Opinion category, Page 346
Laurels & lances: Tuition, decisions and rewards
Laurel: To a real deal. While the White House and the courts work out the feasibility of student loan forgiveness, the cost of a college education isn’t getting any smaller. At least, it’s not at most institutions. At Washington & Jefferson College, that’s not the case. The Washington County school...
Jonah Goldberg: Republicans want to win — and Trump’s now a loser
A lot has changed since the FBI searched Mar-a-Lago, the country club resort and unofficial classified document storage facility where Donald Trump resides. Back in August, the search was denounced by many on the right as an unprecedented outrage befitting a banana republic that challenged the very legitimacy of the...
Kyle Sammin: One cheer for Josh Shapiro
If you believe President Joe Biden, democracy itself was at stake in the midterm elections earlier this month. This theme was more than just a new variation on the “most important election of our lifetimes” line that politicians trot out every two years. It was a cynical attempt to distract...
Dr. Andrew Smolar: Teaching kids to cope in social media world
I was a student for 32 years. That time was spent in classrooms, labs, hospitals and quiet offices. Countless hours spent learning the language of medicine and the mysteries of the mind. Such was the pathway for a psychiatrist who became a psychoanalyst. But I wasn’t introduced to psychology until...
Letter to the editor: Why is nothing done about the $155 million in unpaid turnpike tolls?
I remember lots of promises over the past few years to reduce the outstanding unpaid Pennsylvania Turnpike tolls. Now they are up to $155 million. It surely seems like a failed effort, and no one is being held accountable. What does is take? Sen. Kim Ward should know. Dave Bonazelli...
Letter to the editor: Republican hypocrisies
Voters showed up for the midterms and turned the projected “red wave” into a pink puddle. Could it be a few ironies and hypocrisies finally got the attention of voters? Politicians, who would make abortion illegal, even in cases of rape and incest, would end the “free stuff” many families...
Editorial: Thanksgiving, a celebration of enough
Thanksgiving is often symbolized by an overflowing cornucopia, the horn of plenty spilling out bounty too great to be contained. Giving thanks for that kind of splendor is simple. There is little effort in saying grace at a table that groans under the weight of an impossible feast. It is...
Letter to the editor: Democrats’ blind loyalty
The article “12th Congressional race between Mike Doyle, Summer Lee remains under the radar” (Oct. 31, TribLIVE), questioning Democratic Party loyalty, got me thinking how you could possibly remain loyal, after the nightmare of these past 22 months. You’d have to ignore or accept: unsecured borders, resulting in hundreds of...
Paul Kengor: A Non-American’s take on Thanksgiving
Thanksgiving is quintessentially American, as is the Black Friday that follows. The former is about the virtue of giving thanks, whereas the latter is about, well, something else entirely. Let’s ponder the first, with some insights from our presidents and a non-American. In 1789, George Washington proclaimed a “day of...
Leonard Pitts Jr.: Here comes Trump again
“Here you come again, just when I’ve begun to get myself together …” — Dolly Parton He’s back. Granted, he never really left. Unlike other former presidents, Donald Trump didn’t disappear from the daily news cycle once he departed the White House. Thanks to his legal troubles, the hearings into...
Aaron Chapin: PSERS has delivered for school retirees — and Pa.’s economy
In a job interview, a good human resources manager will ask about your professional experience — all of it, not just the past six months to a year. When considering contractors to fix your roof, you’re going to look at how well customers rate them — not just now but...
Elizabeth Stelle: Remove barriers to increase health care access in Western Pa.
Nearly three years after the onset of the covid-19 pandemic, hospitals still struggle with significant labor shortages. Health care workers are facing long hours and massive burnout. Earlier this year, as many as 93% of surveyed Pittsburgh hospital workers were considering leaving the profession. Pennsylvania’s aging population has upped the...
Letter to the editor: We need animal-based foods in our diets
I’m compelled to respond to the letter “We owe it to our planet to change our diets” (Nov. 15, TribLIVE), from an organization with a mission to end the use of animals as a food source disguised as an environmental advocate. As a registered dietitian nutritionist, I have a broader,...
Letter to the editor: Which side to believe?
In today’s politically polarized world, which side should we believe, the Democrats, CNN, MSNBC and The New York Times, or the Republicans, Fox News, NewsMax, conservative radio and The Wall Street Journal? One side says “the southern border is closed”; the other says “drug and human smuggling are out of...
Editorial: Is lieutenant governor question too important to be bundled?
When it comes to the U.S. government, no one is drafted to be vice president. It’s an honored invitation. Presidential candidates search for someone who is a complement, providing strengths where there are weaknesses while still having a similar overall direction. Sometimes that’s a real partnership. Other times, it’s a...
Letter to the editor: Finding good in the power of love
As the song goes, “you don’t need money, you don’t need fame, don’t need no credit card to ride this train … but it just might save your life, it’s the power of love.” Love is a gift from God, our creator, and God is a source of power and...
Tom Purcell: Digging the return to vinyl
Vinyl records are making a comeback, and it’s not just nostalgic old fogies who are driving the trend. According to Readers Digest UK, millennial and Gen Z consumers are digging the distinct sound of vinyl — and especially digging its imperfections and limitations. The scratch and crackle of a needle...
Ayalla A. Ruvio and Forrest Morgeson: Retailers may see more red after Black Friday as consumers act as if US already in recession
Retailers are gearing up for another blockbuster holiday shopping season, but consumers burned by the highest inflation in a generation may have other ideas. Industry groups are predicting another record year of retail sales, with the National Retail Federation forecasting a jump of 6% to 8% over the $890 billion...
Letter to the editor: Mail-in ballots not secret
Mail-in ballots are not secret ballots. Just saying. Dr. Bill Choby Latrobe...
Letter to the editor: Abortion as health care?
Following the logic of those who consider abortion as health care, you have now labeled the baby you are killing as an STD. Edward Biskup Penn Township, Westmoreland County...
Letter to the editor: We ‘remember,’ not ‘celebrate,’ the dead
The headline in the Oct. 28 print edition, “11 slain in synagogue shooting celebrated,” was totally inappropriate. The 11 slain and the shooting were not celebrated. The 11 slain were remembered. The 11 slain were mourned and continue to be mourned. Rabbi Sara Rae Perman Greensburg The writer is rabbi...
Editorial: What is the point of unmonitored electronic monitoring?
Electronic monitoring is one link in the chain of options when it comes to keeping track of people charged with or sentenced for a crime. It falls between incarceration and the kind of release on bail where someone is restricted by fear of losing a posted bond. Being released with...
Letter to the editor: We must end toxic threats to our waterways
Our rivers are part of Pittsburgh’s identity. We get our drinking water from them, we use them for recreation and they are important to our daily lives. But there is a substantial risk of industrial pollution, and, as a Pittsburgh resident, I want to do what I can to protect...
Letter to the editor: Looking at logic on Trump
The last time I got into an argument over partisan politics, I tried to explain to someone that the tariffs President Trump imposed on Chinese imported goods were common sense. It was a moderate course of action intended to manage the trade imbalance in a global economy. I tried to...
Mallard Fillmore cartoons for the week of Nov. 21
Mallard Fillmore cartoons for the week of Nov. 21....
