Opinion category, Page 428
Jonah Goldberg: How an enduring myth about voter turnout distorts our politics
I have long opposed making voting mandatory, an idea that pops up every few years. I still don’t like the idea. But it’s become more attractive, at least as a thought experiment. The arguments against compelling people to vote — as Australia and a handful of other countries do —...
Letter to the editor: Biden should learn history, humility
President Biden was obviously trying to score political, and racial, points with his ranting address in Atlanta when he compared the president of the Union to the president of the Confederacy by asking which side we were on. Perhaps, in the interest of historical accuracy, as well as rhetorical clarity,...
Letter to the editor: Most of our benefits come from Democratic leaders
Regarding Dave Majernik’s letter “Extremists on the Democratic side” (Jan. 4, TribLIVE): Since 1933, nearly all progressive social policies from which we benefit, or will benefit, have come from Democratic presidents and congressional leaders. Consider Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act. I suggest reactionary Republicans, who object...
Letter to the editor: Facebook’s censorship
To Facebook/Mark Zuckerberg and its censors: Recently I posted a comment on Facebook; Facebook posted me back, saying my comment was spam and in violation of its community standards. Below is my comment; you be the judge. “Vote red — for all you people who voted blue the last election,...
Editorial: Big cases defy change of venue
Robert Bowers still is moving slowly toward trial for the October 2018 shooting at the Tree of Life synagogue in Squirrel Hill. On Monday, defense attorneys filed a motion in the case. In nearly 3,900 pages, they detailed the reasons that a federal judge should give the case a change...
Letter to the editor: More to come in Churchill after Amazon approval
When one door closes, another one opens. And the next door has opened for Churchill Future. Many people think that when Churchill Council voted 5-2 on Dec. 21 to approve a conditional use permit for Hillwood Development to build a 2.9 million-square-foot Amazon distribution center in the heart of our...
Letter to the editor: Vaccines and gas prices
Fact: There were 424,401 covid-19 deaths under President Trump, and from Jan. 20, 2021, to the time of this writing, under President Biden, 417,401 covid-19 deaths. Of those deaths under Biden, 99% were unvaccinated. Their deaths are not Biden’s fault. In Texas, 99.5% of people who died from covid from...
Leonard Pitts Jr.: Dear white conservatives
When you’re right, you’re right. And you are definitely right about that quote from Martin Luther King. When he stood at the temple of Lincoln in 1963 and declared his dream “that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by...
Dr. Andrew Smolar: Group belonging — teamwork or tribal divisions
I remember the thrill when Mrs. Tanzman organized a fifth-grade circle. We were to become musicians, costume designers and producers of “South Pacific.” I was new to performing, and I learned lifelong lessons: Everyone had to move in a synchronized way for scenes to mesh, and nothing was as uplifting...
Bibiana Boerio: Nordenberg noble guide for reapportionment
Last May, when the Pennsylvania Supreme Court appointed Mark Nordenberg chair of the Pennsylvania Legislative Reapportionment Commission, I had three reactions. One, what a perfect choice. Two, why would he ever agree to do this? Three, he would do it because he is a man whose career demonstrated the value...
Letter to the editor: Brighton owner’s actions speak for themselves
The problem is insincerity of the person speaking the words. Take, for example, the owners of Brighton Rehab and Wellness Center, the holding company Allaire Health Services, appointed last year by state health officials to temporarily manage Brighton. CEO Benjamin Kurland would not agrree to be interviewed regarding his company...
Letter to the editor: Election needn’t be immaculate, just accurate
Every NFL playoff season I see replays of the “Immaculate Reception.” I’m looking forward to the 50th anniversary of that defining play Dec. 23. No, I wasn’t one of the 650,000 people who claim to have been in attendance at Three Rivers Stadium that day, but I remember where I...
Editorial: Pa. Senate shouldn’t be childish with open records
Malicious compliance is a passive-aggressive response to authority. Tell your kids to clean their room, and they shove everything under the bed. Tell your kid to get in the shower, and she does — but doesn’t turn on the water. Tell your kid he can have one bowl of ice...
Letter to the editor: Trump has done enough damage
In response to letters by Archie Atkinson (“Trump to blame for Biden? What a joke.,” Dec. 1, TribLIVE) and Jack Juris (“Standing by Biden is a bad choice,” Dec. 3, TribLIVE) regarding my letter “Another Trump presidency not the answer” (Nov. 18, TribLIVE), I’d like to explain my statement that...
Letter to the editor: No more excuses for criminals
Please tell me how far up is too far for people to stick their heads. Not long ago mayors, “the squad,” district attorneys and more were calling to defund the police. Now some of those same people beg for help after crime waves take over their cities. What a shame....
Tom Purcell: It’s time to cancel ‘snow days’
“Snow day.” Those were once the two most glorious words ever uttered on an early-morning radio broadcast. When I was a kid in the ’70s, it was pure heaven to wake to snow-blanketed hills, then tune in to Jack Bogut’s KDKA morning show, praying he’d say our suburban school district...
Letter to the editor: CNN 10 is creating a seed for students
Lori Falce makes some good points in her column “Yes, your kid should watch the news at school”. Who can be against that? However, her support of CNN10 is shortsighted. It reveals a naivete that I would not expect from an experienced news person. CNN10 meets a key test of...
Letter to the editor: Flashing Greengate light a mistake
Regarding the article “Drivers seeing red over flashing yellow signal at Route 30 intersection in Hempfield” (Jan. 9, TribLIVE): I’ve been driving for 54 years. The only wreck I had was at the Greengate/Route 30 intersection; I was T-boned by a Route 30 speeder. The yellow light is a mistake...
Letter to the editor: Aileen Wuornos and the death penalty
Last words can give hope to many. I feel better about everything reading what sage murderer Aileen Wuornos said before lethal injection: “Yes, I would just like to say I’m sailing with the rock, and I’ll be back, like Independence Day, with Jesus. June 6, like the movie. Big mother...
Editorial: King’s dream is quest for unity
We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal. Ask most people to name when those words were spoken, and they may say the Declaration of Independence. They are not wrong. Thomas Jefferson did pen them on that historic parchment that was sent to a king...
Letter to the editor: Trump changed the Republican Party for the worse
I had to write after reading two recent letters, one proclaiming that the Republican Party “has stayed the same for 60 years” and one stating that only candidates aligned with former President Trump can win an election. You see, the party has changed — just from the sentiment expressed that...
Mallard Fillmore cartoons for the week of Jan. 17
Mallard Fillmore cartoons for the week of Jan. 17....
Editorial cartoons for the week of Jan. 17
Editorial cartoons for the week of Jan. 17....
Mona Charen: Are Democrats trying to lose elections?
Would you have predicted that the first big political blunder of 2022 would be committed by the freshly inaugurated mayor of New York? Would you have thought that Eric Adams, the African American former cop, political moderate and skilled campaigner who represented a better path for Democrats, would step on...
Reps. Danilo Burgos, Angel Cruz and Manny Guzman: Redistricting plan will improve Latino representation
Since the approval of the preliminary plan for Pennsylvania’s state House of Representatives on Dec. 16, there has been a significant amount of discussion about how this map impacts communities of color across the commonwealth. As Latino members of the House, we feel compelled to address these important concerns. We...
