Editorials category, Page 37
Editorial: Big events like Taylor Swift concerts mean economic boon for local economies
There was no way of missing the fact Taylor Swift came to town. Acrisure Stadium may have been built for football, but this past week, the real score was put up by a 5-foot, 10-inch blond with a sequin-spangled wardrobe and a catalog of catchy, autobiographical hits. The two Pittsburgh...
Editorial: Pittsburgh synagogue shooting jury delivers justice
In a criminal court, the point of a trial is establishing responsibility. Was the person at the defense table guilty? Is there enough evidence to say this is who committed the crime? With some crimes, this seems downright pointless. We know who did it, society says. We know who is...
Laurels & lances: Schools and police
Laurel: To open discussion. It isn’t easy to talk about topics that point to problems. People can get defensive or frustrated. That doesn’t mean it’s better to just pretend the problems don’t exist. On Monday, Highlands School Board had that tough conversation. More than 100 teachers from the Highlands Educational...
Editorial: We won’t see another Stan Savran
With the passing of Pittsburgh broadcasting icon Stan Savran, the spotlight has turned on his place in the pantheon of talent that called or commented on Steel City sports teams over the years. More than one person — including Savran’s former “SportsBeat” co-host Guy Junker — has called to mind...
Editorial: Flag Day is a uniquely Pennsylvanian holiday
A flag is a curious thing. It is a thin, flat piece of cloth. It is distinguished only by its colors and perhaps a bit of embroidery, but at its heart, it is only threads woven back and forth, cut and stitched together with more thread. Yet it means so...
Editorial: If Marc Fogel is not wrongfully detained, why was Griner designated so for same crime?
Brittney Griner was harassed in an airport Saturday. The Phoenix Mercury player was in Dallas and heading to Indianapolis when she and her WNBA teammates were targeted by people filming them and shouting what one player called “wild remarks,” including that Griner hates America. For the team and the WNBA,...
Editorial: ‘Protection’ still core of DEP’s job
Farcically claiming that the state Department of Environmental Protection is an intimidating regulatory bully, state Senate Republicans have decided to promote a culture change at the agency by renaming it the Department of Environmental Services. On a strictly party-line 28-22 vote, the Senate passed the name-change bill Wednesday. “The word...
Editorial: The cost of consideration for school construction
Everyone knows inflation has been difficult for the past couple of years. Gas was up. Eggs were up. It’s probably easier to list what didn’t go up dramatically since 2019. That’s definitely a shorter list. The rising prices have made plenty of people think twice about purchases. So what if...
Editorial: Electric vehicle fee for road use is only fair — but is there a better path forward?
Changing technology doesn’t just affect business or industry. It also affects government, sometimes in how it regulates and sometimes in how it taxes. We are seeing that now with electric vehicles. In Pennsylvania, roads and bridges are funded, in large part, through gas tax. The Keystone State has some of...
Laurels & lances: Strange story, bad decision
Laurel: To a strange story. OK, we have to admit right up front that, sometimes, it’s hard to decide exactly whether a story should be a laurel or a lance. Sometimes, it could be both, depending on how you look at it. Sometimes, it could be neither but is just...
Editorial: Will minimum wage bill set up a new veto showdown in Allegheny County?
Just 11 months ago, Allegheny County was facing a veto showdown with County Executive Rich Fitzgerald. It’s not something that happens often in a county where one party dominates — although the Democratic-heavy county council is not always on the same page as their fellow party member with the veto...
Editorial: Senate needs to follow House example with rent, property tax rebate bill
On Monday, the Pennsylvania House of Representatives passed House Bill 1100. It doesn’t sound that important when you list it like that. Most legislation starts out like that, numbered like a tag to pick up dry cleaning. Try to grasp what passes as a title and it gets worse —...
Editorial: Was smokestack demolition blast a failure of planning or communication?
“Control” is the goal with controlled demolition. It’s all about using the physics of the explosion and gravity, the understanding of the architecture and terrain and the art of experience to bring down the house — or skyscraper or ballpark or other structures. But control is not always possible. Just...
Editorial: Enough garbage. It’s time to pass a state bill that gets serious about litter
Pennsylvania’s government and most local governments statewide have laws against littering and dumping, but it only requires a look around to know officials treat the laws as so much litter. Partially because governments rarely enforce those laws, littering and dumping are pervasive. Even when governments enforce the law, it doesn’t...
Editorial: With synagogue shooting trial unfolding, Pennsylvania and federal courts need to reevaluate position on cameras in the courtroom
The courtroom sketch is an attempt to capture a moment with the strokes of charcoal, the lines of a colored pencil and the shade of some oil pastels. It is the intersection of art and a specific kind of journalism. It is a valuable tool that blends information and craft....
Editorial: The proud history of Pittsburgh Pride
Sometimes the word pride is associated with a glowing, crowing satisfaction in something that has been achieved. People take pride in their awards or their bank accounts. People feel pride in their children or their résumés. But that isn’t all that pride is. As with many words, there are other...
Laurels & lances: Speaking up and reaching out
Laurel: To the power of participation. We harp a lot on the responsibility of voting. We urge people to register and to get out and do their duty. There still are a lot of voices that chime back about what good it does. Can one vote really matter? What makes...
Editorial: Increased electric bills are power struggle
Every year on June 1 and Dec. 1, Pennsylvanians face the struggle between power and money. That is when the state Public Utility Commission allows electric companies to make price changes. As it happens just twice a year, it’s definitely more stable than gas prices. And, hey, just because it...
Editorial: Cold cases demand continued questions to find answers
With a missing persons case, sometimes it seems as though the only answer sought is about location. It isn’t. A disappearance is a chain reaction of questions that beg to be answered. “Where?” is only the first. It is also the one that kicks off the dominoes of those that...
Editorial: Approve savings plan for retirement
Bette Davis once declared that “old age ain’t no place for sissies,” and few older people would argue otherwise. The observation also is true regarding finances for retirement, yet millions of Pennsylvanians hurtle toward old age without retirement savings. One of the reasons for that is the lack of employer-provided...
Editorial: We honor the service and sacrifice
For Memorial Day, a classic Trib editorial: On this Memorial Day, be grateful that Americans’ willingness to sacrifice for freedom’s sake, instilled by each generation in the next, remains as strong as ever. Today, Americans honor those most worthy of such gratitude — those who gave their lives in our...
Editorial: Pennsylvania should streamline unclaimed property process
Sto Rox Community Federal Credit Union was holding a share of money for a woman named Genevieve. Genevieve didn’t withdraw it. We don’t know why. She could have moved. She might have forgotten about it. Maybe a parent opened the account for her and she never even knew about it....
Editorial: Harrison should have been more transparent with new chief vote
It is not hard to tell people what’s going on. Seriously. It’s not. Government can make it seem like swimming through neck-deep mud, but transparency is really pretty easy. All they have to do is make the information accessible, not force anyone to read it. Not every state decision is...
Editorial: Independence and the legacy of Pennsylvania hospitals
Hospitals are part of the fabric of Pennsylvania. Pennsylvania Hospital was founded in 1751 and was the first hospital in America to be founded as a medical facility and not as a workhouse or poorhouse. The state had the first mental health hospital. It boasts the oldest medical school and...
Editorial: Reduce toll of ‘tranq’ overdoses
Gov. Josh Shapiro has a solid track record in the desperate struggle against the raging opioid epidemic. Before the covid-19 pandemic eclipsed opioids as the nation’s most pressing public health emergency, Shapiro played a traditional enforcement role as attorney general. He also had roles in changing prescription and dispensing protocols...
