Opinion category, Page 190
Letter to the editor: Reschenthaler’s devotion to Trump
He’s at it again: Guy Reschenthaler, our U.S. House of Representatives representative. Instead of looking after his constituents, Reschenthaler’s currying favor with his boss, Donald J. Trump. Reschenthaler has proposed House Bill 7845 to rename Dulles International Airport as Trump International Airport. Of course it has no chance of passing...
Sounding off: Politicians, guns, abortions among week’s topics
‘Promise season’ Sometimes it’s duck season. Other times it’s rabbit season. Recently, we have begun the first of two periods of “promise season.” This season pops up twice a year around March and April, then later in September and October. This is the time of the year when it’s legal...
Letter to the editor: Write in ‘uncommitted’ for president to end violence in Gaza
I am one of the many Pennsylvanians who are deeply troubled by the situation in Gaza where 2 million people face starvation and displacement amidst attacks on humanitarian aid workers. Billions of U.S. dollars are sent as military aid to Israel, including over $10 billion in arms supplied to in...
Editorial: Mental health is more important than political power
The Pennsylvania state House of Representatives could be changing yet again. For the last two years the legislative chamber has been on a roller coaster as lawmakers have been voted in, stepped down or moved on. That’s meant special elections, keeping the House with its hair-thin majority question in a...
Letter to the editor: Unfair pension system at county jail
The recent Allegheny County controller’s audit report found that we need 100 more correctional officers at the Allegheny County Jail, and the permanent staff of health care providers at our jail has decreased from 129 in May 2015 to 41 currently. The jail is forced to use temporary health care...
Letter to the editor: ‘Promise season’
Sometimes it’s duck season. Other times it’s rabbit season. Recently, we have begun the first of two periods of “promise season.” This season pops up twice a year around March and April, then later in September and October. This is the time of the year when it’s legal for candidates...
Letter to the editor: Easy Earth Day actions
Earth Day serves as our yearly reminder that we need to take steps to protect our planet. Though it’s not anyone’s sole responsibility to save the planet, many people doing a little bit can make a big difference. So here are three small and manageable things that you can do:...
Elwood Watson: What you might have forgotten about O.J. Simpson and his trial
For those too young to fully remember the O.J. Simpson trial, it was a television spectacle with all the makings of a Hollywood blockbuster. Sex and violence, interracial relationships and marriage, infidelity, alcoholism, sexual deviancy and a host of lurid details that titillated and fascinated the public. Stories covering the...
Cal Thomas: Needed — regime change in Iran
Every approach to curtailing Iran from its threats and behavior toward Israel and other countries has failed. In 2023, the Biden administration imposed sanctions on Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps officials accused of planning assassinations overseas. In 2024, it “reapproved a sanctions waiver that unlocks upwards of $10 billion in frozen...
Letter to the editor: Better ways to spend Pa. money than student teacher stipends
So Pennsylvania is spending $10 million to pay college students for their student teaching assignments. Will the governor next propose paying college students to attend their college classes? I was a student teacher while in college. Student teaching is a learning experience just like time in a classroom. Don’t we...
Letter to the editor: So it’s the gun’s fault again?
Regarding the article “Pa. Supreme Court hears debate on gun-industry immunity in lawsuit over Mt. Pleasant boy’s death” (April 9, TribLive): So now it really is the gun’s fault for going off? Once more it’s an object’s fault for an individual’s actions. A gun cannot fire on its own. It...
Leonard Greene: O.J. Simpson ex-teammate says trial showed ‘Black man can buy justice like a white man’
If there is anybody with a unique perspective on the O.J. Simpson saga, it’s Boston lawyer Eddie Jenkins. Not only is Jenkins, a former president of the Massachusetts Black Lawyers Association, well versed on the subject of jury nullification, he had a front row seat to the vanity show as...
Letter to the editor: Sports success requires character
OK, first things first: Congratulations to the Penn State and Canon McMillan High School (girls) wrestling teams and coaching staff for making national history and for helping to develop players with more character. Now, for my story. I have been writing letters to editors and doing three-minute citizen speaks on...
Lori Falce: Jury in Trump case upholds Jefferson’s ideals
A criminal trial is built out of more than just evidence, testimony and justice. Predominantly, it is constructed of people: the prosecution, the defense, the accused, the judge, the witnesses. All are moving parts in the machine of court. But the most critical group of people in the process are...
Letter to the editor: Dysfunctional board erodes public trust in Harrison
The four-month Harrison impasse “Harrison commissioners fill township boards, with one oddity among the appointments” (Dec. 23, TribLive) is pathetic, as an expired authority board position remains unfilled. Municipal authorities were created to be independent of political bodies and their undue influence. Nevertheless, the manipulative trio of Chuck Dizard, Gary...
Laurels & lances: History and repetition
Laurel: To living history. It’s no secret that Pennsylvania’s origin story is the origin story of the nation. But a New Kensington woman brings it to life with her own family tree. Mary Lee Brady-Atkins, 95, is a remarkable woman. She got her bachelor’s degree from Pitt before moving on...
Letter to the editor: Penn Township transparency
In a recent email newsletter, Penn Township announced: “Due to technical difficulties, livestream meetings are temporarily unavailable. An improved audio and visual experience is coming soon!” I am glad to hear it. Since last fall, Penn Township hasn’t had streamed video or recordings of meetings available to the public. Myself...
Letter to the editor: Nepotism produces incompetence
I’m not wrapped too tight, and I watch movies such as Martin Scorcese’s riveting “Casino.” Brilliant, dazzling as it was, it meant little to me when characters spoke of “juiced-in cowboys,” which meant any of many forms of nepotism. With no hard feelings at all, no judgments made, I don’t...
Cheryl Allen: Retail marijuana would hurt Pa., especially our young people
Government officials should refrain from promoting a predatory industry whose very existence relies upon drug dependency. This was my message to state representatives in Harrisburg as I was invited to share testimony during a recent committee hearing on marijuana legalization. I have extensive experience with young people and their parents...
Letter to the editor: What about the war on the unborn?
I hear the abortion supporters call Republican efforts to outlaw abortion a “war on women.” There are no fatalities in this war, yet I don’t hear anyone call the over 600,000 babies that are killed in the womb every year a “war on the unborn.” Wonder why? Bill Radvansky New...
Letter to the editor: Vote for democracy, not autocracy
Why on earth would Donald Trump want Viktor Orban, the autocratic leader of Hungary, to meet with him at Mar-a-Lago? Trump thinks Orban is a great leader and, like the other dictators, Putin, Xi Jinping and Kim Jong-Un, he seems to want to become one of them. And the thought...
Letter to the editor: We need real presidential leadership
When any political party attempts to elect/reelect to president a candidate that to me is visibly cognitively impaired (based on special counsel’s findings), that party has lost value to our America. The bottom line of that counsel’s remarks — President Biden should not hold a security clearance. His recent State...
Editorial: Coal workers’ respiratory health must be priority
“Today, we’re making it clear that no job should be a death sentence.” That should go without saying, but acting U.S. Labor Secretary Julie Su spelled it out Tuesday as she announced new standards for exposure to silica dust. Silica dust may not sound dangerous, but for some industries it...
Jonah Goldberg: For Israel and Ukraine alike, U.S. support is proving unreliable and inadequate
After Iran’s massive drone and missile attack on Israel Saturday, President Biden reportedly told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, “You got a win. Take the win.” Most of the weapons, the first Iran had ever fired on Israel from its own territory, were successfully intercepted. “From its own territory” is...
Colin McNickle: Settle the assessments lawsuit, Allegheny County
The long-threatened lawsuit by Pittsburgh Public Schools to force Allegheny County to conduct a comprehensive property reassessment came to pass on April 8. And a scholar at the Allegheny Institute for Public Policy says the county should settle the matter without a court order. “The best course is for Allegheny...
