Opinion category, Page 493
S.E. Cupp: 600,000 covid deaths and us — the America revealed by agonizing milestone
Monday was an ordinary day at the Big Bear grocery store in DeKalb County, Ga., where 41-year-old Laquitta Willis worked as a cashier. Just after lunch, 30-year-old Victor Lee Tucker Jr. entered the store. When he went to check out, Willis reportedly asked him to put his mask over his...
John Stossel: Debunking myths about capitalism
Everywhere, people trash capitalism. But what they think they know about capitalism is usually wrong. My new video debunks some myths about capitalism. “No one ever makes a billion dollars,” complains Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. “You take a billion dollars.” In other words, capitalists get rich by taking money from others....
Ron Klink: Standing up for steelworkers against hypocritical clean energy groups
As President Biden sat down with European and world leaders this week to declare “America is Back,” combating global climate change was top of the agenda. At the G7 summit, world leaders laid out a vision for a net zero world, where virtually all greenhouse gases are removed from the...
Leonard Pitts Jr.: Allow teachers to teach the truth
The morning bell rang at Republican High (“Home of the Fightin’ Pachyderms”) as students shuffled in. Gretchen Niedermeyer dry swallowed a couple of pre-emptive aspirins and reminded herself as she did every morning that she was just 16 months and — a glance at the calendar — seven days from...
Letter to the editor: Republicans should learn from history
When will Republicans learn that the playbook being followed was written in the 1920s-30s? A failed putsch followed by undermining our confidence in our elections followed by legislation limiting who can vote followed by eliminating or drastically reducing the power of elected officials, culminating with the results of an election...
Letter to the editor: ‘Majority’ didn’t disagree with solitary confinement
Everybody is entitled to their opinion. I can’t disagree with that. But given that there was only a 20% turnout in the most recent voting opportunity, I think it is unfair to state that a majority of Allegheny County residents disagree with the use of solitary confinement as a form...
Lori Falce: Not all dads are fathers
On Sunday, barbecues will fire up, hammocks will be in full swing and ties will be wrapped and ready to be oohed and ahhed over. Father’s Day will have arrived, the day when we celebrate the dads in our lives. But with that in mind, let’s remember that not all...
Laurels & Lances: Bikes, bridges and slides
Laurel: To pedaling forward. There may be no more quintessential expression of the freedom of summer vacation than a kid on a bike. It’s exercise. It’s fun. It’s the ability to be and grow and do on their own. But for some kids, a bike is out of reach. On...
Letter to the editor: Stop politicking, take action
I am sick of hearing about the dire need to protect our federal House and Senate while politicians do nothing about groups like Black Lives Matter and antifa that have burned and pillaged U.S. cities. Apparently, only their elite members should be protected — not businesses or citizens. Some are...
Sheldon Jacobson: Will covid-19 create unexpected surprises at the US Open?
Torrey Pines is hosting the 2021 U.S. Open Golf tournament, the third of four professional golf majors played this year. With 156 golfers from across the globe gathering in San Diego, there is much anticipation for the event to be held without any hitches. Recall the pain and frustration displayed...
John Peck: Pre-K investments can keep kids out of prison
With graduation season upon us, we’re reminded how smart, up-front investments in human potential save money on the back end. When we create quality educational opportunities for our children, we invest in the likelihood that our next generation will be successful, contributing members of the community. No one is born...
Adam Marles: Pandemic continues in Pa. nursing homes; funding desperately needed
America is starting to reopen. It’s wonderful to see people reuniting with their loved ones after a year of isolation. Americans are traveling again. Sporting events, like the recent PGA Championship and NBA playoffs, are welcoming crowds. The exuberance at these events is heartwarming and a testament to the miracle...
Letter to the editor: Constitution won’t change, so people must
James Madison, the primary author of our Constitution, said this: “We have staked the whole future of our new nation, not upon the power of government; far from it. We have staked the future of all our political constitutions upon the capacity of each of ourselves to govern ourselves according...
Letter to the editor: Questioning mental health of Trump, Greene
You don’t need a weatherman to know which way the wind blows, said a young Bob Dylan. Similarly, I don’t think a Ph.D in psychology is required to recognize that Donald Trump and Marjorie Taylor Greene are deeply disturbed, mentally ill individuals. Even so, 27 mental health professionals published a...
Editorial: No excuse for silence about change at county elections office
The person in charge of Westmoreland County’s elections bureau is out of the office. Kind of. Maybe? It’s hard to tell because no one is talking about what’s going on. The county commissioners met Tuesday as the election board, doing pro forma tasks such as certifying the final numbers for...
Letter to the editor: Biden’s actions are not in line with Catholic faith
Op-ed contributor Gary Scott Smith wants you to believe that “Biden’s faith shapes his politics.” I don’t believe this is true. President Biden’s policies are shaped by his faith in big government and socialism, to be exact. He is Catholic in name only, as he picks and chooses which of...
Rep. Greg Vitali: Environmental protection needs more funding
The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection has been woefully underfunded for years. This is primarily due to a Republican-controlled state Legislature that has consistently pushed for DEP budget cuts. Unless Gov. Tom Wolf makes environmental funding a priority in current budget negotiations, the status quo will continue. The commonwealth is...
Jonah Goldberg: Cold War strategies no longer apply with Russia
President Joe Biden and Russian autocrat Vladimir Putin are scheduled to meet today for the first time since Biden was elected president. For many in the foreign policy establishment and diplomatic press corps, this is an exciting opportunity to conjure some Cold War drama. Historically, such summits were major happenings....
Letter to the editor: Jeannette sewage fees out of line
As a resident of Jeannette for many years, I fail to understand why we must pay such exorbitant fees for sewage. Our fees are a flat rate of $165 per quarter, $660 per year regardless of water consumption. Neighboring municipalities’ sewage rates are in line with water consumption. We have...
Letter to the editor: Banish the divisiveness
As I watched Memorial Day celebrations on television, I remembered learning the words to all the military anthems in school music classes. Then the late news came on and brought me back to today’s reality. I’m glad I’m old and lived in a time where there was more honest patriotism...
Editorial: Lower impact fees mean real pain for local governments
Natural gas drilling does not translate to money in the bank for local governments. In 2020, while prices on items such as hand sanitizer and commodities including lumber went through the roof, other numbers dropped through the floor. One of those was natural gas, which hit a low of $1.66...
Letter to the editor: Cashless PNC Park is bad policy
In the middle of May, I took my daughter to watch the Pirates at PNC Park. She loves going to the ballpark and watching the Pirates. Unbeknownst to me, the ballpark had initiated a policy of not accepting cash, but only debit or credit cards. I had brought $120 cash...
Leonard Pitts Jr.: Something is wrong with our tax system
A few words about the makers and the takers. That, as you may recall, was the formulation once favored by Fox “News” and other organs of the political right to describe the dynamic between those at the top of the economic pyramid and those at the bottom. The poor —...
Pat Buchanan: All is hype for Biden-Putin summit
History repeats itself, first as tragedy, then as farce. Karl Marx’s comment came to mind as President Joe Biden and Prime Minister Boris Johnson sought to equate their tete-a-tete at the G7 confab in Cornwall, England, to the Atlantic Charter conference of 80 years ago. Those were historic days, to...
Rich Askey: Say no to largest transfer of taxpayer dollars out of public schools in Pa. history
Every June, Pennsylvania’s educators and parents find themselves in familiar territory — pleading with state lawmakers to increase funding that their public schools desperately need to educate students and keep up with expenses. Still, many school districts find themselves doing more with less year after year as they contend with...
