Opinion category, Page 418
Editorial: Courts and doctors must cooperate on addiction
The opioid epidemic is not like influenza or covid-19. It is a medical issue that affects the body and threatens lives. It also is a social problem that ends up in court either because of crimes or because of issues such as custody. It is rare that a case of...
Letter to the editor: Benninghoff’s failure on redistricting
Have you ever done something for 25 straight years and still not been able to do it correctly? State Rep. Kerry Benninghoff, R-Centre County, has. As Majority Leader of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives since 2020, 25-year legislator Benninghoff had the responsibility to lead the effort in redistricting so that...
John Stossel: Let Joe Rogan speak
Joe Rogan is amazing. Five years ago, I left Fox to start Stossel TV. I left because I was frustrated by live TV. Guests talked so much but said little. I now produce videos like the ones I used to do on “20/20.” I like having a month or more...
Jennifer Rafanan Kennedy and Taifa Smith Butler: The story of Pittsburgh’s water
During his recent visit to Pittsburgh, President Joe Biden had a lot to say about roads and bridges and America’s crumbling infrastructure — mere hours after the Fern Hollow Bridge collapsed. But notably, he failed to mention another critical public resource to which the people of Pittsburgh have called attention...
Jonah Goldberg: American reactions to Canada’s trucker protests shows how much our politics have changed
On Monday, Canadian Prime Minster Justin Trudeau invoked the Emergencies Act in order to clear out the trucker protests in Ottawa. From the beginning, I’ve remained quietly fascinated by the whole spectacle. Quietly, because I’ve struggled to figure out what I think about them, fascinated because they are a window...
Johanna Murphy: Employee shortage, Pittsburgh? Autistic, neurodiverse people ready to work.
For the past several months, op-eds and think pieces have meditated on the current national hiring crisis: Jobs all over the country are going unfilled. It’s a phenomenon we’re familiar with in Western Pennsylvania. For years, as our population has shifted, regional workforce development discussions have lamented the shortage of...
Letter to the editor: Trump should leave the building, permanently
Fearless leader Trump should do what Elvis did: leave the building. And never come back. Francois Vukosic Bridgeville...
Letter to the editor: Another Dem commission — yippee!
I can rest easy now. Comes news of another Dem commission to tackle some issue or another which sounds good and does zip. Pete Buttigieg, he of two months paternity leave and doing very little/nothing else in a year, is leaping into action. Leap, Pete, leap! He announced the formation...
Letter to the editor: Keep dogs safe around frozen water
Please keep your dogs safe in the winter. Keep them on a leash when you are around water. A few years ago, my dog Pumpkin got away from me chasing some ducks that were standing on the ice at Burrell Lake Park. She ran out onto the ice and slid...
Letter to the editor: GOP’s hollow words on election integrity
Republican Joe DiSarro, political science professor at Washington & Jefferson College, believes that Republicans’ redistricting plan, which political observers suggest favors Republicans, is a better option for Western Pennsylvania (“Westmoreland officials favor congressional map that unifies county”). This plan splits communities where Democratic voters reside and moves those voters into...
Editorial: EMT training is practical solution to filling need
The first step in a medical emergency often is taken even before getting to the hospital. It can begin with an ambulance staffed by professionals trained to offer the care that will stabilize a patient until more in-depth diagnostics and treatment can be provided. It is a vital journey that...
Letter to the editor: Illegal slot machines rob seniors
Every Pennsylvania taxpayer, even those who do not enjoy gaming or the entertainment venues in the state’s casinos, benefits from the commonwealth’s casino industry. Last year, the industry generated $1.93 billion in state tax revenue, an increase of $838.2 million over the previous year. Casinos also provide nearly $150 million...
Letter to the editor: Vaccinate for victory
America has now accumulated the most covid deaths per person of any advanced country. This failure is hurting our economy. But we can do better. We must work as a team to defeat covid. You might say “omicron is mild,” “the pandemic is behind us” or “vaccines don’t work.” If...
Leonard Pitts Jr.: LGBTQ kids, raise your voices and make haters hear you
Kermit the Frog famously observed that it’s not easy being green. But if he thinks that’s hard, Kermit should try being you. Having avocado-colored skin has to be a breeze by comparison. To be you, though, requires dealing with active-shooter drills and masking mandates while navigating family dynamics, lunchroom politics...
Molly Parzen: Biden’s EV plan driving strong economic future in Pittsburgh and beyond
Pittsburgh is world-famous for its manufacturing heritage and its beautiful natural scenery. As our region and all of Pennsylvania moves into the future, we must make sure we protect both. We can strengthen the middle class through the 717,000 union members in Pennsylvania, create more jobs by making use of...
Letter to the editor: Chinese stand-in as Olympic flag-bearer wrong
I was watching the parade of nations of the opening ceremony of the 2022 winter Olympic Games. The flag-bearer for the United States Virgin Islands delegation was a Chinese volunteer. This was done because the islands’ sole athlete, and ipso facto flag-bearer, Katie Tannenbaum, had tested positive for covid-19 and...
Letter to the editor: Madden’s absurd claims on Flores
How does “Super Genius” Mark Madden know that former Miami Dolphins coach Brian Flores has “not enough evidence” to prove his case against National Football League team owners and managers (“Brian Flores’ case has merit, but proving guilt will be challenging,” Feb. 4, TribLIVE)? To my knowledge, no one has...
Editorial: Online education is important part of school choice discussion
School choice is not just a political idea that scores points on one side and sparks opposition on the other. Decisions about a child’s education are never easy. They start with preschool. Do you do it at all? Do you choose a public school program if one is available? What...
Letter to the editor: What’s going to happen in Ukraine
Put aside for the moment all of the pressing problems facing our country today, and concentrate on what surely is the jewel of Europe, Ukraine. It is the poorest of the European countries with rampant crime, weak currency, dysfunctional government, wealthy oligarchs and crippling corruption with high rates of disease,...
Letter to the editor: Plenty of incitement on Jan. 6
I found Guy Kosinski’s letter “Incitement a tool of the left” smug and lacking in facts. He demeans another letter-writer, writing, “Like all misguided liberals, (Suzanne) Colvin attempts to paint the Jan. 6 incident at our nation’s Capitol as the worst threat to life and liberty we’ve ever seen.” The...
Letter to the editor: Jan. 20 is a day of infamy, too
I had a good laugh after reading Sandra Kremer’s letter “Why the big lie continues.” She designated Dec. 7, Sept. 11 and Jan. 6 as days that will go down in infamy. I laughed because for more than a year I have had a bumper sticker on my car that...
Tom Purcell: Social insecurity
A quarter of a million dollars. That’s the amount that I’ve paid in FICA payroll taxes during my working career, according to my recent Social Security statement. FICA, which stands for “Federal Insurance Contributions Act,” “is a payroll tax that helps fund both Social Security and Medicare programs, which provide...
Tami Seretti: My copay assistance no longer counts — yours may be next
In 1996 I was diagnosed with psoriasis, a chronic, immune-mediated disease that impacts more than 3% of the U.S. adult population. Early on in my journey, raised plaques and scales covered 85% of my body, and treatment options were limited. I later learned that I am also one of the...
Falco Muscante II: What do Fern Hollow Bridge and U.S. Steel Tower have in common?
On Feb. 7, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) released a preliminary report on the Jan. 28 collapse of the Fern Hollow Bridge. The report on the failure of the not-even-50-year-old bridge spanning Frick Park was unsurprising — but for one particular footnote. The NTSB described the bridge as “an...
Stephen Bloom: Reforms would reduce corruption and restore workers’ rights
In Harrisburg, lawmakers are building momentum for a series of reforms that will empower public sector workers and defend taxpayers. The House Labor and Industry Committee approved four bills last month that public school teacher Cheri Gensel says will provide “greater accountability” for government union executives, ensuring they “focus on...
