Letter to the editor: Stop legislators’ automatic pay raises
I was elated to see state Rep. Jeremy Shaffer introduce a bill to stop lawmakers’ automatic pay raises. As per the Pennsylvania Bulletin, their pay has gone up over $28,000 in the last 10 years. Who in the regular work force gets raises like that? To our state reps, please...
Letter to the editor: Madden calling Tomlin ‘fraud’ over the top
Mark Madden’s column “Assessing the Mike Tomlin era, where Steelers go from here” (Jan. 14, TribLive) is classless. Madden’s dislike of Tomlin has been evident in his columns over the years. His argument that some of Tomlin’s greatest achievements, i.e. winning a Super Bowl, were done with Coach Bill Cowher’s...
Letter to the editor: ICE, law enforcement gone rogue
In disbelief, I watched the video of the ICE agent shooting Renee Good on Jan. 7. This despair only deepened as I listened to President Trump and high-level members of his administration blatantly and deliberately lie to us. How could they state facts that were demonstrably false? They were gaslighting...
Lori Falce: An upside-down approach to public health
In 1992, the U.S. Department of Agriculture adopted a new way to look at what we eat. The food pyramid already had been in use for decades in Sweden, but now Americans were able to use the handy visual aid for prioritizing nutritional choices. The idea was simple: Put the...
Letter to the editor: Jail doctors need oversight
In the Allegheny County Jail’s 2025 correctional officer survey, an officer made the following observations: “We currently have two doctors employed for the mental health department who refuse to medicate sick individuals properly. Inmates who are lucky to be sent to Torrance State Hospital are placed on a medication routine...
Laurels & lances: Legacy & loss
Laurel: To a tradition of commitment. Communities function not only on the jobs done by employees but also on the work people volunteer to do. And that public service does not always end with a retirement date — or stop with one generation. Butch Michalowski officially stepped down as chief...
Letter to the editor: Impeach Trump
If Democrats want to take back the House and the Senate in 2026, they must stop lying to voters by omission. This is not a normal presidency, and it does not deserve a normal campaign. They should run on one platform — unapologetically: impeach Donald Trump. Trump’s approval rating is...
Jonah Goldberg: Trump’s globalist era is going to make everyone poorer
I’m not sure what to call the new era we seem to be entering. But I am sure it will make people poorer. Let’s start with some basics. Imagine you inherit a thriving department store chain. Rather than listen to experts on consumer trends, supply-chain logistics, human resources, etc., you...
Letter to the editor: Can Steelers follow River Hounds’ example?
Boo hoo, Steeler Nation. Was a big fan at one time. Huge Pirates fan also. Year
after year, lackluster seasons filled with disappointment. Steeler Nation is more like a third-world country. Riverhounds won their championship. Maybe the others will follow their example next season. I won’t hold my breath. Mike...
Letter to the editor: Who’s behind autocratic ideas?
Where are these autocratic ideas coming from? Better yet, who is pushing these ideas? President Trump leans toward being a “global dominator” with his administration’s policies. It’s interesting as to who is behind the scenes. I doubt that these ideas are coming from Trump. I don’t believe he understands the...
Editorial: Inmate transport carries costs, no matter who does it
The Westmoreland County sheriff is asking a judge to rescind a 2006 court order that requires sheriff’s deputies to transport county inmates to and from magisterial district courts, claiming it could save taxpayers more than $250,000 a year in overtime. Sheriff James Albert is not wrong in saying Westmoreland relies...
Letter to the editor: Rail merger will negatively impact Western Pa.
The freight rail system is critical to Western Pennsylvania’s
economy. It supports farms, factories and businesses that all depend on timely deliveries and competitive rates to thrive. I know, because I spent much of my career as a supply chain manager for a major glass manufacturer in the Pittsburgh area....
Cal Thomas: Sports gambling, a bad bet
It wasn’t that long ago when sports betting was illegal. Then suddenly it was as though profit, rather than controlling this vice, became paramount. It was inevitable, given human nature, that bad things would follow legalization. Last week, The Wall Street Journal carried a front-page story that reported “one of...
Hugo Balta: Washington loves blaming Latin America for drugs — while ignoring the American appetite that fuels the trade
For decades, the United States has perfected a familiar political ritual: condemn Latin American governments for the flow of narcotics northward, demand crackdowns and frame the crisis as something done to America rather than something America helps create. It is a narrative that travels well in press conferences and campaign...
Letter to the editor: Garrity should replace Shapiro as governor
Gov. Josh Shapiro is clean cut and speaks well; don’t let that fool you. Here are some of the policies he has voted against or will not support: He is anti-ICE and wants Pennsylvania to be a sanctuary state. He wants transgender athletes to be allowed to compete in girls...
Letter to the editor: Legislature must enact sales tax plan
As TribLive has reported, a plethora of local and county governments, along with school boards, have followed political status quo by increasing property taxes in order to pay for doing business. Gotta hand it to Westmoreland County Commissioner Ted Kopas, as he stated, “We need to rethink the way we...
Letter to the editor: Congress must step up
The invasion of Venezuela and threats of the president’s little team of thuglings (Miller, Hegseth, Bondi, Noem) to Colombia, Cuba and Denmark tragically show the world the U.S. as an aggressor. Yes, yes, to Venezuelan democracy, but, fellow citizens, do you want sons and daughters to die in Latin America...
Letter to the editor: Collaboration can save Shaler pool
The planned closure of the Shaler Area School District (SASD) pool is more than a school district decision — it is a regional loss. For decades, this indoor pool has been one of the few accessible, year‑round aquatic facilities serving Shaler, Etna, Reserve and Millvale. Its disappearance would leave a...
Editorial: Can we talk? Colleges invest in civil discourse
Indiana University of Pennsylvania and the University of Pittsburgh are spending nearly $5 million to teach students how to talk to one another. IUP received a $2.29 million federal grant to create a Center for Dialogue and Civic Life. Pitt was awarded about $2.7 million to build a regional model...
Letter to the editor: Vote in people who can stop Trump
Typically I submit my letters a week to 10 days before publication. Forgive me if this imitation of a leader does something else to harm this nation in the meantime, and I fail to address. We the People? Does anyone who can slow or stop this criminal exist in Congress?...
Erika Strassburger: Clean energy provides jobs, consumer savings
It’s a challenging and uncertain time for America’s clean energy industry. Congress repealed the federal clean energy tax credits through President Trump’s “one big beautiful bill” last summer, and Trump has made his love for fossil fuels and disdain for renewable energy clear through his statements and his policies. In...
Colin McNickle: Is Pittsburgh trading one vacancy problem for another?
It is a deeply troubling number by any accounting: Nearly a full quarter of all classes of downtown Pittsburgh office space was vacant through the third quarter of 2025, concludes the latest report from the Jones Lang LaSalle (JLL) real estate firm. “Keep in mind (that) one year ago, the...
Jason Lias: High school theater politics — Democrats take stage against ICE
Some Democrats treat Immigration and Customs Enforcement like the villain in a high school play — except they forgot they’re in the real world. Lots of yelling. Fake crying. Dramatic gasps. Signs, hashtags and calls for “resistance” everywhere. Meanwhile, most Americans are just trying to get through the day. Front...
Letter to the editor: ICE are the domestic terrorists
Masked ICE agents are the domestic terrorists, not 37-year-old mothers. An ICE agent shot and killed Renee Nicole Good in Minneapolis. Some government officials have called Good’s attempt to drive away from the ICE agents as an act of domestic terrorism. The reason for ICE presence in Minneapolis, and elsewhere,...
Letter to the editor: ‘Ugly war’ against Palestinians began in 1948
Regarding the letter “Thoughts on two recent letters” (Dec. 11, TribLive): The author claims that two Dec. 3 letter-writers distort history about the Gaza war by decrying Israel’s genocide of Palestinian women and children. (To date up to 70% of over 71,000 total deaths.) He further claims the letter-writers are...
