Opinion category, Page 727
Tom Purcell: Little Sisters home an oasis of joy, peace, calm in troubled world
Twelve years ago, when I first visited the Little Sisters of the Poor (LSP) retirement home in Pittsburgh, I was overcome with peace and calm. I went there to write about a retiree, Gorman Johnston, and his dog, Abner. I wanted to get the interview over with quickly on that...
Editorial: There is no one way to stop shootings
There is no way to stop someone brimming with fear and goaded by hatred, fueled by insecurity and propelled by prejudice. We have to stop this grappling to find the Holy Grail solution that will solve the tragic trouble of mass murder. It isn’t one answer. It is a complicated,...
Editorial cartoons for the week of Aug. 5
Editorial cartoons for the week of Aug. 5....
Letter to the editor: Will grant pay for drug awareness?
The article “Westmoreland County takes over $91K salary, benefits for drug task force head” (July 25, TribLIVE) was very interesting. A $250,000 grant, $91,000 a year for a single salary since 2016, means none of the money has gone toward drug awareness. Now here’s the rub: The commissioners in their...
Letter to the editor: Inhumane treatment of migrants
With sheer revulsion, Americans are being treated to the inhumane sights of packed detention centers where migrant men have barely enough room to stand yet alone lie down to sleep. In sweltering conditions, many wear face masks to mitigate the overwhelming stench. These men are detained for weeks with little...
Letter to the editor: Free speech on all sides
In reference to Glenn Plummer’s letter “Next steps for Trump supporters,” I have a few questions and an observation. The first question is, why on earth is he so angry? I shouldn’t have to point out that we live in a representative republic, and as such, every once in a...
Mallard Fillmore cartoons for the week of Aug. 5
Mallard Fillmore cartoons for the week of Aug. 5....
Steve Lopez: Had enough? Here’s how to fight the madness of mass shootings
Gilroy. El Paso. Dayton. It’s one senseless and horrific mass shooting after another, and you’re hit with waves of sadness, anger and frustration. If 20 children were massacred at a Connecticut elementary school in 2012 and the sensible gun control proposals that followed were handily defeated, is there any way...
Michelle Malkin: Freedom of assembly under fire
Do law-abiding American citizens still have the right to gather peacefully to discuss their ideas without fear of government censorship and retribution? In my adopted hometown of Colorado Springs, the answer is “no” if you believe in strict border control or question whether the U.S. can survive as a nation-state....
Editorial: Data security demands cooperation
There is no lock that can’t be picked. There are just locks that haven’t been picked yet. That is the short definition of cybersecurity. Credit card giant Capital One became the latest victim in the hacking wars last week when the company announced 104 million customers and applicants had their...
Letter to the editor: US has done well on environment
The recent raising of the discussion on climate change by our Democratic Party members must be viewed with one important requirement. Over the last few decades, the United States has done a darn good job of cleaning up our environment. No, it is not perfect, nor is it completed, but...
Letter to the editor: Flawed champion of bigots
A war was fought. They were almost socially eradicated. But like a mutated cell they did not die and now they metastasize with a new host, the president. Once again Americans are divided. But in place of Abraham Lincoln, we have Donald Trump. The contrast is almost total. The danger...
Letter to the editor: Trump restoring our freedom
Dave Cremonese’s letter “Escape from freedom” (July 2, TribLIVE) is a smokescreen. President Trump is trying to restore freedom, truth and facts for the average American. Liberals, including the biased press, many politicians and liberal judges, dictate every aspect of our lives. Homosexuality is just an alternative lifestyle. Public displays...
Colin McNickle: Can Pa.’s record impact fee receipts be sustained?
Pennsylvania collected the highest total impact fees ever in 2018, fueled in part by a court ruling but paced largely by increased demand for shale gas, concludes a review of state data by the Allegheny Institute for Public Policy. Act 13 of 2012 (with collections retroactive to 2011) instituted the...
Edward Timmons: New law makes it easier to work in Pennsylvania
Gov. Tom Wolf recently signed House Bill 1172 — which allows workers who hold occupational licenses from other states to use them in Pennsylvania — into law. Individuals will still need to pay licensing fees and have at least two years of relevant experience, but it will soon become much...
George Will: For the Democrats, it’s winnowing time
Winnow: verb. To expose (grain or other substances) to the wind or to a current of air so that the lighter particles (as chaff or other refuse matter) are separated or blown away. — Oxford English Dictionary WASHINGTON It is time to dust off this marvelously appropriate verb for its...
Joseph Sabino Mistick: Democrats need real scrapper to take on Trump
Paddy Ryan, an Irish-American boxer and one-time Pittsburgher, was featured on a 1920s poster put out by his Bronx-based promoters in hopes of attracting opponents. Ryan, a former amateur world champion who had become a prizefighter, is posed in the classic boxer’s profile — chin down, gloveless hands extended, feet...
Chris Rosselot: Getting North Side redevelopment right
Bob Bauder’s article “Strip District development will push into the North Side, officials say” (July 5, TribLIVE) brings attention to redevelopment opportunities on the North Side, specifically along the banks of the Allegheny River and the area surrounding the old Heinz plant. The article serves as a reminder that North...
L.E. McCullough: Making a nation where no one is a stranger
No matter what happens in the headlines or the halls of Congress, the first steps in resolving America’s burning social questions have historically occurred after years of debate and disputation in our houses of worship. The last 200 years have seen landmark deliberations ensue on slavery, temperance, evolution, LGBTQ inclusion,...
Editorial: No such thing as a free lunch with SNAP
Don’t cut off your nose to spite your face. Don’t throw the baby out with the bathwater. Don’t be penny wise and pound foolish. There are plenty of old sayings that urge us not to do something on principle that makes sense but has an obvious fly in the ointment....
Sounding off: American dream needs borders
There’s no American dream without a border. It marks the beginning of differences between what’s inside the boundary and what’s outside. Some of those differences are opportunities, some are the laws designed to protect the people within. Without laws, a person’s assets might easily be exploited or stolen by others....
Letter to the editor: Irony of blacks’ mistrust of police
In watching the honoring of Pittsburgh Police Officer Calvin Hall, I was struck by the irony of it all. Here was a policeman, an African-American, so very well respected by his colleagues both black and white and his superiors. Earlier on there were words of respect from Lt. Gov. John...
Letter to the editor: It’s getting harder to determine truth, reality
A wise man once said, “Our problems are many, while our solutions are few.” I think a wise man said it? Or did I just make that up? Truthfully, I’m not sure. I’ve read and viewed so much on TV, social media, newspapers, books and magazines, etc., over the past...
Letter to the editor: Politicians should work for a living
I’m so tired of them. You know the ones, living off of our hard-earned money while we do actual work day in and day out. They get to ride around in big new cars with smartphones and unlimited data plans while we drive to work in thousand-dollar cars just waiting...
Walter Williams: Being a racist is easy today
Years ago, it was hard to be a racist. You had to be fitted for and spend money on a white gown and don a pointy hat. You celebrated racism by getting some burlap, wrapping it around a cross, setting it ablaze and dancing around it carrying torches. Sometimes, as...
