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Featured Commentary category, Page 108

Pope Francis, first Latin American pontiff, dies at 88
S.E. Cupp: Voters, not establishment, standing in Sanders’ way
The socialist emperor of Vermont has no clothes. The feverish anti- establishment antipathy that’s helped fuel Bernie Sanders’ presidential ambitions over the past few years has relied on a belief that the system (what system? every system) has been rigged against him. From Wall Street to drug companies, from the Democratic...
Nathan Picarsic & Emily de La Bruyère: China, coronavirus & threat of integration
Last month, the Trump administration considered rescinding CFM International’s export license to China. A General Electric joint venture, CFM has provided the Chinese airline industry with engines since the 1980s. This decades-old partnership is a lucrative one: In 2017, China Eastern Airline’s orders from CFM totaled $3.2 billion. The partnership...
Russell Redding: After $3 billion on horse racing, Pa. shifts priorities
A budget is really a list of priorities. In our own homes we spend the most money on necessities like housing, food and transportation, and we spend less on the special things that are still important to us, such as pets or vacations. It’s the same for the state budget:...
Walter Williams: Locusts & climate change in Africa
Here are a few headlines about an African tragedy: “Africa’s Worst Locust Plague in Decades Threatens Millions” (The Wall Street Journal), “‘Unprecedented’ Locust Invasion Approaches Full-Blown Crisis” (Scientific American), “Somalia Declares Locust Outbreak a ‘National Emergency’” (The National) and “UN Calls for International Action on East Africa Locust Outbreak” (Bloomberg...
Donald Boudreaux: The most important two-letter word in the English language
A civilizing feature of any society is the right to say “no.” Indeed, societies can be usefully ranked from good to bad according to the respect that they accord to individuals’ right to say “no” to those who would take their property. The importance of being able to say “no”...
Timothy Lydon: Amazon & the weakening of community
The most salient and lasting reason to not support Amazon is that it weakens your community. The virtue of commerce is that it brings you in contact with your fellow citizens. The rewarding nature of these exchanges cannot be felt by proxy. On the day Bari Weiss’ book “How to...
Pat Buchanan: Establishment’s ultimatum — scuttle Bernie
After Joe Biden’s blowout victory in South Carolina Saturday and the swift withdrawal of Tom Steyer, “Mayor Pete” Buttigieg and Sen. Amy Klobuchar, Super Tuesday is the decisive day of the race for the Democratic nomination. Fourteen states — including California and Texas and delegate-rich Colorado, North Carolina and Virginia...
Dr. Carol J. Fox: How to prevent the spread and protect our community against coronavirus
Coronavirus — specifically the strain that causes covid-19 — has dominated our news cycles in recent days. We learn daily of increasing numbers of individuals who have been infected. At this writing, there are only two presumed positive cases in Pennsylvania, but we do need to be prepared for the...
Jonah Goldberg: Bernie gives too much credit to authoritarianism
Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, the front-runner for the Democratic nomination for president, is praised by his admirers for being consistent. He’s been saying the same things for 40 years, they explain — as if this is an obvious compliment. I think that’s kind of weird. But I also like it...
Samir Lakhani: The simple power of soap
Sometimes the simplest acts make the biggest impact. Take handwashing with soap. It’s proven by researchers to reduce the presence of harmful bacteria by 92%, according to researchers at the National Institute of Health. I run a Pittsburgh-based nonprofit charity called Eco-Soap Bank — and our sole mission is to...
Zachary Yost: When will Pennsylvanians stop being bilked for milk?
Over 200 years ago, the great Scottish economist Adam Smith warned: “People of the same trade seldom meet together, even for merriment and diversion, but the conversation ends in a conspiracy against the public, or in some contrivance to raise prices.” Although Smith wrote these words so long ago, he...
Colin McNickle: Pa.’s gambling dichotomy
The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board reports that total gambling revenues increased by 4.5% in 2019 over 2018. The gain did not reflect any increase in the number of people playing traditional slot machines but rather the expansion of gaming options, scholars at the Allegheny Institute for Public Policy note. However,...
Philip Ameris: Don’t expect labor’s endorsement after opposing blue-collar jobs
Pennsylvania’s battleground status draws attention to endorsements ranging from the presidential to the local level. The Allegheny-Fayette Central Labor Council, of which the Western Pennsylvania Laborers’ District Council is an affiliate, recently announced its statewide endorsements. In House District 34, the council endorsed Chris Roland, the Democratic challenger to Democratic...
Peter Morici: Trump the moderate in 2020
Washington has a way of capturing presidents more than they conquer its bureaucracy — in current parlance, President Trump has become an alligator more than he has drained the swamp. Whether it’s Sanders, Warren, Klobuchar, Buttigieg, Bloomberg or Biden, the country will get a choice between a defender of the...
Drew Johnson: America shows how to fight climate change without regulation
Speaking at the United Nations in December, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi drew cheers by saying the United States was “still in” the Paris climate agreement. Green activists applauded Pelosi’s defense of the international climate accord, which President Trump has vowed to exit. They claim remaining in the Paris Agreement will...
John Stossel: Bloomberg the nanny
Good for Mike Bloomberg. During his first debate, he slammed Bernie Sanders by saying: “We’re not going to throw out capitalism. We tried that. Other countries tried that. It was called communism, and it just didn’t work!” Exactly right. It’s safe to say Bloomberg is not a communist. I wonder...
Walter Williams: Two sides to ‘stop, question & frisk’
Before former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg threw his hat into the 2020 presidential race, he defended the New York Police Department’s use of “stop, question and frisk” policing. At a U.S. Naval Academy’s 2019 Leadership Conference, Bloomberg said, “We focused on keeping kids from going through the correctional...
Jonah Goldberg: Why aren’t Democrats issuing a Sanders alert?
In “Jaws 2,” Roy Scheider reprises his role as police Chief Brody, the landlubber lawman forced to battle a great white shark. He’s convinced there’s another beast out there, but he can’t persuade anyone who matters. “Look at this. That’s a shark,” says Brody, waving a grainy underwater photo at...
Thomas Palley: Bernie Sanders — nothing to fear but fear itself
“The only thing we have to fear is fear itself.” Eighty-seven years ago, those were the words of Franklin Delano Roosevelt in his 1933 inaugural speech. Today, they resonate with Sen. Bernie Sanders’ presidential campaign, which confronts a barrage of attacks aimed at frightening away voters. Fear is the enemy...
Jonah Goldberg: Bernie Sanders too often sees only what he wants to see
Former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who did not have a great performance in Wednesday’s Democratic debate, nevertheless said something interesting. “We’re not going to throw out capitalism,” Bloomberg said. “We tried. Other countries tried that. It was called communism, and it just didn’t work.” I’m unclear on when...
Eric Falk: 2020 may be one of our most important elections
Elections, particularly for such high-profile offices as president, governor, and United States senator and congressman, are usually an interesting combination of highly contested and yet innocuous affairs. Candidates try to sharply draw differences between themselves and try to “activate” their respective bases, motivating them for the necessary turnout. Yet when...
S.E. Cupp: On breastfeeding and Michael Bloomberg
He may have hoped his billions would speak louder than his baggage, but Michael Bloomberg has experienced a cavalcade of bad press over the past two weeks that should make him a painfully hideous choice for any voter, but Democrats in particular. There’s his support of stop-and-frisk, an anti-crime policy...
Matthew Brouillette: The truth behind the turnpike nightmare
It’s like a recurring bad dream. A new year, a new Pennsylvania Turnpike toll hike. Now, driving the length of the highway costs upwards of $65.70 — not counting the return trip. Only, this nightmare is real. We know the usual suspects: infrastructure needs, mandates that the turnpike fund mass...
Colin McNickle: Legislature must act to salvage PASSHE
Problems continue to grow worse for the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education (PASSHE). And there remains little doubt that dramatic changes are needed at several of the universities in the 14-school system, says a scholar at the Allegheny Institute for Public Policy. “It is time for the Legislature and...
Rev. Sandra Strauss: Lawmakers should clamp down on illegal gambling
There is no question that Pennsylvania is under siege from an out-of-control explosion of illegal gambling that is occurring in gas stations, convenience stores, corner stores and pizza parlors where teens gather. Currently, there are at least 15,000 so-called “skilled games” machines in operation in communities across the state. Despite...


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