Opinion category, Page 571
Sounding off: Give Joe Biden a chance
Can we just get over it? I am referring to the election. As I read the paper, on the Opinion page I see lots of pros and cons about President-elect Biden and President Trump. “Let the implosion begin” says letter-writer Paul Gernhardt (“Implosion of our country”). He lists several of...
Letter to the editor: Democrats ignore Obama’s debt
Funny how Sandra Kramer didn’t mention President Obama in her letter “Republicans’ legacy of debt” (Dec. 1, TribLIVE). Our biggest debt, dollar-wise, incurred under him. Yes, as she states, there is “a pattern here.” And it is one of Democrats ignoring those eight years. William R. Iski Penn Township, Westmoreland...
Letter to the editor: Commissioners applauded for following law
Regarding the article “GOP commissioners reject defective mail-in ballots” (Nov. 13, TribLIVE): I would like to thank Republican commissioners Sean Kertes and Doug Chew, who have stood up for our commonwealth’s election laws. Democrats seem to have a fundamental misunderstanding of election laws, believing the campaigns aren’t over until enough...
Editorial: The awful math of church abuse settlements
It can be hard to calculate damages when you can’t see the breakage. Crash a car, and the body shop can tell you precisely what it will cost to turn bent and twisted metal back into a shiny vehicle with a sleek paint job. Burn down a house, and the...
Letter to the editor: Trump focused on himself, not country
As an independent who votes the candidates, I was hoping to heap some praise on President Trump for his accomplishments — for example, increasing the defense budget and promoting our military buildup. But he has reverted to his typical lies (over 23,000 false or misleading claims at last count, as...
John Stossel: Capitalism is better than charity
Many of us will give money to charity this month. Americans give more than any other people in the world. Good for us. Fifty-six years ago, because American charities hadn’t ended poverty, politicians said they would end it. They declared a “war on poverty.” That “war,” so far, has cost...
Letter to the editor: Half the country who voted for Trump not going away
Half the country, 74 million Americans, voted for Donald Trump. Yet it seems only 3% of television news talks to them. The crony capitalists who run the three networks, Wall Street, most newspapers and the left coast ignore these 74 million who aren’t going away. It’ll be interesting to see...
Letter to the editor: $5 million grant to Excela wrong
Regarding the article “Westmoreland County opens up second round of covid-relief grants” (Nov. 13, TribLIVE): $5 million to a huge company is wrong. The first problem is calling a company (Excela) that has several executives making well over six-figure salaries a nonprofit. If I thought for a second this money...
Letter to the editor: Errors don’t disqualify votes
The “crown jewel” of democracy lies in our ability to conduct fair and untampered elections. Just like our Westmoreland County commissioners, I believe in free and fair elections and that our votes should count. Our commissioners need to live up to their values and the commitment they made when they...
Walter Williams: The tragedy of Black education
Editor’s note: Walter Williams, whose syndicated column has appeared in the Tribune-Review and Valley News Dispatch for many years, died Dec. 1 at the age of 84. His last column will appear next Saturday. Several years ago, Project Baltimore began an investigation of Baltimore’s school system. What they found was...
Lori Falce: Monolith is 2020 puzzle we needed
I love a puzzle. Give me a stack of crosswords and a pen and I can entertain myself for hours. I am the reason they put those little peg brain-teasers on the table at Cracker Barrel. I have spent more than 30 years turning an unsolved murder over and over...
Letter to the editor: Electric car fees? Fair is fair.
The Associated Press article “Pa. House votes to impose fees on electric cars” (Nov. 21) raises concern for the left, again. The House passed a bill to the Senate requiring those who own electric or hybrid vehicles to pay a tax to cover their cost of road usage. Road maintenance...
Letter to the editor: Presidential greatness
President Trump demonstrated presidential greatness over four years. At the beginning of covid-19, he kept it quiet as he believed Americans couldn’t handle the truth — that a half million could die. Many know his tax breaks should go to the wealthy so it all trickles down to the rest...
Laurels & lances: Volunteer, vandalism, overdose
Laurel: To volunteering again. Getting people to step up to participate in a project is often the hardest part of the job. Marc Wagner is the kind of guy who is willing to jump in. For 35 years, he has been a part of the Pitt Men’s Study. He was...
Letter to the editor: Schools should be online
Considering that there is no random covid-19 test sampling in schools to make any determination of spread; considering that the covid-19 spread has more than doubled in the past couple of weeks; considering that many traveled for Thanksgiving or had bigger family gatherings to help promote the spread of covid-19:...
Editorial: A good first step to serve counties without health departments
Pennsylvania is going to give a helping hand to the areas of the state that don’t have a county health department. By state law, only six counties have those offices: Allegheny, Bucks, Chester, Erie, Montgomery and Philadelphia. Allegheny updates residents and the media regularly about what is happening with the...
Letter to the editor: Republicans don’t need to ‘get over it’
I find Carl Mochak’s letter “Biden won; Trump needs to get over it” (Nov. 25, TribLIVE) beyond belief. Where has he been for the last four years? It was the Democrats who didn’t “get over it” when President Trump won. The Dems put the president and our country through what...
Kathleen Parker: Biden press team honeymoon won’t last
The breathlessness surrounding President-elect Joe Biden’s communications and press offices — all women! — should be considered a honeymoon that will end at 1 a.m. Jan. 21, the day after Biden’s inauguration. It’s all in the stars. Constellations, that is, of media superstars, many of whom have become household names...
Letter to the editor: Far-left subversion
Tending or intending to subvert or overthrow, destroy or undermine an established or existing system, especially a legally constituted government or set of beliefs. The above is Webster’s definition of a subversive. The actions of the far left running up to the recent election fit this definition. Remember the radicals...
Letter to the editor: No apology for voting against Trump
Republican president Abraham Lincoln implored Americans to act “with malice toward none, but charity for all.” Now along comes Eric Kocian and his inflammatory letter “Trump, supporters energized” (Nov. 13, TribLIVE). Mr. Kocian, “true Americans” shouldn’t be such spoil-sports, sore losers and partisan crybabies. Kocian writes that “Democrats hijacked Americans’...
Letter to the editor: Wolf, Levine are inconsistent on decisions
Once again Gov. Tom Wolf and state Secretary of Health Rachel Levine have taken steps to curb the spread of covid-19. But once again they are so inconsistent in their decisions that it boggles the imagination. With the new, tighter gathering limits, capacity at the 15,600-seat Hersheypark Stadium, which hosted...
Letter to the editor: Stimulus bail-outs don’t save lives
Democratic Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi recently said people will die if the stimulus bill is not passed. I would like her to explain how many lives were saved by including $25 million in aid to the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in the last stimulus bill. The...
Letter to the editor: Trump and Biden, love and hate
President Trump’s supporters love him, his many accomplishments and his devotion to our country. President-elect Biden’s voters do not seem to love him. I’m guessing they just hate Trump. I spoke to over 20 Biden voters the past few months. Every one voted against Trump, not for Biden. Hate has...
Editorial: Keeping hospitals from being swamped is a collective responsibility
The great fear with any disease is always death. We worry about how many people it will steal. But with a pandemic — a rising tide of illness that isn’t confined to one school district, one town or even one country — there is another concern that can be a...
Letter to the editor: The people have spoken on Trump
President Trump lied to the American people about a deadly pandemic, and now 268,000 Americans are dead and the number of cases is rising alarmingly. He held MAGA rallies throughout the country, along with a Rose Garden ceremony, with many people not wearing masks, and coronavirus spread. He continually has...
