Opinion category, Page 300
Jonah Goldberg: Congress may be out of touch with technology, but the concerns over TikTok are right
In a remarkable display of bipartisanship, Congress went to war with the social media app TikTok last week. The House Energy and Commerce Committee grilled TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew about its independence — or lack thereof — from the Chinese Communist Party. The five-hour hearing was contentious. Chew did...
Letter to the editor: Saturday deer opener works
Regarding the letter “Time to move deer hunting opener back to Monday” (March 19, TribLIVE): The Pennsylvania Game Commission did the right thing when they moved the opening day of deer season to Saturday. Now, hunters have three Saturdays to hunt and, with the one Sunday hunting day, it goes...
Letter to the editor: Honoring Vietnam vets today
The Vietnam War Veterans Recognition act of 2017 was signed into law by former President Donald J. Trump, designating every March 29 as National Vietnam War Veterans Day. March 29 was chosen because, on that day in 1973, just two months after the signing of the Paris Peace Accords between...
Editorial: Is Zappala holding Kennywood to a higher standard than other shooting scenes?
Gun violence has become common to the point of being mundane. In Allegheny County, the crime level has drawn concern from the community, businesses, law enforcement and politicians. Shootings bleed together, becoming hard to separate from one another. There were 119 homicides in Allegheny County in 2022, most attributed to...
Letter to the editor: Bad logic on Trump’s presidency
The writer of the letter “Why Trump was a great president” (March 7, TribLIVE) cites a number of positive conditions or occurrences that happened while Donald Trump was president as proof that he was a great president, such as low inflation, cheaper gasoline, a favorable stock market and Putin not...
Rep. Jesse Topper: Now is the time for transformational change in Pa. education
“One day everything will be well, that is our hope. Everything’s fine today, that is our illusion.” As I view the educational landscape in Pennsylvania, this paradox, first articulated by Voltaire, is ever-present in my mind. Lawmakers, teachers, administrators, parents and communities are concerned about whether our education system is...
Yassir Yousif: Land bank helps turn a house into a home
Our home in Chalfant sits in a quiet, low-traffic neighborhood. It has plenty of space to raise a family. But it wasn’t always this way. In fact, it stood abandoned for over four years before our family moved here in 2022. Thanks to the help of the Tri-COG Land Bank,...
Letter to the editor: Let us have our sports, Debbie Downer
When I read the editorial “The educational insanity of March Madness” (March 19, TribLIVE), the first thing that came to mind was Debbie Downer from “Saturday Night Live.” The editorial misses the entire point of collegiate sports: They are for fun and entertainment. People study a lot, work hard and...
Letter to the editor: We need qualified candidates in Westmoreland commissioner race
County commissioners receive a base annual salary above $90,000. They manage a budget of $365 million. That salary is attractive to many unqualified people, aspirational for some and just a nice gig for well qualified retirees. Patricia Fritz, former Westmoreland County chief deputy sheriff, seems a good example of unqualified....
Letter to the editor: DeSantis would be better than Biden
In response to Joseph Sabino Mistick’s commentary “DeSantis is no Reagan” (March 18, TribLIVE), I’d like to make a few comments. Mistick accuses DeSantis of flying Venezuelans to Martha’s Vineyard to show he’s tough on immigration. Not so. DeSantis did this to put illegal immigration on the national stage to...
Tom Purcell: Dumbing America down — digitally?
IQs have dropped for the first time in American history, and the experts aren’t quite sure why. According to Neuroscience News, a new Northwestern University study finds that our average IQ scores have decreased in three out of four cognitive measures. The study found that “scores of verbal reasoning (logic,...
Editorial: The balance between colleges and communities — and the quest for responsibility
There has always been a complicated relationship between colleges and the communities where they are located. The schools are economic engines that drive employment and business. At the same time, they can drive real estate prices out of local reach or create law enforcement issues with problems like binge drinking...
E.M. Liddick: You want a leader? This is what one looks like.
What do former Missouri Secretary of State Jason Kander, Sen. John Fetterman and U.S. Rep. Ruben Gallego have in common? This feels like the start of a bad joke, one to which some readers might offer a punchline. But it’s not. The obvious: they’re men; they’re Democrats; and, although only...
Letter to the editor: Climate change is cyclical
I remember in the 1970s or 1980s when the experts were predicting an ice age would be forthcoming soon. Then, in the late 1990s, “global warming” due to carbon dioxide emissions became the mantra. When this did not seem to fit reality, the new phrase became “climate change.” The climate...
Letter to the editor: Stronger pollution standards needed to protect our health
As an allergist-immunologist, I listen to and look at the lungs of patients every day, including people with asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and other lung diseases. While I can prescribe medications and recommend lifestyle changes to improve their symptoms, sometimes the air outside can make their symptoms worse....
Editorial cartoons for the week of March 27
Editorial cartoons for the week of March 27....
Mallard Fillmore cartoons for the week of March 27
Mallard Fillmore cartoons for the week of March 27....
Michael Reagan: President Biden leads America to defeat
Everyone in the national media is worrying about whether Donald Trump was going to be arrested in New York. Not me. In a radio interview with San Diego talk show host Mark Larson, I said I didn’t care what was going to happen to Trump. “What I’m really worried about,”...
Laura Packard: Despite attempts to kill it, Affordable Care Act turns 13 this year
Thirteen years ago March 24, the Affordable Care Act was signed into law. And five years ago, my oncologist told me my stage 4 cancer was in remission. As a small business owner, my health insurance is through the Affordable Care Act (ACA). So these two dates are inexorably linked...
Letter to the editor: Hunting opening day battle a problem that doesn’t exist
In response to your editorial “What is the value of tradition in deer hunting?” (March 21, TribLIVE), I’d first say that any rule or law that allows for more time in the woods is a good thing. Perhaps I’m wrong, but there is no law or rule that states a...
Letter to the editor: Grateful for program that helps kids
I want to thank Westmoreland County District Attorney Nicole Ziccarelli, RK Mellon Foundation, Highlands Family Center, New Kensington-Arnold School District, and New Kensington and Arnold police for launching the Handle with Care Program. This incredibly innovative partnership ensures children impacted by a traumatic event receive the necessary support they need...
Editorial: Is Westmoreland County GOP being fair to all candidates?
Why would a candidate not be expected to support his own campaign? Westmoreland County commissioner candidate Paul Kosko of Hempfield hasn’t gotten in line with the county Republican Committee, and it is costing him his involvement in the party. In February, the committee announced its endorsement of a full slate...
Letter to the editor: Our addiction to plastic is dangerous
I am grateful that the Tribune-Review has thoroughly covered last month’s train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio. From the plight of those most affected, to resources for concerned regional residents, your coverage is appreciated. One angle that demands more attention, however, is the connection between this disaster and our culture’s...
Joseph Sabino Mistick: For Ukraine, the good fight
Fight night on Pittsburgh’s North Side was in the final hours of St. Patrick’s Day. There was a packed house at the Grand Hall of the Priory to watch a six-bout card of prizefighters, some local and others from out of town. And it turned out to be much more...
Cassandra Jones Havard: Moral hazard — why it’s risky for the government to rescue banks
“Moral hazard” refers to the risks that someone or something becomes more inclined to take because they have reason to believe that an insurer will cover the costs of any damages. The concept describes financial recklessness. It has its roots in the advent of private insurance companies about 350 years...
