Opinion category, Page 372
Letter to the editor: A reactionary tale of 2 presidents
Former President Donald Trump may or may not have grabbed that steering wheel. We’ll never know for sure . It’s a certain bet, though, that when the Easter Bunny blocked President Joe Biden from the Easter egg hunt in April, the current president reacted like he was stopped by Rob...
Letter to the editor: No patriotism at Pirates game
I attended the July 3 Pirates game, and it was obvious to me that the owner of PNC Park and the Pirates care only about money. There was no red, white and blue displayed for our country’s birthday. I have heard that Bob Nutting is only concerned about making money,...
Editorial: Courthouse error will demand answers
We tend to think of accidents as a car crash or a fallen electrical pole — something with physical presence and possibly injury. But accidents happen everywhere, including government and bureaucracy. They might happen more there just because of the volume of people involved. Those can be the ones that...
Letter to the editor: Supreme Court is consistent
In the fourth paragraph of the editorial “Does the Supreme Court believe in states’ rights or not?,” you assert that “The rulings all but contradicted each other … .” In the next paragraph you go on to point out that “guns are specifically spelled out in the Bill of Rights.”...
Letter to the editor: Klein should stay as Harrison police chief
Regarding the article “Harrison pauses on plan for police chief to retire, be rehired” (June 28, TribLIVE): Harrison has had the finest in law enforcement for the past 38 years, 28 of them under Police Chief Michael Klein. Klein has held the position as chief with integrity, and, under his...
Jonah Goldberg: The huge political mistake the Jan. 6 committee could easily avoid
Will the Jan. 6 committee issue a “criminal referral” to the Justice Department for Donald Trump? Committee members can’t give an interview without being asked that question. Pundits can’t stop talking about it, and cable TV anchors can’t stop asking legal experts for their predictions. It’s nothing less than a...
Dana Siler: Climate legislation matters … now more than ever
The Supreme Court’s 6-3 ruling in West Virginia v. EPA is a disappointment to those who want to see strong, quick climate action. Given the volatility of implementing greenhouse gas reductions via actions from the executive branch, the impetus is now on Congress to act on climate change. The court’s...
Peter Morici: Employers must embrace hybrid work to attract top talent
Employers that insist workers return to the desk five or even four days a week are facing tough resistance. When Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon ordered his bankers to their desks full time, just 505 of his base employees showed up. Subsequently, young bankers were threatening to quit and otherwise...
Bruce Castor: No pipelines means more coal, less safety
The Pittsburgh metro area has emerged as one of our nation’s leading energy hubs, though this status does not come without risks. Right before the busy Memorial Day weekend, a Norfolk Southern Train struck a vehicle, causing a significant train derailment that sent nine carriages into a tributary of the...
Dr. Andrew Smolar: Prevention, mental health and our current crises
I see that we have a collective blind spot. We don’t understand mental health. Our media talks and writes about elevated rates of anxiety during Covid, depression and substance abuse during mid-life, and suicidality among adolescents and veterans. Mental health professionals are rarely consulted. We have three current crises that...
Marc Stier: We need a budget for all Pennsylvanians
It appears that state budget negotiations are continuing and we may have some announcement of a budget deal in the next day or so. The last few weeks of public debate in Harrisburg have been deeply revealing of the different approaches of the two parties. One of those parties has...
Letter to the editor: After immigrant deaths in Texas, should we ban trucks, too?
I saw on the news that 51 illegal aliens were found in a tractor-trailer truck in San Antonio, Texas. If you use the twisted logic the Democrats use regarding gun control, you can only come to the conclusion that the truck killed those people. If a gun, an inanimate object,...
Letter to the editor: Mental health legislation critical for children around the world
Throughout the pandemic, mental health has worsened. According to the World Health Organization, in 2022, nearly 1 billion individuals live with a mental disorder, and in low-income countries, over 75% of people with a disorder do not receive treatment. Given this global issue, Pennsylvania Sen. Bob Casey Jr. sponsored the...
Letter to the editor: Leaders must embrace green future
On June 28, U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm visited the Pittsburgh area to meet regional leaders to discuss Southwestern Pennsylvania’s clean energy future (“Officials say Western Pa. can lead way in clean energy industry,” June 28, TribLIVE). To the disappointment of many of us who believe in true clean...
Editorial: Hotel tax collection benefits tourism — and room renters
Government always has to wait for innovation to happen before it can catch up with progress. There was no need for automobile registration before there were cars to register, for example. As utilities have changed, so have regulations for them. With the spread of computers, government’s use of them for...
Letter to the editor: Jail death investigation needs oversight
The article “Lawsuit alleges Allegheny County Jail failed to help man who died by suicide last year” (June 28, TribLIVE) articulates the gross errors made by the Allegheny County Jail staff in caring for Martin Bucek, who died by suicide. A most important question is, who is providing oversight to...
Letter to the editor: Partisan Supreme Court is restricting our freedoms
For the first time in our history, the Supreme Court is restricting our freedoms and rights rather than expanding them. A ban on abortions would be a dystopian nightmare of state-enforced pregnancies. This abortion ruling, while egregious, is just one of the latest in a series of Supreme Court decisions...
Leonard Pitts Jr.: Republicans, don’t you want to be free?
Dear Republicans: That’s what a free woman looks like. Meaning, of course, Cassidy Hutchinson, a young former aide in Donald Trump’s White House, who appeared before the House committee investigating the attempted coup of Jan. 6. Free of the need to defend the indefensible or rationalize the irrational — free,...
Letter to the editor: GOP doesn’t need Republicans who vote Democrat
Regarding Lynne Hughes’ letter “Republicans just want their guns” (June 7, TribLIVE): Dear Liberal Lynne, Go join the Democrats. We Republicans don’t want you in our party. Go enjoy killing all those babies in your pro-abortion liberal love. Signed, a true Republican. Hannelore Miller Hempfield...
Letter to the editor: We need relief from soaring fuel prices
Pennsylvania rarely ranks in the top 10 of states for much of anything positive. Where Pennsylvania does rank higher than most states is our second highest gas tax in the nation (second only to California), a dubious distinction. In 2021, Pennsylvania was handed close to $30 million in covid money from...
Letter to the editor: Time to eliminate state-store system
Here we go again. Voters in Pennsylvania might get another chance to privatize our outdated state store system. The state store system employs several thousand people, has limited hours, is closed on holidays and has some of the most expensive wine and spirits in the nation. The privately owned Total...
Letter to the editor: How about some ‘Thou Shall Not Murder’ signs?
Media reports of mass shootings always generate a liberal knee-jerk reaction to thoughtlessly ban guns, but hypocritical politicians never include their own bodyguards in the gun bans. Wouldn’t it be far more rational to call for more law-abiding citizens to be trained to carry firearms for self-protection? Why the surge...
Editorial: PennDOT needs to find real alternative to tolling
While the U.S. Supreme Court was making all the big news in recent weeks, the justices weren’t the only ones dropping significant decisions. On Thursday, the Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court decided to make some waves of its own. It did so by putting its judicial foot down when it comes to...
Letter to the editor: BOOST grants critical for our youth
Since 1888, Boys & Girls Clubs of Western Pennsylvania has provided our region’s children with safe spaces to learn and grow. Today, youth who walk through our doors have access to innovative programs, including our Artificial Intelligence Pathways Institute that is unlocking opportunities to explore this growing industry, our Career...
Letter to the editor: What about essential workers?
The recent revelation that the Allegheny County executive’s inner circle was giving themselves large wage increases is disturbing to say the least (”Large raises for Allegheny County’s top staffers raise timing questions”). Currently, 80% of all county workers, represented by AFSCME Local 2622, make less than the county median wage....
