Editorials category, Page 96
Editorial: Disaster aid should be non-partisan
A lot of attention goes to partisanship and bipartisanship. What do these groups agree on? What can bring both sides together? What drives them apart? There is less attention paid to the things that don’t have a side. Regardless of party affiliation, Pittsburghers can be depended upon to agree that...
Editorial: Does Pittsburgh view have too many signs?
Pittsburgh has always been a city pulled in opposite directions. It’s built around the natural wonder of two rivers coming together to birth a new waterway, but it was built by vital industries that obscured the sky and belched pollution for decades. It’s the home of ground-breaking, enviable medical treatment...
Editorial: Lest we forget
For Memorial Day, a classic Trib editorial: On this Memorial Day, be grateful that Americans’ willingness to sacrifice for freedom’s sake, instilled by each generation in the next, remains as strong as ever. Today, Americans honor those most worthy of such gratitude — those who gave their lives in our...
Editorial: CEO salaries, raises show wage gap
Pay raises: they’re not just for political employees anymore. Yes, it was just a week ago that we were questioning the salary bumps for members of Gov. Tom Wolf’s staff. Those annual numbers jumped from $9,000 to $33,000. But for some, that’s chump change. We all know the guys at...
Editorial: Impeachment isn’t the only I word
The “I” word. That’s what President Trump said derailed a meeting with Congressional Democrats Wednesday. He claimed that before that planned confab, House Dems gathered to discuss the “I” word. The “I” in this case stands for impeachment. Democrats, especially House members, have definitely been throwing around a lot of...
Laurels & lances: Good show, long loves and big heart
Laurel: To breaking records without breaking the law. Pittsburgh has seen plenty of packed country concerts end in arrests and drifts of debris that make local venues look more like landfills. It was nice to see Garth Brooks come to town and buck that trend. Not only did the Brooks...
Editorial: Not voting squanders basic birthright of America
Come on, people. You’ve got to do better. Everyone likes to complain about what the people in city hall are doing. Those SOBs in Harrisburg are screwing everything up. And Washington? Washington is full of cheats, liars and fools. But there’s a problem with that. We sent them there. “Well,...
Editorial: Morehouse College gift is valuable example
It isn’t every day that Leslie Odom Jr. gets upstaged — especially from 700 miles away. The “Hamilton” star came back to Pittsburgh on Sunday to give the commencement address at his alma mater, Carnegie Mellon University. “I place my faith in the highest possible intentions in all things these...
Editorial: Highlands shouldn’t appeal Open Records ruling
Just because you can doesn’t mean that you should. You can eat your co-worker’s unattended hoagie. You shouldn’t. You can steal your neighbor’s newspaper out of his driveway. You shouldn’t. You can paint your house PennDOT orange. You really, really shouldn’t. And yes, Highlands School District, you absolutely can appeal...
Editorial: Elected officials need to show up
OK, prospective office holders. Let’s think about this. You’re about to take a step toward holding a real responsibility. If you go through the primary process on Tuesday, you could win nomination and move on to the general election in the fall. You could end up as a leader of...
Editorial: Trickle-up voting can change government
The message is the same before every primary, and every general election. Get out and vote. It’s important. It’s how our system functions. We need to have voters participate in order to have representative government. The people who make the decisions have to be the ones who the voters have...
Editorial: Gov. Tom Wolf staff salary increases set tone, raise eyebrows
Everybody loves getting a raise. You might wait all year, have your review, get a gold star and be told, yes, you are valuable. You are worth another 3% in your paycheck. After Gov. Tom Wolf was re-elected, some of his staff got a taste of that experience. About a...
Laurels & lances: Music, mistakes, reeling and ruling
Laurel: To a real disc jockey. The kind who remembers not just pushing buttons, but spinning vinyl. There will be one fewer of those on the air waves after July 31. That’s when WDVE’s Sean McDowell will retire. Good for him and his 40-plus years behind the microphone. Sad for...
Editorial: Can student loan debt be opioid solution?
Solutions can be obvious if we open ourselves to seeing them. Doctors and scientists have a way of looking at something as both a problem and a solution. Something can be poison in one dose, medicine in another. HIV is being manipulated to fight cancer. Radiation can fuel a bomb,...
Editorial: Bishops right with priest suspensions, disclosures
Priests are people, too. They do good things and bad things and sometimes very bad things. They make sacrifices and they make mistakes. Priests are no more likely to lie, cheat, steal or hurt someone than a teacher or a banker, a barber or a chef. The statewide — and...
Editorial: U.S.-China trade war is scary roller coaster
If you have any money in the stock market, you’re going to want to close your eyes, catch your breath and hold on tight. The roller-coaster ride that is the daily ups and downs of trading is headed for a whole new set of death-defying loops. We know why. In...
Editorial: Route 30 study needs to be realistic
Good transportation moves the economy. That’s why Route 30 needs to be addressed. It’s a big road. It’s an important road. For more than 100 years, it has been there, connecting a string of communities in a dotted line east to west across Pennsylvania. And that makes it a draw...
Editorial: Nuclear energy makes its own money
Think about Pennsylvania and energy and you might think coal or natural gas. But the state really shines when it comes to nuclear. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, Pennsylvania is second only to Illinois when it comes to nuclear power. What lights up most of our homes is...
Editorial: Turnpike overcharges another sneaky subsidy
Pay a toll in cash and you know exactly how many nickels and dimes you are throwing in the hopper. Drive through the E-ZPass lane where the money is automatically deducted from an account via a transponder and it should happen the same way. But sometimes it doesn’t. And if...
Laurels & lances: Running, towing, fixing and charging
Laurel: To a first-class last place. Jessica Robertson of Braddock and Alle-Kiski grad Laura Mazur of Ohio didn’t win the Pittsburgh Marathon. Not by a long shot. The two finished in 7 hours, 22 minutes and 56 seconds. They were the last people to cross the finish line. They did...
Editorial: Mass shootings compete for attention with body count
The latest school shooting seemed almost run-of-the-mill. A Denver school was the scene. Nine people shot. Only one killed. Only. The synagogue shooting in California received a fraction of the attention that the Tree of Life garnered. A few people shot. Only one killed. Only. In a culture where we...
Editorial: Are Wolf’s commutations part of reform movement?
Three more life-without-parole prisoners will be released after Gov. Tom Wolf commuted the sentences of a convicted murderer and two men who participated in crimes where someone was killed. The moves were approved by the Board of Pardons before being sent to the governor. Wolf has now commuted eight life...
Editorial: Drug collection great but still shows holes in system
Authorities in Pennsylvania seize 39,000 pounds of drugs. That would be a starting headline. Most drug arrests are about grams and ounces. When you get into pounds or kilos, it really draws attention. But we’re talking about tons here. Tons of drugs collected in an operation that took a month...
Editorial: School choice should be discussed, not automatic
Picking a school for your child can be a very personal decision. You weigh the pros and cons. You might look at test scores. You might look at graduation rates. You might be looking for just the right fit for your religious beliefs. Maybe you want a private institution that...
Editorial: Is U.S. Steel’s $1 billion upgrade good for all?
It’s an old, rickety teeter-totter of an idea. You have to choose between supporting the economy and the environment. It’s a lie. As voters, as workers, as government and corporations, we can’t fall for it. And we have to encourage and celebrate attempts to do both. U.S. Steel’s $1 billion...
