Opinion category, Page 259
Letter to the editor: Not very Christian
For a nation claiming to follow the teachings of Christ, there seems to be large doses of hypocrisy. Complaints about high taxes, Medicaid recipients, illegal immigrants, the homeless and the poor taking advantage of “social systems” that give some relief, and how too many low- and middle-income (families making less...
Editorial: Pittsburgh synagogue shooting trial spotlights importance of mental health
The jury hearing the case of Robert Bowers in the federal courthouse Downtown already has decided he is guilty of the hate-motivated murders of 11 people, members of the three congregations that met at the Tree of Life Or L’Simcha synagogue in Squirrel Hill on Oct. 27, 2018. Now they are...
Letter to the editor: What is a ‘public servant’?
In light of recent events surrounding Hunter Biden, Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito and others, we need a reset on what it means to be a public servant. Dictionary.com says a public servant is “a person holding a government office or job by election or appointment.” There are millions who...
Joseph Sabino Mistick: Chris Christie, the truth-teller
The “Calumny of Apelles” is a famous 15th-century painting by Sandro Botticelli that depicts the isolation of a truth teller. The painting shows nine figures, with the unadorned Truth at the far left. On the far right is the king, the decider, seated on an elevated throne. And separating the...
Point: State of the republic — precarious
The state of the republic is precarious, but I am hopeful that democracy will prevail because it is resilient. We the people have faced serious threats in the past, including even a Civil War, and we have overcome them. We must continue to pass laws to strengthen our democracy in...
Counterpoint: Decline in religion doesn’t bode well for the republic
Over the past several decades, a growing number of Americans have abandoned their faith — usually Christianity — to join the ranks of the nonreligious. These “Nones” describe themselves as atheists, agnostics or “nothing in particular.” Some may shrug at this, but you don’t have to be religious to know...
Letter to the editor: Our kids are in peril
The Allegheny County detention facility at Shuman Center has been closed for some time, and now it’s Westmoreland County’s juvenile detention center (“Westmoreland closes juvenile detention center amid state investigation, staffing shortages,” June 24, TribLIVE). Given that, there is no mystery in the spike of delinquent crime. I am well...
Sounding off: Trump’s charges, Supreme Court ethics, DEP name change, climate fight, next president among week’s topics
Trump violated law The writer of the letter “Trump deserves 4th Amendment protection” (June 22, TribLIVE) bases his argument on the Presidential Records Act. Before writing his letter, perhaps he should have actually read the act, which states in part that the official records of the president and his staff...
Letter to the editor: Why doesn’t Supreme Court have code of ethics?
Recent revelations of very expensive vacation trips enjoyed by Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito are shocking. None of these trips were disclosed on either of their financial report forms, despite having been paid for by wealthy Republican individuals having multiple cases brought before the Supreme Court. Neither justice ever...
Editorial: What do financial problems mean for future of Independence?
The merger of Butler Health System with Excela Health was supposed to take the local medical groups and forge them into a larger, stronger entity that would survive and serve. The two officially became one entity in January. In May, it adopted a new name: Independence Health System. A new...
Letter to the editor: Trump broke the law
The writer of the letter “Trump deserves 4th Amendment protection” (June 22, TribLIVE) employs the usual fallacies of the right wing in defense of former President Trump keeping secret documents. According to the Presidential Records Act, which he cites, they must be returned to the government upon leaving office (classified...
Gary Franks: False abortion claims are being used for political gain
Recently we marked the first anniversary of the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization landmark decision that overturned Roe v. Wade, which I applaud. The Supreme Court ordered a return of the power to regulate all aspects of abortions to individual states. Thus, electing more Democrats or Republicans to Congress...
S.E. Cupp: Trump’s own voice proves how little he cares about anything but himself
A new and damning audio recording, aired first on CNN, is shocking to say the least. In it, former President Donald Trump is being interviewed by a writer for a memoir of Mark Meadows, Trump’s former chief of staff. Like taking candy from a baby, we can hear while the...
Colin McNickle: The lose-lose situation of a $15 Pa. minimum wage
The Law of Unintended Consequences will come back to haunt Pennsylvania businesses, their workers and the commonwealth’s economy should the state nearly double the mandatory minimum wage by 2026, concludes an exhaustive analysis by the Allegheny Institute for Public Policy. “If the Pennsylvania Legislature enacts, and the governor signs, a...
Letter to the editor: Republican outrage reserved for Bidens
The response by many Republicans to the plea bargain negotiated by Hunter Biden’s attorney with the Department of Justice, ending the five-year investigation of the president’s son’s wrongdoing, comes as no surprise. Forget that the overwhelming number of DOJ charges result in plea bargains. Forget that the investigation was led...
Lori Falce: Do we owe Titanic sub billionaires empathy?
My sister is a 5-foot, 2-inch walking encyclopedia of all things Titanic. She was about 6 when the obsession started. She was 8 when Dr. Robert Ballard discovered the wreck. That was when she began to carry around a coffee table book that was almost as tall as she was....
Laurels & lances: Furries and taxes
Laurel: To being popular. Pittsburgh sometimes can seem as defined by its rivalries as by its assets. A good football game can be one in which the visiting team is one of those perpetual enemies like the Cleveland Browns or Baltimore Ravens. Is there a better hockey night than one...
Letter to the editor: Joining RGGI a win for Pa.
I strongly disagree with Rep. Eric Nelson’s position on the Regional Gas Greenhouse Initiative (RGGI) and the use of fossil fuels (“Why is Shapiro so quiet on Pa.’s energy policy?” May 30, TribLIVE). The data on Pennsylvania joining RGGI show a win for our economy, health and environment. RGGI, a...
Letter to editor: 4th Amendment protects personal papers
In response to the writer of the letter “Trump deserved 4th Amendment protection” (June 22, TribLIVE): You are obviously a fairly intelligent person, to achieve Ph.D. or MD status. But you obviously didn’t read the entire amendment and digest its meaning. So I’ll help you out. It is meant to...
Peter Morici: Biden’s protectionism driving emerging economies into China’s hands
America and its Western allies face a new era of geopolitical tensions with a coalescing alliance of autocratic states — China, Russia, North Korea, Iran and perhaps Saudi Arabia. It’s become fashionable to warn about the dangers of a new Cold War. But competing with China for influence among emerging...
Mickey Dutrow: Solar a budget solution for Pa. schools
Next year, Pennsylvania school districts will be staring down a financial cliff as the historic covid-19 pandemic funding ends. The stakes are even higher now since the state Supreme Court ruled that the General Assembly must find ways to pay for public education. When compounded with crumbling infrastructure, increasing mental...
Letter to the editor: Trump violated law
The writer of the letter “Trump deserves 4th Amendment protection” (June 22, TribLIVE) bases his argument on the Presidential Records Act. Before writing his letter, perhaps he should have actually read the act, which states in part that the official records of the president and his staff are owned by...
Letter to the editor: All our constitutional rights are sacred
As a veteran, I am sick and tired of the fake outrage concerning the Second Amendment when far right fascists rage all-out war against other constitutional rights, particularly the First and 14th Amendments. Current book ban trends are for no other reason than that the material makes certain people “uncomfortable,”...
Editorial: Pa. needs better reintegration plan when paroling former prisons
SCI Greensburg was once a center of activity in Westmoreland County. It housed around 900 inmates. It was staffed by 360 people, generating paychecks that fueled business throughout the area. Then, in 2013, it closed. Overnight it went from being a place with purpose to a question mark. What would...
Letter to the editor: Renewable energy is reliable
State Sen. Gene Yaw’s recent commentary claiming the retirement of Homer City’s coal-fired power plant will be a “crippling blow” to the regional energy grid is misleading at best (“In Homer City, another step in killing the grid,” June 14, TribLIVE). PJM Interconnection — our grid operator — found no...
