Letters to the Editor category, Page 111
Letter to the editor: Johnson as speaker bad news for America
Finally, and with so much turmoil in the world that needs to be addressed by Congress, U.S. House Republicans have elected a speaker. The elevation to this position of Rep. Mike Johnson is good news for him, for Donald Trump, whose approval was necessary for a Republican speaker to be...
Letter to the editor: Follow-up needed on suspended monk at Saint Vincent
Kudos to the Trib for publishing the AP’s version of a story with local impact: “Baltimore priest now at Saint Vincent Archabbey after being dismissed over 2018 sexual harassment settlement” (Oct. 17, TribLIVE). But real thanks go to The Baltimore Banner for running the initial story that forced the Catholic...
Letter to the editor: We need Girardi as district judge
This coming election, our choice for district judge is clear: Michael Girardi is the best candidate. The past several years have shown us that a magisterial district is best served when the judge has a strong understanding and experience in the law. And Girardi has that ability, from practicing it...
Letter to the editor: Vote Bengel, Zappala and Rockey
Dr. Eric Bengel is unquestionably the most qualified and experienced leader and should be reelected as Harrison’s 3rd Ward commissioner. He has proven in his first term to be responsible, respectful and nonpartisan, with no other agenda than to do what’s right for his constituents and the township. I’ve had...
Letter to the editor: Zellers right choice for district judge
I have been a lawyer for 29 years, and I have worked with many lawyers and judges all across Pennsylvania. I can think of no better choice for district judge than Leslie Uncapher Zellers. Zellers is the only candidate who can serve the district for a full six-year term as...
Letter to the editor: Klingensmith best candidate for district judge
On Nov. 7, voters in Murrysville, Export and Salem will have a clear choice in voting for district judge. Robert Klingensmith is a principled, lifelong member of the Murrysville community with extensive experience as an attorney. His practice involves clients requiring legal support and litigation in corporate, civil and criminal...
Letter to the editor: Act justly, for children’s sake
This pediatrician knows that an Israeli child is as innocent as a Palestinian child, and conversely a Palestinian child is as innocent as an Israeli child. I also unequivocally condemn the heinous murder by Hamas of over a thousand Israeli civilians, including young children. Terrorism against any one group is...
Letter to the editor: Minimum wage conundrum
I write this to enrich the thinking about minimum wages as addressed in the recent letter “Westmoreland needs higher wages to grow population” (Oct. 22, TribLIVE). I’m a former employer (retired now), and have an economics degree. The economic argument for not having a minimum wage is, I believe, irrefutable....
Letter to the editor: Be an informed voter, use VOTE411.org
The League of Women Voters of Westmoreland County (LWVWC) wants voters to be informed and make their voices heard in the upcoming general election. The election has more than 300 candidates in 150 local races and will determine the people directly responsible for the services and finances of our local...
Letter to the editor: There are only losers in war
The Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Hamas attack on Israel: What is to be accomplished? History has shown us time and again that the answer is nothing. There will only be losers. The lost human lives will never be recovered. The destruction of property will take generations to replace. The...
Letter to the editor: Keep Peck Yakopec as district judge
Hopefully, this letter ends all of the lies, half-truths and misleading information that has been circulated about District Judge Cheryl Peck Yakopec. Most of us know she has been our judge in the Lower Burrell, Upper Burrell, Allegheny Township, Vandergrift, etc., area for the past 29 years. Peck Yakopec has...
Letter to the editor: Girardi has integrity needed for district judge
In judicial races, it’s common to hear buzzwords like “fair,” “neutral” or “impartial.” While a candidate may use these words, too often the same candidate will take campaign funds from special interest groups or from those with commercial interests in district court, pay to receive political endorsements or seek the...
Letter to the editor: Klingensmith’s experience makes him best pick for judge
In response to the letter “Petrush qualified to be judge” (Oct. 18, TribLIVE): I agree that being qualified matters greatly for a magisterial district judge. The writer mentioned not seeing Judith Petrush’s opponent, Robert Klingensmith, in the courts in Greensburg. If he had looked beyond the courts in Greensburg, he’d...
Letter to the editor: Petrush has professionalism needed to be judge
Nearly 25 years ago, I crossed party lines to vote for Charley Conway as magisterial district judge in District Court 10-3-02 because his character, community involvement, and practice and knowledge of the law made him the best candidate. Our community now has the responsibility to choose a new district judge...
Letter to the editor: Why is UPMC not changing colors on its sign?
The UPMC sign at the top of the U.S. Steel Tower in downtown Pittsburgh does not seem to be participating in the colors of the evening skylights with the other buildings in downtown Pittsburgh. Past colors of the UPMC sign have been red, white and blue, and pink, but the...
Letter to the editor: Girardi well qualified to be judge
Twenty-one years of experience as a district court clerk and working for an experienced judge has provided me with insight that a judge must be fair, impartial, unbiased and uncompromised by endorsements that may lead to favoritism. There are no negotiations on the bench. The judge is required to make...
Letter to the editor: Jail needs new model of leadership
Based upon two Allegheny County Jail job satisfaction surveys of correctional officers and health care staff, Warden Orlando Harper, who retired in September, and Dr. Ashley Brinkman, ACJ’s health services administrator who resigned earlier this month, both used the position leadership model, which basically is, “I am in charge; you...
Letter to the editor: Peck Yakopec a judge for the people
I am sharing my story because I want people to know what a good judge Cheryl Peck Yakopec is. My daughter had several traffic tickets in high school. She was running with the wrong crowd, and I wanted her to better herself by joining the Army. She couldn’t enlist until...
Letter to the editor: Zellers best pick for judge
Voters for magisterial district judge in District 10-1-04 have a simple decision to make. A vote for Leslie Uncapher Zellers is a vote for fairness, community service and family. Tough on crime, but fair and understanding, she’s experienced courtrooms many ways, most importantly, court-appointed to protect kids. As assistant district...
Letter to the editor: Seek out truth about Israel
On Oct. 7 the world witnessed the most barbaric attack since the Holocaust on the Jewish state of Israel. Unthinkable acts of horror were unleashed on a country simply because it existed. Infants were beheaded and killed in front of their mothers, families were killed in their beds, young women...
Letter to the editor: Biden better than Trump
To answer the letter “Happy with Biden?” (Oct. 12, TribLIVE): Yes, very much, compared to Donald Trump. Those of us who voted for President Biden believe in democracy and the Constitution, two institutions that wannabe dictator Trump attempted to overthrow. The writer can come up with all the Fox News...
Letter to the editor: Government leaders live in alternate universe
If people don’t think our government lives in one of Stephen Hawking’s alternate universes, take a look at the headline “3.2% hike in Social Security benefits fails to keep up with rising costs, Western Pa. seniors say” (Oct. 13, TribLIVE). This just screams that we live in a brainwashed America....
Letter to the editor: Zellers deserves vote for district judge
As a retired chief of police for the city of Lower Burrell, I, along with the members of the Allegheny Valley Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 39 and the Pennsylvania State Police Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 62, ask that you support attorney Leslie Uncapher Zellers for magisterial district judge...
Letter to the editor: Girardi best choice for district judge
We are voting for Michael Girardi for district judge. Criminal activity has greatly increased over the past 20 years, so we need someone who knows, understands and can interpret the law on a day-to-day basis from the onset. The law has changed over the years and continues to do so;...
Letter to the editor: Vote Smail for Superior Court judge
Coming from middle-class roots, Westmoreland County’s Judge Harry F. Smail has a deep-seated faith and sense of personal responsibility, fair-mindedness and achievement through hard work. As an attorney and as a judge, he firmly holds to his strong belief that issues must be decided purely on the basis of the...
