Opinion category, Page 57
Editorial cartoons for the week of Sept. 1
Editorial cartoons for the week of Sept. 1....
Nathan McGrath: Labor Day rings hollow for these Pa. workers
This Labor Day, union officials will deliver speeches and march in parades, claiming to be champions of the little guy. But for too many public employees in Pennsylvania, there’s not much to celebrate when it comes to union representation. Certainly not for Mindy McFetridge, a PennDOT equipment operator in Venango...
Austin Davis: Making Pa. workplaces safer
The Labor Day parade is a beloved tradition in Pittsburgh, a celebration and recognition of the union workers who forge the steel in our skyscrapers, mine the coal that powers our factories, teach our children and care for our seniors. In my home, we always made a special point to...
Mallard Fillmore cartoons for the week of Sept. 1
Mallard Fillmore cartoons for the week of Sept. 1....
Letter to the editor: Creating a distraction-free learning environment
Creating a distraction-free learning environment is critical for good mental health and academic success. Educators agree cellphones frequently distract students with social media, notifications and texts. Studies show “even having a phone nearby can reduce concentration, lower test scores and disrupt learning, while less screen time can improve focus, critical...
Editorial: Again with the mail-in ballot envelopes?
Here we are at the end of August, heading into familiar rituals. Kids are back in school. Football is in full swing. Pumpkin spice lattes are heralding the start of fall. And once more, the rules about mail-in ballots in Pennsylvania are being juggled — tossed in the air and...
Letter to the editor: Hines Ward belongs in Hall of Fame
In America’s four professional sports — NFL, MLB, NBA and NHL — you will find seven former athletes who were responsible for rule changes in their respective sports. Of them, five are Hall of Famers: Bob Gibson, Wilt Chamberlain, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Martin Brodeur and Mel Blount, all first ballot except...
Joseph Sabino Mistick: Trump shows he’s no fan of fair fights
In 2009, the late right-wing political radio host Rush Limbaugh wrote to President Barack Obama and urged him — in the interest of fairness — to oppose the adoption of an FCC regulation that Limbaugh said would be “the death knell of talk radio.” “I would encourage you not to...
Mary Ellen Klas: The GOP is inflating health care costs — for its own voters
Unless the Trump administration and Republicans in Congress act quickly, millions of working Americans could lose access to health insurance at the end of this year. Among the most affected will be small businesses and middle-income earners — many of whom, ironically, live in congressional districts that vote Republican. An...
Point: AI won’t take our jobs away
Read enough headlines about artificial intelligence and you can be excused for thinking that we’re headed for a dystopian future ruled by AI-powered robot overlords. Mass unemployment, including people being forced to train their robot replacements to get that last paycheck, seems to be a common theme in the latest...
Counterpoint: Trump’s extreme anti-labor policies could determine the effect of AI on jobs
What will be the effect of artificial intelligence on labor in the United States? The current government’s agenda for labor will undoubtedly have an influence here. Last year, President Donald Trump praised Elon Musk lavishly for telling his workers he would fire them if they went on strike. “You’re the...
Commentary: Liberals have also censored history
In 1874, during the brief era of Reconstruction, white people staged a racist uprising in New Orleans. Angered by the presence of African Americans in law enforcement and other government posts, members of the Crescent City White League stormed the local customs house and killed 11 police officers. Two years...
Letter to the editor: Elimination of safety board jeopardizes communities
The recent explosion at Clairton Coke Works killed two workers and injured 10 others. The U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB) is now investigating this tragedy. The CSB is the only independent federal agency devoted solely to investigating chemical accidents and recommending steps to prevent future disasters. Yet the administration’s proposed...
Letter to the editor: How Trump is hurting American workers
How President Trump’s policies hurt the American workers: 1. Tax cuts overwhelmingly favor the wealthy, 83% of the benefits going to the top 1%. 2. He reduced the minimum wage for federal contractors, which could lead to pay cuts of 25% to 60% for these lower-wage workers. 3. He took...
Editorial: Will Taylor Swift’s ‘Love Story’ lead to a bad ‘Reputation’ for Democrats?
Yes, Taylor Swift is getting married. We know. The whole world came to a grinding halt Tuesday when the world’s biggest pop star announced her engagement to Kansas City Chiefs standout Travis Kelce. It drew a line in the zeitgeist, dividing it into B.E. (Before Engagement) and A.E. (After Engagement)....
Letter to the editor: Trump stands up for victims
Today, it seems one can’t turn on the TV without a sympathetic press, commiserating with convicted murderers, migrant criminals or “misunderstood“ protesters threatening our police, property and fellow citizens. Why is the media obsessed with the criminals? What happened to victims rights? Kilmar Abrego Garcia, who was accused by his...
S.E. Cupp: Cracker Barrel’s total surrender to the attack
On the surface, it looked like a marketing disaster: Beloved American restaurant chain serving up simple Southern favorites in unpretentious general store environment “loses $143 million in market value after woke brand fiasco.” Indeed, it has not been a great news cycle for Cracker Barrel. But after announcing a major...
Cal Thomas: Flagging flag burners (again)
President Trump wants to penalize anyone who burns the American flag. After initially announcing his intent — apparently before being told the Supreme Court already has said burning the flag is protected under the free expression clause of the First Amendment — Trump said he wishes to criminalize such behavior...
Letter to the editor: Putin wants ‘piece’
Someone should tell President Trump that Vladimir Putin does want peace … a big piece of Ukraine! Joe Marmo Cheswick...
Letter to the editor: Speaking out while we still can
I’m going to use my First Amendment right, my freedom of speech, to speak out about what is happening in our country while I still can. If you can’t see that we are well on our way to living under an authoritarian regime, you are sadly mistaken. The deployment of...
Lori Falce: 26 years of thoughts and prayers
My head is full of thoughts. My soul is full of prayers. And my heart is filled with rage, a red-hot glowing anger that, once again, children have been shot and killed. In Minneapolis, Robin Westman, 23, armed with a handgun, rifle and shotgun, fired into the church where children...
Laurels & lances: Red lights & restitution
Laurel: To slowing down. Pittsburgh City Council is taking steps toward using cameras at red lights. Council authorized the use of automated red light enforcement last year. The technology would snap pictures of drivers who run lights and then send them tickets by mail. Now they are working toward a...
Letter to the editor: Protect democracy, protect our votes
As a lifelong Pennsylvania resident and executive director of Mothers of Incarcerated Sons, an organization dedicated in part to voting rights, I want to thank Salewa Ogunmefun for the powerful and timely piece, “60 years after the Voting Rights Act, voting rights under attack” (Aug. 14, TribLive). This op-ed rightly...
Paul Kengor: Pittsburgh scores a big win — Dr. John Byrd
When we think of a person’s impact on a city or region, we tend to think of some titan in industry or even a major sports figure. Perhaps some 19th century industrialist or current tech giant, or big-time quarterback or pitcher or NHL player. When we think of a city...
Joel Burstein: Local business retention most underrated economic development strategy
When it comes to economic development, we all love the ribbon cuttings. Shovels in the ground, billion-dollar factories, gleaming new AI research hubs — they dominate the headlines and photo ops. But the most transformative growth doesn’t always come from what’s new. It comes from what we choose to keep....
