Opinion category, Page 55
Letter to the editor: ‘Resistance’ not helping our country
Whatever it is, I’m against it, I’m not for it. (Groucho Marx song in “Horsefeathers”) A child will use “NO” to assert himself and gain authority. An adult must override the “NO” for the child’s benefit. With maturity the child will learn that “NO” will not get his way, and...
Editorial: Does college still have a purpose in the age of ChatGPT?
For many college students, life is a breeze. Assignments that once demanded days of diligent research can be accomplished in minutes. Polished essays are available, on demand, for any topic under the sun. No need to trudge through Dickens or Demosthenes; all the relevant material can be instantly summarized after...
Letter to the editor: Economy woes will only get worse
Mark Twain, a respected journalist and author, said: “It’s easier to fool people than to convince them that they have been fooled.” Let’s test that. Instead of ALL CAPS social media posts telling you what to think, here are some actual facts for you to decide for yourself how the...
Mallard Fillmore cartoons for the week of June 2
Mallard Fillmore cartoons for the week of June 2....
Editorial cartoons for the week of June 2
Editorial cartoons for the week of June 2....
Samantha ‘Sunshine’ Rave: A daughter’s call to reform a deadly system
My name is Sunshine, and my father, Gary William Miller, died in February 2011 inside Allegheny County Jail. To this day, I still don’t know exactly how or why. No clear explanation. No compassion. No closure. Just silence. Just death. Just another addict written off by a system that punishes...
Letter to the editor: McAtee sentence an affront to justice
To give Regina McAtee a slap on the wrist for her crimes is an affront to justice (”Retired Greensburg cop Regina McAtee sentenced to 36 months’ probation,” May 27, TribLive). She brought drugs to the community that affected the lives of more people than we will ever know, probably including...
Letter to the editor: Public transit critical for the lives of many
Pennsylvania’s elected officials must shift their gaze from international politics and federal problems back to basics, like keeping local public transit healthy. If at the end of June the Legislature approves looming service cuts, fare increases and/or layoffs, it would disrupt the lives of scores of passengers from cities, suburbs...
Editorial: This year is no time for a state budget battle
Pennsylvania Senate President Pro Tempore Kim Ward sounded adamant. “We’re certainly not going to raises taxes,” she said. The Hempfield Republican was speaking at the Westmoreland County Chamber of Commerce “State of the State” breakfast. It was a gathering of government and business leaders, so naturally the topic turned to...
Letter to the editor: Logging could destroy our forests
I am deeply concerned about President Trump’s recent executive orders that significantly expand logging activities in our national forests under the pretext of national security. These directives undermine decades of environmental protections and pose substantial risks to Pennsylvania’s natural heritage, public health and climate resilience. The orders direct federal agencies...
Joseph Sabino Mistick: America’s coming brain drain
Even in the old mill towns where I grew up, we occasionally had a kid go to Harvard or some other Ivy League school. They might catch some good-natured ribbing about suddenly being too good to hang with us — the kind of banter our fathers perfected in the mill...
Solomon D. Stevens: Are Americans fed up with democracy?
Democracy can be exhausting and frustrating, especially representative democracy, which takes the immediate responsibility of ruling out of the hands of ordinary citizens and puts it in the hands of representatives, who govern from far away. Nothing seems to get done. All you hear about is arguing and squabbling. Your...
Clive Crook: US is about to discover if deficits don’t matter
It’s hard to think intelligently about public debt and deficits. The economics of fiscal policy is complicated and defies straightforward prescriptions. What’s most striking about budget-making in Washington today, though, is not that legislators are confused about what good debt-management requires. It’s that they’ve just stopped thinking about it. If...
Mark Z. Barabak: A celebration — and wake — for a political time gone by
They came to the baking desert to honor one of their own, a political professional, a legend and a throwback to a time when gatherings like this one — a companionable assembly of Republicans, Democrats and the odd newspaper columnist — weren’t such a rare and noteworthy thing. They came...
Letter to the editor: Penn State trustees should do better
Closing Penn State campuses is a death-spiral plan, a no-brainer. Get rid of all people working there, sell the buildings and kill the community spirit. Where is the innovation to solve the financial problem? The trustees need to do a better job. Dennis Balenovich West Newton The writer is a...
Letter to the editor: A big morally and financially wrong bill
House Republicans just passed Trump’s Big Billionaire Bonanza Bill in order to transfer wealth from those with the least to those with the most. Then they literally celebrated this disgusting accomplishment! Now the bill is in the hands of the Senate. By the time this letter is printed, it might...
Editorial: Pennsylvania needs a solution for senior care
Pennsylvania has a lot of senior citizens. According to federal records, the state has 2.5 million residents over 65 years old. That’s 19.6% of the state’s population. Only California, Florida, New York and Texas have more, which is unsurprising as they are also the only states with overall populations greater...
Letter to the editor: Rising prices and Trump’s tariffs
Breaking news! Prices are going up. President Trump’s tariffs are to blame. I hope Americans are not dumb enough to believe tariffs are the only cause for rising prices. Steelworkers get a big fat raise and better benefits. The prices of all products using steel go up. Autoworkers get very...
Letter to the editor: Funeral director’s actions inhuman
Regarding Patrick Vereb (“Hazelwood, Harrison funeral director accused of pocketing $650K for pet cremations, burials that didn’t happen,” April 28, TribLive): What an inhuman act by this bloodless, unfeeling bestial. Our hearts were so broken by the passing of our Ruby, who was with us for 15 years, and now...
S.E. Cupp: Musk’s rise and fall was pitiful and predictable
He shot onto the political scene seemingly out of nowhere. But Elon Musk, the world’s richest man, made his presence known in short time. After acquiring Twitter in 2022 and wading into the controversial politics of free speech and misinformation, Musk’s first big move was to dump more than $50...
Oliver Bateman: Does Shapiro have a secrecy problem?
I want Josh Shapiro to succeed. As a centrist Pennsylvanian who voted for him over woefully out-of-his-depth Doug Mastriano back in 2022, I see a governor who could help lead the disorganized Democrats out of the wilderness. His pragmatic style, ability to work across the aisle and Obama-lite rhetorical style...
Athan Koutsiouroumbas: Pa.’s potential data center mirage — and your electric bill
When Pennsylvanians open their electric bills this summer, few realize that the price they will pay may be inflated not by the energy they use — but by energy that may never be used at all. Earlier this month, in a little-noticed hearing in the Pennsylvania state Legislature, a stunning...
Letter to the editor: Women’s role in the Catholic church
Regarding the article “Western Pa. Catholics anticipate papal conclave to usher in new era” (May 8, TribLive): It was not Pope Francis who “opened the way” for women and girls to serve as readers and altar servers at Mass, and to assist priests or administer Communion. Women and girls have...
Letter to the editor: Insider trading at the White House?
Who is policing possible/probable insider stock trading in Donald Trump’s White House? Based on the last five months of chaotic rollercoaster-ride stock prices, it is obvious that President Trump can drastically affect the price of practically any stock up or down with a simple on-or-off tariff announcement. For instance, Apple...
Editorial: Aaron Rodgers and the politics of playing games
Aaron Rodgers is the talk of Pittsburgh sports, which is fascinating since there’s no proof he will ever have anything to do with Pittsburgh sports. For months, the potential of the former Green Bay Packers and (briefly) New York Jets quarterback to don the black and gold for at least...
