the story. The story described how the number...
Letter to the editor: Ward correct on vouchers
In response to the letter “Waiting on Ward’s action on budget” (July 30, TribLIVE) I’d like to set the record straight. The writer is from Fair Districts PA, which I consider to be a left-wing advocacy group. In my opinion, the organization advocates for districts beneficial to Democrats. Monopolies aren’t...
Editorial: Should 2024 primary date be moved?
Pennsylvania’s role in the 2024 presidential election cannot be underestimated. Since 1972, the state has only voted for the losing candidate twice, opting for Al Gore and John Kerry instead of George W. Bush in 2000 and 2004. After the results have been reported in the small and sparsely populated...
Letter to the editor: Preserving land of the free
The Biden administration, the D.C. bureaucratic swamp and the sympathetic left-wing mainstream media, following their slippery slope toward Marxist socialism, have been repeatedly telling us that: 1. Our southern border is not open and is secure. 2. Bidenomics has improved our economy and reduced food, fuel, housing and living expenses....
