TribLive stories, Page 1754

DETROIT — Cindy Parkhurst could have stayed home collecting most of her pay while the Ford plant where she normally works remains closed due to coronavirus fears. Instead, she along with hundreds of workers at Ford, General Motors, Toyota and other companies has gone back to work to make face...

Dan Heit founded JusticeWorks YouthCare in 1999 and serves as its CEO. JusticeWorks YouthCare serves families within the child welfare system and youth on juvenile probation. We also operate alternative high schools for students with behavioral problems. Based in Pittsburgh, we work in 45 counties throughout Pennsylvania. Just as nurses,...

Yetur Gross-Matos would have liked to have been in Las Vegas for the NFL draft on Thursday night, but the Penn State defensive lineman is OK with participating from home. Gross-Matos is one of 58 prospects who will take part remotely in the draft, which has gone virtual this year...

Even as their doors remain closed, Sewickley Public Library celebrates National Library Week through Saturday. The theme for this year was “Find Your Place at the Library” with Olympic medalists Maia and Alex Shibutani serving as honorary chairs. Since stay-at-home orders have been put into place, the theme was changed...

In the early 1900s, Spanish-American scholar, philosopher and humanist George Santayana wrote, “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” His five volumes of “The Life of Reason: Introduction and Reason in Common Sense” rank as one of the greatest works in modern philosophical history. That well-known...

NEW YORK — Another seven big cats at the Bronx Zoo have tested positive for coronavirus, just weeks after a Malayan tiger named Nadia was found to have the disease that is ravaging New York. Zoo officials announced the test results Wednesday, saying five tigers and three lions have coronavirus....

A framework for reopening was offered by the federal government to the states based on a decreasing number of new coronavirus cases over a 14-day period. I haven’t seen a trigger number for this process to begin. There should be a certain number of cases that allow health officials to...

Letter-writer Dave Majernik (“Hysteria shouldn’t kill our economy”) asked why we lock down for coronavirus when we don’t lock down for other fatal diseases. It’s not rocket science. Think contagion. If we all go back to work with some of us infected, 10,000 sick turn into 100,000 sick, and then...

The decision to allow some Fine Wine & Good Spirits stores to reopen (“Pennsylvania to reopen some liquor stores for curbside sales”) is good news. Common sense is prevailing when it comes to this shutdown. Yes, many businesses can open with enhanced procedures in place. But after it sank in,...

Earlier this year, Ligonier Township manager and zoning administrator Terry Carcella said township officials are making plans for the Ligonier Beach property (“Ligonier Township committee to consider plan for reopening Ligonier Beach,” Jan. 7, TribLIVE). One possibility mentioned was a master comprehensive parks, recreational and open space plan that could...

Coronavirus has caused huge numbers of small businesses here in Pittsburgh to close. Inventories are spoiling, families are being torn apart and countless other disruptions have overwhelmed our society. We cannot shut down our country every time there is a virus outbreak. We have thousands of interlocking parts that must...

Did your neighbor call and check on you, or bring a mask or groceries? The Stroller wants to recognize those around us who are performing small acts of kindness for others during this stressful time. Send a short, one-paragraph note highlighting someone and how they helped you, your family or...

NEW YORK — Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced Wednesday that Michael Bloomberg will fund a pilot program to test and trace coronavirus infection rates as the state’s daily death rate dipped slightly to 474. The former New York City mayor will fund a $10 million initial plan to trace people who...

John Marino’s timing is impeccable. In one sense, he came along at just the right time for the Pittsburgh Penguins. Saddled with a defense corps that sprung leaks during a mediocre 2018-19 season, especially in a first-round playoff exit, the team needed him. Marino escaped the Edmonton prospect pool, built...

Testing and tracking. Those are the two things that will make it possible to get out of the black hole of coronavirus lockdowns. The state needs to know not just who is sick. It needs to know who is infected and not sick. That’s the testing part, and that is...

CHICAGO — Two months after President Trump took office, U.S. Steel dumped a plume of cancer-causing metal into a Lake Michigan tributary 20 miles away from a Chicago drinking water intake. The company reported another spill of hexavalent chromium six months later, around the same time public interest lawyers dug...

The Trump Organization is seeking U.K. and Irish bailout money to help cover wages for bartenders, bagpipers and other employees furloughed from its European golf properties because of the coronavirus lockdown. Overseas businesses owned by President Trump can tap government funds meant to help retain workers. In the U.S., by...

A United Airlines flight to Chicago that left Erie Wednesday morning with no passengers aboard is symbolic of the continuing decline in air travel. Air travel nationwide is down 96 percent from early March as the coronavirus pandemic prompts growing numbers of Americans to cancel travel plans. Flights at Erie...

WASHINGTON — The Trump administration announced a plan Wednesday to start paying hospitals and doctors who care for uninsured patients with coronavirus, but Democratic lawmakers and health industry groups are likely to press for more. Under the approach detailed by Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar, hospitals and doctors...

Epic Games has backed down from its protest of tech giant Google. After 18 months of protesting Google’s terms — and its 30% store fee — the video game maker is putting Fortnite on the Google Play Store, the official channel for adding apps to Android phones and devices. In...

ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. — For those who haven’t mastered the odds of Belarussian soccer or Russian table tennis, this week’s NFL draft gives U.S. gamblers their first opportunity in weeks to bet on an event about which they actually know something. With major sports shut down for more than a...

This is not how anyone expected to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Earth Day. With the world on a coronavirus lockdown, planned celebrations join events from all walks of life in the canceled column, with Earth Day, like everything else, going virtual. For those of us who are alarmed about...