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Editorials category, Page 52

Pope Francis, first Latin American pontiff, dies at 88
Editorial: Nobel work and win is about education
Education is the scaffolding that supports everything about society. The things we teach our kids are the things that build their futures and our world. Without education, there is no science. There is no technology. There aren’t the logistics that keep trucks on the road and paper towels on store...
Editorial: Bedbugs aren’t a problem that can wait
Don’t let the bedbugs bite. It’s more than just the cutesy saying your mom would use when tucking you in. Bedbugs are no fairy tale. They’re an all-too-real pest that is not easy to eradicate. Vandergrift residents were thus right to be more than a little alarmed — and grossed...
Editorial: Responsible gun ownership means following rules
Conversations about guns and the limits of their accessibility are never easy. While most other rights like speech or a speedy trial are intangible, a gun is the one that can be held in your hand. It can be strapped at your side. It can even be packed in a...
Editorial: It’s time for real press conferences again
A press conference is supposed to be a give and take. Somewhere between a dance and a duel, it depends on both sides taking turns. The speaker gives a statement. A reporter asks a question. The speaker either answers or evades — which is in itself a kind of answer....
Laurels & lances: Filming, pleading, bargaining
Laurel: To lights, camera and action. While Pittsburgh has become a popular filming site and spent plenty of time on the big and small screens over the years, sometimes it can feel like the wealth of other communities can be left on the bench. But Greensburg hit a home run...
Editorial: Covid-19 data should be public and protected
There are times for the government to protect information. There are big secrets such as weapons codes or battle plans. There are small, personal ones such as an individual’s Social Security numbers or bank account. But by and large, the default with public information is that it is supposed to...
Editorial: PSERS board shouldn’t gag members
The Pennsylvania School Employees Retirement System is one of those things that can just make people bristle. It’s bad enough when things are going right since taxpayers can grumble about paying into someone else’s pension. It’s even worse when things go wrong, as more than a decade of state pension...
Editorial: News you can use
Notable events, weather and sports. On social media, people are acting astounded to learn that “news” is an acronym for these four words. They might be even more shocked to realize that, like so much on Facebook or TikTok, it’s not true at all. The news, to put it bluntly,...
Editorial: A winning hand at Westmoreland Mall, against the odds
For years, the stories coming out of malls have been pretty consistent — and pretty depressing. Stores closing. Anchors closing. Sales down. Traffic down. Just about the only thing rising was interest in online videos of what was happening behind the chained-up doors of long-shuttered shopping nirvanas of decades past....
Editorial: Why do Pennsylvanians pay higher price for energy?
The winter of 2021-22 is going to be a cold one, according to sources as traditional as the Farmers’ Almanac and as high-tech as AccuWeather, which predicts average temperatures in the region around 1 to 3 degrees Fahrenheit below normal, with the chill winds starting to blow as early as...
Editorial: Ousting airport authority members was vindictive move
What would Arnold Palmer think? The question must be on the minds of the Westmoreland County Airport Authority members and those who knew the Latrobe-born professional golfer, after county commissioners removed Donald “Doc” Giffin and authority Chairman Paul Puleo from the board. The county airport is named for Palmer, the...
Laurels & lances: Culture, Kody, court and carrying
Laurel: To preserving culture. The 42nd annual powwow held last weekend in Indiana Township by the Council of Three Rivers American Indian Center was an opportunity to share and appreciate native cultures. “We’re getting together to greet, meet and have fun and respect each other’s way of life,” said Russell...
Editorial: State reps should endorse recess
Everyone deserves a break. Get up. Stretch your legs. Take a walk around the building or the block. Turn away from your work, breathe deep and think about something else for a minute. The job will still be there when you are done and maybe you can come back to...
Editorial: Pa. Turnpike fares unfair to some users
Why can’t Pennsylvania just make a toll road that costs the same no matter how you pay for it? The Pennsylvania Turnpike can be a costly way to get from here to there. Use an E-ZPass — the transponder system that reads your account and deducts pre-deposited funds when you...
Editorial: Reapportionment demands compromise
A decision from a government body that raises questions is nothing new. That happens every day. But reversing course to do something that makes sense? That’s a little more noteworthy, so imagine the surprise when a highly divided panel did just that. The Legislative Reapportionment Commission is hard at work...
Editorial: A local coalition will ensure that no child goes hungry
Hunger was a problem before the pandemic started. Food is one of those bills that can be scrimped and shorted. The very euphemism that we use to talk about cutting back — tightening the belt — acknowledges the corners that get cut when money is short are often meals. So...
Editorial: Booster shots are as common as vaccines themselves
Booster shots are not a new idea. Kids get them periodically for measles and mumps, for diphtheria and for chickenpox. Adults are cautioned to get a tetanus or meningitis booster. Travelers may get an update for things like hepatitis or yellow fever. A booster is just what it sounds like...
Editorial: Canine comfort can help in the halls of justice
A courthouse can be an intimidating place, even if you aren’t charged with a crime. Victims of crime can have to relive their worst moments while facing down an attacker. A witness might have to find the strength to participate in the process. Family court cases, such as custody disputes,...
Laurels & lances: Drugs, tests and promises
Laurel: To addressing addiction. On Monday, the U.S. Justice Department announced a new campaign to address drug use and recovery in Westmoreland and eastern Allegheny counties. The program is a $75,000 effort to connect people who need help with services already being provided in the community, as well as information...
Editorial: Supply-chain shortages only made worse with panic
With a pandemic, there are certain things you expect to be problematic. Crowded emergency rooms are not surprising. Doctors telling you to keep your distance and wash your hands? That’s pretty on brand for them. Even the stock market rising and falling with the latest vaccine release or other developments...
Editorial: The other TikTok challenge is teaching kids right from wrong
Social media’s latest must-have app is creating problems in local schools. TikTok is the app. Today’s incarnation is an example of a mainstay of the video-sharing app — collaboration. It was formed by the merger of Chinese company ByteDance’s product, started in 2016, with Musical.ly, another Chinese app started in...
Editorial: Sewage troubles for Harmar residents show need for collective action
There are certain tasks government has to be depended upon to handle. The people can’t pave the roads. They can’t lock up criminals. They can’t just grant people the ability to work as a doctor or get divorced or drive a car. And they can’t build sewage systems. In Harmar,...
Editorial: Allegheny County Jail dispute shows peril of no-bid contracts
Bidding — the act of releasing information about a product or service that is needed and soliciting providers to make an offer — is a time-honored practice in both private businesses and the public sector. Government loves bidding projects because in a perfect world, it keeps costs down and quality...
Editorial: Senate committee’s intrusive subpoenas betray bedrock values
The push in some corners to review the outcome of the 2020 general election in Pennsylvania took a strange turn in Harrisburg last week. There was a request for an avalanche of information on state voters. First, the state Senate Intergovernmental Operations Committee voted 7 to 4 to request emails,...
Editorial: Mistakes were made in Wolf’s early pandemic business waivers
Sometimes a state audit unpacks surprises. Other times it just tells you exactly what you expected to hear. This week, Pennsylvania Auditor General Timothy DeFoor released a look into Gov. Tom Wolf’s waiver program that let some businesses reopen amid covid-19 shutdowns in 2020. It is completely unsurprising that DeFoor...


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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