Letters to the Editor category, Page 199
Letter to the editor: Peace plan could save Putin’s soul
An open letter to Vladimir Putin: Dear President Putin: When first you became president, there were a few of us Americans who may have thought, privately, “Finally, a Russian leader who knows how to get things done.” Frankly, sir, we were wrong about your judgment when it comes to foreign...
Letter to the editor: Bills should be shorter — and read — in Congress
I would love to see a bill proposed by Congress to limit the amount of pages each new proposed bill could contain — no more than five pages, front and back. In addition, before a vote is taken on the bill, each member of Congress must sign a statement that...
Letter to the editor: Putin won’t go nuclear
Regarding letter-writer Rodger Henderson’s remarks about good buddies Putin and Trump and about the situation in Ukraine (“Peacemakers will restore order,” March 14, TribLIVE). To everyone who is afraid of it, I’d like to assure them that this war will not lead to nuclear war mainly because Putin, while damn-straight...
Letter to the editor: America’s greatness threatened
The names folks who desire to destroy America use to describe those of us who disagree with them are not fit to print, so I’ll be considerate and refer to them as dipwads. Once upon a time, I registered as a Republican because I felt the Republicans were more in...
Letter to the editor: Putin’s evil
What will dictators do to hold on to power? Such evilness by all means to hold on to power. Vladimir Putin jails or kills his political opposition. He has changed Russia’s Constitution and rigged the voting system to stay in power. The countless conjured-up reasons to invade Ukraine are just...
Letter to the editor: Sex and gender absurdities
The greatest asset of any comedian is to deliver a line with an unsmiling, deadpan expression. I recently witnessed Rachel Levine unabashedly state that she is the first woman appointed as an admiral to the U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps. How did we get here? In 1972, Congress passed...
Letter to the editor: Commissioners must address mental health care needs
Thank you, Westmoreland County Commissioner Doug Chew, for working with the County Commissioners Association of Pennsylvania (CCAP) to prioritize improving mental health care in Pennsylvania. The economic, physical and emotional suffering related to covid-19 have led to a crisis situation. Westmoreland County lacks adequate mental health care services. The covid-19...
Letter to the editor: We should be giving Ukraine the military help they need
“For God’s sake, this man (Putin) cannot remain in power.” A completely correct and inspiring statement by President Biden, this made me proud to be an American. For God’s sake, let us give Ukraine the military equipment immediately that they are requesting — the fighter jets, the tanks, air defense...
Letter to the editor: Republicans need saving
Given recent history, Pennsylvania Republicans should make their official motto “Save Us From Ourselves.” First, 14 Republican lawmakers joined a lawsuit asking the state’s Supreme Court to rule that mail-in-balloting is unconstitutional. Republicans trying to limit access to the ballot wouldn’t be shocking, as voter repression seems to be part...
Letter to the editor: Consider lifesaving organ donation
April is Donate Life Month. This is a perfect time to encourage organ donation. I was introduced to the Center for Organ Recovery & Education (CORE) early in my nursing career. I told my family to donate my organs if ever there was an opportunity to do so. I have...
Letter to the editor: Cyber charter funding reform needed
Despite ads on TV, cybercharter schools are not free. Your school district property taxes fund them. That funding needs to change because it continues to drive your taxes up. Pennsylvania has 500 school districts. By law, each district must pay a different tuition per student for attendance at a cybercharter....
Sounding off: Hide your Bibles, the book banners are back
With a nod to Meredith Wilson’s “Music Man”: Trouble, oh we’ve got trouble, Right here in Westmoreland County! With a capital “T” That rhymes with “B” And that stands for Books. The book banners are back (with book burners a half-step behind), never really having gone away. They would have...
Letter to the editor: Crosswalk signs is what Jeannette needs?
The article “Jeannette officials continue discussion about use of federal covid relief cash,” March 24, TribLIVE) is Jeannette in a nutshell. Our mayor wants to install crosswalk signs. Seriously? This might also explain why the old Monsour hospital site is still an empty lot. Crosswalk signs. SMH. Dale Parker Jeannette...
Letter to the editor: Hempfield book complaints are about responsibility
Regarding the recent reporting on the challenged books in the Hempfield Area School District (“Hempfield is latest district to face book ban challenge”): This is not an issue of censorship or banning. The media and those few individuals who oppose policy change for resource selection in the school have made...
Letter to the editor: PSEA leadership should be challenged
Regarding the op-ed “Make education a priority in Pa. budget” (March 22, TribLIVE) by Rich Askey, president of the Pennsylvania State Education Association: I am writing to encourage public school teachers and PSEA members to challenge the leadership of this organization and its policies. There is clearly a crisis in...
Letter to the editor: Reading spending bills, voting on justice
I understand that Congress may be considering passing a bill requiring time to read a spending bill before voting on it. But that does not mean our representatives really understand it. The Senate is considering approving the nomination of a judge who cannot define what a woman is. She may...
Letter to the editor: More effort needed to combat Alzheimer’s
The Alzheimer’s Association 2022 Alzheimer’s Disease Facts and Figures report illustrates the continued burden of Alzheimer’s in our country, and in Pennsylvania. An estimated 6.5 million Americans 65 and older are living with Alzheimer’s, including 280,000 in Pennsylvania — a number expected to increase to 320,000 by 2025. Across the...
Letter to the editor: Mental health services lacking in Westmoreland
I was pleased to read that Westmoreland County received a state grant to expand the mobile crisis unit for mental health emergencies (“Westmoreland County to expand mobile crisis unit for mental health emergencies,” March 1, TribLIVE). This grant is a much-needed Band-Aid over the giant lack of adequate mental health...
Letter to the editor: Stories of abuse disheartening
It takes a lot to have news affect us these days, as we’re all sadly numb to the garbage that exists sometimes as human beings. But the recent stories of the two men accused of abusing disabled residents at McGuire Memorial (“Feds charge 2 men with hate crimes in Beaver...
Letter to the editor: Biden’s oil plans make no sense
So our great President Biden has announced his two-part economic plan to fight inflation. It’s simple: Part one, buy American, but not oil. Apparently, oil purchased from terrorist states such as Iran or Venezuela will somehow reduce our now record-breaking U.S. gasoline prices, but U.S. oil won’t. I guess our...
Letter to the editor: Democrats more concerned for middle class
In the 1950s, corporations contributed 32% to the federal revenue, in 2013 it was 10% and currently it is 7%, equal to a more than three-quarters reduction rate. This reduction in taxes paid by corporations is due to the Reagan, Bush and Trump tax cuts for the wealthy few plus...
Letter to the editor: Biden’s ‘America last’ initiative
I saw three minutes of world news coverage on “NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt” of the devastating tornado in New Orleans … only three minutes! Where is the minute-by-minute media coverage of Americans facing total destruction and personal devastation like in Ukraine? Where is President Biden? Has he requested...
Letter to the editor: Republicans’ questioning of Jackson embarrassing
The article “Legal experts weigh in on final day of Jackson’s hearings” mentions “questioning” by Republican senators. What I saw did include questioning, but some GOP senators apparently were more interested in demonstrating their incredible lack of maturity in comparison to the poised demeanor of Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson. Sens....
Letter to the editor: Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative provides hope
As a solar supporter concerned about coal-dependent communities, the prospect of Pennsylvania joining the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) fills me with hope. RGGI will cut carbon pollution from power plants in the state by 25% while raising hundreds of millions of dollars each year to invest in clean energy,...
Letter to the editor: Allegheny County’s unfair tax deadline
The deadline for filing an assessment appeal in Allegheny County is March 31, 2022, for the 2022 tax year. We are the only county that favors the taxing bodies over homeowners in the state. Here’s the tax scheme (or scam): • Certify assessments • Mail tax bills • Appeal hearing...
