Opinion category, Page 720
George Will: All-too-real parable of ‘privilege-hoarding’
WASHINGTON Nestled on the Front Range of the Rockies, the city of Crystal was a largely upper-middle-class paradise, chock full of health-conscious and socially conscious — meaning, of course, impeccably progressive —Coloradans. Then in slithered a serpent in the form of a proposal for a new school, to be called...
James Disantis: No ‘fix’ for delusional killers
I have worked as a licensed clinical social worker in the health/mental health field in a variety of settings for 40 years. Hopefully, with age has come some wisdom I would like to share. The “dirty little secret” no one will talk about is this: There is no successful mental...
Colin McNickle: Keeping an eye on police regionalization
Cheswick Borough and Springdale Township have joined forces to form Allegheny County’s second regional police force. And if the conclusions of a state study that led to the creation of the Allegheny Valley Regional Police Department come to fruition, it could be an operational and financial win-win for local taxpayers,...
Deena Flinchum: USMCA good deal for union workers
When members of Congress return from their August recess, they’ll face one of the most important decisions of their political careers — whether to ratify President Trump’s new trade deal with Canada and Mexico. The United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) isn’t perfect, but it’s far better than NAFTA, the pact which...
Joseph Sabino Mistick: Unions for America
By the time Fannie Sellins was killed outside a mine near Brackenridge on Aug. 26, 1919, the widowed mother of four children was already a veteran union organizer, a fierce fighter for the poor and a fearless picket-line marcher. Sellins’ life was celebrated last week in the Allegheny Valley at...
Letter to the editor: Heed musical wisdom, turn off your screens
In 1973, there were three TV channels and the average “screens” per household were rarely more than one. That same year, Frank Zappa released “I’m The Slime,” prophetically warning about “vile and pernicious slime oozin’ out from your TV set.” By 1979, average screens per household had doubled, and The...
Letter to the editor: Reach out to show seniors they’re valued
I’d like to recognize the incredible kindness of Dylan Tetil, who took a few moments out of his busy schedule to chat with a lonely elderly man (“Rostraver Eat’n Park waiter serves up simple act of kindness to WWII veteran,” Aug. 19, TribLIVE). Thanks also to Lisa Meilander, who witnessed...
Walter Williams: Slavery & our ‘democracy’
The New York Times has begun a major initiative, the “1619 Project,” to observe the 400th anniversary of the beginning of American slavery. It aims to reframe American history so that slavery and the contributions of black Americans explain who we are as a nation. Nikole Hannah-Jones, staff writer for...
John Stossel: In Africa, bad law keeps people poor
Why does most of Africa stay poor while other parts of the world prosper? People blame things like climate, the history of colonialism, racism, etc. But I say Senegalese businesswoman Magatte Wade gives the right explanation: too many rules. “Once you hire someone, good luck getting rid of them for...
Letter to the editor: Walter Williams’ racism
Did letter-writer Laurie Lucianne Scheid actually suggest that black columnist Walter Williams was racist because of his op-ed regretting how easy it is to be labeled racist (“Walter Williams’ op-ed misleading,” Aug. 20, TribLIVE)? She sure proved him wrong. Thomas Wagner Murrysville...
Letter to the editor: Reschenthaler & our elections
It is plain to see from his op-ed (“Mueller show’s over; it’s time to move on,” Aug. 7, TribLIVE) that my representative, Guy Reschenthaler, does not believe that a) the Russians compromised our 2016 presidential election; b) the confirmation of our nation’s 17 intelligence agencies that the Russians had compromised...
Letter to the editor: Do homework to see who’s lying
How do so many of your thoughtful, well-meaning letter-writers come to such opposite hyper partisan conclusions? Your July 31 letter headlines were typical: “Overcoming the Trump mistake,” “Dems’ racist rhetoric,” “Mueller vs. Trump: Who to believe?” We are being unduly and selectively influenced by the confusing and repetitive, and even...
Judy Butler & Adriane Fugh-Berman: Opioids are still overprescribed
A new government report found that although naloxone prescriptions have increased substantially in recent years, prescription rates are still too low. Naloxone, a drug that temporarily reverses the effects of opioids, can help prevent overdose deaths and should be prescribed with all high-dose opioid prescriptions. According to the Centers for...
Lori Falce: The death penalty shouldn’t be easy
I struggle with the death penalty. I want to be the kind of person who feels forgiveness in my heart and embraces the redemptive possibility of prison. I’m not. I’d like to feel the certainty of those who are all-in on the eye-for-an-eye aspects of capital punishment. I’m not there...
Laurels & lances: Scholarship, soil, support and snow
Laurel: To sharing a life and a loss. The family of Terry Ranieri lost him to cancer last week, and that was a hard blow for them. We previously applauded the band for supporting Ranieri in his final days. Now we acknowledge the Ranieri family’s reciprocation. Knowing that Ranieri, a...
Letter to the editor: Synagogue shooter deserves death
After reading the article about the rabbis within the Jewish community asking that Squirrel Hill synagogue shooter be spared the death penalty (“Dor Hadash, New Light leaders urge AG to accept life in prison for accused Tree of Life gunman,” Aug. 16, TribLIVE), I would like to say that those...
Letter to the editor: Congress, get to work on immigration
I am ashamed of the U.S. House and Senate. The Democrats blame the Republicans for immigration issues, and the Republicans blame the Democrats. They are equally at fault. They sit in Washington and refuse to solve the immigration problem. They prefer to politically point fingers at and blame each other....
Letter to the editor: Robert Mueller’s collusion revelations
After more than two years and an estimated $45 million in taxpayer funding, what was the end result of the Mueller investigation? Fake news owes the public an apology. Day after day, they touted potential “bombshell” revelations that turned out to be fizzled firecrackers. The real collusion appeared to be...
George Will: National Popular Vote gimmick won’t work
WASHINGTON Let us now praise an insufficiently famous man, Nevada’s Democratic Gov. Steve Sisolak, who in May gave his party’s presidential aspirants a much-needed example of prudence. With the national media mesmerized by those aspirants’ festival of pandering, scant attention was given to Sisolak’s good deed. He vetoed legislation that...
Vince Mercuri: Learning, growing by sharing worldviews
More than 12 years ago, my future son-in-law confidently posed this question to me: “What is your worldview?” What followed was a discussion/debate about a wide-ranging set of principles — religion, politics, finances, values and the importance of family. While there was agreement on most of these topics, on others...
Editorial: Grandparents need help raising kids
They say it takes a village to raise a child. More and more, it takes a grandma. “We grandparents who are raising grandchildren, we are the protection for that next generation,” said Charlotte Stephenson in a panel discussion Tuesday with U.S. Sen. Bob Casey, D-Scranton. And it’s true. In Pennsylvania...
Lawrence McCullough: Making consumers’ green choices pay off for everyone
Is it possible the U.S. economy can successfully transition to a clean energy foundation without top-down legislative reform effort from Congress? Three market-based approaches would seed and speed the process at the local, micro-economic level and lay groundwork for far-reaching effects in U.S. energy policy: 1. Suspend for three years...
Letter to the editor: Mainstream media should be held accountable
There ought to be an accounting and punitive measures taken against the mainstream media, especially CNN and MSNBC, for what they do to the people who watch, listen and believe. Fortunately, many folks are realizing that many of the accusations against President Trump are baseless. So MSNBC’s ratings are down...
Letter to the editor: What has happened to America?
Why … are there so many abortions? Why … are children’s video games so violent? Why … do people say things on social media sites that they wouldn’t say to a person’s face? Why … is there so much violence? Why … do many athletes refuse to visit our nation’s...
Letter to the editor: Trump is dividing us
I would like to commend Carl Mochak for his letter “Disagreeing with Trump supporters”. The subsequent letter by Bob Serena (“Many veterans support Trump,”) rested my case. I have a rough time accepting the fact that any level-headed, honest-thinking American could cast a vote for such a hateful individual as...
