Opinion category, Page 513
Sounding off: Responsible gun owners don’t ‘forget’
For the 12th time this year, a loaded handgun was confiscated by TSA at Pittsburgh International Airport from a passenger’s carry-on bag (“Man faces charges after being stopped for gun at Pittsburgh International Airport,” June 7, TribLIVE). He used the same excuse as the others: “I forgot it was there.”...
Letter to the editor: Biden must put America first
Dear Mr. President, There are several concerning issues right now. On your first day of office, you canceled the Keystone XL pipeline. Recently you approved of the Russian pipeline Nord Stream 2, and this monthyou suspended the oil and gas leases in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Gas prices are...
Letter to the editor: Media’s manipulation
Just how dishonest and manipulative has the mainstream media become? Incredibly so, as evidenced by the recent journalistic indiscretions related to Communist China’s Wuhan Institute of Virology. When it was first proposed by Donald Trump, some in his administration and Republican Sen. Tom Cotton that the covid-19 virus had originated...
Editorial: Trust (but verify) local police with speed radar
You’re cruising down the interstate. Maybe you’re going a little bit faster than you should be. Maybe not. But if you catch a glimpse of a state trooper’s cruiser, you probably ease up on the gas, just in case. It might be that you know the Pennsylvania state police use...
Letter to the editor: Learning from Tulsa massacre, Capitol riots
In the news recently was the 100th anniversary of the Tulsa Massacre. I had never heard of it until now. I am concerned with what happened afterward, which was nothing. Hundreds of lives lost, hundreds of homes and businesses lost, and nothing was done. No one was ever imprisoned or...
John Stossel: Capitalism makes us better off
Last week, I debunked three myths about capitalism. Here are four more: Myth No. 4: Capitalism creates unsafe workspaces. “Greedy capitalists” will risk workers’ lives to increase production if government, through agencies such as the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), doesn’t stop that. It’s logical to assume that government...
S.E. Cupp: Why it matters that the first active NFL player just came out as gay
My best friend James reminds me every year of the day he came out to me. It was in November 2006. It wasn’t a shock to me — we’d known each other for nearly 10 years by that point, through college and our early 20s, when all the good stuff...
Benjamin V. Allison: How the 2-party system could self-destruct and save American democracy
Legally, Donald Trump can run for reelection in 2024. That’s bad. But it could break up the two-party system. That’s good. Since the election, talk of a Republican split has waxed and waned, with rumors that Trump or moderate Republicans might break from the GOP to create a new party....
Letter to the editor: Why spend $30 million for turnpike widening?
The Harvison Road bridge in Penn Township will be demolished to accommodate a $30 million project to widen the Pennsylvania Turnpike between Irwin and Monroeville from four to six lanes. According to the article “Penn Township negotiating with turnpike commission in advance of bridge removal” (June 14, TribLIVE), it is...
Letter to the editor: Freedoms, masks and election laws
In her letter “GOP’s election plans will take away voters’ rights” (May 30, TribLIVE), Frances Weiss misquoted me when she stated: “George Silowash said he believed state mask mandates have taken our rights away.” My words in my letter “How about we all make our own mask decisions?” (May 23,...
Lori Falce: Why Carl Nassib coming out matters
When I was 20, I stood on the steps of Schwab Auditorium at Penn State as my dearest friend had a kind of confirmation. It was Coming Out Day, and people from across campus were declaring who they were inside. Gay, lesbian, bisexual — they stood up, spoke the truth...
Letter to the editor: Dairy farmers protect health of their cows
As a member of a fourth-generation dairy farm, I was frustrated to read allegations from a vegan organization in the letter “Plant-based dairy a viable option” (June 13, TribLIVE). Here’s the real story of what happens on a dairy farm, where my most important priority is the health and well-being...
Laurels & lances: Attitude, delay and entertainment
Laurel: To a positive outlook. When Sara Belt of Unity was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease at 53, it could have been a crushing blow for her and her family. Instead, she chose to be appreciative of the answers the diagnosis gave for her symptoms. Three years later — when estimates...
Nathan Pikarsic: Competing in global auto race requires US industry to retool
This month, Jeep opened the first new auto factory in Detroit in three decades. Auto workers and suppliers have responded by celebrating. With reason — it’s the Motor City’s first new auto factory in 30 years and is expected to employ almost 5,000. Jeep deserves credit for investing in the...
Jonah Goldberg: Battle over critical race theory won’t benefit GOP in the long run
It feels like yesterday that my wife and I were shopping for grade schools for our daughter — the same daughter who just graduated from high school. We visited a bunch of private schools where the children of Washington’s elite get turned into the feedstock of the meritocracy. The most...
Letter to the editor: Which lives matter?
Regarding the article “Wolf again vows to veto any bills that limit abortion access in Pa.” (June 11, TribLIVE): Guess Gov. Tom Wolf doesn’t believe Black Lives Matter. In 2019, Black people made up just 12% of the U.S. population but accounted for 38% of the reported 889,000 abortions that...
Letter to the editor: No dignity from Biden, either
Letter-writer Ed Svitek states that it’s “Biden’s job to restore our dignity” (June 10, TribLIVE) and writes about lies by President Trump and Republicans. When a person makes a false statement, it could be because he or she does not have all the facts; when a person lies, he or...
Editorial: Don’t fall for a phony ‘forensic audit’ of 2020 election
How long does the 2020 presidential election need to haunt Pennsylvania politics? Almost seven months after the polls closed in November, the state is still being harangued by questions of whether or not to count the ballots yet again. Former President Trump — who lost Pennsylvania and then the White...
Letter to the editor: Thanks for helping Alle-Kiski kids
As the co-founder of Project SEED, I would like to extend a sincere thank-you for the tremendous support and generosity we have received from so many individuals, businesses, clubs and organizations in the Alle-Kiski Valley and beyond. We just completed our eighth year of providing food to hungry children in...
Joe Bell: Ongoing trade war limits recovery for U.S. businesses
With vaccination rates increasing and businesses reopening across the country, there’s good reason for optimism. Businesses that have struggled to survive the challenges posed by the covid-19 pandemic are finally seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. For businesses across the nation, however, there is still a big...
Letter to the editor: Yielding our rights to government
Did Joe Biden leave out the word “don’t” before “yield”? This is from an official transcript of his remarks after meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin on June 16: “I told him that, unlike other countries, including Russia, we’re uniquely a product of an idea. You’ve heard me say this...
Letter to the editor: Politicizing the Eucharist
How dare the bishops politicize the Eucharist (“U.S. Catholic bishops OK steps toward possible rebuke of Biden,” June 18, TribLIVE). Their proposed “teaching document” is aimed directly at Joe Biden. What about politicians who support the death penalty? What about divorced Catholic politicians, such as twice-divorced Newt Gingrich? What about...
Letter to the editor: More reasons for high turnpike tolls
Professor Paul Kengor’s column “Highway robbery on the Pa. Turnpike” (June 10, TribLIVE) criticizes the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission for raising toll fees despite the cost savings resulting from eliminating over 500 tollbooth workers and substituting E-ZPass and Toll by Plate. Kengor fails to mention that the turnpike has been required...
Editorial: The dual good causes of local fire departments
Volunteer fire companies play two valuable roles in most Pennsylvania communities. First, they are an irreplaceable service. They do more than douse flames, as if that wouldn’t be enough. They rush into emergencies that aren’t burning buildings. They respond to car crashes and natural disasters. They save us from acts...
Leonard Pitts Jr.: Right to bear arms does not extend to Black people
Conservatives have a special purgatory for uppity Black women who dare question America’s founding myths. New York Times journalist Nikole Hannah-Jones — her Pulitzer Prize-winning “1619 Project” centralized slavery in America’s origin story, a heresy that inspired laws banning her work from classrooms — now lives there. And she’s about...
