Laurel: To responding to the faithful. This year, two important events coincide for Catholic sports fans in the Greater Pittsburgh area: The Pirates’ home opener falls on Good Friday.

This left a dilemma. Do you observe the papal direction to not eat meat on the holy day of obligation? Or do you partake in the traditional hot dog at PNC Park?

Both the Greensburg and Pittsburgh dioceses weighed in for clarity. While dispensations were granted by both bishops for St. Patrick’s Day that allowed for a nice corned beef sandwich, no such waiver is being given for the baseball game.

Luckily, the stadium is offering a fish sandwich for the occasion. The traditional peanuts and Cracker Jack — and beer — are still on the meat-free table.

Lance: To a heavy increase. When we talk about bills going up, even small percentages can hurt. A little here, a little there, and it adds up to a real weight for many people.

In Freeport, the increase on sewer payments — set for formal approval at the April 17 council meeting — is not small. The cost for the $18.6 million sewage treatment plant will be done incrementally, starting with a $17 rate hike in May. That will be followed by $10 in 2024 and $7 in 2025.

The final total of $47 — up from the $49.41 now charged for monthly residential rates — is a 95% increase. That’s 15% higher than the 80% or so projected in March.

Lance: To false reports. On Wednesday, Mt. Pleasant Area Junior-Senior High School was locked down for more than an hour after an anonymous message was sent via the statewide Safe2Say Something system.

The message claimed there was an active shooter at the school. The school was locked down as authorities responded. It took almost 90 minutes of searching every room in the building to finally give the “all clear” and for students to return to class.

Just a week ago, multiple schools across the state — including Central Catholic and Oakland Catholic in Pittsburgh and Laurel Highlands High School in Fayette County — had similar situations. At each school, a report was made via a computer-generated message of an active shooter. At each school, it was a hoax.

Authorities are not to blame for responding even when there is a belief the calls might not be real. They are doing what they must do to keep kids and communities safe. But these incidents are not jokes. They are serious threats, even if they don’t have body counts, and they need to be addressed seriously.

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