Opinion category, Page 333
Ace Dufresne: Ableism distracting Pa. voters
“As a lifelong liberal, I still can’t justify voting for the handicapped. He is mentally unable to perform the job.” “This man, much like the president, can’t even finish a sentence!“ “Dr. Oz has a functional brain … unlike John “Fetterwoman.”” These are responses I’ve received while text-banking with the...
Letter to the editor: Let’s talk about birth control
With all the talk about abortion and abortion rights, why are we not talking about birth control? Abortion is not birth control. Most women can access birth control at no cost or low cost. This needs to be discussed more frequently than the alternative. Lori Copelli Latrobe...
Letter to the editor: Trump is a leader, not a politician
All but one opinion letter Oct. 31 were in support of the Democratic Party. Fair elections? Party of violence? More fair elections? But the one that irritated the most was from M. Lou Harrison (“Remember these things about Trump,” Oct. 31, TribLIVE). Her criticisms of President Trump concerned covid, him...
Lori Falce: Should you pay for verification?
On Tuesday, I became a little bit cooler in my son’s eyes. Not much, and I’m not under any delusion it will last. But, for a brief, shining moment, my teenager was moderately impressed by me. “Elon Musk wants to charge people for blue check marks on Twitter?” he mused...
Letter to the editor: We should thank, respect our police
It looks like “defund the police” is not working. When I first heard this phrase, it made me sick. These officers put their lives on the line every day protecting all of us. While other people are at home on weekends and holidays, these officers are working mostly seven days...
Letter to the editor: Stand up to dark forces
Have you been more anxious lately? Are you stressed, uneasy and quick to anger? Don’t worry, you are not alone. We are experiencing an unprecedented assault on our better nature, common sense and innate intelligence. This relentless attack of lies, deceptions and perversions on every level of culture has created...
Marjorie Hershey: Republicans and Democrats see news bias only in stories that clearly favor the other party
Charges of media bias — that “the media” are trying to brainwash Americans by feeding the public only one side of every issue — have become as common as campaign ads in the run-up to the midterm elections. As a political scientist who has examined media coverage of the Trump...
Rep. Martell Covington: The value of strong tech investments
It’s an exciting time to be in Pittsburgh. The city has experienced unprecedented growth and embraced a future where opportunities and options are more limitless than ever before. Exponential growth doesn’t happen overnight, and it’s taken long-term commitments, dedication and the strategic outlook of local leaders like Mayor Ed Gainey...
Laurels & lances: Spokesperson and representative
Laurel: To someone at the microphone. Since Westmoreland County District Attorney Nicole Ziccarelli took office in January, messaging has been a little challenging. Ziccarelli has wanted all information from her office — and sometimes other law enforcement departments — to filter through her podium. Other staff members or attorneys were...
Thomas Koenig: Post-Janus, battles with public-sector unions continue
Jane Ladley was a Pennsylvania public school teacher her entire life. She wasn’t a member of the Pennsylvania State Education Association (PSEA), the state’s public school teachers union. But in 2013, the PSEA forced her to pay a “fair share fee,” a sum that non-union members must pay to a...
Greg Fulton: We can’t vote ‘none of the above’
In multiple choice tests, “none of the above” is often an answer option. In Pennsylania’s U.S. Senate race, many voters would probably choose that option if it was on the ballot. Neither Democratic candidate Lt. Gov. John Fetterman nor Republican nominee Dr. Mehmet Oz is reflective of the majority of...
Letter to the editor: Pittsburgh homicide frustration
Regarding the article “2 women killed in North Side shooting were innocent bystanders, police say; 3rd victim ID’d” (Oct. 17, TribLIVE): Major crimes Cmdr. Richard Ford would not speculate on the identity of the gunmen but did stress the majority of homicides within city limits could be attributed to “repeat...
Letter to the editor: We must turn to God
I look out of my kitchen window and see the vibrant colors and beauty that God created in this world. I then ask myself why have humans made such a mess of this beautiful world? Wars, famine, sickness, disease and creating weapons of war that will kill millions of people...
Editorial: Hasn’t this undated ballot court ruling happened before?
The point of a court ruling — particularly one from a top appeals court — is to set a precedent. The rulings are meant to take a complicated question and draw lines that make things easier to understand. They give a yes or a no. They say when something is...
Letter to the editor: Fearmongering over book bans
The editorial “Book bans can threaten local control” (Oct. 13, TribLIVE) calls it “admirable” for parents to take an “active and engaged role in their schools,” while raising the red herring that such activism threatens local control. The state already exerts significant influence over school curriculum and staffing. Thus, the...
Jonah Goldberg: If democracy is a corrupt ‘Western’ concept, why does Putin pretend his actions in Ukraine are democratic?
Vladimir Putin is a murderer and tyrant. He’s also a hypocrite. “It is no coincidence that the West claims that it is its culture and worldview that should be universal,” Putin explained last week at a pro-Putin Moscow think tank, the Valdai Discussion Club. His remarks echoed previous statements of...
Dr. Tracy Todd: Addressing impact of illness on families of older Americans
If you or a family member has ever been diagnosed with a serious health condition, you’ll know that the impact doesn’t stay with the individual. The stress, anxiety, worry and depression that come from these illnesses reach beyond the patient and touch families, too. Some of the most life-threatening health...
Letter to the editor: Biden’s prophecies
We all know President Biden is a career politician. He has survived the political arena by telling people what they want to hear. He is famous for speaking out of both sides of his mouth; I say, if his lips are moving, he’s lying. Take gun control, for instance. He’s...
Letter to the editor: Holding legislators accountable
Fact: Twenty-seven children and staff members at an Allentown day care center were recently hospitalized with carbon monoxide poisoning. Fact: Legislators in Harrisburg are among the highest-paid in the country. Fact: Legislators in Harrisburg are among the least productive in the country. Pennsylvania pays its legislators a lot to get...
Editorial: Is a $1.5 billion daydream worth your $2?
Have you bought your ticket yet? It almost goes without saying that the ticket in question is not for a train, plane or concert. For the second time this year, the country is gripped in lottery fever. Saturday’s multi-state Powerball jackpot will top $1.5 billion and might climb even higher...
Letter to the editor: Pa. leaders must act to win manufacturing’s future
Manufacturing is the economic engine of Pennsylvania, fueling growth and prosperity across communities. Manufacturing provides family-sustaining jobs for more than a half-million Pennsylvanians, making it our third largest employer. And manufacturing is Pennsylvania’s greatest economic sector in terms of statewide economic output, with more than $110 billion annually. But manufacturing...
Letter to the editor: Yes, I feel safer now
Yes, Lou Mangione, I feel safer than I did two years ago (“Do you feel safer, more secure two years later?” Oct. 25, TribLIVE). Covid-19 was spreading wildly, while President Trump facetiously told us it would go away. One week, Trump’s tweets would provoke North Korean nuclear threats. The next...
Leonard Pitts Jr.: The Caucacity of Nope
Let us apologize in advance to Barack Obama, who once wrote a book called “The Audacity of Hope.” You see, our subject today is what might be called the Caucacity of Nope. The word is a new coinage, a portmanteau of “Caucasian” and “audacity” denoting a brand of white arrogance...
Ari Mittleman and Joseph Sabino Mistick: The truth about our elections
Investigations, more than a dozen federal and state court rulings, and legally required state audits of ballots from Pennsylvania counties have found no evidence of widespread fraud, irregularities or other election problems that could have affected the results of the 2020 elections. Yet, nearly two years later, the recounts and...
Letter to the editor: Real reason for hating Trump
I’m responding to Edward Svitek’s letter “Past time to dump Trump” (Oct. 4, TribLIVE), in which he admits he hates Donald Trump. He gave broad, vague reasons. With hate being such a destructive emotional choice, I was wondering what exactly brought out his hatred. Was it a strong economy? Record...
