Opinion category, Page 557
Letter to the editor: McConnell started it
Regarding Ron Maxson’s letter “Liberals deserve what they gave Trump for four years” (Dec. 9, TribLIVE): Mr. Maxson, your memory is a little short. Or you refuse to recognize that good ol’ Mitch started this whole pile of crap when he didn’t work with President Obama. Leonard Mucci Derry Township...
Letter to the editor: Pa. representatives’ participation in lawsuit is shameful
I find it unbelievable that a small group of Pennsylvania state representatives decided to join in the Texas-led lawsuit (thrown out, thank goodness) to invalidate the Electoral College votes of four states, including Pennsylvania. This same group of lawmakers voted for Act 77 in October 2019. This was the bill...
Letter to the editor: Steelers and Republicans both looking ahead
How do Pittsburgh Steelers fans feel about the methods the Patriots used to get to and win their Super Bowls? The same way Republicans feel about how Joe Biden won the presidency. Can you at least relate? The NFL will not take away the Lombardi trophies from New England, but...
Editorial: Do what’s best and take the covid-19 vaccine
On Monday, the first health care workers rolled up their sleeves and accepted a shot in the arm of the Pfizer/BioNTech cocktail that offers hope against the coronavirus pandemic. In Pittsburgh, five front-line UPMC employees, including a critical care nurse and a patient transporter, had their injections livestreamed. This is...
Letter to the editor: Covid lockdowns preview of what’s to come
As a lifelong business person with international experience, it is my opinion that people need to understand that the covid-19 lockdowns being imposed, mostly in Democrat-controlled states and cities, are a preview of the kind of society America will become under national Democratic governance. The history of every country taken...
Letter to the editor: Now is time to legalize marijuana
The editorial “Pa. should take it slow on legalizing marijuana” (Dec. 6, TribLIVE) told us that cannabis legalization ought to wait for more studies. Interestingly, most cannabis studies focus on uncovering detrimental effects of cannabis rather than potential benefits. Coinciding with state-based recreational cannabis legalization, the United States has seen...
Tom Purcell: Viruses and responses differ; human nature doesn’t
The way my siblings and I responded to my family’s chicken-pox outbreak in 1973 might shed light on Americans’ responses to covid-19 in 2020. I was about 10 and remember how differently my five sisters responded to that highly contagious bug. To prevent its spread, our family doctor ordered us...
Peter Smith: Community capitalism would strengthen markets and people
Pope Francis recently wrote that “market capitalism” is out of control and that the world needs an alternative. In the United States, we are well aware of the burgeoning economic gap between the top 1% and everyone else that has erupted over the last 30 years. Multiple factors have contributed...
Mark Schwartz: Why no sanctions for frivolous election lawsuits?
Covid-19 has certainly made for an unprecedented situation for lawyers, as well as for our judges who try to maintain a semblance of order amid the overwhelming disorder that covid-19 has imposed. Court proceedings have always been about in-person proceedings, where we are able to personally confront opposing parties, their...
Letter to the editor: Pot dealers will need new line of work
Regarding the article “House votes to decriminalize marijuana at federal level” (Dec. 4, TribLIVE): Maybe the dealers will now turn to robbery to make a living putting people’s lives in danger. Clem Zahrobsky Delmont...
Letter to the editor: Trump’s post-office options
Nobody is above the law, not even former presidents. We will have a peaceful transition of power, and President-elect Joe Biden is going to be sworn in on Jan. 20. I believe President Trump has several choices to make prior to Jan. 20 to avoid prosecution (money laundering, bank and...
Editorial: Don’t let the Brewster-Ziccarelli voting mess happen again
The people of Pennsylvania’s 45th district are supposed to determine who their state senator is. Ideally, they would consider the issues, look at the candidates, review their ballot and make a decision. The people who win in the primary would move forward to the general election, and the one with...
Letter to the editor: What we’ll get with four years of Biden
I am saddened by the death of professor Walter Williams. He was the best columnist to ever write in the Tribune-Review and Valley News Dispatch. If Williams was our first Black president instead of Barack Obama, I think we would have a much better country today. I believe that the...
Mallard Fillmore cartoons for the week of Dec. 14
Mallard Fillmore cartoons for the week of Dec. 14....
Editorial cartoons for the week of Dec. 14
Editorial cartoons for the week of Dec. 14....
Rep. Austin Davis: Congress must act fast on CARES Act, new plan for Pa. residents
In March, we had to ask the most of our residents: We asked them to stay home. We asked them to forego their financial security, close businesses and have faith in the government to do the right thing. “We’ve got your backs,” we said. “Programs will be available to you...
S.E. Cupp: Jim Banks’ mask outrage is outrageous
As famous a phrase as it is, it’s unlikely that some fastidious but oblivious boatswain actually spent any time rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic as it was sinking to a watery grave in 1912. But the idea has come to illustrate an utterly pointless, wasteful and insignificant endeavor...
Letter to the editor: Electric car owners’ fair share
Letter-writer Joe Kujawski (“Electric car fees? Fair is fair,” Dec. 4, TribLIVE) presented his case for electric and hybrid car owners paying their fair share of road use taxes. I have no problem whatsoever paying my “fair” share, but I want it to be a “fair” share. I have owned...
Letter to the editor: Pennsylvanians need covid relief
Regarding the article “A bleak outlook for millions facing cutoff of jobless aid”: Enough is enough — millions of families continue to struggle to put food on the table and pay their rent. With the covid-19 virus surging again, Sens. Pat Toomey and Bob Casey must pass a robust covid-19...
Letter to the editor: America’s greatness lies in expertise, truth
In his column “The fight for free speech” (Oct. 9, TribLIVE), Walter Williams suggests that America is great because of “Western values.” I disagree. America is great because of our dedication to experts and the truth. We have succeeded where other democracies have spiraled down into fascism because our politicians...
Letter to the editor: Air regulations can’t be abandoned
In his op-ed “We’ve got enough environmental regulations” (Nov. 28, TribLIVE), Robert Smith states, “The environment has never been cleaner in my lifetime than now.” He compares environmental regulations to scraping the bowl for that last bite of chip dip, stating, “We continue to expend ever more effect to pick...
Letter to the editor: Vaccine questions must be answered
As the time approaches for us to get our covid-19 immunization shots, there are reasonable questions the medical and political community need to prepare for. Given the novelty of this particular pandemic, it is understandable that not every question is simple and easy, or even possible to answer in advance....
Editorial: Transit workers are front-line soldiers in covid war
Much of the language surrounding the coronavirus pandemic is comparable to that of warfare. We talk about fighting the disease. Having a battle plan. Deploying assets. And more than anything, we talk about the front lines. As in any war, that is where things get real. With covid-19, the front...
Eugene Robinson: Trump, GOP causing crisis of faith in our democracy
WASHINGTON Democracy requires faith. President Trump and his unscrupulous enablers — including most Republican elected officials — are cynically destroying that faith for millions of Americans, and I fear the nation will pay a terrible price. I’m talking to you, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., and most of your...
Sheldon Jacobson: Effective treatments, not vaccines, are light at end of covid-19 tunnel
We are nine months into the covid-19 pandemic, with many succumbing to face covering and physical distancing fatigue, and pockets of pervasive skepticism about the virus threat and its risk. No one is happy, and everyone has someone to blame for their anger, grief and malcontent. The question people are...
