Featured Commentary category, Page 83

When I glanced at my phone and saw the notification of a school shooting in Uvalde, Texas, my hands started to shake and I turned my phone off for a few hours. I was one of many children impacted by a school shooting when I was the age of the...

The late U.S. Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis famously said states are the “laboratories of democracy.” That still being the case, policymakers in Harrisburg would do well to note how the current state of affairs is being scored by governors of other states — and, in turn, chart a new...

Republicans are finally being honest about what they intend to do: raise taxes on lower- and middle-income Americans and sunset federal programs like Medicare and Social Security after five years. The GOP plan not only threatens my financial security, but the health and security of all Americans. It is cruel....

Recently, the CDC published proposed new clinical practice guidelines for the prescribing of opioids. These update the agency’s 2016 guidelines intended to address the crisis of addiction and overdoses. Unfortunately, the 2016 guidelines also caused many physicians to throw well-managed pain patients off their medications, and a significant number of...

In the years following the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, the United States embarked on an all-scale effort to combat terrorism. However, the primary focus of those efforts was Muslims, both at home and abroad. Ignored in the process were threats posed by domestic militias and white supremacy groups. Rather...

My 8-month-old daughter, Jayde, was born with a growth restriction. She weighs just 13 pounds — no more than a 3-month-old. She sees a pediatric nutritionist and eats a specialized formula that provides 30 calories per ounce in hopes of getting her on the elusive growth curve. Jayde was crawling...

In October of 2016, a Washington Post headline referred to the presidential race as the “rape election.” The numerous sexual misconduct allegations against a presidential candidate, and the ubiquity of discussions of sexual violence in the context of that election were unprecedented. However, the election of Donald J. Trump, and...

Many people on the Right fear “woke capitalism” and the idea that corporate executives will bend to pressure to advance a vision of the world that replaces their values with progressive ones. To those who are worried, I say, be grateful for the profit motive. To the progressives pushing for...

In the top right hand drawer of my desk sits a small, worn, black book. At first glance it looks like a notebook or a daytimer from many years ago. On closer inspection, though, one can see that it is a pocket version of the New Testament. It may appear...

As I sit on my porch, the crisp morning breeze wafts over the rose bush, enabling me to take in the sweet smell of the blossoms. The sun shines on me, warming up the air. It’s a beautiful day in the neighborhood. Right? Wrong. The beauty is a mask over...

Attorney General Ken Paxton’s victory in Tuesday’s Texas Republican primary was more than another signal of former President Trump’s primacy within the GOP. It probably ended the seven-decade run of one of America’s greatest political families, the four-generation Bush dynasty. Paxton’s resounding defeat of Land Commissioner George P. Bush’s effort...

College and high school graduation season has begun. With masking on the decline and new covid-19 cases on the rise, a perfect storm is brewing for the new omicron variant (labeled BA2.12.1) to anchor itself across the nation as everyone prepares for summer travel and vacationing. The good news is...

The inescapable pain and death of war have also produced many of the medical breakthroughs that have enhanced our health in peacetime. The Civil War created advances in surgical techniques. World Wars I and II led to the development of prosthetics and the widespread use of antibiotics. And the Vietnam...

Strip away the celebrity intrigue and media frenzy, and the high-profile court battle between actors Johnny Depp and Amber Heard involves issues painfully familiar to many women and men across America. The civil defamation case, which is due to conclude May 27, centered around discussion of intimate partner violence. IPV...

Not long ago, the U.S. was reliant on unstable regimes for natural gas and oil. Now, the U.S. is the largest producer of natural gas and oil in the world thanks in large part to the shale revolution and expansion of hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling. This homegrown energy now...

“Perhaps instead of voter ID laws, the USA might want to try voter IQ laws.” — Angela Hatfield While American politics continues to play out like a roller derby grudge match between Democrats and Republicans, off camera more and more voters are choosing not to affiliate with either party as...

Bad policy makes people vulnerable, and the current baby formula shortage is just the latest example. The immediate cause of the shortage was contamination in a Michigan factory, which might not resume production until June. But the underlying cause is a slew of bad policies that make the market less...

No child should ever go hungry in the richest nation in the world. And yet, in recent days, panicked parents and caretakers who rely on infant formula for their loved ones’ health and nutritional needs are contending with the skyrocketing prices of baby formula and a severe shortage in grocery...

Since World War II, U.S. foreign policy has promoted human rights and democracy by maintaining a superior military, offering security commitments to friends in Europe and Asia, and promoting free trade and investment among Western and nonaligned nations. Through the World Trade Organization and regional agreements, the latter policy encouraged...

In response to the emergence of the covid-19 pandemic in March 2020, Gov. Tom Wolf enacted numerous waivers for unnecessary regulations to ensure Pennsylvanians had access to health care. These were extended several times, but they are once again set to expire. Sadly, many Pennsylvanians lacked access to health care...

Despite facing rivals who outspent him by well over $20 million and a whirlwind of negative media, state Sen. Doug Mastriano has won the Republican nomination for governor in Pennsylvania. His ascension can be largely credited to an undercurrent of grassroots supporters who act and vote as though they’ve found...

The Food and Drug Administration has reached an agreement with Abbott Laboratories to resume production at the company’s Sturgis, Mich., facility. The announcement gives hope of relief for the three-fourths of American parents who rely on infant formula and have struggled to find the product in recent weeks. But the...

Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas said something interesting while campaigning for Dave McCormick, still in the running for the GOP nomination to replace departing Sen. Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania. “Just once, I’d love to see a Republican candidate stand up in a primary and say: ‘I am a moderate, establishment...

Many in my party (Democrat) are calling on President Biden to declare a climate emergency. In an emergency, he can dictate new rules and regulations to control our lives and impact our pocketbooks. If this is a serious emergency, then there are things in our lives we should consider doing...

The U.S. economy has staged a remarkable recovery from covid shutdowns but needs better job training for front-line workers to accomplish robust growth. The economy is still firing below potential because despite the abundance of job openings, several million adults who quit the labor force during the pandemic have not...