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Editorials category, Page 61

Pope Francis, first Latin American pontiff, dies at 88
Editorial: Westmoreland County Transit steps up with free rides to vaccinations
When it comes to problem-solving, you can’t just look for the obvious answer and stop there. You can’t jack up the car without a spare tire to fix the flat. You can’t go to the moon without a way to get back. You can’t put a cast on a broken...
Editorial: Real progress at nursing homes is a welcome covid success story
There are more than 700 nursing homes in Pennsylvania. More than 88,000 people, mostly older individuals, live there — whether for the long term or a short stay. For the last year, those facilities have been under nervous pressure as seniors and those with preexisting medical conditions like diabetes and...
Laurels & lances: Parades, pranks and play
Laurel: To the pluck of the Irish. Doesn’t it seem like forever since there has been any kind of real community celebration? For a year, those simple gatherings that bring people together have fallen like dominoes in the face of the coronavirus pandemic. But lockdowns aren’t going to stop Lower...
Editorial: Standardized tests in a pandemic school year are folly
Every year, Pennsylvania kids face a battery of tests meant to determine just how well they have been educated in a variety of topics. All of the students from third grade through eighth grade take annual exams in math. They are tested on their reading comprehension and their writing skills....
Editorial: Let the Penguins grow safely to 25% capacity
A hockey game is an attempt to control chaos. It is all about advancing toward a goal while sliding on an uncertain surface, balanced on the edge of a blade. Being slammed out of the blue by an unexpected blow that throws everything off course. Sounds like a description of...
Editorial: In West Deer, youth in politics is an inspiring reality
When Pew Research Center asked people in 2014 how many had ever run for elected office, only 2% said yes. Not just 2% that were representatives or council members. Not just 2% that had served previously and had left office. Only 2% had ever raised a hand and said, “I...
Editorial: Don’t bark at higher fees from state Bureau of Dog Law
Man’s best friend can be priceless — but isn’t always cheap. Dog food costs more than one might expect. So do rawhide bones and rabies shots, toys and treats. And that doesn’t even take into consideration the way all those chewed-on shoes add up. But the cost of a Pennsylvania...
Editorial: The dollars and sense of toll bridges
Toll roads are not a new concept. There were tolls collected in Babylon. Aristotle spoke of them in the ancient world. During the Middle Ages, they were common tools of both official and criminal collection. But now PennDOT is planning to expand its network of toll roads with the Pathways...
Editorial: Finding the next best thing to a health department for Westmoreland
There’s nothing like a disaster to show you what you have and what you need. Westmoreland County Commissioners said Thursday that the coronavirus pandemic has shown them what they don’t need: a county health department. For almost a year, the county has responded to the increasing challenges of covid-19 without...
Laurels & lances: Pilsners, planes and partners
Laurel: To a round for the house. Or the neighborhood. Or the whole darn town. While many festivals have been canceled for months or are still being put off because of the coronavirus pandemic, other communities are trying to look forward. Tarentum is one of those. A craft beer festival,...
Editorial: Census delay means mad scramble for legislative redistricting
When it comes to the Constitution, there is a lot that is spelled out — and a lot that has to be figured out along the way. That’s how judges and constitutional law professors keep their jobs. It’s also why after more than 200 years, there is still such debate...
Editorial: Abraham Lincoln, the statue that everyone can rally around
Statues have been a sticking point in the last year or so. It seems as though almost everyone who was hero enough to have a memorial to their contributions erected in a public area was also human enough to have darker aspects that have led people to ask for them...
Editorial: Opening schools safely means everyone pitching in
When can schools open up? That has been the question on everyone’s minds for months. The coronavirus pandemic shut all Pennsylvania schools in March 2020. Some reopened in the fall, but it was a very different experience than kids — or educators — usually handle while studying math or learning...
Editorial: Like Washington, may all presidents transcend party to serve all citizens
On April 30, 1789, George Washington was sworn into office as the first president of the United States. His birthday of Feb. 22 became a federal holiday that gave way to the modern Presidents Day. He had many things in common with the other 44 men whose roles we observe...
Editorial: How do minimum wages rise? The market leads, the government nudges
Minimum wage is a complicated issue. On one side, you have people who want to raise it. It will put more money in people’s pockets, they say. It will give the economy a jump start. It will help someone get by on one job instead of two or three. It...
Editorial: The telltale lines for food giveaways show all is not well
People are hungry. It doesn’t seem right in a country that sends more than $140 billion in agricultural products overseas each year and is the world’s largest exporter of food, but it’s true. More than 35 million people were living with regular hunger and another 14.3 million were “food insecure”...
Laurels & lances: Eagles, dogs and viruses
Laurel: To achieving goals. Anyone who reaches the rank of Eagle Scout has put in some real work and time to get to a level in Boy Scouts of America that isn’t easy to attain. Just 4% of scouts climb to that highest rung on the organizational ladder. So Elizabeth...
Editorial: What part of ‘permanent’ don’t state election rulemakers understand?
You know what “permanent” means, right? According to definition experts at Merriam- Webster, it means “in a way that continues without changing or ending; in a way that is not brief or temporary.” In other words, if you take a step that you call permanent, it’s something you expect to continue...
Editorial: Pennsylvania’s vaccine game needs work
The covid-19 vaccines are the pathway to getting Pennsylvania back to what the state was in February 2020. Whether the Pfizer or Moderna or forthcoming Johnson & Johnson shot, vaccines are the way to go from a population left wide open to the coronavirus pandemic and a population prepared to...
Editorial: If legislators get power over ’emergency powers,’ no time for petty politics
It is an understatement to say Gov. Tom Wolf’s coronavirus pandemic response has not been universally popular. While some point to the administration’s restrictions on gatherings, early shutdowns of businesses and schools, mask mandates and other measures as important steps to limit the spread of covid-19, there are plenty of...
Editorial: Angel Arms fulfills its mission to mend, pandemic or not
The coronavirus pandemic has been the biggest story in the world for a year. But it isn’t the only story. Covid-19 is not the only thing that kills people. The problems associated with it are not the only problems affecting people’s lives. It may be the big bad wolf, but...
Editorial: The inevitable state budget showdown, once again
On Wednesday, Gov. Tom Wolf formally released his latest budget proposal. It was hardly a surprise. This is not the governor’s first budget, after all. In his seventh trip around this particular block, he treads on familiar territory. It pushes heavily on a central theme of increased funding for education....
Editorial: Unemployment benefit delayed is justice denied
If you lost your job today, how long would you be able to support yourself and your family? How long until you couldn’t make your house payment? How long until the electric bill wasn’t paid? When would you start balancing the car insurance against the homeowners insurance? And none of...
Laurels & lances: Book, buses and banners
Laurel: To telling stories. Lots of kids can weave tall tales. Every parent asking about missing homework can attest to that. But Josh Ingram, 11, of Plum has really upped the game when it comes to childhood storytelling. The Holiday Park Elementary student doesn’t just tell stories. He wrote one....
Editorial: Allegheny River locks have a good ripple effect
The Allegheny River is more than just a long ribbon of water. It’s part of what defines Southwestern Pennsylvania. It played a role in the settlement of the area and in its growth. It gave birth to our communities and our industries. Cleaning it has been the task of generations...


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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