Opinion category, Page 528
Letter to the editor: DC statehood a bad idea
U.S. House Democrats recently voted again to give statehood to the District of Columbia so its residents can vote for members of Congress and the U.S. Senate. D.C. residents already vote for the president with three electoral votes. D.C. is only 69 square miles, much smaller than any current state....
Joseph Sabino Mistick: Broken promises in the Mon Valley
The big steelmakers have been breaking hearts and promises in the Mon Valley since Andrew Carnegie fired up his first Bessemer converter at Braddock’s Edgar Thomson Works in 1875. That’s why, last week, when U.S. Steel pulled the plug on its promise to modernize the mills in the Mon Valley,...
Kevin Kearns: Biden’s ‘Made in America’ must be mined in America
In his recent address to Congress, President Biden appears to have transformed himself into a champion of the “Made in America” cause. As he explained it, his jobs plan — which encompasses everything from rebuilding roads and bridges to accelerating the green energy revolution — will be guided by a...
Kiki Peppard: M is for May, Mom and maternal profiling
Years ago, my testimony at a Pennsylvania Labor and Industry Committee public hearing began with two simple questions. I asked everyone in the room to please raise their hand if they had a mother (alive or deceased). Of course, everyone raised their hands. My second question was, if we all...
Sounding off: Listen to experts, get vaccinated
Taking covid vaccines, with their rare risks, is much safer than the frequent risks of actually getting covid, according to the Centers for Disease Control, this nation’s best source of information about contagious diseases. Yet we often hear people say, “My fear of the vaccines is much greater than my...
Letter to the editor: Biden will destroy our country
Letter-writer Ed Svitek (“We’re better off with Biden”) states, “I gladly will accept whatever we get from President Biden. … I know he never will attack or intentionally harm the good people of this country.” Well, let’s look at the Biden administration’s accomplishments in the past four months: • fracking...
Letter to the editor: Hand right for Franklin Regional board
I’d like to express my support for Diana Altieri Hand, candidate for Franklin Regional School Board. Hand is running for the two-year position. I have had the pleasure of working and serving our church with her for several years now. Very seldom do you meet someone who runs toward a...
Editorial: Nordenberg, the right person as reapportionment referee
It is hard to accomplish anything when two sides refuse to negotiate. It’s true of million-dollar labor disputes and neighbors fighting about fencelines. That’s why what frequently is necessary is an mediator — a rational voice to encourage reasonable debate over a rehashing of all the disagreements. For a courtroom,...
Letter to the editor: Covid numbers and national debt
The May 7 edition of the Trib listed the worldwide cases of covid-19 as 155,481,806. A Google search of the world population revealed a global population of 7.8 billion. Based on these numbers, 1.99% of human beings have contracted covid-19. Discuss. On a secondary note, our president is throwing trillions...
Mona Charen: Who could possibly oppose universal pre-K? (Me.)
Subsidized day care and universal pre-K are goals that sound so wholesome only a ghoul could oppose them. Especially in an era when Democrats and Republicans have achieved consensus that money grows on trees, who could possibly object to spending a few hundred billion or so, as President Biden has...
John Stossel: Students who take out loans should pay them back
Americans took out $1.7 trillion in government loans for college tuition. Now, some don’t want to pay it back. President Joe Biden says they shouldn’t have to. He wants to cancel at least $10,000 and maybe $50,000 of every student’s debt. “They’re in real trouble,” says Biden, “having to make...
Letter to the editor: Killing coal, fossil-fuel industry
Regarding the article “U.S. Steel nixes $1 billion upgrades at Mon Valley Works facilities” (April 30, TribLIVE): I have to agree with U.S. Steel. In 2008, President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden’s actions nearly destroyed the coal industry. In 2020, while running for president, Joe Biden promised efforts...
Letter to the editor: Vote Starr in Allegheny Township
I believe we need a female voice on the Allegheny Township board of supervisors. Kathy Starr not only brings a wealth of experience and real accomplishments to our township, improving our quality of life (you can see a list of her accomplishments on her Facebook page), she also brings a...
Letter to the editor: Democrats’ racist history
I’m sure with letter-writer Ken Powell’s vast knowledge, he certainly knows the history of racists (“GOP’s racism,” April 15, TribLIVE). As he stated, he “know(s) the phrases, the looks and the attitudes.” The first nonwhite congressman was Republican Joseph Rainey, elected in 1870. His election was contested by the Democrats...
Lori Falce: Mothering is an action word
Mother is a complicated word. We think of it most easily as a noun — a female parent, the pie-baking June Cleaver who kisses skinned knees and helps with homework. But there are a million kinds of mothers, making it hard to stick with the stereotype. There are mothers who...
Letter to the editor: Gainey for Pittsburgh mayor
The first time I met state Rep. Ed Gainey was in 2019 at a community event in the Hill District. He came up to my table, and we talked about chess, my run for school board, and my studies at Pitt. He said if I ever needed anything, I should...
Letter to the editor: Honoring public servants
This week marks Public Service Recognition Week. Here in the Pittsburgh area and across the state and country, this week is an opportunity to acknowledge and thank the people who serve our government in various ways: our tireless public servants. While Public Service Recognition Week occurs annually during the first...
Laurels & lances: Building, billing, volunteering
Laurel: To a fitting choice. The Tree of Life - Or L’Simcha board of trustees announced Tuesday that an architect had been chosen to rebuild the Squirrel Hill synagogue that was the scene of the deadliest anti-Semitic attack in U.S. history. Daniel Libeskind has been entrusted with the project. His...
Jonah Goldberg: Is ‘banned on Facebook’ the new ‘banned in Boston’?
“Banned in Boston” is a phrase that probably doesn’t resonate with many people today. But there was a time when “Footloose” might as well have been set in Beantown. Founded by Puritans in the 1630s, Boston held onto its Puritan zeal — if not necessarily the Puritan faith — for...
Colin McNickle: Most Aquion money still unrecovered
Four years after Pennsylvania said it would try to recover millions of dollars in public subsidies made to bankrupt Westmoreland County saltwater battery maker Aquion, it has little to show for its efforts, concludes an analysis by the Allegheny Institute for Public Policy. “Rather than trying to pick winners and...
Letter to the editor: Highlands High School’s stellar production
Accolades to the fabulous Highlands High School’s “Mamma Mia!” cast, crew, pit orchestra, set designers/builders and the many others who created this Broadway-quality production. The joy and enthusiasm were felt throughout this exquisite event. Under normal circumstances, it would have been an outstanding accomplishment. Accomplishing it within the covid restrictions...
Letter to the editor: Why would we want Trump back?
I can’t imagine any American in their right mind wanting Donald Trump back in office after seeing how the virus took over when he denied the problem early last year and how his Cabinet members left one by one as he chose some buddies and some not well-qualified for their...
Letter to the editor: Salandro for magisterial district judge
The May 18 primary election is quickly approaching, and there is one clear choice for magisterial district judge, Rebecca Salandro. Salandro has years of experience working in the community as a behavioral health case manager and more than 10 years working throughout the court system as a criminal justice liaison....
Letter to the editor: Thank a nurse during National Nurses Week
With the global covid-19 pandemic, we have all seen — some of us up close and personal — just how vital nurses are on the front lines of the nation’s health care system. During National Nurses Week, May 6-12, I want to recognize and thank the more than 500 nurses...
Editorial: Taking the steps to post-pandemic life
For more than a year, the promise has been there. Pull together. Keep your distance. Wear a mask. Follow the rules. Do all of this, and the coronavirus pandemic can be handled. Do this, and, eventually, we will be able to stop doing this. Admittedly, every day the finish line...
