Opinion category, Page 49
Philip Martell: Cyber charter funding draining our schools
As a superintendent who has worked to rebuild a rural school district into a nationally recognized model, I’ve seen firsthand how Pennsylvania’s flawed cyber charter funding system undermines public education. From the outside, this may look like just another policy debate in Harrisburg. But in school districts like mine, the...
Letter to the editor: Trump has exposed waste, theft
Q. How can a company justify attacking an accountant that saved them over $500 billion in just its first quarter? A. Deny that he has saved anything and claim that he is actually hurting the company. In other words, lie through its teeth. To me, that’s the purpose of the...
Letter to the editor: Addressing moral corruption
Apparently many God-loving Christians who voted for President Trump love and respect him. Federal policies aside, when did church and other organizations’ members think it acceptable to mimic Trump by spewing hate, fear and chaos through retribution and retaliation whenever they don’t agree with someone? What messages is Trump sending...
Letter to the editor: Teachers don’t deserve bashing
I am so tired of people bashing teachers, as the writer of the letter “We must privatize public education” (June 16, TribLive) did. It seems from his letter that he got more than an eighth grade education. Bear in mind that a teacher tries to keep 180-plus students’ attention every...
Editorial: Sunday’s stance promises apolitical focus on AG’s job
The job of a state’s governor is to steer the executive ship. The governor takes the laws and budgets passed by the legislators and the departments of the government and finds a way to apply them. That can mean implementing policies. It can responding to changing circumstances. It can mean...
Letter to the editor: Leg restraints, hospital safety and social stigma
The Allegheny County Jail is the only jail in Pennsylvania in which officers cannot use leg restraints to secure individuals from jail on a visit to the hospital because of a 2022 referendum. Sheriffs and all other jurisdictions use leg restraints when accompanying individuals from the jail into the community....
Letter to the editor: Government works to improve our quality of life
The Trib has published several articles illustrating how our government works for us, including efforts to bring broadband to rural Westmoreland, plugging wells to stop methane leaks, upgrading sewer lines, improving bridges, addressing blight, responding to extreme weather disasters, filling abandoned coal mines and removing lead from water pipes. Other...
Letter to the editor: Library funding key for communities
In a time when individualism is at its height, local libraries act as a safe “third space” that offers many free resources and programs for their community. The current administration has been attacking libraries for months, and the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) has been completely defunded in...
Colin McNickle: A misguided proposal to redirect liquor tax revenue
The stated intent of Pennsylvania House Bill 985 is to divert liquor tax revenue to provide grants to municipalities with tax- exempt property comprising 15% or more of total assessed value and with household median income of less than 115% of the state level. But, “While the intent appears to be...
Oliver Bateman: Make the most of Aaron Rodgers’ last run in Pittsburgh
This month, Aaron Rodgers finally signed with the Steelers, ending an exhausting offseason saga that directly impacted their draft. The 41-year-old quarterback’s arrival marks the beginning of what promises to be the weirdest chapter in franchise history. Good. Scouting reports paint a grim picture: diminished arm strength, slower processing speed,...
Letter to the editor: Trump draws a huge crowd — of protesters
The largest protest ever to take place against a United States president occurred June 14, the “No Kings” events which brought anti-Trump activists to cities and towns both small and large from East Coast to West. Despite his claim to the contrary, Donald Trump did not have the largest crowd...
Letter to the editor: Democrats are threat to democracy
It is said that President Donald Trump is a threat to democracy. Let’s look at some facts. The Biden administration refused to enforce immigration laws, letting in millions of people who illegally crossed the border. Even when individuals with criminal backgrounds and/or on terrorist watch lists were captured, some of...
Editorial: Americans could be impacted by Iran bombing
Politics is supposed to stop at the water’s edge. That thought, expressed in 1947 by U.S. Sen. Arthur Vandenberg, a Republican from Michigan, was a call to American leaders to be a wall of solidarity on the international stage. The partisan machinations were like family squabbles to keep behind closed...
Letter to the editor: Paid sick leave is good for workers, communities
The letter “Sick leave expansion is anti- business” (June 18, TribLive) fundamentally misunderstands the expansion of Pittsburgh’s Paid Sick Days Act. Branding this essential worker protection as “anti-business” is a short-sighted perspective that overlooks the well-being of our workforce and community. Saying businesses are “forced to pay employees who don’t work”...
Editorial cartoons for the week of June 23
Editorial cartoons for the week of June 23....
Mallard Fillmore cartoons for the week of June 23
Mallard Fillmore cartoons for the week of June 23....
Letter to the editor: Al Oliver’s HOF induction long overdue
The Pittsburgh Pirates finally did something right, and long overdue. Recently, they announced their 2025 Hall of Fame class. At long last, they chose to induct Pirates legend and baseball superstar Al Oliver, a great player and even better person. Oliver was someone who always put the team first, unselfishly...
Letter to the editor: Politics, a low-skill job
The Founding Fathers outlined specific standards in the Constitution regarding age, citizenship status and residency requirements for serving in Congress. They, sadly, did not go any deeper. They did not enumerate qualifications such as education, experience or technical skills, nor did they address leadership, stability of character, the ability to...
Letter to the editor: Transit cuts violate the spirit of Virtue, Liberty and Independence
Disability Rights Pennsylvania (DRP) is deeply concerned about proposed cuts that devastate access for people with disabilities across both urban and rural parts of the commonwealth. In Pittsburgh, 41 bus routes and much of the paratransit service area are on the chopping block. In Philadelphia, SEPTA may eliminate 50 routes...
Editorial: What did the Nippon Steel-U.S. Steel deal really do?
The Nippon Steel-U.S. Steel deal is done. Finally. Really. What was proposed as a sale in December 2023 and talked about frequently as a “deal,” “merger,” “partnership” or “proposal” over the ensuing 18 months has cleared its hurdles and been approved by President Donald Trump. Whatever it is, it involved...
Letter to the editor: Political violence is never OK
I completely agree with Sen. Kim Ward’s comments (“ ‘It’s a scary time in politics,’ state Sen. Kim Ward says following Minnesota shootings,” June 17, TribLive), in which she decried the recent political killings in Minnesota. Neither she nor any other person serving in our governments (whether elected or appointed)...
Letter to the editor: America has always been great
Notwithstanding bloviation from the White House, America has always been great. Correction: It was, until the Project 2025 gang took over, shredding the Constitution, gutting our institutions and instigating a brain drain. Let’s look at some previous examples of our greatness: The Revolution freed this country from the tyranny of...
Joseph Sabino Mistick: The American flag belongs to all of us
Two new American flagpoles were installed at the White House June 18 at a ceremony attended by President Donald Trump and the national media. What should have been an important expression of what our flag represents turned into a reminder that our relationship with the American flag is complicated. Trump...
Nicole Stallings: Sounding the alarm for Pa.’s rural hospitals
Pennsylvania’s rural hospitals are struggling. Declining patient volumes, workforce shortages and chronic underpayment have left many on a lifeline. About half are operating at a loss, according to fiscal year 2023 data from the Pennsylvania Health Care Cost Containment Council. Another 17% are barely breaking even or operating with margins...
J. Byron Fleck: Pitt’s $246 million bet against its students, employees
By July 1, the University of Pittsburgh will have made a choice: fund up to a quarter-billion-dollar commitment to pay its professional football and men’s basketball players — or protect its students, families and employees from financial ruin. The money? $246 million over 10 years, taken directly from student tuition,...
