Opinion category, Page 85
Joseph Sabino Mistick: Pennies, straws distract from Trump’s big news
I don’t use straws much, but I have to say President Donald Trump hit a home run last week with his executive order banning paper straws at all federal government facilities. Trump was right when he said they “don’t work.” “It’s a ridiculous situation. We’re going back to plastic straws,”...
Noah Feldman: JD Vance is playing a dangerous legal game
The federal district courts have been standing up to Donald Trump’s illegal executive actions, blocking or pausing multiple orders from the denial of birthright citizenship to unprecedented data access for Elon Musk’s “Department of Government Efficiency.” It’s neither surprising nor especially worrisome that Musk is now attacking the courts —...
Counterpoint: Let parents and teachers, not bureaucrats, make decisions about cellphones in schools
Should kids have access to smartphones in school? Some argue the smartphone problem leads to distraction. Others say smartphones are necessary for reasons related to safety or other concerns. In reality, it is a more complicated question than it appears. Yet, oftentimes, when complicated questions arise, broad state-level policies that...
Point: Cellphones are distractions, not toys
In today’s digital age, the ubiquitous presence of cellphones has transformed them into essential tools for communication, information and entertainment. However, when placed in the hands of children under 16, these devices can become detrimental, leading to physical inactivity, social isolation and addiction driven by sophisticated algorithms. As a scientist...
Letter to the editor: Trump’s wee-hours trolling alarming
On Monday at 4:14 a.m. the president of the United States of America posted on Truth Social: “The only one that had a tougher night than the Kansas City Chiefs was Taylor Swift. She got BOOED out of the Stadium. MAGA is very unforgiving !” God help us. Edmund L....
Sounding off: Trump’s actions, Fetterman, Steelers among week’s topics
The ripple effects of deportations There are communities throughout our country that have suffered from lack of investment and employment opportunities. Immigrants moved into these neglected areas, gradually revitalizing them by bringing small businesses, restaurants and jobs. They have nurtured a sense of community, creating spaces where folks could socialize,...
Letter to the editor: Biden was the half-time show
Since we’ve already experienced the first half of the Trump presidency and are into the second half, we can view the Biden presidency for what it was. The half-time show. Bill Radvansky New Kensington...
Editorial: A turnpike toll scam? Say it isn’t so
Do you owe the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission? Maybe. It can happen. The Toll By Plate system makes it possible to rack up tolls that can become fees that can become more. Even an E-ZPass transponder can end up with unexpected red ink now and then. But that doesn’t mean you...
Letter to the editor: Speak up to stop Musk’s coup
I’ve watched with alarm as Elon Musk — a billionaire with no security clearance but tons of conflicts of interest — has taken over the Treasury. His intern programmers have not only gained access to all our sensitive financial information, but tampered with the systems. Musk acts like he’s above...
Letter to the editor: Pittsburgh and Pa. rapidly dying for a reason
Recent statistics show that Pittsburgh is the fifth fastest dying city in the country and Pennsylvania is the 10th fastest dying state. Having been in the construction industry for over 30 years and working with corporations from all over the country, I’ve learned that the main reasons the major private...
S.E. Cupp: Republicans’ disregard for laws might be fatal
It’s a favorite saying of the American right when advocating for stricter immigration laws: “A nation that cannot control its borders is not a nation.” It’s usually attributed to Ronald Reagan, the Republican hero who was nearly unimpeachable in his patriotism and his commitment to conservatism. The same Reagan whose...
Cal Thomas: Demise of the penny makes cents
President Trump has ordered the Treasury Department to stop minting pennies to save money. It costs almost four cents to make one and as the president seeks to reduce federal spending, the penny is a good, if largely symbolic, target. The nickel is even more expensive. It costs nearly 14...
Letter to the editor: Journalists as propagandists
The editorial “No excuse justifies silencing student journalism” (Jan. 29, TribLive) focused on the need to support student publishing, which I fully support. However, it made no mention of what seems to me, or a preponderance of recent voters, as a wholesale change needed for the good of the country....
Letter to the editor: Trump, a weapon of mass distraction
Businessman Donald Trump has always been the king of WMD, weapon of mass distraction. The saying goes something like this: No matter how important your conversation is, if someone throws a dead fish on the table, you are going to talk about the fish! Previously he sued just about everyone...
Lori Falce: Marc Fogel, Saquon Barkley, Donald Trump and rooting for all the right reasons
The Super Bowl is one of the highlights of my year. Even when the Steelers aren’t participating, I revel in the rush. Sometimes not having your team in play can make you appreciate the game more than the score. I have been up front about my absolute loathing of the...
Laurels & lances: Credit & quiet
Laurel: To a job completed. For three and a half years, Marc Fogel survived his stint in a Russian prison. But let’s give a laurel to the people who brought him home. There is President Donald Trump, who made a promise shortly before being shot in Fogel’s hometown in Butler...
Letter to the editor: Decline of Steelers and Pirates
Why don’t Art Rooney and Bob Nutting trade teams? They can’t be any worse than they are now. Both men are making tons of money from ticketholders, concessions, TV revenue, parking and whatever. It seems that both could care less about the heritage of their teams, the talent they had...
Paul Kengor: Hey, Travis and Taylor — get married
The sports world is abuzz over Travis Kelce’s next career move in light of his not-so-super performance during the Kansas City Chiefs’ Super Bowl defeat. Well, I, your humble columnist, offer a not-so-subtle suggestion to Kelce: get married. He and Taylor Swift need to get hitched. When asked about that...
Patrick J. Schena: U.S. sovereign wealth fund — idea to invest strategically, or giant opportunity for waste?
Could the United States soon be joining the likes of Norway, Kuwait and Mongolia in having a national reserve to invest on projects of strategic interest? If President Donald Trump gets his way, then perhaps so. On Feb. 3, Trump issued an executive order calling for the creation of a...
Letter to the editor: Trump’s Musk madness has to stop
While Elon Musk, who I think zero people voted for, is taking our largest humanitarian program “to the woodchopper,” thousands and thousands of people around the world are being deprived of much-needed food, medicine, information and guidance. Goods are sitting on docks because Musk has said “stop!” And King Donald...
Letter to the editor: Democrats, find the loopholes
I love Jon Stewart of “The Daily Show.” He is not only outrageously funny, he is brilliant. President Trump and the Republican Party are saying a big “whatever” to what used to be taking pride in their jobs and believing the Constitution was more than a piece of paper. Currently,...
Editorial: Freedom of speech is not freedom from consequences
Norwin School Board voted Monday to censure one of its members. Alex Detschelt has been a regular point of controversy on the board for years. There was his use of a slur regarding people with intellectual disabilities that he shared on social media. There was his subsequent opposition to a...
Letter to the editor: Allegheny County Jail needs a restraint chair
The Allegheny County Jail is the only jail in Pennsylvania where a restraint chair is not being used because of a 2021 referendum. The restraint chair allows officers to transport residents without injury to the resident or to the officers. Currently, for residents needing to be transported, officers have to...
Jonah Goldberg: Trump’s pace can’t go on forever
Whether you’re feeling queasy or euphoric, or even a bit of both, about the opening weeks of the second Trump presidency, my advice is to remember Stein’s Law. Richard Nixon’s former chief economic adviser, Herb Stein, declared: “If something cannot go on forever, it will stop.” I’ve found this to...
Marj Halperin: A mass exodus from civil service would be disastrous for our communities
Civil service is another term for “professional workforce” and we want this in government, right? And yet, as I write this, our government is being taken over by the opposite kind of worker. The uncredentialed Elon Musk is running a massive government operation. His team of similarly unaccredited private-sector tech...
