Editorials category, Page 39
Editorial: DEP must remain vigilant with East Palestine crash testing
The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection has not found chemicals from the Norfolk Southern train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, in samples taken in the Keystone State. On Monday, DEP acting Secretary Rich Negrin said chemicals have not been detected in soil or water samples. “We are thrilled that the...
Editorial: When is free speech not free on college campuses?
Freedom of speech is a frustrating thing to embrace. “I do not agree with what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it,” said biographer Evelyn Beatrice Hall of Voltaire, paraphrasing his work. Voltaire may have been a French philosopher, but that do-or-die attitude...
Editorial: Revamp laws for legal guardians
Most older people understand, by experience, the adage that “old age doesn’t come alone.” And, as people live longer, old age often comes with a legal guardian. In Pennsylvania, more than 18,000 people are under legal guardianships, and about half are older than 60. Guardians oversee more than $1.7 billion...
Editorial: The solemn duty of the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting jury
On Monday, the trial of Robert Bowers will begin with jury selection. The 12 people in the jury box — and the alternates who will back them up — will comprise the backbone of one of the most important trials Pittsburgh may ever see. It will decide whether Bowers is...
Editorial: Why did Fitzgerald pick Doven-Hallam race for endorsement?
With just over three weeks until the primary elections, Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald weighed in with his first endorsement of 2023. You might think he was prepared to recommend his pick to replace him. Fitzgerald is finishing his third term. He is just the third person to have that...
Laurels & lances: Civic duty and illegal drugs
Laurel: To a valuable education. If there’s one thing our divided political landscape proves, there are a lot of people out there who could have used a civics class. Civics is the study of what it takes to be a citizen. It teaches the mechanism of the governments that govern...
Editorial: Fewer employees can add up to high costs
Sometimes having fewer people to do the job might mean more work for the employees but a lower bottom line for the payroll. You have a store to staff, for example. You want 10 people to work from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. You only have five. You shuffle those...
Editorial: Frustrating parallels between North Side and Alabama shootings and the agonizing wait for answers
In Alabama, there is mourning for the loss of four people who were attending a 16th birthday party Saturday in Dadeville. There is concern for the health and well-being of 32 more who were injured. But people are frustrated by the lack of answers about what happened and who is...
Editorial: Taxes add up in Pennsylvania
It’s that time again. If you haven’t filed your federal income tax return, it’s due today. For about half of Americans, it doesn’t matter. They’re the ones who have already filed their taxes by March — 36 percent in February, shortly after their paperwork for 2022 income was in hand,...
Editorial: ‘Skill’ games are gambling; regulate them
Gambling is among the most heavily regulated and taxed businesses in Pennsylvania — except for the variety available at the local convenience store. Electronic “skill games” look much like casino slot machines. But skill games require input beyond money — the answer to a trivia question, a quick-reaction challenge or...
Editorial: Pa. State System of Higher Education needs to embrace change
PennWest University is taking steps to save costs. The university is in its infancy under this name. Until the 2022-23 school year, PennWest didn’t exist. It was born of the merging of three Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education universities: California, Clarion and Edinboro. The purpose of the merger was...
Editorial: Biden administration must designate Fogel as wrongfully detained
It was March 29 when Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich was arrested in Yekaterinburg, Russia, charged with espionage and held in a foreign prison. On April 10, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken determined the journalist was wrongfully detained. It took just 12 days. Teacher Marc Fogel of Oakmont...
Laurels & lances: Negotiated security and serious pranks
Laurel: To a summer tradition. Kennywood will be open. No, don’t check your zipper. Just rest assured that the West Mifflin amusement park will operate as usual this summer. There were questions about that in March when Allegheny County District Attorney Stephen A. Zappala Jr. said he would go to...
Editorial: Figure out the source for state police fund money first
The idea of a dedicated fund to support the state police is a perfect illustration of Pennsylvania’s ongoing governmental challenges. Gov. Josh Shapiro wants to pay the annual bill for the agency — about $1.4 billion — by replacing the $500 million or so that comes from the Motor License...
Editorial: Should judges be allowed to prevent death penalty cases in Pennsylvania?
Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas Judge Anthony M. Mariani no longer plans on seating a death-penalty jury for cases brought to trial. Capital punishment technically is something that could happen in Pennsylvania. It’s a penalty that is on the books. It is used only for first-degree murder but requires...
Editorial: Clarence Thomas situation shows why Harrisburg needs gift ban
If you want to know why a gift ban is important, look no further than U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas. On Thursday, a ProPublica investigation outlined years of travel and generosity from Texas real estate billionaire Harlan Crow to Thomas, who has sat on the country’s highest court since...
Editorial: Public School Employees Retirement System meter keeps running
When school districts send tax bills, they should include a notice of how much they pay to the scandal-plagued Public School Employees Retirement System. Due to PSERS’ history of limited transparency and mismanagement, legislative malpractice and financial practices for the benefit of the finance industry, each of 500 Pennsylvania school...
Editorial: A day of celebration and faith
Today is a day of faith. It is, in fact, about more than one faith. For many, even most, in the United States, today is Easter Sunday. It is the most important holy day to Christians around the globe, celebrating the Resurrection of Jesus. For the Jewish community, it falls...
Editorial: Pa. Legislature should see Tennessee expulsions as cautionary tale
The Pennsylvania Legislature is no stranger to dissension. The state isn’t Democratic or Republican, after all. It isn’t even a muddled, muted purple. It is a patchwork of red and blue by county and city. That pattern is repeated in the House and Senate chambers. And that can lead to...
Laurels & lances: Hot dogs, high fees and hoaxes
Laurel: To responding to the faithful. This year, two important events coincide for Catholic sports fans in the Greater Pittsburgh area: The Pirates’ home opener falls on Good Friday. This left a dilemma. Do you observe the papal direction to not eat meat on the holy day of obligation? Or...
Editorial: Is there another solution for Medicaid and CHIP enrollment?
On April 1, the continuous enrollment in Medicaid and CHIP programs came to an end. Continuous enrollment came from the Families First Coronavirus Act, a federal measure passed in March 2020 to help Americans cope with the challenges of the covid-19 pandemic. A major factor was making sure people who...
Editorial: Campaign finance reform is part of election security
Tightening rules on elections has been a hot topic in recent years. It’s an idea that has gotten top-down attention. Donald Trump brought heat to it with questions about the 2016 and 2020 presidential elections. It has been picked up by leaders in state governments, including state Sen. Doug Mastriano,...
Editorial: Fetterman’s depression care should lead to more mental health openness
“And that was the start of a downward spiral,” U.S. Sen. John Fetterman said. The Braddock Democrat was speaking to CBS journalist Jane Pauley in a “Sunday Morning” interview. The nationally televised interview was just two days after Fetterman’s discharge from Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, where he spent...
Editorial: Make E-ZPass easier for low-income drivers
The Pennsylvania Turnpike was created under a simple concept: Drivers would pay tolls, and the revenue would be used to pay for operations, construction and maintenance. Instead, state lawmakers have used the turnpike to generate money for the government, forcing it since 2007 to borrow $450 million a year for...
Editorial: Norfolk Southern lawsuits are necessary enforcement of railroad’s promises
Norfolk Southern was hit with a lawsuit Thursday. The U.S. Department of Justice filed the suit in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio in reaction to the Feb. 3 train derailment near East Palestine. Some train cars held hazardous materials, including the chemical vinyl chloride. The spilled...
