Nafari Vanaski is the news editor for the Norwin Star and the Plum Advance Leader. Her columns appear each Thursday in the Tribune-Review.
Nafari Vanaski can be reached via e-mail or at 412-856-7400 x8669
Mall play gym gives children — and parents — a taste of life in the ‘jungle’
By Nafari VanaskiThere is no better place than a suburban shopping mall to measure the grittiness of your child, or to compare your kid to others to see if he’s too small or big for his age or to wonder why that …
Trouble brewing with background checks to sell coffee but not to sell guns
By Nafari VanaskiA friend is in a tight spot these days. With an extra mouth to feed, she’s doing something she hasn’t had to do since she was a teenager: sorting through want ads and filling out job applications. The other day, …
For real, Luke — it’s time to show your face
By Nafari VanaskiWhen you read the report in the Tribune-Review that Mayor Luke Ravenstahl hasn’t made a lot of public appearances lately in Pittsburgh, I hope you remembered that he found time to go to Kentucky. And Shanghai, China. He had time …
Strip club’s reasoning for Pittsburgh police protection as skimpy as a G-string
By Nafari VanaskiThe Pittsburgh Police Department is a little concerned about its reputation right now — for pretty good reason. But so is one of the city’s prominent strip clubs. Acting police Chief Regina McDonald last month decided to enforce an existing …
Homewood needs police blitz more than South Side
By Nafari VanaskiA lot of effort and attention has been focused on the Pittsburgh police enforcement blitz in the South Side, which seems to be targeting wayward parked cars, the tipsy and a few criminals. In that order. Less publicized was the …
Pittsburgh fails to meet everyone’s definition of ‘livable’
By Nafari VanaskiA handwritten letter from a reader indicated she understood a bit too well my column last week about behind-the-scenes behavior by some city employees. The ending was jarring: “I have been harassed over 20 years and still get threatened. I …
Harper case latest disappointment with Pittsburgh leaders
By Nafari VanaskiA regular reader contacted me last week to gauge my reaction to the indictment of former Pittsburgh police Chief Nate Harper. “Chief Harper proves that people disappoint, not (a) surprise,” she wrote. It’s not a surprise if you’ve lived here …
State’s liquor law is disaster for recipe
By Nafari VanaskiLet’s say you’re a foodie. You watch the Food Channel daily and often say to yourself, “I’ve got to try that!” You’re especially craving that new Bobby Flay recipe — beer can chicken — that won four out of five …
We’re getting hit by an avalanche of names
By Nafari VanaskiPittsburgh was clobbered by maybe a half-inch of snow on Wednesday. Some places in the suburbs were hit far worse, like an inch or something. In the ridges of Fayette and Westmoreland counties, and in western Maryland and northern West …
Pittsburgh’s getting a fantasy team
By Nafari VanaskiIt’s always nice when Pittsburgh is recognized as a metropolitan city that can help boost a brand or a product. If a business is going to pitch something here, it helps if it’s sports-related. It helps more if it’s football. …
Census data not just black and white
By Nafari VanaskiThe Census Bureau has joined the 21st century. The organization decided that its next survey will not use the word “Negro” to classify a race. Welcome to post-slavery America. Nice of you to join the rest of us. Negro is …
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