Opinion category, Page 518
Letter to the editor: Poor judgment by FBI, media, those in charge
America has a serious problem with its institutions like the FBI due to poor judgment, ignorance and politicization. What spurred me to write this letter was the recent announcement of the FBI coming to the conclusion that the 2017 congressional baseball game shooting was an incident of suicide by police....
Letter to the editor: Expanding, not restricting, our freedoms
These days it seems like everyone complains that their freedoms are being infringed upon. Wearing masks is a small sacrifice during a pandemic, and actually gives us more freedom — freedom to be healthy. Letter-writer Steven Crichley (“Totalitarianism frightening — and coming,” April 16) worries about vaccination passports. They would...
Tom Purcell: A mother’s comfort
Scientific American describes my mother to a T. An article titled “The Incredible Importance of Mothers,” by social scientist Melanie Tannenbaum, lays out the argument that a mother’s comfort — not just meeting basic needs, such as providing food and shelter — is essential to the development and well-being of...
Leonard Pitts Jr.: We’ve failed our children
An open letter to the children. We owe you an apology. Meaning all of us in the generations above you. We had one job where you were concerned, and that was to keep you safe. “Save the children,” pleaded a man named Marvin Gaye a long time ago. But we...
Letter to the editor: Do your research before voting
Elections are here again, and we all say, “vote out the lifetime politicians,” but we never do. I think I know why; It’s because we just don’t know who is an incumbent and who isn’t. So they get reelected or, if they fail to make the cut, they are given...
Letter to the editor: Voting Kurimsky for Franklin Regional board
I have never written a letter to the editor before. However, I feel compelled to do that in support of Kevin Kurimsky and his run for the Franklin Regional School Board director seat. I first met Kurimsky as a young boy learning to ride his bike on our front street...
Letter to the editor: Won’t vote Republican again
Why I will never vote Republican again: 1. I believe Republicans have contributed more to gun violence in this country than anything anyone has done in our history by allowing and encouraging millions of guns to drown our society. 2. Republicans seem to sit back and ignore the daily mass...
Editorial: One way or another, bridge repairs must be paid for
In the fairy tale about goats trying to cross a bridge, a troll sat under the bridge, waiting to gobble up the goats as payment for their audacity. Troll bridge. Toll bridge. Is there really much difference? It’s easy to feel like you are being gobbled down one bite at...
Letter to the editor: Broadband, jobs priorities for Mariah Fisher
To letter-writer Pamela Ann Long (“District 59 leader must be responsible,” April 19, TribLIVE), thank you for the questions you raised in your April 19 response to my letter “Mariah Fisher ready to represent” (April 4, TribLIVE). Efficient use of taxpayer funds and well-paying jobs are concerns for us all....
Letter to the editor: Pa. should join RGGI the right way
To the extent that Gov. Tom Wolf transitions properly to the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI), this is a good decision for Pennsylvania. Several New England states have already joined the initiative and seen carbon emissions drop without losing business. Joining RGGI is the first step in avoiding the worst...
Editorial cartoons for the week of May 3
Editorial cartoons for the week of May 3....
Letter to the editor: What to do with D.C.
Combining the congressional and George Will proposals (“The D.C. statehood pretense,” April 22), the U.S. should give most of Washington, D.C., “back” to Maryland. The new D.C. should just be the area currently bounded by the Potomac and Anacostia rivers, Third Street East and I Street to the north. Maryland...
Mallard Fillmore cartoons for the week of May 3
Mallard Fillmore cartoons for the week of May 3....
Letter to the editor: Paying inmates to take vaccine is ridiculous
Regarding the article “Westmoreland County to pay jail inmates to get covid vaccine” (April 26, TribLIVE): This is the most cockamamie scheme one can imagine. And it will cost all county taxpayers. Voters — remember who did this to us! William R. Iski Penn Township, Westmoreland County...
Letter to the editor: God missing in mass shootings commentary
Christine Sarteschi’s op-ed “Ideas to prevent mass shootings” (April 23, TribLIVE) was insightful. There were positive suggestions made, and what caught my attention was the information about Aaron Stark, who in 1996 planned a mass school shooting in Denver because “he had nothing at all in life to look forward...
Letter to the editor: Teacher Appreciation Week May 3-7
Great teachers make great public schools. When we struggled in class, our teachers were there to lend a helping hand. When our kids are having a terrible day, their teachers are ready with welcoming smiles and encouraging words. National Teacher Appreciation Week is May 3-7. What better time could there...
Letter to the editor: Listen to experts, get vaccinated
Taking covid vaccines, with their rare risks, is much safer than the frequent risks of actually getting covid, according to the Centers for Disease Control, this nation’s best source of information about contagious diseases. Yet we often hear people say, “My fear of the vaccines is much greater than my...
Editorial: For state universities, consolidation is tough but necessary medicine
For many families, it’s college time. High school seniors are getting acceptance letters. Juniors are making applications. Parents are filling out financial aid paperwork and taking the family on campus visits. But this year, students are being accepted to schools that might not be the name on their degree in...
Letter to the editor: Why minimum wage must be increased
George Will’s March 4 column “The mildly encouraging minimum-wage debate” deals with the danger of raising the wage of workers. Will argues that raising wages kills jobs and slows economic growth. I believe there is ample evidence to suggest the exact opposite. A 1994 Princeton study compared the results of...
Letter to the editor: Are we better than this?
How often have you heard the lines “We are better than this” and “This is not who we are”? To those who say this, I submit for your approval the following: • The Capitol riots in Washington, D.C. • George Floyd in Minneapolis, Minn. • Andrew Brown Jr. in Elizabeth...
Jonah Goldberg: Biden’s overreach doesn’t match campaign rhetoric
Joe Biden didn’t just campaign as a moderate. He signaled again and again that he would be an affable placeholder president who’d clean up the messes created by his opponent, mend some fences with allies and get the pandemic under control. “Look, I view myself as a bridge, not as...
Joseph Sabino Mistick: Good Republican ideas
“It is amazing what you can accomplish if you do not care who gets the credit,” Democratic President Harry S. Truman said. As the nation wrestles with what it means to “reach across the aisle,” Democrats can start by conceding that they have not cornered the market on good ideas....
Sounding off: Raising minimum wage would be economic stimulus
Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos’ net worth is $177 billion. The three heirs to Walmart saw their fortunes grow last year by $40.7 billion. Thousands of Amazon and Walmart employees’ incomes are so low that they qualify for food stamps, meaning that taxpayers subsidize these booming businesses. Think of that —...
Letter to the editor: Neonics kill bees, birds and should be banned
I am extremely concerned about the prevalence of neonics (neurotoxic insecticides), which kill bees and birds. They are even impregnated in corn seeds that farmers plant. Almost all pesticides contain neonics. Companies such as Lowe’s should refrain from selling them and Bayer should cease producing them. Richard P. Davis Saltlick...
Letter to the editor: New Ga. voting rules are good
I hate to use the term liar; however, adhering to the dictionary definition, no other word can be used to describe Joseph Sabino Mistick’s column ”Georgia’s assault on democracy” (April 3, TribLIVE). Although I quit reading his column years ago, the headline caught my eye and demands a response. It...
