Op/Ed: Tying Restore PA to fracking is a bad idea

By Ginny Kerslake, Special To The Times
Ginny Kerslake
Gov. Tom Wolf’s Restore PA is back! It’s an infrastructure plan that would provide funding for critical projects such as stormwater mitigation, high speed internet access for communities without it, superfund cleanup and combating blight. It is paid for with a severance tax placed on drillers for the amount of gas they extract. What’s not...
Iowa? New Hampshire? How about Pennsylvania being first for a change?

By Mike McGann, Editor, The Times
So….does anyone know the outcome of the Iowa Caucus?
In truth, does it actually matter?
Which leads to this point: it’s time for Iowa and, frankly, New Hampshire, to take a back seat on this first-in the nation primary/caucus crap.
Truthfully, a state that often finds itself with a meaningless primary should really be first.
Pennsylvania.
Hey, it is where America...
Op/Ed: What do American farmers and asylum detainees have in common? Suicide.

By Sandra Malamed R.N., M.S., Special To The Times
Sandra Malamed R.N., M.S.
Deaths of despair do not discriminate. Rising numbers of deaths by suicide have been reported in American farmers. The prevalence of suicide deaths of migrants in detention is equally troubling. Commonalities of suicide risk factors are easily found in the two groups.
According to the CDC, suicide rates in American farmers...
We The People are We The Jury when it comes to impeachment

By Mike McGann, Editor, The Times
Today, for just the third time in U.S. history, an impeachment trial of the President of the United States begins.
While the pundits will go on endlessly about the 100 U.S. Senators who will decide President Donald J. Trump’s fate, there is a greater truth.
We — the American people — are the jury. You have a duty to watch if possible, catch up and stay informed...
The joy (not) of paying the GOP tax

By Mike McGann, Editor, The Times
Say what you will about Donald Trump, but a lot of what either thrills or angers folks is decades in the making. Essentially, Republicans being Republicans.
For me, personally, that means grabbing money from me and my family and cheerfully reassigning it to wealthy people and corporations. Until I recently did the math, though, I had no idea how bad those numbers were...
The end of shared truth starts with the death of local news

By Mike McGann, Editor, The Times
Hopefully, everyone survived Thanksgiving without finding themselves in a political tussle with friends and family.
While much is wrong with our world and country, it is important to remember the things we all share, such as the love of friends and family, are something we all cherish. We all want to be financially secure, safe, healthy and have a true purpose in life....
Letter: Pelosi’s drug pricing plan will hurt innovation and access

To the Editor:
For people living with chronic illness, daily life can be excruciatingly difficult. But if your child is the one suffering, like my daughter who has POTS, gastroparesis, and celiac disease, life is often challenging because you feel useless. No parent wants to feel like they cannot help their child.
Fortunately, our medical researchers are finding new treatments every day. Progress is...
Letter: Houlahan puts party over country on impeachment

To The Editor,
Congresswomen Chrissy Houlahan has joined all but two of her fellow Democrats by voting yes on the resolution to “formally” start an impeachment inquiry into the President of the United States.
Once again, Chrissy Houlahan has placed party over the people by blindly following Congressman Adam Schiff and Speaker Nancy Pelosi down the “impeachment” rabbit hole.
...