Opinion category, Page 563
Editorial: Parks are needed. So is funding.
Pittsburgh City Council voted 6-3 on Monday to start collecting a new property tax in the coming year. It isn’t a tax that will be a surprise. Pittsburghers voted for the 0.5-mill dedicated increase in 2019. The council is simply moving forward with the plans to collect and then use...
Letter to the editor: Will Joyce and Reschenthaler need pardons?
Despite numerous federal and state courts having ruled that there are no specific credible allegations or supporting evidence associated with the allegations of widespread voter fraud in Pennsylvania and elsewhere, local congressional representatives John Joyce and Guy Reschenthaler found it necessary to sign onto the seditious abuse of judiciary submitted...
Pat Buchanan: 2020 America’s wake-up call
Who could have predicted how dreadful a year 2020 would be? By this New Year’s Eve, 19 million to 20 million Americans will have contracted a deadly virus in a pandemic that exploded out of China to carry off 333,000 Americans, one of every 1,000 of us. As 2021 begins,...
Mona Charen: Even Trump’s pardons are selfish
The list of President Donald Trump’s pardons and clemencies looks a lot like a supermarket tabloid: In other words, a lot like Trump’s life itself. There’s Rod Blagojevich with his saucy smile, and there’s smug Joe Arpaio. Every president’s pardon list contains some self-serving or controversial picks; think of then-President...
Letter to the editor: Business owners standing up to Gov. Tom Wolf are patriots
Regarding the article “Alle-Kiski Valley restaurants continue to defy governor’s order suspending indoor dining”: David’s Diner co-owner Lisa Speer is an example of a true patriot standing up against the tyrannical order of Gov. Tom Wolf to close down. This unconstitutional craziness is not going to end until the people...
Letter to the editor: Who can we trust?
As we near the end of 2020, a few things should be coming clear: • We can’t trust the federal government to spend prudently. • We can’t trust our state governors to govern wisely. • We can’t trust the Fed to protect our currency. • We can’t trust the United...
Editorial: The pandemic lesson of a Steelers game
Oh, the life lessons we can learn from football — even in a year when sports have been so up in the air. Football is just a game. Sometimes that’s true. But Hollywood seems to recognize the ability of sports to act as a kind of parable for the way...
Dr. Jacob Appel: Why call anyone ‘Dr.’?
The controversy over incoming first lady Jill Biden’s use of the title “Dr.” — spurred by essayist Joseph Epstein’s recent jeremiad in The Wall Street Journal against holders of nonmedical doctorates who embrace the label — largely has focused on the sexism confronted by female Ph.D.s and Ed.D.s (such as...
Letter to the editor: Restaurant owners’ ignorance
Thank you for the excellent article “Restaurants along Leechburg Road in Lower Burrell run the gamut of compliance with pandemic restrictions”. I was shocked to read that only a few restaurants are following restrictions and that so many owners seem to be willfully ignorant. One restaurant has a packed parking...
Jonah Goldberg: Listen to science — but listen carefully
Behold science, the sword and the shield of progressivism. Over the course of the pandemic (and before that, in debates over climate change, stem cells, etc.), liberals have insisted that we must listen to science and heed the scientists. It was a cornerstone of President-elect Joe Biden’s campaign and a...
Letter to the editor: North Huntingdon solicitor’s reckless comments
After reading that Westmoreland County reported 90 covid-related deaths in the first 12 days of December, I was appalled to read the North Huntingdon solicitor’s comments (“North Huntingdon says ‘no’ to Wolf’s limits on indoor crowds,” Dec. 11, TribLIVE). In response to an upcoming open township meeting, his comments that...
Letter to the editor: Calculating electric car fees
I believe letter-writer Kenneth Nath (“Electric car owners’ fair share,” Dec. 13, TribLIVE) has his math wrong. The state needs tax money to pay for road upkeep and maintenance. The gas tax of $0.587 a gallon is based on an average gasoline car. The average miles per gallon is between...
Editorial: Pittsburgh police leaders show serious commitment to reforms
Pittsburgh police Chief Scott Schubert says he is committed to doing better. That is the place every improvement should start. Now seems to be the perfect time for such a commitment. After all, the new year is just days away. “We’re always evolving, always striving to be better,” Schubert said...
Letter to the editor: Election fraud? Get real, folks.
In science, there is something called “Occam’s razor,” a proposition which supposes that the simplest explanation for a phenomenon is usually the correct one. So I ask: Which is more believable, that President Trump has told one more lie after 20,000 already documented, or that there is a massive conspiracy...
Letter to the editor: Shut up and enjoy your $600
I got a message from Congress the other day. Funny that it was a coded message and needed a bit of decoding skill to translate. Here’s what my message said: “We are excited to inform you that at nearly midnight on the last day of our 2020 session, we were...
Letter to the editor: Disrespecting our country
When I was 19, I was drafted into the Army. I didn’t run to Canada to get out of it. I felt when your country calls to serve, it’s not only your obligation but an honor. For us to live in a free and safe country, someone has to sacrifice....
Editorial cartoons for the week of Dec. 28
Editorial cartoons for the week of Dec. 28....
Mallard Fillmore cartoons for the week of Dec. 28
Mallard Fillmore cartoons for the week of Dec. 28....
S.E. Cupp: What will this year look like a century from now?
Finally, we can say it: 2020 is almost over. Good riddance. As we look to finally bring a close to this annus horribilis, America will be living amid the detritus for years — a devastating economic downturn, a generation of students behind in education, the collective psychic trauma of prolonged...
Letter to the editor: Trump woke up America
Some people feel that President Trump divided our country. I say he woke up our country. Knowing the truth, exposing so much corruption, and calling out all the fake news was definitely an awakening for all Americans. And those who disliked it the most were the very ones he was...
Letter to the editor: Join RGGI for sake of grandkids
Regarding the letter “RGGI hikes energy costs” (Nov 20, TribLIVE): Do you believe gas- and coal- burning utilities when they say fighting greenhouse gas pollution will raise your electric bill? Long before we ever heard of greenhouse gases, utilities were raising our bills because, they said, the cost of coal and...
Letter to the editor: What’s the thinking on ‘living our lives’?
Headlines in the Dec. 13 Trib included “Calls flood ambulance services” and “Hospitals plead for public’s help.” Excela Health Chief Medical Officer Dr. Carol Fox describes staff holding the phone for a dying covid patient to hear a hymn sung by a pastor, and others holding the hands of patients...
Editorial: The PIAA can’t dodge the Right to Know Law
The Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association is not a simple, powerless recreation organization. It is more than a club. To pretend otherwise seems like it should demand a flag on the play from an impartial referee of some kind. The call might be termed “offsides.” The specifics of being offsides vary...
Letter to the editor: Capitalism vs. mixed enterprise
Peter Smith’s op-ed “Community capitalism would strengthen markets and people” (Dec. 14, TribLIVE) is another example of the redefinition of terms so frequently used in contemporary political discussions. First, this country long ago recognized the shortcomings and harms of pure capitalism with passage of the Sherman and Clayton anti-trust legislation....
Letter to the editor: Bad time for big raises in Westmoreland County
Regarding the article “Westmoreland department heads earn raises for pandemic- related work” (Dec. 17, TribLIVE): The county solicitor received an $11,000 per year raise, and has seen her salary increase 70% since 2015. She is considered a part-time employee. A 70% raise over five years — that is quite an...
