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Editorials category, Page 45

Pope Francis, first Latin American pontiff, dies at 88
Editorial: Debates need all candidates to participate
There is a point to primary debates. It’s hard to imagine after the sideshows of the 2016 Republican presidential primary and, not to be outdone, the equally circus-like 2020 Democratic presidential primary. But it’s true. The point of a general election primary is for all of the voters to decide...
Editorial: The common problem of Pennsylvania bridges
Pennsylvania’s bridges need work. It isn’t just the ones with obvious problems — the ones with crumbling concrete or decaying superstructure. It’s not a question of which. It’s a question of when. The Fern Hollow Bridge spanning a Frick Park ravine collapsed on the morning of Jan. 28, while people were...
Editorial: Nalani Johnson Rule could save lives
Nalani Johnson deserved a long, long life. She deserved birthday parties and Halloween costumes. A prom dress and a graduation ceremony. She should have gotten married and had kids of her own. Instead she got less than two years. The little girl whose family said she had a clever head...
Editorial: Law doesn’t demand transparency. People should.
The state is getting just a little bit closer to requiring more transparency on the part of the Pennsylvania General Assembly. On Tuesday, the House State Government Committee approved the bill that would make legislative expense reports more easily accessible to the public online. “How can anyone be against it?”...
Editorial: Wheelchair restrictions could be more than Latrobe expects
It should go without saying that a wheelchair is not a bicycle. Sure, they have features in common. Wheels, obviously. Tires. There is a seat, and there are handles. Stripped down, they perform the same function: moving someone from one place to another. But use these kind of very elementary...
Laurels & lances: Wedding, weapon, wellness
Laurel: To an Oscar-calibre officiant. Tom Hanks may have famously declared there is no crying in baseball, but a few tears at a wedding are not unexpected. Here’s hoping he had a few hankies handy when he presided over the exchange of vows for a Bellevue couple. Krisna Poznik Stahl...
Editorial: Can John Pallone be a good open records officer?
A township manager is the person who is hired to steer the municipality’s work while the people elected to make the decisions are busy during the day. Elected officials, especially at the level of many townships, often have their own full-time jobs. Also, the person elected to make the decisions...
Editorial: Less recidivism requires more preparation for inmates
For some people, being arrested can be a wake-up call. It can be enough of a scare to cause a jump back to the straight-and-narrow. Maybe it was precipitated by a one-time mistake unlikely to happen again, or maybe it was a stupid move that could have resulted in a...
Editorial: Natural decline in population demands shift in priorities
Pennsylvania has a population problem. The problem isn’t that the overall population is shrinking. It’s not. According to the 2020 census, the number of people who call the state home grew by 2.4% — just over 300,000 — in 10 years. That’s not bad. Compared to neighboring West Virginia, which...
Editorial: Opioid prevention critical in cutting overdose deaths
In 2021, 168 people lost their lives because of accidental drug overdoses in Westmoreland County. Break that down over the course of the year, and that means just over every two days, someone’s high turned into a family’s worst low. It also means that drug overdose deaths are increasing at...
Editorial: Tipped minimum shows wiggle room on issue
Gov. Tom Wolf has spent years pushing to increase the Pennsylvania minimum wage. The state’s minimum has sat at the federal bottom line of $7.25 per hour since 2009. But anyone who has done a gratuity-motivated job such as waiting tables knows that isn’t the least amount of money someone...
Editorial: A nomination isn’t a political promise
There is a difference between an appointment and a nomination. In an appointment, a government leader is able to place someone in a position with nothing more than their own say-so. Pick a chief of staff or a press secretary? That’s completely up to a governor or senator. A nomination...
Laurels & lances: Plays, rides and bugs
Laurel: To curtains going up. All over Allegheny and Westmoreland counties, things are a little dramatic right now. It is the height of spring musical season, and in middle schools and high schools across the region, kids are being nipped by the acting bug. This is the kind of contagion...
Editorial: GOP candidates should embrace better debates
The Republican gubernatorial candidates who are pushing away a real, moderated, journalistic debate are not only doing themselves a disservice but also are doing the same to their party and constituents. On Monday, four members of the jam-packed field of GOP candidates vying for the top spot in Pennsylvania politics...
Editorial: Eagle chicks bring welcome respite worldwide
The popularity of animals on the internet is nothing new. From cats popping out of boxes to miniature goats frolicking in pajamas, the viral videos tend to spread faster than the flu. Make them about baby animals, and the speed increases with the cuteness factor. Everyone loves a puppy, a...
Editorial: Redistricting process needs to be fixed sooner rather than later
With the newly drawn redistricting maps finally setting the lines that will define legislative districts, it is time for people to analyze what the definitions will mean. In Westmoreland County, for example, the people will go from having eight seats in the state House of Representatives to six. While all...
Editorial: Is probation enough for sheriff’s department guilty pleas?
The Westmoreland County Sheriff’s Department under former leadership had a problem. It was a legal problem — namely that a number of its employees were not merely serving documents or escorting prisoners. No, they were facing charges themselves. It started at the top, with then-Sheriff Jonathan Held, who was investigated...
Editorial: Rental assistance needs better messaging
There’s a problem with rental assistance in Pennsylvania. It doesn’t seem to be going where it’s needed. Since the onset of the coronavirus pandemic in 2020, evictions and rental issues have been a concern as people have worried about making sure they had a place to live while they were...
Editorial: Amazon withdrawal leaves new challenge for Churchill
OK, Churchill, now what? On Thursday, Amazon announced it won’t use the former George Westinghouse Research and Technology Park as a new warehouse and distribution facility. It was an anticipated $300 million investment that brought about passionate debate from locals. Churchill council approved the project — expected to generate up...
Laurels & lances: Cooperating, contaminating, and carrying on
Laurel: To joining forces. Pennsylvania is peppered with lots of municipalities, overlapping with counties and school districts and authorities that all have their own little fiefdoms. The Keystone State is third in the nation when it comes to various local government divisions, with the U.S. Census Bureau putting only Illinois...
Editorial: Prison van prompts petty parking tickets
A little intergovernmental interaction is good for everyone. It can, however, lead to some power struggles where those footprints overlap — especially in capitols. Washington, D.C., can bristle at its subordinate status enough to put its “taxation without representation” beef on license plates. In state and county seats, it can...
Editorial: Glass plant pullout leaves locals drowning in water bills
A business of a certain size does more than just occupy a building and write some paychecks. Its needs and its returns can define a community. There is no better proof of that than what happens when the business leaves. Just ask Tarentum or East Deer. In 2018, the Pittsburgh...
Editorial: Westmoreland County should have played ball with Hempfield
Counties can own a lot of real estate. There is the courthouse. The jail. There may be various other buildings housing things such as public services or district courts. Maybe some parking lots or recreation areas. The Pennsylvania Constitution lets counties buy land or buildings as necessary, provided they don’t...
Editorial: Sunshine Week celebrates transparency
Sunshine Week is an annual March observation that celebrates the importance of shedding light in the darkness. It might seem like a week devoted to journalism. It’s not. The Pennsylvania Sunshine Act spells out the requirements for open meetings. It demands that state agencies, county bodies and local governments —...
Editorial: Why not a state gas tax holiday, Gov. Wolf?
On Monday, Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Wolf joined his counterparts in Colorado, Michigan, New Mexico and Wisconsin in appealing to congressional leaders. Minnesota’s governor hopped on the bandwagon later. The problem is the rising gas prices that are making it more expensive by the hour to fill up a tank. When...


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
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