Editorials category, Page 3
Editorial: The common cents of planning ahead on eliminating the penny
Sometimes a decision is as easy as a coin toss. The stakes are low. The outcome is variable. Heads, you win. Tails, you lose. No big deal either way. Others may seem easy up front, but a little digging shows the process needs more care. Take, for instance, the penny....
Editorial: Duty doesn’t wait for big election years
An old Dutch story tells us the importance of doing what is necessary when duty demands. The Netherlands is a low-lying country prone to flooding. A system of earth and stone embankments makes up the defenses that hold back the water. The familiar tale speaks of a boy who noticed...
Editorial: Two government crises face Pennsylvanians
Pennsylvania is feeling a pinch other states aren’t. Oh sure, everyone is embroiled in the now month-old federal government shutdown. As of Saturday, what started out bad, with federal employees either sent home or working without pay, got worse as important programs were set to shut down. The Supplemental Nutrition...
Editorial: Courthouse settlement shows high price of denying reality
The long saga of the Westmoreland County Courthouse renovations has reached its conclusion. Perhaps you thought it was already at an end. After all, the parking garage reopened in July 2023 and the plaza and front entrance were in use a month later. The issue was that was far later...
Editorial: NBA scandal was predictable
Everyone saw this coming except the NBA. It seemed obvious: An industry built on winning money instead of earning it will attract those willing to break the rules to make a buck. And yet, when news broke last week about FBI arrests, including a current NBA head coach and player,...
Laurels & lances: Helping in times of need
Laurel: To being in the right place at the right time. Arnold police Chief Rob Haus is used to being in the thick of an emergency. He’s not just a law enforcement officer. He’s also a trained EMT. His wife, Crystal, is also no stranger to a life-or-death situation. She’s...
Editorial: Narduzzi advice is better than NCAA rules on gambling
Coaches — no matter the sport or the discipline — help make people better at what they do. Voice coaches help turn good singers into stars. Dialect coaches can be the difference between a wannabe and an Oscar winner. A good defensive line coach could turn a struggling team around...
Editorial: Courtrooms aren’t ready for AI
“Pro se” is a legal phrase that speaks to how an individual is represented in court. It is Latin, meaning “for self.” It refers to a party acting as his or her own advocate in a legal proceeding. While a lawyer may be the smart move, a person isn’t obligated...
Editorial: Will promises ever be kept in the Hill District?
There was a time in the early part of the 20th century when a handful of Black neighborhoods in America blossomed in a celebration of culture, economy and expression. One of those was Pittsburgh’s Hill District. This month, the Pittsburgh Walk of Fame honored its inaugural class of regional history-makers....
Editorial: Most Americans don’t think Democrats or Republicans care about them
We spend a lot of time talking about the problem of polarization in today’s politics. If you get down to it, however, most of that happens, well, at the fringes — either end of the pole, if you will. What’s more normal, in our experience, is for the average American...
Editorial: Pa. Supreme Court retention is historically brutal fight
People talk a lot about “election years.” When they use that term, they usually mean the presidential elections that roll around every four years. Perhaps they mean the midterms — the largely legislative elections that come up every two years. Maybe they mean the years when gubernatorial elections are held...
Editorial: The people have a right to know about government settlements
Legal settlements can be a locked box of information. In September, Reuters reported Tesla settled two cases regarding California crashes involving Autopilot software weeks after a $243 million award in a Florida case. Details in the California settlements were confidential. When it comes to a corporation, keeping details quiet can be...
Laurels & lances: Fame, shame & hope
Laurel: To shining stars. On Monday, the Pittsburgh Walk of Fame was unveiled on Smallman Street in the Strip District. The inaugural class of honorees featured 10 people who have shaped the history and culture of the region, from investigative journalist Nellie Bly and industrialist Andrew Carnegie to baseball great...
Editorial: Enough finger-pointing. Pass a budget
The Pennsylvania Senate on Monday passed a bill to let winners of large lottery prizes remain anonymous. The bill now moves to the House for consideration. It’s a good idea. The Pennsylvania Lottery awards a number of big-ticket prizes every year, from Powerball jackpots to the Millionaire Raffles to scratch-offs....
Editorial: Naloxone in high schools could save kids’ lives
Opioid addiction doesn’t care how much money you make or where you live. It doesn’t respect ethnicity or skin color or political party. It does not draw a line at age. The addiction epidemic that has washed over the United States like a wave in the last decades has hit...
Editorial: SNAP shutdown starves more than the poor
The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program is the modern incarnation of what was originally called food stamps. The program was born during the Great Depression, when feeding families was a challenge on a broad scale. It was reconceived in the 1960s. President John F. Kennedy moved forward with a pilot program...
Editorial: UPMC and AHN are growing their networks. Is that good?
The human body is made up of assorted clusters of material. Cells combine to create tissues that can specialize into organs and work together in systems. That’s how we get cardiac tissue making up a heart that drives the cardiovascular system. The health care world can be similar. Doctors and...
Editorial: Health insurance subsidy discussions cannot wait
Sometimes if you just wait, a situation will change. Maybe the forest fire will burn itself out. Maybe the floodwaters will recede. Maybe the storm promised by the weatherman will veer off and unleash its fury elsewhere. That can happen. It does happen. But it doesn’t always happen. That’s part...
Editorial: Rape crisis centers must be supported
A rape crisis center is a kind of sanctuary. Not in the sense of a holy place or a house of worship. It is more a place of refuge in a storm of uncertainty. These centers offer close and personal service, providing advice and information, counseling or support for those...
Laurels & lances: Laid to rest & laid off
Laurel: To a final resting place. On Sunday, a funeral took place in Ross. A World War II soldier was laid to rest. This is increasingly rare as the veterans of the 1940s have thinner ranks every year. But this funeral wasn’t for an old man who remembered the war....
Editorial: Death penalty decisions must be based on evidence
The death penalty is divisive. Support for and opposition to it is not as easy as political party or position. It is all over the map. There are people with firmly held convictions about crime and law enforcement who draw a line when it comes to capital punishment. There are...
Editorial: Penn State cares more about coaching than campuses
Penn State has firmly held priorities. But are they the ones the university wants people to believe? The football team came into the season with the highest rank it has ever held to start the year; it was No. 2, right behind Texas and ahead of longtime rival Ohio State....
Editorial: Despite threats of violence, the Supreme Court can’t let fear shape its judgments
The Red Mass, a longstanding tradition marking the start of the U.S. Supreme Court’s term, brings judges, lawyers and public officials together at Washington’s St. Matthew’s Cathedral to pray for wisdom and moral clarity in the administration of justice. Since the 1950s, this ecumenical service — welcoming for people of...
Editorial: Increasing grocery prices hurt everyone
There are things we can stretch when money is tight. That pair of shoes might have to last another month or two. Replacing the tires could wait until you get your tax return. This electric bill could get shoved in a drawer until next time, even though it will be...
Editorial: Does Walmart need your money to rip down the Monroeville Mall?
Walmart is the largest retailer in the United States. You might think most of what is bought and sold in America is filtering through Jeff Bezos and his Amazon website, but you would be wrong. According to international professional services company Deloitte, the Arkansas-based superstore pulled in $648 billion in...
