Opinion category, Page 295
Guy Ciarrocchi: Pa. GOP must adapt to state’s changing political map
For Pennsylvania Republicans, the last decade has been the best of times and the worst of times — mostly the latter. For nearly a decade, the GOP has nodded approvingly as Western Pennsylvania’s unionized steamfitters have trended Republican and increasingly joined the Republican Party. Their jobs and personal values draw...
Letter to the editor: Sometimes free speech has consequences
The letter “You still have the right to say what you want” (Feb. 18, TribLIVE) doesn’t say a word about consequences. For example, everyone knows you can’t shout “Fire!” in a crowded theater. You can’t threaten to harm or kill anyone, either. Gadflies like Rudy Giuliani and Sydney Powell have...
Letter to the editor: Sen. Kim Ward’s battle for Bushy Run
Sen. Kim Ward proved bureaucrats aren’t in charge of our government as long as public officials remain engaged (“ ‘We’re back’: Bushy Run’s 2023 battle reenactment will be held,” March 1, TribLIVE). Bureaucrats in Harrisburg were set on shutting down the Bushy Run reenactments for mostly political reasons. These are the...
Letter to the editor: Stop the spending on Ukraine
Ukraine, Ukraine, Ukraine … that’s what I hear about on the radio, see on the TV and read about in the newspaper. What about problems in the USA, like the total devastation of areas in Florida, massive border problems and the hundreds of thousands of homeless throughout our country ?...
Lori Falce: The problem with the word woke
I hate the word woke. Let’s be clear. This is not a conservative hatred of an agenda. It is not a liberal hatred of the right’s reaction to that perceived agenda. It is, however, a loathing that exists on a number of levels. Allow me to explain. First — and...
Letter to the editor: Welcome to Biden’s world
Well, isn’t President Biden just the cozy one. He lets his friends in China fly a surveillance balloon over the U.S. for a week before acting, all the while saying it’s no big deal. Now Ford Motor Co. is making a deal with China to make EV batteries in Michigan....
Laurels & lances: Fitness, finances, found
Laurel: To the gift of fitness. Firefighters need to stay in shape. They have to be physically able to haul hoses, climb ladders, carry incapacitated people, swing axes and do it all wearing almost 50 pounds of gear. You can’t do that without making exercise a priority. And so a...
Letter to the editor: We must continue to support Ukraine
It’s been a year since Russia unleashed its horrific violence against Ukraine. Yet it has not succeeded in subduing that nation due to American military aid and the fighting resolve of Ukraine’s people. Although the war is financially costly for America, Putin’s unprovoked attack on Ukraine, like Japan’s attack on...
Letter to the editor: Schools should focus on job skills
Kudos to the Highlands School District for the change in curriculum by adding the Career and Workforce Readiness Program (“Highlands administrators say focus on Workforce Readiness sets up all students for success,” March 2, TribLIVE). It’s about time that our educational system focuses on the development of job skills that...
Letter to the editor: We’ve got bigger problems than an awards show dance routine
Look out everyone, the sky is falling! Or so the writer of the letter “Our country is crumbling from within” (March 2, TribLIVE) would have us believe. It seems that a dance routine at the recent Grammy Awards has him all in a tiff, and he needs to warn us...
Editorial: Zabel harassment shows common ground and political division
Most problems people encounter are not specific to one party or the other. Your house can burn down regardless of how you vote. You can lose your job or get bad news from the doctor without any relationship to politics. And you can be a victim of sexual harassment despite...
Letter to the editor: Save Social Security and Medicare
Regarding the letter “Social Security mess” (March 6, TribLIVE): First of all, Social Security was intended to be a supplement to a worker’s pension and savings. Since then, corporations have all but eliminated defined pensions. Now, citizens, without government pensions, struggle to make ends meet. The letter-writer is happy to...
Colin McNickle: Pittsburgh’s still stubbornly high office vacancy rates
Pittsburgh’s top-notch Downtown office vacancy rate remained stubbornly high at the end of 2022. And there are serious questions whether it will see much in the way of recovery in 2023. But one possible fix for the shortfall — a deficit pre-dating the coronavirus pandemic and further exacerbated by it...
Jonah Goldberg: Meet America’s most delicate snowflake — the Fox News viewer
If you search for “safe space” on the Foxnews.com website you’ll get over 46,000 results. All of them aren’t about those woke snowflakes who need trigger warnings and cry rooms. But a whole lot of them are. For instance, in 2017, shortly after Donald Trump’s inauguration, Tucker Carlson grilled a...
Pat Browne and Josh Ercole: Gambling problem? Help is available.
As we recognize the 20th annual Problem Gambling Awareness Month this March, the Pennsylvania Lottery and its responsible gambling partners are working to spread the word that help is available for those struggling with compulsive gambling issues. How can you tell if you have a gambling problem? Problem gambling is...
Cal Thomas: Read Joe Biden’s lips — more new taxes
President Joe Biden has announced he will raise “some taxes” in the budget he is proposing this week to Congress. Biden again claims no one making less than $400,000 a year will pay more taxes. The federal government receives record amounts of revenue, but spends and borrows in ways that...
Letter to the editor: Everyone must pitch in for safer communities
We have a crisis of substance abuse, crime and gun violence, and Pittsburgh has to be committed to fighting these dangers in our communities. To be successful in this battle, everyone must help, especially our political leaders. As residents, we all need to help find solutions, too. We need real...
Letter to the editor: Grateful for Mike Doyle’s work
For many, the passage of the fiscal year 2023 federal omnibus spending package was lost in the holiday shuffle. But its passage is particularly momentous for the Braddock Carnegie Library Association (BCLA), which received significant federal dollars as a result of Community Project Funding (CPF). Thanks to Congressman Mike Doyle,...
Editorial: Shapiro’s budget address encourages cooperation. Is it likely?
The governor’s budget address is a landmark of Pennsylvania government every year. At least it should be. More precisely, it is the first pitch in the baseball season of state politics. Ceremonial, it lays out goals that are not likely to have much relationship to the final budget. It is...
Letter to the editor: Another common-sense plan by DeSantis
It was refreshing to read an honest news article, the Tampa Bay Times’ “Florida bill would end diversity programs, ban majors, shift power at universities” (Feb. 24, TribLIVE). The article provided facts without the biased hyperbole that is often used by national media outlets like the Associated Press. As usual,...
Letter to the editor: CNG garbage trucks will help keep Pittsburgh clean
This week, Pittsburgh City Council will vote on replacing diesel garbage trucks with clean, compressed natural gas fueled engines (“Pittsburgh officials divided on investing in natural gas garbage trucks,” March 2, TribLIVE). The resolution should pass unanimously, as CNG (compressed natural gas) already is contributing to cleaning Pittsburgh’s air. Natural...
Elwood Watson: ‘Dilbert’ creator shows racial progress is needed in America
It’s been over a week since Dilbert creator Scott Adams was canceled by hundreds of newspapers across the nation, as well as Canada, for racist tirades he unleashed on his own YouTube show. Adams, who is white, suggested white people “get the hell away from Black people,” referring to Black...
Letter to the editor: Why Trump was a great president
The writer of the letter “No comparison between Trump, Reagan” (Feb. 24, TribLIVE) states “Trump was far from a great president. In my eyes, he was the worst thing to ever happen to this country.” I would ask the writer to be more specific. I can. Putin never invaded anywhere...
Letter to the editor: Understanding, supporting mental health
When someone chooses to step out of the shadows of depression and ask for help, it is a profound demonstration of strength. When someone like Sen. John Fetterman shares this information publicly, it shows countless others who are working on their mental wellness they are not alone. According to the...
Editorial: Honest dialogue necessary to avoid repeating the 2023 Battle of Bushy Run
The Battle of Bushy Run reenactment has a little bit of whiplash. In January, the Bushy Run Battlefield Heritage Society was told the annual staging of the 1761 battle between British and Native American combatants could not take place. That was because of new guidelines instituted by the Pennsylvania Historical...
