Opinion category, Page 385
Letter to the editor: Pa. needs reset in higher education funding
According to data from the Education Data Initiative, the average cost of in-state tuition in the United States is $9,349. In Pennsylvania, the average cost of in-state tuition is $27,400. The sooner we have consensus and recognize that the cost of in-state tuition in Pennsylvania is not normal, we can...
John Stossel: Pro-choice vs. pro-life
Now abortion law is up to states. Some will ban it, while most blue states will allow it in some form. Because libertarians want government out of our lives, people assume we are pro-choice. Some of us are. But like the rest of America, there are principled libertarians on both...
Peter Morici: Defending Taiwan starts with standing up to Putin
President Joe Biden’s recent statement that the United States would intervene militarily if China tried to take Taiwan by force was hardly a gaffe. The U.S. policy of strategic ambiguity has outlived its usefulness. Since President Richard Nixon went to China and put the two nations on the path to...
Jonah Goldberg: Overturning Roe also upended ‘three-legged stool’ of conservatism
In overturning Roe v. Wade, the Supreme Court delivered the right’s biggest single victory ever, and it may spell the end of the conservative movement as we’ve known it. It was Ronald Reagan who popularized the notion that the conservative movement rested on a fusionist “three-legged stool.” In theory, the...
Kenneth W. Gatten III: Dr. Oz’s misinformed oil and gas policies
As prices at the gas pump hit record highs, U.S. oil and gas policies are proving to be key issues heading into the November midterm elections. Recently, Republican Senate nominee Mehmet Oz railed against the Biden administration, lamenting that President Biden’s “failed energy policies have crippled us” and calling to...
Letter to the editor: Where have all the flowers gone?
Thinking of Pete Seeger and Peter, Paul and Mary’s popular song years ago. I have great memories of fun times being president of the Botanical Society of Westmoreland County for 14 years. One of these was planting hundreds of flowers every year with the Westmoreland Conservation District, Penn State Extension...
Letter to the editor: Abortion is distraction from bigger issues
I think the Democratic abortion issue is a distraction from the real issues of President Biden’s inflation and illegal alien invasion. Instead of the media hammering Biden with “you got a big defeat” with the Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision, they went with his “it ain’t over” routine. This...
Letter to the editor: Youngwood construction
Personally witnessing and living through the seemingly endless reconstruction of Route 119 (Third and Fourth streets) in Youngwood, I have arrived at a couple conclusions: 1. There appears to be a lack of communication between PennDOT and the various contractors. Frequently, one will complete their underground work and restore the...
Letter to the editor: We can’t afford Freeport salaries
David Horchak’s letter “Six-figure salaries don’t belong in Freeport schools” (June 25, TribLIVE) hits the nail on the head. What is sad is that school districts as a whole spend most of their budgets on salaries that seem to go unchecked. Then you can always question, are you getting the...
Editorial: Allegheny County should set policy for pay increases
In 2019, a list of pay raises in the Pennsylvania governor’s office brought criticism. Gov. Tom Wolf handed out increases to some of his top staffers, ranging from 7.7% to 36%. It wasn’t that anyone questioned the work. People questioned the timing, which came just after the governor’s second inauguration,...
Letter to the editor: Examining church’s calculations on value of life
In the article “Some religious leaders laud abortion ruling, others say choice is needed in ‘morally responsible circumstances’ ,” Pittsburgh Bishop David Zubik, at a news conference at the Little Sisters of the Poor site on Pittsburgh’s North Side, said, “We’re maintaining a consistent message that’s been part of our faith...
Letter to the editor: Election denier as governor would be bad for state
When I learned that Pennsylvania Speaker of the House Bryan Cutler had accepted a call in which he was asked to overturn the 2020 Pennsylvania vote for President Biden, I assumed the worst about him. Upon the release of additional information pursuant to the Jan. 6 committee hearings, however, we...
Leonard Pitts Jr.: We can be a nation bound by the aspiration to simple values
Eighty-three years ago, Mr. Smith went to Washington. Last Tuesday, Lady Ruby did, too. Georgia election workers Ruby “Lady Ruby” Freeman and her daughter, Wandrea ArShaye Moss — “Shaye” to her friends — appeared last week before the House committee investigating the Jan. 6 insurrection. Like the title character in...
Eric Epstein: Electric fantasyland led to higher rates, higher taxes and more terminations
On Aug. 4, 2000, Republican Gov. Tom Ridge announced that electric competition would lead to job growth, economic expansion and decreased rates. According to Ridge, “Pennsylvania’s national leadership in electric competition continues to bring dramatic savings and economic benefits to Pennsylvanians.” The Department of Revenue rolled out the pompoms and...
Letter to the editor: Recalling some of Trump’s moves
Letter-writer Thomas Wagner (“Why the praise for Biden?” June 27, TribLIVE) seems to forget that when President Trump took office, he said the covid was like the flu and would go away. Then he got it and was flown to the hospital. Many of those who worked with Trump in...
Letter to the editor: Dairy part of a healthy diet
In regards to the letter “Plant-based dairy products better for all” (June 13, TribLIVE): Dairy products are a rich source of nutrients, and if consumed in moderation, can be part of a healthful diet. There are many other products on the market that lead to obesity and heart disease. The...
Letter to the editor: Raising age to buy a gun won’t stop violence
Eighteen is a very important number for teenagers. You are considered an adult in the eyes of the law. You could be drafted or enlist into the armed forces, and they would give you a gun. Eighteen-year-olds insisted that if they could be drafted, they should have the right to...
Letter to the editor: We need lifesaving gun laws
How in the world can there be two reasonable sides on this issue? How can the inability of an American citizen to purchase an automatic weapon be worth the life of one child? How can anyone find it acceptable to do nothing to stop this carnage by saying they are...
Editorial: Victims, community deserve discovery in Fern Hollow Bridge collapse
Law can be a patchwork quilt of intersecting and overlapping jurisdiction and authority. Much of what courts do is determine which law takes precedence in a given situation. On Thursday, that was on display in Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas. Lawyers for the City of Pittsburgh countered a request...
Letter to the editor: Shutting down scientific debate
Dr. Susan Crockford is a wildlife researcher from Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, whose research has shown that polar bear populations are not declining as claimed by the climate-change establishment, but that polar bears’ numbers are actually increasing. In 2019, the University of Victoria did not renew her appointment as an...
Letter to the editor: Leaders need to budget for clean waterways
Growing up in McKees Rocks and Robinson Township, my childhood was spent fishing in the Ohio River and at Raccoon State Park. I watched boats race in the Regatta downtown, gazed at the fireworks displays atop the West End Bridge and vacationed on the beaches of Presque Isle. Pittsburgh’s three...
Tom Purcell: Why we oooh and aaah on the Fourth of July
It’s been way too long since I lit a sparkler as the sun goes down on the Fourth of July. I’ve enjoyed many daylong celebrations with friends and family on the Fourth in many different ways, but they usually end with a gathering on a hill or a parking lot...
Stephen Bloom: Scholarship bill is a lifeline for kids
Pennsylvania has become a battleground for educational freedom and choice. Parents from diverse perspectives are showing up at school board meetings, filing lawsuits, forming political action committees and running for their school boards. Many have reached a boiling point with systemic inequities and curriculums that often feel more like activism...
Kimberly Orth: American Rescue Plan subsidies provide health care for those who need it most
Nationwide, health insurance participation in the Affordable Care Act’s individual market is growing and increased competition is helping drive down consumer premiums. In Pennsylvania, UPMC Health Plan is one of eight health insurance providers offering affordable coverage options to more than 400,000 enrollees in 2022. Through the covid-19 special enrollment...
Letter to the editor: Why the praise for Biden?
What’s happening with the Trib? We have the worst president in generations, yet your coverage makes him out to be a thoughtful and intelligent problem solver. In my opinion, he hasn’t made a correct decision since taking office. The deadly withdrawal from Afghanistan, $3.1 trillion spent on giveaways that never...
