Opinion category, Page 16
Cal Thomas: The plan to save Congress for the GOP
White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles says she has a plan for keeping Congress in Republican hands in next year’s midterm elections. In an interview with the online show “The Mom View,” Wiles said she hasn’t informed the president about her plan but said it involves putting him on...
Letter to the editor: Marijuana as medicine
A good journalist explores all material relating to his story. I believe Kevin A. Sabet did not. In his counterpoint op-ed “Cannabis is not medicine and never has been” (Nov. 15, TribLive), he stated that cannabis is not medicine and never has been. Wrong! In a 2015 article in Forbes,...
Letter to the editor: A national celebration for Trump’s birthday?
The article “National Park Service drops free admission on MLK Day, Juneteenth, adds Trump’s birthday” (TribLive, Dec. 6) on President Trump replacing MLK Day and Juneteenth free admissions at national parks with his own birthday says soothingly, “Self-promotion is an old habit of the president’s and one he has continued...
Lori Falce: America needs a bar of soap — and not just for Ralphie
One of the best moments in one of the best holiday movies of all time is when Ralphie is helping his dad change a tire in “A Christmas Story.” When the hubcap he is holding is jostled, sending the nuts flying, the 9-year-old’s world slows down as he says a...
Laurels & lances: Selling & settling
Laurel: To opening doors. The announcements about Pittsburgh hosting the 2026 NFL Draft were filled with predictions about the opportunities for area businesses. Those predictions started to pay off this week as Pittsburgh vendors had the chance to get in on the conversation. The NFL’s Source Program brought local entrepreneurs...
Letter to the editor: Rooneys, make us proud again
I’ll bet the Chief is turning over in his grave. How can anyone be happy with a constant mediocre team? Penn State saw their football team was never going to win it all; every year, losing to Ohio State and Michigan. They were brave enough to do what was needed....
Bryan L. Kline: Religious freedom behind bars — the unfinished story of Kort Noel Eckman
The recent developments at the Westmoreland County Prison granting inmate Kort Noel Eckman limited access to kosher meals and allowing him to wear a yarmulke in court, while a welcome step forward, are but a partial remedy to a deeper, systemic failure. Eckman’s ordeal lays bare a troubling contradiction in...
Jonah Goldberg: Things are about to get worse for Mike Johnson
Here’s a conundrum for Republican politicians going into 2026, and even 2028. What do you do when you’ve turned the GOP into a Trump-branded, populist, anti-establishment party but your party controls the government and it’s not going very well? One time-tested answer: ritual human sacrifice. Which is why the next...
Letter to the editor: Mary and Joseph traveled for census, not taxation
Regarding the letter “The real Christmas story” (Dec. 3, TribLive): First, Mary and Joseph didn’t travel to Bethlehem to be taxed; it was a “census” that the Roman government conducted every five years. This information is taken from the Office for National Statistics and also from Ask Historians. They traveled...
Letter to the editor: Thoughts on two recent letters
Regarding the letter “The real Christmas story” (Dec. 3, TribLive): I commend the author for his diligence in researching history and successfully distorting every event he cites. He can pat himself on the back for joining a select club who have “de-bunked” Catholicism, and Christianity in general. I wonder how...
Letter to the editor: Will what goes around, come around, for Trump?
Have you heard the expression “what goes around, comes around”? It was one of my grandmother’s favorite pieces of wisdom. Donald Trump and his henchmen would do well to heed this. I believe Trump has trampled our Constitution and forced his personal preferences on the American people. He’s declared President...
Editorial: Penn State choices made union push inevitable
Penn State faculty are not unionized. That could change soon. If the university’s leadership doesn’t like that, it’s their own fault. The Penn State Faculty Alliance turned in thousands of union authorization cards to the Pennsylvania Labor Relations Board. While imprecise, that’s still a considerable chunk of the university’s 7,498...
Silvia Rodriguez Vega: Barney, Big Bird and immigrant children need you
Barney the purple dinosaur was my first English teacher. Through songs, make-believe and games, I learned how to greet people, ask kids if they wanted to play and talk about the weather, which turned out to be useful for conversation in the United States. I also learned about sharing, respecting...
Peter Morici: Fed should tap the brakes, not hit the gas
After cutting interest rates in September and October, the Federal Reserve should pause at its December meeting — the jobs market isn’t in crisis but inflation remains menacingly high. By the summer of 2023, the economy was at full employment but continued to grow robustly. From September 2023 to December...
Letter to the editor: Will the Steelers ever be respectable again?
For many years now, the Pittsburgh Steelers have become a .500 team under the coaching of Mike Tomlin. Tomlin inherited a Super Bowl team from Bill Cowher — period! Tomlin has turned the team into a .500 team. That’s good enough for him, but not for us, the fans. Since...
Letter to the editor: Politicians are in it for themselves
Pennsylvania voters are stupid, complacent or both. I have no respect for politicians. I think they are mostly in it for themselves and not for their constituents. What is really frustrating is they don’t pass a budget for four months after it is due but they get their yearly automatic...
Editorial: A child wasn’t protected. The law must change
Renesmay Eutsey was supposed to be kept safe. That is why she was removed from the care of her mother, Christina Benedetto, in 2019 when she was 3. It’s why she was placed with Benedetto’s cousin, Sarah Shipley, and her biological father’s cousin, Kourtney Eutsey, and why she would eventually...
Letter to the editor: Those who refuse unlawful orders are not traitors
In 1970, four students were killed by National Guardsmen at Kent State University. Two of the dead were bystanders, not part of the protest. At that time I was an Air Force member, drafted during the Vietnam War and stationed at Strategic Air Command (SAC), Omaha, Neb. President Richard Nixon...
Kelly McKinney: Thoughts on ‘Frankenstein,’ AI and the perils of our unfinished creation
We are nearing a tipping point with artificial intelligence. Scientists call it the singularity — the moment when machine intelligence surpasses our own. Some experts warn that it could come as soon as next year. AI already writes our code, drives our cars and designs our weapons — yet no...
Ron Grossman: There are echoes of World War II in Donald Trump’s peace plan for Ukraine
By his account, Donald Trump has been repeatedly denied the Nobel Peace Prize he was due. Like the 1980s standup comedian Rodney Dangerfield, he complains: “I don’t get no respect.” This time, Trump is determined by hook or crook or shady diplomacy to get a Nobel. He’s proposed a peace...
Letter to the editor: Committed to fire hydrant safety
Your editorial “Fire hydrants are critical infrastructure” (Dec. 2, TribLive) about the Elizabeth Township hydrant underscores the importance of this infrastructure, and we want to clarify Pennsylvania American Water’s (PAWC) commitment to reliability and safety. We adhere to American Water Works Association protocols for annual hydrant inspection and maintenance, and...
Editorial: $3 million moonlighting failure leaves Pittsburgh in the dark
Pittsburgh police have been over budget for years, particularly regarding overtime. Mayor Ed Gainey’s proposed budget all but ignores the cost of overtime in a manner that, frankly, makes no sense. Go to any pizza shop, corner store, hospital or university, and keeping overtime under control is a priority for...
Letter to the editor: Pets don’t make for good holiday gifts
As the holidays approach, many people are looking for meaningful gifts, and some believe a new pet makes the perfect surprise. But giving animals as gifts, especially without the recipient’s knowledge, can endanger both the person and the pet. A surprised new guardian has no chance to prepare for the...
David M. Drucker: It’s getting harder for governors to run for president
There’s a reason George W. Bush was the last governor to win the White House: In the 25-plus years since, governors have proven incapable of weathering the intense public scrutiny and navigating the media barrage of gotcha questions that accompany running for president. There are reasons for that. As local...
Claudia Sahm: $2,000 tariff checks are a good idea badly planned
President Donald Trump is promoting the idea of sending a $2,000 check to most Americans funded by revenues brought by his tariffs on imports. The scheme has received a frosty reception from Trump’s fellow Republicans in Congress and economists alike, and they are unlikely to happen. If the White House...
