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Pope Francis, first Latin American pontiff, dies at 88
Editorial: How to cut U.S. drug prices without hurting innovation
The price of Wegovy, Novo Nordisk’s blockbuster weight-loss drug, is $1,349 a month in the U.S.; in Germany, it’s $328. The U.S. price for Keytruda, a cancer treatment, is $191,000 a year; in Japan, it’s $44,000. The U.S. pays three times more for branded prescription drugs, on average, than other...
Editorial: Why do some bills get attention in Harrisburg?
Is there nothing that can happen in Harrisburg without division? On Tuesday, we wrote about two bills wending their way through the Legislature. In the Senate, Republicans passed a bill banning transgender athletes in K-12 or collegiate sports within the state. In the House, Democrats passed a bill supporting legalization...
Editorial: Rite Aid closing leaves hole in marketplace
If you have been in a Rite Aid in recent months, the news of store closings was probably not a surprise. Many shelves are barely stocked. Outside of the pharmacy, the stores often have a ghost-town appearance. So when the company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy this month and began...
Laurels & lances: Advocacy & asphalt
Laurel: To taking steps. Bill Russell and Jim Rieker are among the roughly 500,000 people who have survived bladder cancer. The numbers for doing so are good. The five-year survival rate for bladder cancer is about 77%. For cases identified when the disease is still contained only to the bladder,...
Editorial: In red and blue Pennsylvania, primaries matter more than ever
Elections follow a certain rhythm. Presidential years are followed by municipal years where the ballots are filled with local, school board and county races. Then there are the midterms, in which state and federal lawmakers are elected. In Pennsylvania, that’s also a gubernatorial year. Then it goes back to more...
Editorial: Will investing in airports pay off for Southwestern Pennsylvania?
Southwestern Pennsylvania has some extensive work being done on airports. The larger is the Terminal Modernization Program at Pittsburgh International Airport. Originally proposed in 2017, it had a projected price tag of $1.1 billion. Construction began in 2021. Costs are now about $1.7 billion. In a tour Tuesday, airport officials...
Editorial: Penn State needs to be open about closing campuses
Penn State leaders are proposing the shuttering of seven Commonwealth Campuses. The idea has been on the table since February. It would be brought up in May, it was suggested. But the May meeting of the board of trustees falls in a sweet spot between the annual Blue-White Game at...
Editorial: Divided legislature means pointless bills
The great frustration of a divided legislature is how it works so hard to stay in exactly the same place. Having a governor of a different party than the lawmakers is a challenge, but it still allows both sides to do their jobs. Legislators pass a law or decide on...
Editorial: Pope Leo XIV is symbol of hope in a world of suffering
Our world needs symbols of hope, compassion and something greater than the struggles of this life. For that reason, we believe so many people, not just Roman Catholics, pay great attention to the selection of a new pope, in the belief that faith, even a faith they may not share,...
Editorial: What is happening with John Fetterman?
U.S. Sen. John Fetterman, D-Braddock, does not seem pleased with scrutiny over his behavior. It hasn’t been about his language processing in the wake of his 2022 stroke. It hasn’t been about the depression that saw him hospitalized in 2023. It isn’t about his quirky fashion choices or even his...
Laurels & lances: Hoping, paying & reopening
Laurel: To not giving up. Cherrie Mahan, 8, was last seen at a Winfield bus stop in February 1985. Forty years later, although Cherrie has been legally declared dead, there is still a search for answers in her case. Steve Ridge, a private investigator from Iowa, has stepped up with...
Editorial: Westmoreland County crisis teams address critical need
There might be no single issue in the United States that affects more areas than mental health problems. They can be caused by physical health issues, such as chronic pain or a dire diagnosis. But they also can exacerbate those issues as depression or anxiety can delay treatment or interfere...
Editorial: Voter ID compromise would be ideal but only if parties let it be
Should a voter be required to prove identity to cast a ballot? It’s a question that has been argued in Pennsylvania for years — just like it has in other states. A recent Spotlight PA and Votebeat article looked at how the partisan divide on the issue has narrowed over...
Editorial: Transparency versus security over arson at governor’s residence
Journalists are big fans of transparency. We like the windows of information open and the lights of access turned on. If government is doing something, we think the people should be able to know about who is paying for it, who proposed it, who benefits from it, and who voted...
Editorial: Virginia Giuffre’s crusade against Jeffrey Epstein changed how we listen to survivors
Virginia Giuffre, one of Jeffrey Epstein’s most outspoken victims, died by suicide late last month at the age of 41. In 2015, Giuffre was the first Epstein victim to go public about the sexual abuse and forced participation in a sex-trafficking ring allegedly led by Epstein and his girlfriend, Ghislaine...
Editorial: PBS, NPR and being the helpers Mister Rogers talked about
After any tragedy or disaster, it is a virtual guarantee that someone will quote Fred Rogers. The man behind “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood” was known for his lifelong efforts to help children make sense out of what happened around them, from how crayons were made to having big feelings. Among those...
Editorial: Denning’s downfall is object lesson for other officers
Fifteen months. That is how long Shawn Denning, 44, of Delmont will spend in a federal prison. The former Greensburg police chief was sentenced Thursday on charges of conspiracy to distribute and possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine and cocaine. Perhaps U.S. District Judge Cathy Bissoon was being ironic in...
Editorial: Pet owners suffered double loss from shocking charges
Pets are not just animals that live in our homes. For many people, their cats and dogs, birds and ferrets and other critters are a part of the family. There are 59.8 million American homes with at least one pet, according to the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA). And just...
Editorial: What’s up with Westmoreland County Prison numbers?
Westmoreland County Prison’s population has been on the rise. The jail has a capacity of 720. Last week, there were 708 inmates. It isn’t an anomalous spike. The March population averaged 695 inmates. That was up 11% from 2024. More inmates are being admitted than released. This isn’t a universal...
Editorial: What can Pittsburgh learn from Green Bay and the NFL Draft?
Hosting a large sporting event can be a shiny brass ring that cities are eager to grasp. Sometimes it’s scored by merit. If your baseball team makes it to October, your city could be home to the World Series. Check off opponents along the way, and the puck could drop...
Editorial: The Webb Telescope is making incredible discoveries. It may go dark
Even in the depths of space, there’s no escape from politics. The $10 billion James Webb Space Telescope is parked 1 million miles away. In the nearly three years since it became operational, “Webb,” as it’s called, has made some incredible findings. Webb uses infrared scanning to show how stars...
Editorial: Data centers’ power usage must be monitored and managed
Computer data exists in a series of electronic blips. They are the 1s and 0s of a code that compiles, catalogs and categorizes billions of pieces of information. Storing information physically takes up a lot of space. Think about how much room your cassette tapes, compact discs, DVDs, VHS tapes,...
Editorial: PennDOT should up the speed on completing Route 356 property purchases
Route 356 in Buffalo Township sees lots of traffic. It also sees a number of crashes. To address that, PennDOT believes the best solution is to widen the road. The agency plans to take the two existing lanes and bump them up to five. The project is projected to cost...
Lori Falce: Want women to have kids? Value motherhood more
If the Trump administration wants to encourage women to increase the birthrate in America, there are ways to do it. We could create a culture that values women’s decisions to have a family. That might be what proposals being bandied about are intended to do. A $5,000 cash bonus to...
Laurels & lances: AI and air
Laurel: To new technology. Everyone is talking about artificial intelligence and its impact on various industries. We know it can help write letters for offices and chat with customers on a website. It can help personalize marketing materials, automate manufacturing and protect information. But it also can help in public...


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