Opinion category, Page 498
Robert C. Koehler: Terrence Floyd asks, why did you kill my brother?
For Derek Chauvin, nine minutes and 29 seconds have turned into 22½ years — the prison sentence he recently received for the murder of George Floyd. Chauvin famously knelt on Floyd’s neck last year, as he lay handcuffed and helpless, for those nine-plus minutes, while three colleagues stood by, indifferent...
Letter to the editor: Liberal sources not fair, balanced
Letter-writer James Kvitkovich (“Trib is fair and balanced,” July 2, TribLIVE) said he believes the Tribune-Review and Associated Press are fair and balanced. At one time that was very true about the Trib; it was never true about the AP. He says he gets his news from sources such as...
Letter to the editor: Why so little coverage of border crisis?
By not enforcing federal immigration laws, the Biden administration is encouraging illegal immigration along our southern border. Mexican cartels dangerously are smuggling children, adults, lethal fentanyl and other drugs into the U.S, overwhelming the U.S. border patrol. U.S. taxpayers are paying to house and process. Neither the president nor the...
Editorial: Everyone’s health depends on nurses on call
When it comes to essential employees, there are a lot of positions that come to mind. During the pandemic, people came to realize how much they depend on grocery store stockers and fast food workers. Most parents came to look at teachers with new appreciation. Day care providers, bus drivers,...
Letter to the editor: Questioning police protocols for helping the mentally ill
Pennsylvania State Police shot Christian Hall multiple times Dec. 30, 2020, in East Stroudsburg. Hall, a 19-year-old Chinese adoptee of Filipino and Black Latino parents, was experiencing a mental health crisis and called 911 himself. In late January 2021, third-party footage began circulating on social media showing Hall standing with...
Jessica Feil: Illegal gambling machines are a problem. You should care.
If you’ve ever seen someone play three-card monte, you would warn everyone you know not to fall for the scam. The game, usually played on a street corner, involves a “dealer” moving three playing cards around and betting against the player being able to guess which card is the money...
Pat Buchanan: As America recedes, China rises
As our July Fourth celebrations were beginning, the U.S. quietly closed and abandoned Bagram Air Base, the largest American military base between the Persian Gulf and the South China Sea. Afghan looters soon were seen scavenging inside the base. The long retreat of the American Empire is underway, and this...
Christopher Schneider: Transparency is voided when police weaponize copyrighted music
During a recent peaceful exchange with activists an Alameda County sheriff’s deputy in California was caught on camera pulling out his phone to soundtrack the interaction with Taylor Swift’s “Blank Space.” Perhaps the most unusual part of all of this was the officer’s relative candor about it. When the deputy...
Jonah Goldberg: Recalls are the only option when there’s 1-party rule
It’s on. California will vote on whether to recall Gov. Gavin Newsom on Sept. 14. I am deeply conflicted on the question. I am opposed to recalls on principle. In 2003, I was one of the few conservatives to oppose the recall of then-governor Gray Davis. My reasoning hinged on...
Letter to the editor: Cities should focus on crime instead of plastic bags
Regarding the article “Pittsburgh, Philadelphia move ahead with plastic bag bans as Pa.’s preemption nears its end”: These cities would be better off if the cities spent time on stopping the public shootings. Clem Zahrobsky Delmont...
Letter to the editor: Pa. should invest in public health infrastructure
In Pennsylvania’s lawmakers- negotiated budget for the 2021-22 fiscal year, a sizable amount will be spent on education and human resources, which is understandable. Few of the federal relief dollars allotted to Pennsylvania will be directed toward investing in our public health infrastructure. Public health officials often have forgone lucrative...
Editorial: Westmoreland voters deserve straight answers on elections bureau
Westmoreland County commissioners need to be more forthright about what is happening in the elections bureau. This is becoming a very familiar topic. We have discussed it as three people in the office’s leadership have left under largely undisclosed circumstances in the last year. We have revisited it three times...
Letter to the editor: Senior housing in East Vandergrift
East Vandergrift has benefited from Community Development Block Grants throughout the years. The continuous support of the Westmoreland County commissioners and the county Planning and Development office has contributed greatly to community development upgrades, including the stormwater-sewage separation project and repaving of borough streets. Now, borough officials are working with...
Editorial: The blood you give sustains the life we lead
For blood to do its job, you have to have enough to stay in circulation. That goes for blood inside the body — taking oxygen from the lungs to the heart and back again. It also goes for the blood that circulates out in the world. Having enough blood to...
Tom Purcell: Thanks, Jack, for the wonderful days
Every night, just before bed, he’d thank his bride of 70 years for giving him another wonderful day on Earth. That was the sweet-hearted nature of Jack Krieger, my family’s next-door neighbor for more than 30 years. I first met him as a very young boy, shortly after my growing...
Jordan Justus and Prajwal Kotamraju: Street-smart ways to help Pa. small businesses recover
When President Biden unveiled his $2.3 trillion infrastructure plan in March, he did so not from the White House or a monument in the nation’s capital. The “once-in-a-generation investment in America” was announced at the Carpenters Pittsburgh Training Center. The president has frequently held Pennsylvania up as a model of...
Letter to the editor: Trump’s victory, only in America
The other day I was wondering what Donald Trump was like in high school. To which clique did he belong? The jocks, science nerds, vo-techers, band members, academics? I think he was the “outcast” — the loudmouth, overbearing know-it-all who everyone avoids. How did Trump, a twice-impeached, one-term loser, win...
Letter to the editor: RGGI a win-win for Pa.
I applaud Gov. Tom Wolf for his support of the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI). This program provides a framework for Pennsylvania to cut greenhouse gas emissions in half by 2030 and to fully eliminate the gases by 2050 using a cap and trade system. RGGI is a network of...
Letter to the editor: America at a crossroads
America is at a crossroads that will determine her future for better or worse. Currently, it is for the worse, as socialists seem to have the upper hand instituting critical race theory, cancel culture, etc. These convictions have great influence indoctrinating students to their style of thinking and stifling the...
Editorial cartoons for the week of July 5
Editorial cartoons for the week of July 5....
Mallard Fillmore cartoons for the week of July 5
Mallard Fillmore cartoons for the week of July 5....
Mona Charen: What has happened to decency?
Sen. Mitt Romney recently appeared on Jake Tapper’s CNN show, and for a few brief minutes, I felt transported to a saner world. Asked about the gross things some on the right are saying about Gen. Mark Milley, he responded: “Gen. Milley is a person of extraordinary accomplishment and personal...
Gov. Ralph Northam: Collaboration will benefit all of Appalachia
Since 1965, the Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) has been dedicated to improving the economic health of Appalachia. Over $4.5 billion has been invested, from small-business assistance to broadband deployment to workforce development. The key to ARC’s success comes from the agency’s guiding principle of collaboration and cooperation — between the...
Lawrence McCullough: On July 4, celebrating America’s interdependence
In these certifiably tumultuous political times, it’s useful to recall that America’s Declaration of Independence was also conceived as a purposeful declaration of interdependence. During the Revolutionary period, the 13 British colonies functioned in many ways like separate mini-states, often at loggerheads with conflicting currencies, voting systems, trade regulations, legal...
Letter to the editor: With American Rescue Plan money, county must prioritize residents’ needs
Voice of Westmoreland, a grassroots community organization that is committed to making sure the voices of people who are often left out of the political conversations are heard, has been surveying residents about their most pressing needs for help from the American Rescue Plan. We have already received more than...
