Letter to the editor: The destruction of Social Security
President Trump began the demolition of Social Security with the $6,000 additional tax standard deduction per individuals over 65 with incomes of less than $75,000 ($150,000 for joint filers). This is in effect through 2028. However, what the government is not telling you is that this will mean Social Security...
Editorial: Books, boards and balance of power at Pine-Richland
The Pine-Richland School Board took up its policy on library books again this week. By a 5-4 vote, the board revised its policy, something that has been a hot topic in the district in recent years. It limited to parents and guardians formal challenges to the policy. It restored a...
Jonah Goldberg: Some MAGA loyalists have turned on Trump. Why the rest haven’t.
I recently watched “A Face in the Crowd” for the umpteenth time. I had a better reason than procrastination to rewatch Elia Kazan’s brilliant 1957 film exploring populism in the television age. It was homework. I was asked to discuss it with Turner Classic Movies host Ben Mankiewicz at the...
Letter to the editor: Trump ridding the world of Iranian nuclear threat
Considering that the Democrats have serious objections to the war with Iran, perhaps they could tell us which part of the war against terrorism they do support. Their theory of a just war seems to boil down to: Military force must never be deployed in America’s self-interest, and we must...
Mallard Fillmore cartoons for the week of May 11
Mallard Fillmore cartoons for the week of May 11....
Letter to the editor: 400-plus community cleanup volunteers make a big impact
Despite the worst-case weather scenario of rain in the morning with dropping temperatures, over 400
volunteers donated their time and effort to clean up Monroeville’s roadways and parks for the 31st annual Jack Sedlak Memorial Clean Up Day on April 25. The volunteers picked up 527 bags of litter, an...
Editorial cartoons for the week of May 4
Editorial cartoons for the week of May 4....
Mallard Fillmore cartoons for the week of May 4
Mallard Fillmore cartoons for the week of May 4....
Letter to the editor: Democrats need to put Americans first
When you find yourself in a hole, stop digging. When you find yourself out of money, stop spending. That is common sense. The government is out of funds, yet Democrats want massive spending commitments before approving funding. Affordable Care Act health benefits and subsidies for immigrants is the major issue....
Letter to the editor: Help for domestic violence victims
Imagine surviving a stabbing attack by your spouse. Imagine your attacker pleading guilty to attempted homicide and going to prison. And then imagine being told that to legally end your marriage, you still need his cooperation. That is not a hypothetical, but Pennsylvania law. Under state law, a legal process...
Letter to the editor: Frustrated by phone, online barriers
I wish all these companies would put a leash on their AI. On the phone, companies won’t allow customers to talk with a live person, just repeats of useless verbiage. Online is no better. Trying to refill a prescription, I put in the ZIP code for Monroeville; it showed it...
Mary Ellen Smith-Glasgow and Kymberlee Montgomery: America relies on nurses, so why are we limiting their future?
As we mark National Nurses Week May 6-12, the country will do what it does every year. We will thank nurses for their contributions. We will celebrate their compassion. We will call them heroes. Nurses have been ranked the most trusted profession in America for 22 consecutive years. No other...
Solomon D. Stevens: 3 things we can learn from the Declaration of Independence
As a people, we feel lost. Our political life is full of division and animosity. Our society struggles to find its sense of meaning. Violence erupts far too often. And beyond our borders, we find ourselves embroiled in conflicts with enemies and allies. We are a nation divided and adrift....
Cal Thomas: Who is monitoring the debt?
People of a certain age will recall a lyric from the Tennessee Ernie Ford song “Sixteen Tons”: “Another day older and deeper in debt.” I thought of that song as Secretary of War Pete Hegseth asked Congress to approve a $1.5 trillion budget for fiscal year 2027 to put the...
Letter to the editor: Impact of war in Iran
Sen. John Fetterman, Sen. Dave McCormick, Sen. Kim Ward, Rep. Guy Reschenthaler, Westmoreland County commissioners … and on and on. I’m concerned: Which of these leaders is going to lead and take action on the impact of the Iran war? • No progress on an Iran solution, over eight weeks...
Letter to the editor: Regarding Blackthorne Estates, are rules optional in Penn Township?
There is a simple question at the center of the Blackthorne Estates situation (“Club at Blackthorne no longer facing legal challenges,” April 14, TribLive): Are the rules optional? Blackthorne was approved as a planned residential development with a clear structure: homes, an 18-hole golf course and a clubhouse that exists...
Editorial: Rising electric bills leave Pennsylvanians powerless
Electricity isn’t a luxury. It’s a critical part of daily life — especially in a state where many people rely on it for heat. Losing power is disruptive. People are reminded of that every time a storm knocks out the grid. But for many Pennsylvanians, the bigger threat isn’t losing...
Letter to the editor: Deadline approaching for heating help
Spring is a season of fresh starts — and it’s also a chance to get real financial relief before a key deadline closes. LIHEAP, the federally funded Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program, provides grants of $200 to $1,000 applied directly to your heating bill. The deadline to apply is May...
Erwin Chemerinsky: Supreme Court’s decision against Voting Rights Act will be devastating
The Supreme Court has again dealt a devastating blow to voting equality in the United States. On Wednesday, in Louisiana v. Callais, six justices effectively nullified a 1982 federal statute that prohibits states from running or establishing election systems, such as election districts, that have a discriminatory effect against voters...
David M. Drucker: Money can’t buy you voters’ love
No amount of advertising money can sell a bad product — or at least, a product that consumers have determined they don’t want (see: New Coke). This time-tested business principle also applies to American politics. That’s helpful to remember as midterm elections proceed. The Democratic and Republican parties, their candidates...
Letter to the editor: Print vs. digital
There are always new exciting discoveries in the world today. They promise to solve problems or speed up the process of information and make life easier. It sounds good, but nobody questions the possible bad use of it. Anything can be misused. I take an eclectic view of new things....
Letter to the editor: Can’t wait to vote against Reschenthaler
An open letter to Rep. Guy Reschenthaler: Last month, I attended an event to which you had been invited. Of course, you weren’t there, but you had sent an aide. As information about older adults in Pennsylvania was discussed — their need for health care, adequate food, enough caregivers in...
Editorial: Losing single carrier Spirit is bananas for Arnold Palmer Regional Airport
Gros Michel bananas may have been the perfect fruit. They were not just tasty. They grew in bunches ideal for shipping, with thick skins that protected the creamy white flesh all the way to American tables. Unfortunately, they were not resistant to disease. After decades of dominating the international produce...
Letter to the editor: Who is spreading hate, Kimmel or Trump?
We see once again that truth is stranger than fiction in both the president and first lady calling for the firing of late night talk show host Jimmy Kimmel. What was Kimmel’s grave sin? He made a tasteless joke that Mrs. Trump has “the glow of an expectant widow.” The...
Stephen L. Carter: Free speech means Kimmel has the right to ridicule you
Here’s one of those remarkable coincidences: Immediately after the president and first lady called for late-night host Jimmy Kimmel to be kicked off ABC’s air after he made a cruel joke at their expense, the entirely independent investigators over at the Federal Communications Commission, in an entirely unrelated move, have...
