Opinion category, Page 47
Letter to the editor: What the ‘Big Beautiful Bill’ means for average family
U.S. Rep. Mike Kelly tried to put a positive spin on Trump’s Reconciliation Bill in his op-ed “One Big Beautiful Bill a gamechanger for Western Pa.” (July 5, TribLive). I think Americans know this bill will take revenue from the average American and redistribute it upwards. There is no trickle...
Ira Helfand: After 80 years, nuclear threat remains grave
As we approach the 80th anniversary of the U.S. bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki this month, on Aug. 6 and 9, respectively, the danger of nuclear war is great and growing. So far this year, five of the nine nations that possess nuclear weapons have been engaged in active military...
Patrick McLaughlin: There’s hope for pruning federal regulations. Some state experiments are paying off
President Donald Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act includes $100 million for the Office of Management and Budget “to pay expenses associated with improving regulatory processes and analyzing and reviewing rules.” Following the Department of Government Efficiency initiative, this small investment won’t make many headlines — but it should. If...
Letter to the editor: Pirates need to work hard to right the ship
Yo ho ho and a bottle of rum! Pirates fans must have had a big hangover after watching what happened July 31. Captain Hook sent four crew members to walk the plank but got nothing in return (future prospects don’t count when you need help now). It’s time the captain...
Letter to the editor: Did God protect Trump? How about Hitler?
On July 13, 2024, then presidential candidate Donald Trump narrowly escaped an assassination attempt at a campaign rally in Butler. Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, a Southern Baptist, afterward stated, “God miraculously spared the president’s life. … His presidency and his life are the fruits of divine providence.” On...
Editorial: Would Harrisburg pass a budget if Pennsylvania leaders stopped getting paid?
When will Pennsylvanians get fed up? The Pennsylvania General Assembly is among the highest-paid legislatures in the country. The lowest is New Hampshire, where a lawmaker pulls in just $100. The highest paid? Neighboring New York at $142,000. But the Keystone State is close to the top, with a salary...
Letter to the editor: Who cares about Jeffrey Epstein?
With all the chaos, crises and tragedy that has occurred recently, who really cares about Jeffrey Epstein? He’s deceased; let it go. As President Donald Trump recently said, “if it’s not one thing, it’s another.” Rep. Summer Lee demanded this all be released with the names of participants. Has government...
Anita Chabria: Kamala Harris hints at a 2028 re-run, raising the question: Can a woman win?
Kamala Harris does not want to be governor of California, which has a whole lot of contenders (and some voters) doing a happy dance this week. But with her announcement Wednesday that she is bowing out of a race she never officially entered, Harris has ignited a flurry of speculation...
Colin McNickle: The job growth question of AI
The advent of artificial intelligence (AI) could hold significant potential for the economies of Pennsylvania and the Pittsburgh area, which have lagged well behind in job gains in fast-growing metro areas and Right-to-Work states, says a researcher at the Allegheny Institute for Public Policy. “However, predictions of job growth resulting...
Letter to the editor: Comparing Biden, Trump on free speech
Recently we learned that CBS (owned by Paramount) would be ending its long-running “Late Night” TV show, currently hosted by the nauseatingly predictable Stephen Colbert. The network’s decision was also predictable, as the show lost 40 million bucks last year. Overall, late-night talk shows have been losing viewers for the...
Editorial: A pox on ‘personalized’ airline pricing at Delta or elsewhere
Delta Air Lines says it is rolling out “personalized fares,” which sounds benign and even sweet but is precisely the opposite. What is really going on is the massive airline is phasing in artificial intelligence-powered ticket pricing that may offer you a different fare for a particular trip than your...
Letter to the editor: Lies and conspiracy theories now the norm?
Maybe it’s because we’ve been lied to by government officials so often over the years that we now accept lies as normal behavior. From U-2 spy planes, Vietnam, Watergate, “Read my lips,” “I never had sex,” weapons of mass destruction and stolen elections, we have been lied to again and...
Editorial cartoons for the week of Aug. 4
Editorial cartoons for the week of Aug. 4....
Mallard Fillmore cartoons for the week of Aug. 4
Mallard Fillmore cartoons for the week of Aug. 4....
Letter to the editor: Drug savings should go to patients
National Health Center Week, Aug. 3-9, is a timely reminder of the essential role community health centers (CHCs) play across Pennsylvania. More than 400 CHCs in the commonwealth serve more than 1 million patients annually, many of them low-income, uninsured or living in medically underserved communities. An important tool CHCs...
Editorial: Rustic Ridge lawsuits shouldn’t be a surprise to plaintiffs, but for some, they are
The first lawsuits over the fatal 2023 explosion in the Rustic Ridge development in Plum have been filed in Allegheny County Common Pleas Court. This was to be expected. The two-year anniversary of the explosion is rapidly approaching. The incident has been investigated. The timing is appropriate. Last week, suits...
Letter to the editor: Saving independent pharmacies
One privately owned pharmacy in Ligonier closed last month. The remaining independent pharmacy is battling with pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) and insurance companies to retain its customers and stay open. In its July 24 story “Pharmacies are disappearing across Pennsylvania as operators blame a broken payment system,” Spotlight PA reports...
Joseph Sabino Mistick: Local radio stations show how to fight back in tough times
As public broadcasters and nonprofit organizations across the country struggle with President Trump’s federal funding cuts — including the July congressional recission of funds already granted for this year — the different responses by two Pittsburgh broadcasters provide lessons for others in similar straits. Trump’s war on public broadcasting specifically...
Aaron French: Is ChatGPT making us stupid?
Back in 2008, The Atlantic sparked controversy with a provocative cover story: Is Google Making Us Stupid? In that 4,000-word essay, later expanded into a book, author Nicholas Carr suggested the answer was yes, arguing that technology such as search engines were worsening Americans’ ability to think deeply and retain...
Shannon Gibson: US government may be abandoning global climate fight, but new leaders are filling void — including China
When President Donald Trump announced in early 2025 he was withdrawing the U.S. from the Paris Agreement for the second time, it triggered fears that the move would undermine global efforts to slow climate change and diminish America’s global influence. A big question hung in the air: Who would step...
Patrick Parenteau: Revoking EPA’s endangerment finding could have unintended consequences
Most of the United States’ major climate regulations are underpinned by one important document: It’s called the endangerment finding, and it concludes that greenhouse gas emissions are a threat to human health and welfare. The Trump administration is trying to eliminate it. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin announced on...
Letter to the editor: Trump vs. reality
I always find it interesting that sometimes when the editors publish a letter that is critical of Donald Trump, a supporter of his counters with some absurd reply claiming that “Trump derangement syndrome” is to blame. Whatever that is. I assume it is a made-up mental condition Trump himself has...
Editorial: How do you test for religion?
In the biblical Book of Judges, a story is told of a test. When the Gileadites vanquished the Ephraimites, the defeated people tried to escape across the Jordan River. The Gileadites, however, countered by testing refugees. Knowing the Ephraimite language didn’t have a “sh” sound, they asked people to say...
Letter to the editor: Leaders must stop methane leaks
I am concerned about the dangerous public health impacts of living near oil and gas development sites that leak methane. Natural gas can heat our homes and cook our meals. But when natural gas — mostly methane — leaks into the air, it’s a big problem. Methane is a colorless,...
S.E. Cupp: The Democratic Party has to grow up and go young
With all eyes on New York City’s mayoral race, Democrats are hoping, wishing, praying that Zohran Mamdani is the proverbial canary in the coal mine. With the party in a state of total disarray and weakness — a whopping 63% of voters have an unfavorable view of Democrats, and a...
