I’m on Amtrak’s Pennsylvanian traveling from Philadelphia to Pittsburgh to check out the legacy of the last Romanian Princess. Arranging this trip was almost as difficult as planning a trip to Romania. Figuring out how to get to Ellwood City, Pennsylvania from Pittsburgh was a challenge. Ellwood City is where […]
Paul Davis: U.S. military help guard the southern border
As a proud veteran and retired Defense Department (DOD) civilian employee, I’m pleased to see the American military deployed on the southern border. For the last four years, the porous border has allowed the illegal entry of so many drug traffickers, criminals and terrorists that it has become a serious […]
Stephen F. Gambescia: RFK — our next consumer movement maverick?
The pushback against Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s nomination to lead and direct the U.S. Health and Human Services agency fails the heuristic test but makes sense when influencers prioritize political circumstances over the fundamental steps we should follow in making healthcare and public health policies: 1) making intellectually honest inquiries […]
Paul Rumley: Combining precincts is a disservice to the voters
I recently attended a Delaware County Council meeting in which the Director of Elections, Mr. James Allen, presented a plan to consolidate precincts within the County. Mr. Allen made a big deal of the fact that by doing so, the County would save $100,000 per year. I had tried to […]
John Rossi: Eighty years of mayoral history
For eighty-two years, I either lived in Philadelphia or worked there. Some of my fondest memories of living in the city included watching the doings of its mayors. When my friends asked why, I gave H.L. Mencken’s reason for enjoying politics: “Why do people go to zoos?” Perhaps Philadelphia didn’t […]
Guy Ciarrocchi: They’re still failing our kids — and taxpayers, too
The NAEP 2024 national report card on schools is out. I wish I didn’t have to write this column. I wish that there was good news to report on public schools in Pennsylvania. But wishes aren’t reality. Tragically, the scores are that bad. Here are the lowlights. Only 41 percent […]
Ben Mannes: DOGE, USAID, and the money behind progressive prosecutors
Recent disclosures by the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) have exposed systemic fraud and abuse within the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), with billions of taxpayer dollars going to shady nonprofits for spurious foreign projects each year. A particularly troubling aspect of these revelations involves the funding of organizations […]
Christine Flowers: Nuance on immigration falls by the wayside in current debate
I was just at a round table where we discussed, in the most civilized manner possible, the immigration controversy. Everyone in the conversation liked and respected each other, and listened to the opinions, sometimes quite diverse, from those at the other end of the philosophical spectrum. Some were focused on […]
Michael Thomas Leibrandt: We need to protect Philadelphia’s historic treasures
Every city has those historical treasures. Those sacred items that are on display for all to see, those great stories that are passed down through the generations. Philadelphia has as much of that sacred, holy architecture as anywhere in America , notably in Gloria Dei Old Swedes Church. Built between 1698 and 1700, Gloria […]
Beth Ann Rosica: Despite federal order, Pennsylvania may continue to allow boys to compete in girls’ sports
Pennsylvania is signaling it may not comply with President Trump’s recent executive order aimed at preventing boys from playing in girl’s sports, according to a statement sent to a local school district. Trump signed the “Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports” executive order earlier this month, surrounded by elated female […]