Letters to the Editor category, Page 259
Letter to the editor: Zero Waste legislation will help stop plastic pollution
I recently explored my school’s campus woods for the first time in a year, and I saw some disturbing sights. There was plastic waste everywhere. Even after a year without students on campus, the trees, the soil, the water — it was all contaminated with plastic trash. PennEnvironment just published...
Letter to the editor: Mariah Fisher ready to represent
Mariah Fisher, a Democrat, is already effective as an elected official and now offers voters a real choice for Pennsylvania’s 59th District. Have you seen the beautiful new Diamond in Ligonier? Through Ligonier Borough Council, Fisher chaired the parks and recreation committee that guided that project. In the past year,...
Letter to the editor: Abolishing the death penalty
At a recent virtual event on Catholicism and capital punishment, people with personal experience with the death penalty shared powerful stories. Vickie and Syl Schieber’s daughter, Shannon, a 23-year-old Wharton School doctoral student, was raped and murdered in Philadelphia. Kirk Bloodsworth, an honorably discharged Marine, was wrongfully convicted and sentenced...
Letter to the editor: Pa. lawmakers’ undocumented expenses disgraceful
It’s an absolute disgrace that, as you reported, the Pennsylvania state representatives and senators are collectively charging the taxpayers hundreds of thousands of dollars each year for “per diem” expense without supporting receipts (“State lawmakers need daily expenses accountability,” March 21, TribLIVE). Any company or organization that I’ve ever been...
Letter to the editor: Thanks to Trump for vaccines
Thank you, President Trump: Thanks to you and your staff my wife and I received our first dose of the Moderna vaccine. Fortunately you were in office when this non-American virus was let loose on the world. Had a Democrat been in the White House, I bet we would still...
Letter to the editor: Trump’s world
I believe in President Trump’s world, truth is a foreign word. Lies rule the day. He is a self-appointed king, minus the crown (his coiffure would be disturbed). It seems a perfect day for Trump is when he flaunts himself onstage before a highly motivated audience. More clapping and enthusiasm...
Letter to the editor: Second Amendment is absolute
I must disagree with David Millstein’s letter “Commissioners misguided on gun-rights resolution” (March 21, TribLIVE). He wrote that the Second Amendment’s language is not absolute. That is incorrect. The intended scope and reach are binding forever. Absolute means total and complete, not diminished in any way. The Second Amendment is...
Letter to the editor: Doug Chew doesn’t speak for all
I write to strongly disagree with Westmoreland Commissioner Doug Chew’s comments regarding mail-in voting (“Westmoreland commissioner says county voters want end to no-excuse mail-in ballots, another disputes that”). Chew does not speak for all his constituency. I wager to guess he speaks for only a select few of his followers...
Letter to the editor: Decades of marijuana use haven’t harmed health
In response to letter-writer John L. Petrancosta Sr. (“Smoking marijuana detrimental to health,” March 14, TribLIVE): I have no idea where you people get this, that research shows marijuana is a gateway drug and affects your health. I’m 70 years old. I’ve been smoking weed since I was 16, and I...
Letter to the editor: Why are teachers vaccine priority?
In regard to teachers being moved to the front of the line for receiving covid-19 vaccines regardless of age: Others in Phase 1A still are trying to get vaccinated, often driving many miles, or being put on a waiting list. Teachers may be considered essential workers, but so are grocery...
Letter to the editor: Giannulli, Loughlin should help others
Mossimo Giannulli, convicted with wife, Lori Loughlin, in the college admissions scandal, has a lot of nerve to ask to leave prison early. His term is short, and he was protected from covid for a short time in a solitary atmosphere for his own good. I have an idea for...
Letter to the editor: Monitor reps’ votes before casting yours
Please pay attention to the votes for and against legislation by our Pennsylvania representatives before you vote in 2022. For instance, the same eight GOP representatives — John Joyce, Mike Kelly, Dan Meuser, Lloyd Schmucker, Scott Perry, Guy Reschenthaler and Glenn Thompson — voted “no” on the Violence Against Women...
Letter to the editor: Making voting easier the right thing to do
State Rep. Michael J. Puskaric, R-Washington/Allegheny, has introduced House Bill 25, “Abolishing the No Excuse Mail in Vote former HB 2971.” This appears to be the same modus operandi used by the Republican party — create confusion regarding no-excuse absentee ballots, followed by legislation to repeal no-excuse absentee ballots as...
Letter to the editor: Pa. needs a change in government
There were two items in the March 13 Trib that caught my attention. First was the front-page story about our illustrious governor saying that he wants to further increase our taxes (”Gov. Wolf seeks to phase out Pennsylvania’s gas tax,” March 12, TribLIVE). No news here, folks — that is...
Letter to the editor: Un-American covid rules must end
Regarding the editorial “A smart, phased-in return to more restaurant and bar service” (March 17, TribLIVE): Cautious optimism? Enough mumbo jumbo! It’s been over a year. We’ve got covid protocols, testing, vaccines, quarantine and Dr. Fauci rules … and so many hard-working, law- abiding small business owner remain financially wounded or...
Letter to the editor: What would the flowers do?
They are up in my yard, and I hope the crocuses and daffodils are up in yours, too. Unfortunately, I’ve seen a few “Peduto for Mayor” signs. Imagine if flowers had a school board and union. Would they lock down kids and parents or open the schools? Heck, even the...
Letter to the editor: VA Pittsburgh proud to serve veterans
I am proud to report VA Pittsburgh Healthcare System is the provider of choice for more than 63,000 veterans in our region. Our providers and staff work hard to maintain veterans’ trust, using advanced technology to deliver the best care, often with shorter wait times than veterans see in the...
Letter to the editor: Did you give your Trump stimulus check back?
Question for letter-writer Cheryl Rossetti (“Disagree with election results? Return stimulus checks,” March 24, TribLIVE): We the disgruntled deplorables want to know, did you keep the $600 check President Trump approved? Being a morally superior Democrat, you gave it back right? If you didn’t, step away from your pedestal please....
Letter to the editor: Thankful for compassionate leaders
The American people always have looked to their presidents to offer comfort and solace when the nation has suffered a grievous loss. We saw it in President Reagan in the aftermath of the Challenger disaster; we saw it in President Obama after churchgoers were slaughtered by a white supremacist in...
Letter to the editor: Where is the covid finish line?
What are the metrics indicating a safe end to the covid-19 guidelines? Deaths, hospitalizations and case numbers are down. Natural immunity and immunizations are up. When is it safe to stop wearing masks, social distancing, limiting health care facility visits, etc.? The public health experts have been and are in...
Letter to the editor: Hypocrisy of Newsome signature review
Californians have gathered more than the 1½ million signatures needed to recall Gov. Gavin Newsome from office. Isn’t it interesting that the Democrats all of a sudden want to scrutinize these signatures for discrepancies of any kind? Similar handwriting, color of pens used, proper addresses and other details. What hypocrisy!...
Letter to the editor: Americans could use the jobs held by immigrants
Letter-writer Matt Smith (“Immigration reform will rebuild our economy,” March 26, TribLIVE), can you tell me if the 70,000 undocumented immigrants working in essential roles in the state pay taxes to the IRS/U.S. government/Pennsylvania? Can you tell any unemployed American citizen where he or she can obtain an essential-role job?...
Letter to the editor: Racism isn’t automatically to blame
Kudos to the Tribune-Review for publishing Mona Charen’s column “Covid-19’s large non-surprise” (March 12, TribLIVE). In case you missed it, there is a well-known correlation between obesity and covid-19 mortality. It also is well documented that obesity is more prevalent among Blacks than whites. Charen presented the novel theory that...
Letter to the editor: E-Verify jobs process would help end border crisis
Regarding Pittsburgh Mayor Bill Peduto’s support for the American Dream and Promise Act (“Peduto endorses bill to provide pathway to citizenship for ‘dreamers’,” March 15, TribLIVE): He’s conveniently confused on his facts. Peduto compares the deferred action for childhood arrivals (DACAs) to Pittsburgh’s immigrants who “settled here seeking to build...
Letter to the editor: Westmoreland commissioners not to blame for lack of vaccines
I’ve read a lot of misleading letters recently trying to pin blame on Republicans for a lack of vaccines getting to Westmoreland County. It smells like an organized effort from Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf’s Harrisburg propaganda machine to deflect blame for his fumbling of the vaccine distribution in the commonwealth....
