Opinion category, Page 266
Editorial: Dental care would spread more smiles
Fear of visiting the dentist is a long-running trope in American culture, but in terms of maintaining good health, the bigger problem is not having access to dental care. Dental health long has been treated as a separate part of the health care system, even though a large and growing...
Letter to the editor: Dangers of pre-pouring jail medicine
In a recent Allegheny County Jail health care staff survey, there were 10 responses that spoke to the dangers of health care staff being forced to pre-pour medications on a previous shift, which they feel violates licensure and puts the resident at risk. Jeffrey Leonatti, president of Reliant Staff, which...
Editorial cartoons for the week of Sept. 18
Editorial cartoons for the week of Sept. 18....
Mallard Fillmore cartoons for the week of Sept. 18
Mallard Fillmore cartoons for the week of Sept. 18....
Peter Kastor: Hunter Biden joins other presidential children who stained White House reputation
Hunter Biden, the surviving son of President Joe Biden, was indicted Sept. 14 on gun-related charges — facing a possible criminal trial while his father is campaigning for reelection. The charges relate to Hunter’s alleged lying about his drug use when he purchased a gun in 2018. And a conviction...
Letter to the editor: Vote for moderates
Most people are moderate. Most people are in the middle. Agreement is found in the middle among moderates. Only disagreement is found in the extremes. Extremism = repression. Extremism breeds hate. Extremism reflects lost perspective. Extremism eliminates critical thinking. Extremists are not concerned with the greater good. Your vote is...
Letter to the editor: Tax hike and new schools in Latrobe
Alert to those folks who may be planning to reside in the Unity Township/ Latrobe area in the future: The Greater Latrobe School Board is considering building a brand new junior high school which would increase the property tax rate by at least 11 mills (8 mills within the first five years)....
Editorial: Marc Fogel is becoming the forgotten prisoner among Biden administration officials
On Wednesday, the U.S. Ambassador to Russia, Lynne Tracy, visited Paul Whelan, the former U.S. Marine convicted of espionage in 2020 and sentenced to 16 years in prison. State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said Whelan, who has been in Russian custody since 2018, showed “tremendous courage” and reiterated the often...
Letter to the editor: Hunting in Pittsburgh parks
The City of Pittsburgh recently approved an inhumane plan to kill some of its most gentle and beautiful inhabitants by allowing the cruel bow hunting of deer in Frick and Riverview parks (“Pittsburgh approves limited deer hunting program in city parks,” Sept. 6, TribLIVE). Claims that these native animals, who...
Joseph Sabino Mistick: Yan Carlos Pichardo Cepeda, justice and common sense
If you want to know why some communities are pushing back against progressive criminal justice reformers, consider the case of Yan Carlos Pichardo Cepeda, who was recently arrested and then released by Pittsburgh District Judge Xander Orenstein. At the time this column was filed, Cepeda was “in the wind,” having...
Cal Thomas: The ‘hypocrisy’ label has lost its power
There was a time in bygone America when calling someone a “hypocrite” or claiming they were guilty of hypocrisy was equivalent to branding them with a scarlet letter or the mark of Cain. Today, in an era of opinion polls, trendsetting and ever-shifting political winds, hypocrisy means little to nothing....
Natalie Florence and Heather Ross: Shelters can help homeless by providing quiet and privacy, not just a bunk and a meal
The city of Phoenix set heat records in summer 2023, with high temperatures that topped 110 degrees for 31 consecutive days and at least 54 days in total. In such conditions, providing basic services — including cool spaces — for people experiencing homelessness is lifesaving. In 2022, 420 people —...
Peter Morici: Cities should consider these concrete actions to house the homeless
Homeless villages under highway overpasses and tent camps in other public spaces create the appearance of a new epidemic, but historically, homelessness has been endemic to urban America. In the late 19th century, skid rows appeared in New York and other cities, where flop houses sheltered up to 75,000 people...
Letter to the editor: Government shouldn’t mandate consumer behavior
With the cost of nearly everything escalating, why would anyone advocate for regulations that further complicate life for the average American? The Environmental Protection Agency’s proposal aiming to drastically increase electric vehicle sales by 2032 would do just that. Electric vehicles are much more expensive than gas cars. The data...
Sounding off: Biden and Trump, high-paid coaches, global warming on readers’ minds
Let’s dump both Biden, Trump An overwhelming majority of Americans say they want neither President Biden nor former President Trump on the 2024 ballot. Yet both are considered prohibitive favorites to win their party’s nomination. This is because extremists on both sides have co-opted the two major political parties by...
Letter to the editor: Biden impeachment a move to obstruct
The latest outrageous act perpetrated by House Speaker Kevin McCarthy is to accommodate the extremist members of his party’s Freedom Caucus by initiating a revenge-based inquiry into an impeachment of President Joe Biden. I do not believe the speaker is a stupid or naive man. He is, though, one whose...
Editorial: Media policies don’t trump First Amendment
Some municipalities — as well as school districts, counties and other government agencies — talk out of both sides of their mouths when it comes to releasing information. Coincidentally, they do so by limiting who is doing the talking. Take Aspinwall. The Allegheny County municipality with a population less than...
Letter to the editor: Global warming hard to deny
Global warming, primarily caused by burning fossil fuels, is becoming more difficult to deny. Record-breaking temperatures, increased wildfires and coastal regions hard hit by hurricanes are becoming the norm. The insurance companies are pulling out of states like California and Florida due to the high cost of covering the destruction...
S.E. Cupp: Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s weak impeachment folly
This week, spineless House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, in fear of being ousted from his precious leadership position by far-right hostage-takers like Florida’s Rep. Matt Gaetz and Georgia’s Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, caved to pressure to mount an impeachment inquiry into President Joe Biden — based on little more than conjecture,...
Gary Franks: CNN poll results show that almost any Republican can beat Biden
The good news for former South Carolina Governor and U.S. Ambassador Nikki Haley is that if the election for president were held today, she would clearly beat Biden — by six points. The bad news for her is that nearly every one of her top Republican challengers — except for...
Letter to the editor: A day to remember POWs and those MIA
Today, Sept. 15, is National POW/MIA Recognition Day. There are over 80,000 United States service personnel missing in action from our country’s past wars. Please, everyone, take time on this special day to remember the sacrifices of these brave Americans who never made it home. They are missing but will...
Lori Falce: Group shot spoiled picture-perfect ending to manhunt
For almost two weeks, Pennsylvania State Police, the Federal Bureau of Investigations, U.S. marshals and other law enforcement were combing Chester County for one man. Convicted murderer Danelo Cavalcante spider-walked up a wall in the county prison like a spy in an action movie. The man who brutally stabbed his...
Letter to the editor: Second coming of covid
Oh no, here we go again! After finally emerging from the most devastating medical and psychological operation ever waged upon humankind, there are rumblings of a new covid variant coming. Along with all of the mandatory, ritualistic lockdowns, social distancing, face masks and injections? After four years of untold damage...
Letter to the editor: Wilkinsburg fertile soil of community spirit
“Where in the world of Western Pennsylvania is Wilkinsburg?” That was my first thought after reviewing search results for rental space. The borough’s website says, “Wilkinsburg is a community known for the wonderful spirit of its residents.” I’m intrigued yet recall Momma’s wisdom of my great-grandma Mamie, “All that glitters...
Paul Kengor: Selling out your Steelers
During the end of my time at Pitt in the late 1980s, I lucked into a prized possession, coveted by many a Pittsburgher. Courtesy of my good friend Scott Fedorek, I secured my share of the local holy grail: Steelers season tickets. In those days, you waited decades for such...
