Opinion category, Page 20
Jonah Goldberg: Trump’s globalist era is going to make everyone poorer
I’m not sure what to call the new era we seem to be entering. But I am sure it will make people poorer. Let’s start with some basics. Imagine you inherit a thriving department store chain. Rather than listen to experts on consumer trends, supply-chain logistics, human resources, etc., you...
Letter to the editor: Can Steelers follow River Hounds’ example?
Boo hoo, Steeler Nation. Was a big fan at one time. Huge Pirates fan also. Year after year, lackluster seasons filled with disappointment. Steeler Nation is more like a third-world country. Riverhounds won their championship. Maybe the others will follow their example next season. I won’t hold my breath. Mike...
Letter to the editor: Who’s behind autocratic ideas?
Where are these autocratic ideas coming from? Better yet, who is pushing these ideas? President Trump leans toward being a “global dominator” with his administration’s policies. It’s interesting as to who is behind the scenes. I doubt that these ideas are coming from Trump. I don’t believe he understands the...
Editorial: Inmate transport carries costs, no matter who does it
The Westmoreland County sheriff is asking a judge to rescind a 2006 court order that requires sheriff’s deputies to transport county inmates to and from magisterial district courts, claiming it could save taxpayers more than $250,000 a year in overtime. Sheriff James Albert is not wrong in saying Westmoreland relies...
Letter to the editor: Rail merger will negatively impact Western Pa.
The freight rail system is critical to Western Pennsylvania’s economy. It supports farms, factories and businesses that all depend on timely deliveries and competitive rates to thrive. I know, because I spent much of my career as a supply chain manager for a major glass manufacturer in the Pittsburgh area....
Cal Thomas: Sports gambling, a bad bet
It wasn’t that long ago when sports betting was illegal. Then suddenly it was as though profit, rather than controlling this vice, became paramount. It was inevitable, given human nature, that bad things would follow legalization. Last week, The Wall Street Journal carried a front-page story that reported “one of...
Hugo Balta: Washington loves blaming Latin America for drugs — while ignoring the American appetite that fuels the trade
For decades, the United States has perfected a familiar political ritual: condemn Latin American governments for the flow of narcotics northward, demand crackdowns and frame the crisis as something done to America rather than something America helps create. It is a narrative that travels well in press conferences and campaign...
Letter to the editor: Garrity should replace Shapiro as governor
Gov. Josh Shapiro is clean cut and speaks well; don’t let that fool you. Here are some of the policies he has voted against or will not support: He is anti-ICE and wants Pennsylvania to be a sanctuary state. He wants transgender athletes to be allowed to compete in girls...
Letter to the editor: Legislature must enact sales tax plan
As TribLive has reported, a plethora of local and county governments, along with school boards, have followed political status quo by increasing property taxes in order to pay for doing business. Gotta hand it to Westmoreland County Commissioner Ted Kopas, as he stated, “We need to rethink the way we...
Letter to the editor: Congress must step up
The invasion of Venezuela and threats of the president’s little team of thuglings (Miller, Hegseth, Bondi, Noem) to Colombia, Cuba and Denmark tragically show the world the U.S. as an aggressor. Yes, yes, to Venezuelan democracy, but, fellow citizens, do you want sons and daughters to die in Latin America...
Letter to the editor: Collaboration can save Shaler pool
The planned closure of the Shaler Area School District (SASD) pool is more than a school district decision — it is a regional loss. For decades, this indoor pool has been one of the few accessible, year‑round aquatic facilities serving Shaler, Etna, Reserve and Millvale. Its disappearance would leave a...
Editorial: Can we talk? Colleges invest in civil discourse
Indiana University of Pennsylvania and the University of Pittsburgh are spending nearly $5 million to teach students how to talk to one another. IUP received a $2.29 million federal grant to create a Center for Dialogue and Civic Life. Pitt was awarded about $2.7 million to build a regional model...
Letter to the editor: Vote in people who can stop Trump
Typically I submit my letters a week to 10 days before publication. Forgive me if this imitation of a leader does something else to harm this nation in the meantime, and I fail to address. We the People? Does anyone who can slow or stop this criminal exist in Congress?...
Erika Strassburger: Clean energy provides jobs, consumer savings
It’s a challenging and uncertain time for America’s clean energy industry. Congress repealed the federal clean energy tax credits through President Trump’s “one big beautiful bill” last summer, and Trump has made his love for fossil fuels and disdain for renewable energy clear through his statements and his policies. In...
Colin McNickle: Is Pittsburgh trading one vacancy problem for another?
It is a deeply troubling number by any accounting: Nearly a full quarter of all classes of downtown Pittsburgh office space was vacant through the third quarter of 2025, concludes the latest report from the Jones Lang LaSalle (JLL) real estate firm. “Keep in mind (that) one year ago, the...
Jason Lias: High school theater politics — Democrats take stage against ICE
Some Democrats treat Immigration and Customs Enforcement like the villain in a high school play — except they forgot they’re in the real world. Lots of yelling. Fake crying. Dramatic gasps. Signs, hashtags and calls for “resistance” everywhere. Meanwhile, most Americans are just trying to get through the day. Front...
Letter to the editor: ICE are the domestic terrorists
Masked ICE agents are the domestic terrorists, not 37-year-old mothers. An ICE agent shot and killed Renee Nicole Good in Minneapolis. Some government officials have called Good’s attempt to drive away from the ICE agents as an act of domestic terrorism. The reason for ICE presence in Minneapolis, and elsewhere,...
Letter to the editor: ‘Ugly war’ against Palestinians began in 1948
Regarding the letter “Thoughts on two recent letters” (Dec. 11, TribLive): The author claims that two Dec. 3 letter-writers distort history about the Gaza war by decrying Israel’s genocide of Palestinian women and children. (To date up to 70% of over 71,000 total deaths.) He further claims the letter-writers are...
Letter to the editor: More advice for Hegseth
In response to the letter “Suggested reading for Hegseth” (Jan. 4, TribLive): For Charles Brown and Franz Stigler, things turned out well that day, but many others died at the hands of each afterwards. Before Stigler escorted the B-17 to safety, he attempted to get the pilot (Brown) to surrender...
Editorial: If you believed the McRib was a real rib, we have some chicken nuggets to sell you
Another day, another class-action lawsuit, this time about what kind of meat is in a sandwich. Four lead plaintiffs, including Chicagoan Dorien Baker, are suing McDonald’s, claiming the fast-food giant is misleading customers over what kind of meat it uses in its cult classic “McRib” sandwich. “Despite its name and...
Letter to the editor: Supreme Court corruption
After reading Chief Justice John Roberts’ words concerning our Constitution (“Chief Justice says Constitution remains ‘firm and unshaken’,” Jan. 2), I almost choked. Those words from a man whose court is, in all probability, the most corrupt in our history, who shredded our Constitution through its shadow docket, who enabled...
Letter to the editor: Inflation lesson
Many people think inflation causes prices to increase. In fact, it is just the opposite. Inflation is a measure of how fast prices are rising. The faster prices increase, the higher the inflation rate. More importantly, prices remain at their elevated levels and continue to increase even as inflation decreases....
Editorial cartoons for the week of Jan. 19
Editorial cartoons for the week of Jan. 19....
Mallard Fillmore cartoons for the week of Jan. 19
Mallard Fillmore cartoons for the week of Jan. 19....
Talla Mountjoy: ‘This is the time the regime will fall.’ Iran’s protests as seen through my family’s group chat
A WhatsApp group serves as a lifeline for my maternal family, including my aunts and uncles, all still in Iran, and my cousins, who have left Iran. With the protests in Iran growing by the day, the conversations in our chats changed to signs of hope even amid grave concerns...
