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Other voices: Heed lessons of Epstein scandal

Our Opinion

Donald Trump has thrived on conspiracy theories – “birtherist” lies that Barack Obama was born outside the US; the lunacies of the Q-Anon movement; false claims that the 2020 election was stolen from him. All centred on the idea that the “deep state” was lying to, and thus cheating, ordinary people. Mr Trump was their tribune. It’s hard not to feel schadenfreude now that he’s at the sharp end of a theory that he at times encouraged and allies eagerly pushed: claims that the prison death of the paedophile Jeffrey Epstein might not be suicide after all, and that wealthy and ...

Creating memories

Local Commentaries

Last weekend my family and I traveled south for my granddaughter’s wedding. She married a man she met at PSU. He grew up south of Pittsburgh. They have dated more than six years. When she graduated, he followed her to Texas while she went to Texas A&M Veterinary School. He worked in Houston, while she went to school. Carly chose to honor family memories during her wedding. She chose to wear my wedding gown which I walked down the aisle in more than 58 years ago. She had it professionally cleaned to whiten it. Her mother also wore the same dress more than 30 years ago. For pictures ...

Our opinion: Labor Department oversight necessary

Our Opinion

Requiring a school-approved work permit for teens between the ages of 14 and 17 seems like an antiquated notion halfway through the 2020s. In addition to a work permit signed by a school, current state law requires a parent or guardian to provide a written statement that the teen is able to work. Rep. Dan Moul, R-Gettysburg, wants to end the school approval for a work permit and instead let the statement of a parent or guardian provide authority for a teen who wants to enter the workforce. Instead of a work permit, Moul proposes requiring a written statement from the youth’s parents ...

Rounding Third: Caterwauling in the great outdoors

Local Commentaries

Finian, our Maine Coon cat, longs to be outdoors. He sits in the windows staring at the birds, the occasional chipmunk, and the resident bunny family. He paces, his huge furry tail swishing with urgency – the same swishing he displays as mealtime approaches. We have to work at keeping him safely indoors. Finian is not a warm and fuzzy personality. He’s loyal, just not cozy. He wants to be where I am, just not on me. When I head to the kitchen to prepare dinner, he follows. He follows me to bed at night, requiring five minutes of head and neck scratching before curling up behind my ...

Our opinion: Rapp’s right, budget bill is lacking

Our Opinion

On the surface it would seem the state House of Representatives’ passing a state budget proposal and moving the process to the state Senate is a step forward. But we have to agree with state Rep. Kathy Rapp, R-Warren, who disagreed with both the amount of time Republicans were given to review the proposal as well as undecided issues that make the House plan essentially useless. Rapp’s first criticism is purely political. The party in the minority often gets short-shrift in the budget-making process. Republicans in the New York state Legislature levy the same complaint year ...

Our opinion: McCormick impresses on energy

Our Opinion

We are impressed with the leadership U.S. Sen. David McCormick, R-Pittsburgh, is demonstrating on an issue whose importance our editorials frequently emphasize. McCormick, in only his first year as a senator, organized an energy summit this past week that unveiled vital, private-sector investment in a broad variety of energy-related projects. The investments include natural gas — a sector of energy development that we are fortunate to see create jobs for families and yield revenue for communities throughout our region. It also includes hydroelectric power — a renewable source of ...