Opinion category, Page 433
Letter to the editor: Wage disparity and wealth inequality
The article, “Penn State names 1st woman university president” (Dec. 9, TribLIVE) illustrates how wage disparity contributes to our wealth inequality. The salaries for college instructors vary widely. A tenured full professor’s salary averages around $150,000 a year, while associate and assistant professors make less than two-thirds of that figure....
Editorial: Legislating requires thinking several moves ahead
Chess is a game that demands more than just following the rules. To master its art, a player has to develop the ability to look beyond the move being made to the next step and the next and the next. To see how this move affects what happens down the...
Letter to the editor: Government must fund metal detectors in all schools
It is long overdue that a bipartisan Washington funds metal detectors for all our schools. The killings/injuries in our schools must stop. According to the National Center for Education Statistics, there are 130,930 K-12 schools in the United States. The average recommended metal detector is $5,000; this equates to about...
Terry Wilcox: AARP’s drug pricing conflict of interest
AARP is the nation’s biggest and most influential advocacy group for seniors. It has about 38 million members — more than 11% of the U.S. population. From lobbying for better conditions in nursing homes to getting travel discounts for members, the organization has done much to help retired people over...
Peter Morici: Fixing Biden’s China policy
China’s global ambitions pose an existential threat to Western democracy, prosperity and security, but the Biden administration, preoccupied with domestic economic renewal and social justice, has not articulated a comprehensive policy. Cooperation on climate change could materialize, but the consequences for economic competition — fundamentally the trade and investment relationship...
Joseph Sabino Mistick: Resolutions big and small
On New Year’s Day in 1773, Anglican priest John Newton used one of his poems to illustrate a point in his sermon, and when those words were later set to music by American composer William Walker in 1835, it became the hymn that we now know as “Amazing Grace.” Newton’s...
Sounding off: Laws protect us from religious subjugation
We are one nation under the Constitution of the U.S. created in 1787 by representatives of “We, the people.” The Founders also incorporated a Bill of Rights in 1791 to protect individual rights and liberties, and citizen independence protected by freedom of speech, peaceable assembly, religious liberty and freedom of...
Stephen Carter: What to expect from the world in 2022
December’s end is when we reflect on what we hope to improve in the year to come … and also the time for my annual predictions of news headlines for the next 12 months. Usually I begin by evaluating last year’s predictions, but this year only one bears mention: For...
Nathan Benefield: Gerrymandering won’t save unpopular candidates
With state and congressional redistricting underway in Harrisburg, many politicians have blamed “partisan gerrymandering” for past election losses. But this is another instance when the conventional wisdom gets it wrong. Redistricting-watchers fearing an electoral apocalypse and those hoping for a clear path to victory need a healthy dose of reality....
Letter to the editor: Could John Peck’s behavior be factor in his loss?
You reported that an apparently disgruntled John Peck, who was defeated by Nicole Ziccarelli in his reelection bid to continue as Westmoreland County district attorney, has, according to Ziccarelli, “so far refused to cooperate with the transition” (“Westmoreland County DA-elect Nicole Ziccarelli says transition team not getting cooperation from predecessor,”...
Letter to the editor: Deaths at jail must be investigated
The Allegheny County Jail Oversight Board has the statutory responsibility of providing “oversight of the health and safekeeping” of the residents and “investigate allegations of inadequate prison conditions” at the Allegheny County Jail. Since April 2020, there have been 11 deaths of jail residents (“Allegheny County Jail inmate dies,” Dec....
Editorial: Same stuff, different year
If you had trouble telling the difference between 2020 and 2021, you aren’t alone. The last two years have been a stressful roller coaster of issues that have required almost constant attention. In 2020, it was the pandemic. It was politics with the presidential election. It was the annual census...
Letter to the editor: Make a vegan New Year’s resolution
Millions of people around the world will make New Year’s resolutions. Some decide it’s time to get back to the gym; many make the decision to unplug from social media; and, becoming more popular, people will make a resolution to go vegan. This was my own New Year’s resolution 10...
Letter to the editor: We need a true conservative Republican in Toomey’s seat
To Richard Patton (”We need a real Pennsylvanian in Toomey’s seat,” Dec. 24, TribLIVE): Hear, hear! But more important than actually being from Pennsylvania is that we get a true conservative Republican. No RINOs! So welcome any candidate that fits your request and mine. And to RINO Pat Toomey: Bye!...
S.E. Cupp: The change we wish to see in the world for 2022
For the past nearly decade, I’ve asked friends, colleagues, politicos and celebs to share their New Year’s resolutions with me and my readers. After the year we’ve had, I’m especially grateful to get just a glimpse into their fragile psyches and guarded optimism as we all head warily into 2022....
John Stossel: Charities better than government at helping people
It’s the season for giving. I’ll give. This week I’ll donate to the Doe Fund, a charity that helps drug users and ex-cons find purpose in life through work. “Work works!” they say. It sure does. Most Doe Fund workers find more joy in supporting themselves than they ever found...
Letter to the editor: Why would Penn Hills hire officer under investigation?
Why on earth did Penn Hills hire a cop under investigation for killing a young Black man in Wilkinsburg (“Arbitrator judge reinstates former Wilkinsburg police officer to Penn Hills,” Dec. 15, TribLIVE)? If he is found guilty, what is Penn Hills to do with him? Penn Hills residents, please be...
Letter to the editor: If election system works, audit should be supported
Tricia Cunningham’s op-ed “Corman, Mastriano act tough on election integrity, but they caused the problems” (Dec. 18, TribLIVE) denigrates Republican state Sens. Jake Corman and Doug Mastriano for advocating a complete audit of the 2020 elections on the basis that they both voted for Act 77 which was partly to...
Lori Falce: What did you learn in 2021?
“I can’t wait to say goodbye to this dumpster fire of a year.” “I just want this year to be over.” “I want to pretend this year never happened.” This attitude is one I have become accustomed to hearing as December winds to a close each year. I have heard...
Letter to the editor: Single-use plastics ban good for our health
Pittsburgh City Council is currently considering Councilwoman Erika Strassburger’s proposed legislation to ban single-use plastics (“Experts join discussion about potential plastic bag ban in Pittsburgh,” Dec. 18, TribLIVE). An important issue connected to this legislation is the health consequences on all of us by continuing the manufacture of plastic bags....
Addison Del Mastro: Pa. should embrace its heritage by restoring railways
Streetcars were once a ubiquitous presence in Pennsylvania’s cities and towns. This mode of transport — a symbol of America’s booming industrial age — was born in Scranton, which became known as “The Electric City” when it opened the first continuously operating electric trolley system in 1886. Soon thereafter, Scranton...
Laurels & Lances: The little highs and lows of 2021
The Laurels & Lances are where we laud or lambaste the kind of good and bad stories each week that don’t quite rise to the level of a full-blown editorial but still deserve to be called out for attention. January: The first laurel of the year went to two area...
Letter to the editor: Carbon emissions tax will hurt consumers
So letter-writer Bruce Cooper (“Biden’s climate order is not enough,” Dec. 21, TribLIVE) wants to tax carbon emissions at $20 per ton. Have you, Mr. Cooper, considered who will ultimately pay that tax? It’s not the utilities or the petroleum companies. They will simply pass along the added cost to...
Letter to the editor: Disingenuous tax plans
“Build Back Better” is purported to be legislation that transforms our economy from the so-called trickle-down effects of capitalism, which benefits only the rich, to one that presumes to grow from the bottom up and the middle out, that works for the good of lower and middle classes. A significant...
Editorial: Nursing home residents deserve protection from sex offenders
On April 21, 1996, Megan’s Law went into effect in Pennsylvania. That made possible identifying sex offenders, keeping a registry of their location and notifying the community if someone with a record of sexual violence was living nearby. The law was named for Megan Kanka, 7, a New Jersey girl...
