Got to Category

Editorials category, Page 16

Pope Francis, first Latin American pontiff, dies at 88
Editorial: Mental health is more important than political power
The Pennsylvania state House of Representatives could be changing yet again. For the last two years the legislative chamber has been on a roller coaster as lawmakers have been voted in, stepped down or moved on. That’s meant special elections, keeping the House with its hair-thin majority question in a...
Laurels & lances: History and repetition
Laurel: To living history. It’s no secret that Pennsylvania’s origin story is the origin story of the nation. But a New Kensington woman brings it to life with her own family tree. Mary Lee Brady-Atkins, 95, is a remarkable woman. She got her bachelor’s degree from Pitt before moving on...
Editorial: Coal workers’ respiratory health must be priority
“Today, we’re making it clear that no job should be a death sentence.” That should go without saying, but acting U.S. Labor Secretary Julie Su spelled it out Tuesday as she announced new standards for exposure to silica dust. Silica dust may not sound dangerous, but for some industries it...
Editorial: Shawn Denning’s actions betrayed people and police
Shawn Denning has admitted to drug crimes. The former Greensburg police chief was arrested in January 2023. Federal charges were filed against him as part of a methamphetamine and cocaine investigation detailing 16 months of activity. That puts the start of the probe before taking over the department as interim...
Editorial: Will Mt. Pleasant boy’s death change federal law?
J.R. Gustafson should be 21 years old. He should be a volunteer firefighter. He should be hunting and fishing and loving life with his family in Mt. Pleasant. But Gustafson’s life was cut short at just 13. He was in seventh grade when he was killed by a 14-year-old friend....
Editorial: What’s next for U.S. Steel deal?
U.S. Steel stockholders Friday voted for the merger with Japanese-based Nippon Steel Corp. It was not a close decision, with 71% of stockholders voting and 98% of those approving the proposal. For perspective, the last U.S. president to be elected with a margin like that was James Monroe in 1816....
Editorial: Smart, timely action needed on electric vehicle fees
How much should electric vehicle owners contribute toward the cost of Pennsylvania’s roads? It’s a question that needs to be answered. The state Legislature is trying. Pennsylvania has more than 41,000 miles of state-maintained roads. That’s a lot of asphalt and salt for maintenance, not to mention billions of dollars...
Laurels & lances: Texting and scamming
Laurel: To good technology. Text messaging has become one of the primary reminders in our lives. Order a pizza? A text tells you when it’s being delivered. Your kid missed school? A text confirms the absence was excused. Texts remind you of doctor appointments, flight times, hotel reservations and more....
Editorial: Anonymous donations to government create questions — and silence them
Anonymous donations are nice when it comes to things like a new wing in an art museum or urgent assistance for a natural disaster. An anonymous donation in these instances is easily understood as altruism. There is little that a museum can give back in return other than appreciation and...
Editorial: Is Lee-Patel race a bellwether for Pennsylvania in presidential year?
In 2023, Allegheny County illustrated a changing reality of politics. It’s not just about Democrat and Republican. The fight for district attorney might have been decided in the primary. The incumbent, Stephen A. Zappala Jr., was seeking his seventh term but lost the May Democratic primary to public defender Matt...
Editorial: Pittsburgh is right to appeal reinstatement of officer in Jim Rogers’ death
The city of Pittsburgh is appealing an arbitration decision that gave a police officer’s job back after a man died. It is the right move by the city. Officer Keith Edmonds was terminated in March 2022 after the October 2021 death of Jim Rogers. Edmonds was dispatched to a call...
Editorial: What will you learn from the eclipse?
The sun does not hide behind the moon that often. OK, that’s not quite true. A solar eclipse happens about twice a year, even up to five times a year. A total eclipse, where the moon blacks out sun leaving only a brilliant halo, happens about once every year and...
Editorial: 10 years after Franklin Regional attack, school violence still needs treatment
On April 9, 2014, Franklin Regional High School became part of a club no one wants join: the locations of school violence. Alex Hribal was 16 that day. He showed up at school that Wednesday morning dressed in black. Minutes before classes began, the attack began. Like all such attacks,...
Editorial: Can dual enrollment solve college cost problem?
All conversations about college tend to boil down to the same problem: It just costs too much. The average cost of one year in college is about $19,000. That puts Pitt and Penn State in that arena. As state related but not state run, they are high for public schools...
Laurels & lances: Baseball and social media
Laurel: To kicking things off. It’s here. The start of the Major League Baseball season. All across the country — and Toronto — people are getting psyched for the boys of summer to start playing ball. Pittsburgh Pirates fans have an uncharacteristic reason to be enthusiastic. In a normal year,...
Editorial: Government meetings should be accessible
Public meetings are meant to be public. Government isn’t supposed to happen in offices away from the eyes of the people. Oh, sure, much of the execution of government has to happen that way, but the decision making and the discussions? That has to happen where people can see. That’s...
Editorial: Railway Safety Act shouldn’t be derailed
The rules that make us safer always follow the examples of how safe we are not. In 1911, 146 people — 123 of them women and girls — died in Manhattan when the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory burned. It remains one of the deadliest industrial accidents in American history, but it...
Editorial: Is now the time for solar in Western Pennsylvania?
Pennsylvania has been defined by energy for years — from the first oil derrick in the U.S. to widespread coal production to the natural gas reservoirs of the Marcellus shale. But solar energy doesn’t seem synonymous with the often-overcast Keystone State. Will that change with recent proposals? The Pennsylvania Solar...
Editorial: Asleep at the controls: As Boeing bosses leave, scrutiny must continue
After an embarrassing and potentially dangerous bungling atop of the iconic American aerospace company, culminating in the grounding of hundreds of aircraft following a door plug blowing off a 737 MAX 9 mid-flight, Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun is stepping down. Also heading for the exits are Board Chair Larry Kellner...
Editorial: Easter and the traditions that celebrate joy
Happy Easter. Today, as you prepare to go to church or visit family or make dinner, let’s take a moment to think about the value of tradition. These are the customs that connect us to our past. The ham on your table may be more than a main dish. It...
Editorial: Congressman’s bridge comments embarrass Pennsylvania
There are few things that really unite Pennsylvania. It’s a state that is both Democrat and Republican. It is rural and urban, chipped ham and cheesesteaks. It is Pittsburgh and Philadelphia and everything in between. If you can imagine an election in which Pennsylvania goes overwhelmingly in one direction or...
Laurels & lances: Recusal and responsibility
Laurel: To fair consideration. A Westmoreland County judge has agreed to consider removing himself from the case of a former police officer accused of lying. Ryan Matthew Clark, 33, of Buffalo Township is a former Arnold cop who was arrested in 2022 by county detectives and charged with filing a...
Editorial: The lessons of Pittsburgh, Philadelphia and Baltimore bridges
Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge is a twisted mass of metal in the Patapsco River today after a cargo vessel plowed into a support column. Video shows the incident in the dark hours of Tuesday morning like a slow motion scene in a disaster movie as the structure fell down...
Editorial: Is the Regional Youth Services Center ready to open?
After eight months of closed doors, the Regional Youth Services Center in Hempfield is reopening. The Westmoreland County juvenile detention facility was shuttered after a series of troubling state inspections, including one involving a teenager’s attempted suicide. There was a near riot. There were poorly trained employees — in addition...
Editorial: Allegheny County DA Zappala needs to break his silence in Upper St. Clair man’s officer-involved shooting
There are times that it makes sense for prosecutors to be guarded about what they disclose and how they disclose it. A victim’s name may not be released until the family has been notified. That delay is understandable. A key detail of a crime might be kept back as the...


Editor's Picks

Front Porch Theatricals’ musical ‘Baby’ is a labor of love

Washington townhouse on the market for $1,225,000
Folk legend Bruce Cockburn gives uplifting performance at City Winery
‘Champagne & Chapeaux’: Westmoreland Symphony’s annual soiree for a good cause
Jimmy Stewart’s P-51 Mustang stops in hometown for museum anniversary
More Editor's Picks >