Opinion category, Page 665
Letter to the editor: Shame on Pat Toomey
A letter to U.S. Sen. Pat Toomey: It is obvious to me and many of your constituents why the Republican Senate voted against having additional witnesses in President Trump’s impeachment trial. I think you know that having John Bolton testify would confirm beyond any doubt that Trump conspired to rig...
Laurels & lances: Transparency, therapy, reflection
Lance: To keeping secrets. Every day, there are lawsuits that are sealed for a variety of reasons. On Tuesday, sealed paperwork was filed in Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas containing the details of the settlement between UPMC and Paris Cleaners Inc. on one side and, on the other, the...
Letter to the editor: Trump, bribery & heresy
On the same day the letter “Trump haters should be mindful of facts” (Jan. 17, TribLIVE) appeared, there was an article headlined “White House considers changes to law banning overseas bribes” (Jan. 17, TribLIVE). So what if bribery is unethical and illegal (not to mention impeachable)? The president is quoted...
Letter to the editor: Hillary & the Electoral College
Those who worship Hillary Clinton just never give up. Letter-writer Paul Messich (“Voters wanted Hillary Clinton as president,” Jan. 17, TribLIVE) knows that we don’t elect our presidents by popular vote. If we did, the states with the largest populations would choose our president every four years while other states...
Paul Kengor: Love that still loves tomorrow
Once again we embrace that annual cultural ritual known as Valentine’s Day. In fact, you’ve had plenty of warning, dating back to, oh, shortly after Christmas, when Santa displays at stores were replaced with heart-shaped candy boxes. Of course, it’s not just stores. Obnoxious TV ads tantalize guys with images...
Lori Falce: Does love really never fail?
“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast. It is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It...
Sounding off: Common sense is biggest loser in impeachment
Near the beginning of President Trump’s impeachment trial, one of the House managers suggested that senators shouldn’t leave their common sense at the door. That message fell on the deaf ears of most Republicans. Common sense would have dictated that jurors hear witnesses and see documents. Common sense would have...
Letter to the editor: Less fret, more hope & love
I am weary after reading the letters to the editor that stress the imbalance of Pittsburgh and Greensburg politics, and the sorry global situation in Iraq and Iran, and then those that stress the struggles with traffic congestion between Greensburg and Latrobe. Occasionally, and only occasionally, can we not sing...
Letter to the editor: Impeachment a perversion of law, common sense
The lack of objective truth is the real reason for the insanity that we see each day. Removing objectivity and replacing it with emotions destroys common sense and one’s ability to reason. This is no clearer today than the impeachment trial. The desperate attempts to get rid of a duly...
Letter to the editor: Republican Party has no honor
The vote in the Senate to refuse to hear witnesses in the impeachment trial of President Trump puts the last nail in the coffin of what was formerly known as the Republican Party. Instead, we have a party filled with Trump sycophants and lap dogs lacking any integrity, moral character...
Editorial: Helping victims helps us all
If you get hurt, you should get help. That’s more than common sense. It is the idea behind so much of the government we support. It is why we have firefighters and police officers, paramedics and hospitals, emergency management agencies and the National Guard. As a society, we are prepared...
Scott Brady: Sanctuary cities undermine law
On Jan, 6, 2020, 92-year-old Maria Fuentes was raped and murdered by Reeaz Khan, a 21-year-old illegal immigrant in New York City. But this tragedy was entirely preventable. In fact, Khan should have been in custody at the time because six weeks earlier Khan was jailed and arrested for domestic...
Letter to the editor: Loving the warmth from climate change
Feb. 3, 2020, 4:40 p.m.: Temperature 63 degrees in Southwestern Pennsylvania. Ya gotta love this climate change. … Robert Ritchey Penn Township, Westmoreland County...
Letter to the editor: Trump tramples Constitution
Letter-writer Kathleen Bollinger says President Trump should be reelected for the judges he appoints who will “uphold the Constitution” (“Supreme Court in peril,” Feb. 1, TribLIVE). Well, to begin with, Justice Neil Gorsuch holds a stolen seat because of Sen. Mitch McConnell’s abuse of constitutional responsibilities, refusing to recognize President...
Michael McGough: Is the Justice Department scooping up dirt about Joe Biden from Rudy Giuliani?
Is the Department of Justice under Attorney General William Barr facilitating Rudolph W. Giuliani’s attempt to blacken the name of former Vice President Joe Biden? That’s an understandable concern after Barr acknowledged this week that the department indeed was willing to evaluate information Giuliani had gathered from Ukrainian sources about...
Pat Buchanan: Failed coup of a failing establishment
It has been a bad few days for the establishment, really bad. In a 51-49 vote, the Senate refused to call witnesses in the impeachment trial of Donald Trump and voted to acquit the president of all charges. As recent polls show socialist Bernie Sanders surging in the lead, the...
Ronald Fraser: Pa.’s parole & probation merry-go-round
State-run parole and probation programs are designed to keep people convicted of crimes — including a large number of nonviolent crimes — out of prison. But in Pennsylvania, according to a recent Council of State Governments study, “Confined and Costly: How Supervision Violations are Filling Prisons,” “On any given day...
Editorial: Special Olympics are exceptionalVideo
There are lots of ways to define the word “special.” There is distinct. There is different. There is “exceptionally good or precious.” All of those could apply to the Special Olympics. The Pennsylvania Winter Games were held at Seven Springs Ski Lodge Sunday through Tuesday. Every four years, the Olympic...
Letter to the editor: We should support Trump for pro-life stand alone
You may not like President Trump because he looks and acts like a dictator. He insults people and at times is very rude. I am still going to vote for him because he is for the unborn and religious freedom for everyone. He is the only sitting president to participate...
Letter to the editor: Supreme Court’s peril
In response to Kathleen Bollinger’s letter “Supreme Court in peril”: I have to agree it is in peril. It is in peril because the Supreme Court lost its credibility due to the court packing done by Sen. Mitch McConnell starting in 2016. After Justice Antonin Scalia died on Feb. 13,...
Letter to the editor: We’ll never have a fair accounting of Trump’s actions
I read Bob McBride’s letter “Trump haters should be mindful of facts” (Jan. 18, TribLIVE) and had to smile. His claim of only hearsay, assumptions and accusations would be laughable if a fair hearing of facts were permitted. But because President Trump barred most eyewitnesses from testifying at congressional hearings,...
Tom Purcell: How to renew dying art of romance? Ask our elders
The day my mother and father met, he was arguing with some high school friends about whether a slice of lemon would corrode the coating on a porcelain sink. “I never came across any man quite like your father,” my mother says, still happily befuddled by the stubborn old fellow....
Jonah Goldberg: Iowa’s big bungle & dismantling of political parties
One of my favorite running jokes on the internet is, “You had one job.” It’s a staple of Twitter and YouTube, with images of signs reading, “Turn Left” with an arrow pointing right, or supermarket shelves demarcating where you can buy “Poop Tarts.” Well, the Iowa Democratic Party rolled out...
Editorial: Retire in Pittsburgh with $1 million?
Sometimes it isn’t how much money you’ve got. It’s how you’re going to spend it. Last week, SmartAsset released its third annual study showing how long a $1 million retirement nest egg would last in various U.S. cities. In Pittsburgh, you can stretch that pot of money to cover 23.14...
Letter to the editor: Sen. Pat Toomey’s cowardice
So Sen. Pat Toomey has admitted that his vote for acquittal was largely due to fear of “societal upheaval” if the president was convicted and removed from office. I hoped never to see the day when our leaders voted based on intimidation. That hope is now dashed, as the cowardice...
