Letters to the Editor category, Page 193

The first time I met state Rep. Ed Gainey was in 2019 at a community event in the Hill District. He came up to my table, and we talked about chess, my run for school board, and my studies at Pitt. He said if I ever needed anything, I should...

This week marks Public Service Recognition Week. Here in the Pittsburgh area and across the state and country, this week is an opportunity to acknowledge and thank the people who serve our government in various ways: our tireless public servants. While Public Service Recognition Week occurs annually during the first...

Four years after Pennsylvania said it would try to recover millions of dollars in public subsidies made to bankrupt Westmoreland County saltwater battery maker Aquion, it has little to show for its efforts, concludes an analysis by the Allegheny Institute for Public Policy. “Rather than trying to pick winners and...

Accolades to the fabulous Highlands High School’s “Mamma Mia!” cast, crew, pit orchestra, set designers/builders and the many others who created this Broadway-quality production. The joy and enthusiasm were felt throughout this exquisite event. Under normal circumstances, it would have been an outstanding accomplishment. Accomplishing it within the covid restrictions...

I can’t imagine any American in their right mind wanting Donald Trump back in office after seeing how the virus took over when he denied the problem early last year and how his Cabinet members left one by one as he chose some buddies and some not well-qualified for their...

The May 18 primary election is quickly approaching, and there is one clear choice for magisterial district judge, Rebecca Salandro. Salandro has years of experience working in the community as a behavioral health case manager and more than 10 years working throughout the court system as a criminal justice liaison....

With the global covid-19 pandemic, we have all seen — some of us up close and personal — just how vital nurses are on the front lines of the nation’s health care system. During National Nurses Week, May 6-12, I want to recognize and thank the more than 500 nurses...

In the April 23 edition, there was a brief article that stated Pennsylvania drug seizures are up this year and that Pennsylvania State Police seized nearly $5.6 million worth of cocaine during the first three months of 2021. That’s 253 pounds. Almost as much as all of 2020. Also, state...

When Democrats say it is their intention to do something, they do it, from trying to defund police, raising your taxes, stopping President Trump’s wall and Keystone XL pipeline construction, expanding abortion funding, destroying our energy independence, attacking the Constitution, stoking the fires of racism, ad infinitum. When Republicans say...

A recent headline in the Trib: “Police: Man dies after being shot outside bar in Hill District” (April 24, TribLIVE): Where, oh where, is the outcry about these killings? When will it end? Barrie Matovcik Derry Township...

Many conservatives feel betrayed by their Republican state representatives for actively championing Act 77 in 2019, prior to covid-19, for legalized no-excuse mail-in ballots, which I believe is a Democratic initiative similar to defunding the police. Our May 18 primary will have four ballot questions. Again, our Republican Legislature wants...

In the movie “Horse Feathers,” Groucho Marx sings, “I don’t know what they have to say / It makes no difference anyway / Whatever it is, I’m against it / No matter what it is or who commenced it / I’m against it.” The GOP’s proposed amendments to the Pennsylvania...

Congratulations, Gov. Wolf — another casualty of your onerous lockdowns. The Kings Family Restaurant in Salem was unable to pull itself out of the death spiral that you forced upon it (“Kings restaurant on Route 66 in Salem closes after more than 3 decades,” April 27, TribLIVE). The “Closed” sign...

Traci Eshelman Ramey would be an excellent school board member for the Franklin Regional School District. She is a self-starter and problem-solver committed to education. Ramey started a local company that taught foreign language skills to children because she understands the value of bilingualism in children at an early age....

It’s great to see Pittsburgh and U.S. Steel committing to carbon neutrality by 2050 (“Pittsburgh, U.S. Steel commit to become carbon neutral by 2050,” April 23, TribLIVE). Bold actions on the part of our local governments and businesses can be a strong tool in fighting climate change, inspiring others to...

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....

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...

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...

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...

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...

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....

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...

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...

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...

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...