Editorials category, Page 14
Editorial: Did taxpayers win their bet on legalized gambling?
On Tuesday, Live Casino Pittsburgh in Hempfield had some impressive payouts. It wasn’t because someone bet on black or stayed at the slot machine until a jackpot came up. The awards weren’t paid in poker chips. The prize was $19 million in casino-generated funds distributed to organizations with a public...
Laurels & lances: New store, old story
Laurel: To shopping around. The Greater Pittsburgh region will have a new neighbor in the grocery market. This week, popular New York-based retailer Wegmans announced its first foray into the area. A 115,000-square-foot location is planned for a 13-acre plot in Cranberry, adjacent to the UPMC Lemieux Sports Complex. A...
Editorial: Increasing use of coarse language in seats of power reflects a broader decline
The term “presidential” long has referred to the way a person carries himself and the significance of the office. It also can refer to the people with whom the president surrounds himself. After the rapid evolution of public discourse in recent years — some might convincingly call it devolution —...
Editorial: What’s the diagnosis for Independence Health?
Independence Health is trying to stop some bleeding in 2025. The regional health network continued to show financial losses in 2024. Independence was created in 2023 by stitching together two smaller systems — Excela and Butler. Both had their own challenges to overcome, something many medical facilities were doing after...
Editorial: Is U.S. Steel’s future with Nippon Steel or Cleveland-Cliffs?
Is the future of U.S. Steel at a fork in the road? More than a week after blocking the almost $15 billion sale of U.S. Steel to Japanese-based Nippon Steel, President Joe Biden’s administration made a puzzling last-minute pivot. He could have just left things where they were, with the...
Editorial: What’s up with Fetterman/Trump meeting?
U.S. Sen. John Fetterman is seldom shy about making his feelings known. Whether he is walking the halls of the Russell Senate Office Building in his signature hoodie-and-shorts ensemble or dropping a zinger on social media, Fetterman is unapologetically himself. In a Washington full of blue-suited, red-tied carbon copies who...
Editorial: Social media helps to identify the pitfalls of Pittsburgh Mills potholes
Social media has proven itself to be a way to rally people to a cause. It was part of uprisings in the Middle East. It has been instrumental in civil rights protests. It helps raise money for people in the wake of tragedies as big as weather disasters and as...
Laurels & lances: Bikes & buttons
Laurel: To a set of wheels. A bike is important transportation for many people — especially high school students. But for Elijah Mendez, 17, transportation is more than just getting around town for fun or errands. It’s about service. The Plum High School senior is a Renton Volunteer Fire Department...
Editorial: The surprising grace of a politically divided state House of Representatives
Something remarkable happened Tuesday in Harrisburg. Lawmakers exercised both judgment and grace. It’s shocking. Even more surprising, the world didn’t end because there was no obvious partisan victory. Yes, state Rep. Joanna McClinton, D-Philadelphia, will continue to lead the House of Representatives as speaker for another term. But how that...
Editorial: Homicide numbers show progress but room for improvement
It is important to acknowledge progress when it occurs. Just because it isn’t the Tour de France doesn’t mean you don’t give a kid a high five for staying on his bike all the way down the block without training wheels. Passing a test isn’t getting into Harvard, but it’s...
Editorial: Farmers market and food shuttle could change climate of food desert
Think of a desert, and a specific image comes to mind. It’s sandy and hot and seems endless and empty. But that’s not every desert. There are frozen deserts that still qualify for the definition because of the lack of rainfall. There are deserts landscaped with mountains or those dotted...
Editorial: Republican budget gimmicks: Just say no
The Republican Party’s new majority has become deeply split over the legislative path ahead. Some lawmakers want to prioritize defense, energy and immigration. Others want to focus on taxes first. Still others want everything, all at once, preferably while humiliating their opponents. A more modest agenda would better suit their...
![Editorial: The burden of the [egg] yolk](https://assets-varnish.triblive.com/2025/01/8082086_web1_7973719-362d44dcac9c48bfb97c27a6873d1199.jpg)
Editorial: The burden of the [egg] yolk
The price of eggs was political in 2024. The breakfast staple and baking building block often came into the conversation over the cost of groceries. Vice President-elect JD Vance provided an inadvertent chuckle for some when claiming a carton cost $4 — while standing in front of a display with...
Editorial: What does Biden’s block mean for U.S. Steel?
Pittsburgh is a steel town. Pennsylvania is forged from coal and coke and iron. Maps are peppered with the words “furnace” and “mills.” The history of metal production in the Keystone State began in the 1700s — before America was a nation. Did the end of that identity come Friday...
Editorial: Pittsburgh needs to show urgency in addressing police staffing
On Wednesday, New Orleans was primed for a party. That’s not surprising. The city starts celebrating Mardi Gras on Monday for an event that doesn’t take place until March 4. The French Quarter ratchets up to a fever pitch of music, parades, beignets and alcohol. And so it makes sense...
Editorial: What is Pennsylvania’s political future?
Where does Pennsylvania go from here politically? It can be hard to predict. That’s what makes Pennsylvania a swing state. The Democratic and Republican strongholds are well known, but the fuzzy purple edges where things blur are harder to pin down. Will that continue? Will Pennsylvania continue to be the...
Editorial: Tissue donation is a gift of hope
Organ donations save lives. The story of medicine in Pittsburgh has included huge chapters on the growth of transplant surgery. Livers, hearts, kidneys and lungs — all of these are the critical organs people need to survive. They are not, however, the only donations that can be made when someone...
Editorial: Obamacare is more popular and costlier than ever
A rude surprise could be in store for the millions of Americans who get health coverage through the Affordable Care Act. If Congress doesn’t act next year, enhanced premium subsidies will expire by December, causing enrollees’ payments to increase by more than 75% on average. Officials estimate more than 2...
Editorial: 2024 was a year of questions and conversations
In 2024, our editorials asked questions and started conversations. Pittsburgh being Pittsburgh, our most read editorial came in January, asking why Steelers coach Mike Tomlin had to be so petulant when presented with a very predictable question at a news conference after losing a wild-card playoff game to Buffalo. Other...
Editorial: Marc Fogel’s wrongful detention designation is just the start
It took more than three years, but it finally happened: The State Department has deemed Marc Fogel wrongfully detained. In August 2021, the teacher from Oakmont was returning to Russia to teach at the Anglo-American School of Moscow. He was arrested at Sheremetyevo Airport when he was found in possession...
Laurels & lances: Getting things done
Laurel: To a meaningful name. Congress is not known to get much done — especially not in the last few years when lawmakers have been paralyzed by partisanship. But this month something crawled across the finish line for Southwestern Pennsylvania. In July 2023, U.S. Rep. Summer Lee, D-Swissvale, introduced a...
Editorial: The hope and light of Hanukkah
The symbol of Hanukkah is not what you might think it is. For many, the Jewish festival of lights is most identified with a menorah — a branch of flames atop candles or cups of oil. But what the uninitiated might mistake for a menorah is really a hanukkiah. A...
Editorial: Share the special glow of Christmas
Christmas trees are like snowflakes. No two are alike. Some are made of aluminum and plastic. They might be put up on Black Friday — maybe even earlier in November. Some are real trees bought from parking lots outside grocery stores or fire stations. Some were cut fresh from a...
Editorial: Putin’s weaker than he looks. Seize the opportunity
Russian President Vladimir Putin has sought to project an image of economic strength while prosecuting the war in Ukraine, as if he could easily outlast the West’s efforts to counter his aggression. If President-elect Donald Trump and other Western leaders want to negotiate a prudent peace deal, they shouldn’t buy...
Editorial: Self-exclusion is a cry for help
The state does a lot of things to keep people safe. It creates laws about domestic violence. It paints lines on roads. It makes sure the water is clean, the ground is unpolluted and the air is clear. In many cases, the state keeps people safe from themselves. Pennsylvania governs...
