Opinion category, Page 280
Letter to the editor: Can we handle another Trump presidency?
An indictment is simply the bringing of charges against a defendant. It does not determine innocence or guilt. Its validity is decided by an impartial grand jury of 20-25 people chosen through a rigorous jury selection process. They (not the district attorney, in this case, Alvin Bragg) determine, by majority...
Paul Kengor: When cancelers cancel themselves
I wrote here recently about attempts to cancel three Pitt speakers sponsored by conservative organizations, including swimmer Riley Gaines and Daily Wire commentator Michael Knowles. The effort was led by LGBTQ forces and Pennsylvania Democratic state Rep. La’Tasha Mayes, who threatened to cancel the university’s funding. Pitt Chancellor Patrick Gallagher...
Hunter Tower: Is Pittsburgh a blueprint for other union-dominated blue cities?
In 2021, Ed Gainey was elected mayor of Pittsburgh. His campaign was funded in part by SEIU Healthcare Pennsylvania, which made a generous $350,000 donation — more than all other contributors combined. SEIU Healthcare PA knew what it was paying for when it made this investment — a strong bargaining...
Kavvya Ravikumar: Will we leave legacy of shame for our children?
A year ago I was sitting at a desk staring at a blackboard when I heard my fellow classmates discussing how they had slept only three hours a night for two weeks straight. Just weeks ago I heard second-graders discussing how they were going to wait until the summer to...
Letter to the editor: Bengel best choice for judge
Regarding the mismatched race for district judge in East Deer, Tarentum, Brackenridge, Fawn and Harrison, there is only one legitimate choice: Judge Carolyn Bengel. Bengel has 30 years of proven and practiced experience as an impressive district judge, as well as continually engaging in beneficial off-duty service in our communities....
Letter to the editor: Doven for Allegheny County council
I would like to respond to the letter “Reelect Bethany Hallam” (April 17, TribLIVE): I will proudly be voting for Joanna Doven for Allegheny County Council. She stands strong as a single mother of three young children, a small-business owner and a voice of reason focused on delivering results that...
Editorial: The petty animosity of political ballot challenges
On Tuesday, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court looked at the protestations of Westmoreland County Republican Committee Chairman Bill Bretz and shrugged. Bretz filed a lawsuit in March in the county Court of Common Pleas in an attempt to remove two of the three Republicans challenging incumbents Sean Kertes and Doug Chew...
Letter to the editor: Solving energy problems
Peoples Gas and West Penn (First Energy) are believed by the writer of the letter “Who’s profiting from our high utility bills?” (April 16, TribLIVE) to be resonsible for “price hikes and profiteering” identified in his letter. He asks why prices have “risen so dramatically in past two years, and...
Jonah Goldberg: Tucker Carlson, not just Trump, damaged conservatism
Tucker Carlson has left the building. That in itself was unusual because Carlson hadn’t been in the building most other days over the last couple years. He rarely went into the Washington or New York bureaus, preferring his own private studios in Maine and Florida — comfortable silos from which...
Rep. Joe D’Orsie: Shapiro should deliver on most popular, bipartisan campaign promise — school choice
Save his comments on accelerating the reduction of the corporate net income tax in Pennsylvania, the only statement that garnered undivided and emphatic applause at Gov. Josh Shapiro’s joint session budget address back in March were his remarks about protecting and promoting options for Pennsylvania’s grade schoolers. Few other topics...
Marie T. Reilly: What’s next for Boy Scouts after creating $2.4 billion fund to pay abuse claims?
On April 19, 2023, the Boy Scouts of America declared that it has exited its bankruptcy case after clearing one of the last legal hurdles in its way. Some insurance companies and sex abuse claimants objected to the Boy Scouts’ plan to pay claimants, but the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court...
Letter to the editor: Fetterman should have talked about his depression during campaign
John Fetterman, at best, looked dazed, confused and lost during the debate. He also never made one public mention of having depression. He withheld this important information from voters until it was convenient for him after the election. Now, allies have somehow turned this whole debacle into him being praised...
Letter to the editor: Klingensmith for magistrate
I am writing to endorse my friend and neighbor, Bob Klingensmith, for the office of district magistrate. I have lived five houses away from Bob and his wife, Suzy, and their three children since he built his house. I also live 10 houses from the house he was born and...
Letter to the editor: No one better than Yakopec for judge
I support the reelection of Judge Cheryl Peck Yakopec. I think everybody knows how well qualified, experienced and evenly tempered Yakopec has been for the last 29 years. Clearly that is why no one has run against her in so long. Those of us who see her out in the...
Letter to the editor: We should keep Carolyn Bengel as judge
With recognition that any eligible candidate can run against another, I question the insincere mantra of “time for a change” — when it is not broken, you do not attempt to fix it just for change’s sake. I allude to the race for district judge in our area where incumbent...
Editorial: DEP must remain vigilant with East Palestine crash testing
The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection has not found chemicals from the Norfolk Southern train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, in samples taken in the Keystone State. On Monday, DEP acting Secretary Rich Negrin said chemicals have not been detected in soil or water samples. “We are thrilled that the...
Letter to the editor: Does age still bring wisdom?
I used to believe that with age comes wisdom. Can’t hold that to be true anymore. I have age, but wisdom? I only have questions. How can everyone wear a mask to prevent disease but so many people don’t want to wear a condom for the same purpose plus preventing...
Letter to the editor: Fox News isn’t ‘news’ at all
If you are ensconced in Fox “News,” I implore you to check out some other sources to see what Fox isn’t telling you right now. They have been sued for their lies, and the evidence against them was so overwhelming that they settled for more than half a billion dollars....
Jacob L. Nelson: Tucker Carlson’s departure and Fox News’ expensive legal woes show the problem with faking ‘authenticity’
For decades, Fox News thrived because the people behind it understood what their audience wanted and were more than willing to deliver: television news — or what Fox called news — from a populist perspective. Fox is consistently the most-watched cable news channel, far ahead of competitors like MSNBC and...
Paula Kane: Protecting and improving affordable housing in Pittsburgh
Finding an affordable place to live can be complicated, intimidating and frustrating. It’s one of the biggest decisions someone can make, and it’s something that impacts everything else in their lives: where their kids go to school, where they work, where they enjoy holidays and events, where they rest and...
Cal Thomas: In France, this should not be surprising
PARIS — French President Emmanuel Macron is behaving like many other politicians. Following massive demonstrations against his enactment of a law raising the retirement age in France from 62 to 64, Macron seems to be taking a page from America’s Democratic Party playbook — if you can’t beat them, bribe...
Letter to the editor: Stand up to corruption
Are we watching the ugly abyss of a two-tier justice system being uncovered, being revealed little by little, every day? Add Matthew Colin Taibbi, author and journalist, to the growing hit list. Taibbi’s apparent crime: testifying before a GOP congressional committee. Taibbi’s “free speech” testimony made him an immediate enemy...
Letter to the editor: Easy ways to extend Earth Day
As April 22 was Earth Day, I’d like to reflect on how to extend the protection of our planet beyond just one day: • Don’t litter. Pick up trash when you can. • Drive a fuel-efficient vehicle, ride your bike or walk place to place. • Compost to reduce waste....
Letter to the editor: Sorry state of political discourse
The writer of the letter “Tables turned on the woke” (March 22, TribLIVE) only deepens the mystery regarding the word “woke.” It originated in the Black community to denote “awareness.” I never heard that usage until it began to be used by the political right. There is, to my knowledge,...
Editorial: When is free speech not free on college campuses?
Freedom of speech is a frustrating thing to embrace. “I do not agree with what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it,” said biographer Evelyn Beatrice Hall of Voltaire, paraphrasing his work. Voltaire may have been a French philosopher, but that do-or-die attitude...
