Opinion category, Page 573
Editorial: Act 47 shows the way to help distressed municipalities recover
In 1987, the Pennsylvania Legislature threw a lifeline to communities that were struggling economically: Act 47. Known as the Municipalities Financial Recovery Act, it takes some of the back-to-the-drawing-board nature of a bankruptcy restructuring and adds a bit of money management lessons in the vein of debt guru Dave Ramsey,...
Jonah Goldberg: Today’s Republicans see conservatism as a mere tool
In 1965, William F. Buckley, the founder of National Review magazine and, as much as anyone, of modern American conservatism, ran for mayor of New York City. It was a quixotic endeavor. When asked what he’d do if he won, he responded, “Demand a recount.” Buckley ran, in other words,...
Joseph Sabino Mistick: Thankful for the heroes in 2020
On Thanksgiving Day in normal times, we gather with family and friends for the annual feast, watch the big parade early and some football after dinner, before falling asleep on the couch or in a recliner. The company of loved ones and the smells and sounds and laughter make this...
Dr. David Dausey: Be a patriot and roll up your sleeve for covid-19 vaccine
In the coming months, Americans will have the opportunity to do the most patriotic thing they can do for their country: roll up their sleeves and get a vaccine for covid-19. The push to develop a vaccine for covid-19 is truly unprecedented. Coronaviruses were first detected in humans in 1965....
Robert Smith: We’ve got enough environmental regulations
“The environment has never been cleaner in my lifetime than now.” That’s the way I begin a part of my guest lecture to business classes at a local college. The look on the faces of the products of our public-school educational system is one of disbelief. As a nearby, familiar...
Sounding off: Let’s give Joe Biden a chance
President-elect Biden’s favorite phrase is “possibilities for a brighter future.” As the most enduring democracy in the entire world, we, as a nation, have opportunities to build a lasting pathway of progress toward many common goods. Of course, this won’t be easy as divisiveness among our people has become a...
Letter to the editor: Why Democrats want masks
I’ve figured out why the job-killing Democrats have been for mask-wearing all along and the free-market GOP has been for choice. If you don’t wear a mask and get sick, this creates jobs — a win for job creation, a GOP stronghold. You get sick, doctors get paid, hospitals get...
Letter to the editor: Thank you, President Trump
Thank you, President Trump, for delivering in one term what your predecessor couldn’t in two. Here’s the short stack: Four Middle East peace agreements; U.S. energy independence; record low unemployment for minorities and women; prison reform, 90% benefitting Blacks; opportunity zones incentivizing low-income area businesses; $6,000 median household income gain;...
Letter to the editor: We need unbiased journalism
The stories published on the front pages of the Nov. 15 and 16 print editions (“Thousands make stand for Trump” and “ ‘He won’ tweet nods to Trump acceptance”) are editorial in nature and should have been put in the editorial section. Good journalism would not use one-sided descriptors like “spurious”...
Letter to the editor: Democrats took care of business
As I read Stewart Epstein’s letter “Why won’t Democrats take action?” (Nov. 21, TribLIVE) I found it cowardly that he would resort to hiding behind a letter to call Democrats spineless and timid. He must be hanging around different Democrats than I do. I would like Epstein to tell my...
Letter to the editor: Covid-19 restrictions must stop
Using covid-19 as a means to control and restrict the population has to stop. Each layer of restrictions set up to “protect us against ourselves” is infringing on the rights of the people of Pennsylvania. New restrictions were announced Nov. 17, but we all know that additional ones are around...
Editorial: Small business can use big boost this holiday season
We all know the minute Thanksgiving is over, the world of retail begins its annual gift-selling juggernaut. Despite the challenges and changes of 2020, including the coronavirus pandemic, that’s something that seems set in stone. The National Retail Foundation is anticipating holiday spending of between $755.3 and $766.7 billion. To...
Letter to the editor: Take election concerns seriously
I am a 65-year-old U.S. citizen, wife, mother of five and grandmother of 18. My life is full and blessed. I am greatly concerned, though, for the welfare of our country and specifically my family. I have had the privilege to vote since 1973. I am a registered Republican, although...
Letter to the editor: Pa.’s bureaucratic nightmares
This is in response to Daniel Bernstein’s letter “License plate costs create confusion” (Nov. 4, TribLIVE). I had a similar situation with regard to replacing a faulty license plate. As an AAA member, I went there first and was told there were three options for replacement: Use MV-44 to self-request...
Lori Falce: The year of the leftovers
The best part of Thanksgiving is what comes next. Not the monthlong march toward Christmas. Or the Black Friday bacchanal of spending. Nope, I’m talking about something that we take for granted. Something that often gets overlooked or discarded. Something some people complain about being too plentiful. Leftovers. First, there...
Letter to the editor: Dems, GOP, media and voter fraud
The article “Thousands rally behind Trump” (Nov. 15) noted President Trump’s “spurious” claim of a stolen election.” Regardless how deep the mainstream media buries its head in the sand, there is proof of multiple incidents of voter fraud in this country. Dare I say that the communistwealth of Pennsylvania is...
Walter Williams: Defining discrimination and prejudice
Some of the confusion in thinking about matters of race stems from the ambiguity in the terms that we use. I am going to take a stab at suggesting operational definitions for a couple terms in our discussion of race. Good analytical thinking requires that we do not confuse one...
Paul Kengor: Is Western Pa. home to a new Republican coalition?
“Has Trump launched a ‘second wave’ of the Reagan revolution — attracting blue-collar voters with his appeal that he and the Republican Party will do a better job of fighting for them than the Democrats, as well as representing their social values, including a pro-life stance?” A Pittsburgh reporter asked...
Laurels & lances: Giving thanks, respecting rules
Laurel: To putting the “give” in Thanksgiving. It’s hard enough to nail the “thanks” part. There are different ways to do that, though. Some find the gratitude in the grace they say before dinner. Others do it by giving to others, whether in money or food or time. Plenty of...
Letter to the editor: Hockey players are the real pros
If you want to see real professional athletes, watch the National Hockey League. David W. Thomas Gilpin...
Letter to the editor: Think green for holidays
While we all had a good social media-inspired laugh at the scrawny 45-foot-tall Norway spruce holiday tree being erected at Manhattan’s Rockefeller Plaza and are eagerly anticipating the arrival of the 18-foot Oregon fraser fir to grace the first family’s White House, your readers may spare a thought for the...
Letter to the editor: Witness to a fair election
Two generations of my family have worked the polls in Westmoreland County, with 307 precincts, and Harris County, Texas, with 803 precincts. My mother has been working the polls for 25 years, and my brother worked the polls in Texas for the first time. I have not worked the polls...
Letter to the editor: Not everyone is blessed
I enjoyed columnist Tom Purcell’s positive spin on a year that appears to most other people as dreadful (“Covid-19 obscures so many ways 2020 is best year ever,” Nov. 16, TribLIVE). It is true, in some respects, that 2020 is the “best year ever” when compared to the quality of...
Letter to the editor: Common sense is our best covid-19 weapon
The reluctance to get tough with covid-19 is why positive cases are rising. We are all covid-19 fatigued. Most people weren’t ready to endure the restrictions early on, thinking maybe two weeks, two months, would be good enough. We should have accepted this together from the start and hung in...
Letter to the editor: Bring Charlie Brown back to our TVs
I was just a kid in 1966 when “It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown” aired on television for the first time. I’ve been watching it, along with “A Charlie Brown Christmas,” every year since. I am now 65. I’ve enjoyed these wonderful shows with my kids and was hoping to...
