Pundits - 2007


This page was last updated on February 9, 2008.


 
Beaver County Times Pittsburgh Tribune-Review
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Lame ducks

This section covers editorials, letters to the editor, opinion columns, and faux press releases on politician web sites.  Do not assume I agree with an editorial or other op-ed piece just because I don’t publish a critique.

I also submit letters to the editor.  There are limitations of that approach, however, and they include:

  • Out of necessity, newspapers place a limit on letter size.  For example, the Beaver County Times has a limit of 300 words.  Most other newspapers have a lower limit.  The problem with the limit is that thorough discussion of a topic is tough to do in 300 words or less.

  • There is no guarantee the newspaper will publish your letter.

  • Newspapers occasionally edit significant content in your letter.

  • Some newspapers limit the number of your letters they will publish in a given period of time.  For example, I believe the Beaver County Times has a limit of 12 letters per year.  I believe other papers have lower limits.

  • The papers generally provide the letter title, and sometimes the title is misleading.

 

For calendar year 2006 critiques, please go to Pundits 2006.

For calendar year 2005 critiques, please go to Pundits 2005.

For calendar year 2004 critiques, please go to Pundits 2004.

 

Beaver County Times

Editorials
A disservice September 24, 2007  
Reality check September 23, 2007  
Debatable September 21, 2007  
Changes September 20, 2007  
Too small September 18, 2007  
Bad timing September 17, 2007  
Hypocrites September 17, 2007  
Bush’s pride September 13, 2007  
Damage done September 13, 2007  
Six years and counting September 11, 2007  
Worth a look September 9, 2007  
Wait and see September 5, 2007  
Warm-up act September 5, 2007  
PHEAA’s excess September 4, 2007  
Crisis stage September 3, 2007  
Local control September 2, 2007  
From bad to worse August 28, 2007  
No contest August 27, 2007  
Unreal world August 27, 2007  
Zero tolerance August 23, 2007  
Critical mass August 22, 2007  
Military’s state August 20, 2007  
Bottom line August 19, 2007  
Great divide August 17, 2007  
Bleeped out August 15, 2007  
Welfare queens August 14, 2007  
Smoky City August 9, 2007  
One factor August 8, 2007  
Tax haven August 8, 2007  
Bitter harvest August 7, 2007  
Face time August 6, 2007  
Tough choices August 3, 2007  
Banned August 1, 2007  
Mean spirited July 29, 2007  
Revenue gap July 29, 2007  
No credibility July 24, 2007  
Freedom isn’t free July 22, 2007  
Poor excuses July 19, 2007  
Stiffed July 15, 2007  
The real issue July 15, 2007  
Legal technicality July 11, 2007  
Silver lining July 10, 2007  
Delicious July 9, 2007  
No laughing matter July 9, 2007  
Big difference July 8, 2007  
Life and death July 8, 2007  
Obvious and ominous July 5, 2007  
Business as usual July 4, 2007  
A reminder July 3, 2007  
Pathetic July 3, 2007  
Pittsburgh, Alabama? July 2, 2007  
Smoking ban July 2, 2007  
Big Brother? July 1, 2007  
Veil of secrecy July 1, 2007  
Fuel bill June 29, 2007  
Gas junkies June 27, 2007  
Outside factors June 25, 2007  
Keeping up June 24, 2007  
Unfair burden June 22, 2007  
Zero tolerance June 22, 2007  
Political paralysis June 21, 2007  
No more free rides June 18, 2007  
Cleaning the air June 15, 2007  
Job search June 8, 2007  
Rule of law June 8, 2007  
Sad, but true June 7, 2007  
Two options June 6, 2007  
Wasted opportunity June 6, 2007  
You, too June 5, 2007  
Admission of failure June 4, 2007  
Snuffed out June 4, 2007  
No reason for hope June 3, 2007  
Political void May 31, 2007  
Serving youth May 31, 2007  
Disaster recipe May 30, 2007  
Quit stalling May 29, 2007  
Fading away May 28, 2007  
Silly May 28, 2007  
Building a future May 27, 2007  
Matter of trust May 27, 2007  
Civil liberties May 23, 2007  
Failing grade May 22, 2007  
Smokey state May 21, 2007  
Mere words May 20, 2007  
Two-way street May 20, 2007  
Flip-flop May 18, 2007  
Right track May 18, 2007  
Hooked May 16, 2007  
Tough questions May 15, 2007  
Be prepared May 14, 2007  
Mutual interests May 14, 2007  
All is not well May 13, 2007  
Get real May 13, 2007  
No defense May 10, 2007  
Alarm bells May 9, 2007  
Doing harm May 8, 2007  
Thought police May 8, 2007  
Appointed role May 7, 2007  
Costly milestone May 7, 2007  
Skewered May 7, 2007  
No way out May 6, 2007  
Inertia May 3, 2007  
Lost war May 2, 2007  
All for one May 1, 2007  
Amnesia April 27, 2007  
Walled in April 27, 2007  
Paying as we go April 26, 2007  
Fatal flaws April 24, 2007  
Tough sell April 24, 2007  
Free-fire zone April 23, 2007  
Shades of gray April 22, 2007  
Perception and reality April 20, 2007  
Don’t confuse us April 19, 2007  
So it goes April 19, 2007  
Generation gap April 18, 2007  
Railroaded April 18, 2007  
Civilized? April 17, 2007  
Power failure April 13, 2007  
Falling apart April 12, 2007  
Hypocrites April 12, 2007  
Bad move April 11, 2007  
Replay March 25, 2007  
Missing March 23, 2007  
Combat ready March 21, 2007  
Thin ice March 16, 2007  
Wrong turn March 16, 2007  
Do tell March 15, 2007  
Right fight March 15, 2007  
Debtor nation March 12, 2007  
A drop in the bucket March 11, 2007  
Guard duty March 11, 2007  
Listen up March 9, 2007  
Supporting the troops? March 9, 2007  
Great divide March 8, 2007  
A matter of degrees March 7, 2007  
Middle ground March 7, 2007  
Been there March 6, 2007  
National disgrace March 6, 2007  
Anything goes March 4, 2007  
Wise words March 4, 2007  
Finally March 2, 2007  
In poor health March 2, 2007  
Security risks March 1, 2007  
A real bargain February 28, 2007  
Trapped February 26, 2007  
Derailed February 25, 2007  
Over here February 25, 2007  
Safe landing February 25, 2007  
Test results February 23, 2007  
Upping the ante February 23, 2007  
Bitter harvest February 21, 2007  
Excuses, excuses February 20, 2007  
Nanny state February 20, 2007  
Those who don’t serve February 19, 2007  
True reform February 18, 2007  
First step February 15, 2007  
Go slowly February 15, 2007  
Survey says smoking ban popular February 15, 2007  
Momentum builds for universal health care February 13, 2007  
Chump change February 12, 2007  
Convention center’s closing February 12, 2007  
Wage gap February 11, 2007  
Debate over federal budget February 9, 2007  
No free ride February 7, 2007  
Shared sacrifice February 7, 2007  
No quick fix February 6, 2007  
Report leaves little doubt February 6, 2007  
Future shock January 31, 2007  
World leader January 30, 2007  
Fool’s paradise January 28, 2007  
Tough sell January 28, 2007  
Mere words January 26, 2007  
Americans and Congress January 25, 2007  
Smoked out January 25, 2007  
Rendell’s plan January 22, 2007  
Time to pay up January 21, 2007  
College break January 18, 2007  
Federal agents should seek court approval January 18, 2007  
It makes sense January 17, 2007  
Open options January 17, 2007  
A ban too far? January 11, 2007  
Bush signing statement January 11, 2007  
Bush’s troop surge January 10, 2007  
Start U.S. up January 10, 2007  
Enough is enough January 7, 2007  
Blame game January 4, 2007  
Death of a tyrant January 3, 2007  
Right move January 1, 2007  
     
Letters to the editor Author  
Look at income, not just taxes Nick Bilotto November 2, 2007
Hitting the most vulnerable Velma Berger October 29, 2007
Stop complaining Jeffrey Finch October 28, 2007
Stark was right on Bush David Matthews October 28, 2007
Congratulations, GOP Art Refice October 25, 2007
Paying for health care for all Michael Torbic October 22, 2007
Democrats to pay for failures Stevan Drobac October 21, 2007
No sense of shame William Horter October 19, 2007
Nation can afford SCHIP Marie Barkovic October 17, 2007
Override Bush’s SCHIP veto Bruce Simmeth October 11, 2007
Reduce our dependence on oil Gilda De Ferrari October 10, 2007
We must live with war daily Velma Berger October 9, 2007
A case of misplaced outrage Sandra Hood October 9, 2007
Brilliant Jonas Rushman October 7, 2007
Speak up, Bush lovers Carol Tritinger October 7, 2007
Undoing Bush’s damage Tom Finch October 7, 2007
Bush’s SCHIP veto deplorable Sean Krupa October 7, 2007
Next president’s duties J. Tomaszewski October 7, 2007
What has Bush accomplished? James Zedak October 4, 2007
No light at the end of this tunnel Jane Delanko September 30, 2007
Bill boosts bargaining rights Chuck Zielinske September 30, 2007
Bush’s bullish behavior Art Refice September 28, 2007
Their sins are real N. Vaccarelli September 28, 2007
Respect is earned Natalie Baker September 27, 2007
Spinning a lousy economy Michael McGee September 26, 2007
Could it be … Angie O’Dell September 26, 2007
A modern form of lynching Jewel Robertson September 26, 2007
Are we not deserving? Julie Bell September 25, 2007
Don’t listen to the spin Vince Avedon September 21, 2007
Too big for their britches William Ralston September 21, 2007
Giuliani is no bargain Matthew Maljevec September 20, 2007
Beef up the U.S. military Ed Hum September 19, 2007
Tick, tick, tick, tick, tick Velma Berger September 18, 2007
Bush can’t leave soon enough Arthur Brown September 18, 2007
Disillusioned with both parties Carl Dennis September 16, 2007
Blame the GOP for NAFTA Alex Yawor September 13, 2007
Liberals damaging America? William Alexander September 12, 2007
About the district’s marquee Michelle Long September 11, 2007
Liberals damaging America Paul Kahr September 10, 2007
Rich are getting richer J. Tomaszewski September 10, 2007
Go after real crimes K. Ferrick-Roman September 9, 2007
Ills of second-hand smoke Steve Rodich September 9, 2007
End the three-ring circus Larney Santry September 7, 2007
Snow’s money crunch David Matthews September 6, 2007
Pride felled Gonzales James Nagy September 2, 2007
Bring troops home now Velma Berger August 31, 2007
SUVs are a road menace Rebecca Gimeno August 29, 2007
Bush ignores workplace safety Robert Schmetzer August 28, 2007
The hypocrisy of the right Stephen Kislock August 26, 2007
Where’s help for us? Donna Vickodil August 26, 2007
A valorous adventure James Nagy August 24, 2007
Paging Al Gore Mechelle Poling August 24, 2007
Find another way to fund CHIP Stuart Shapiro August 23, 2007
Playing God Nikola Drobac August 19, 2007
Who is the enemy? Bill White August 19, 2007
Altmire a clone of Hart Stephen Kislock August 15, 2007
There is no vacation from war Velma Berger August 13, 2007
Casey and Altmire caved in Ian Thompson August 9, 2007
Teach students capitalism Nikola Drobac August 8, 2007
Real truth on health care William Horter August 7, 2007
Proud to be a Democrat Tom Finch August 5, 2007
Typical of a Democrat Dan Reeping August 1, 2007
Simple truth James Nagy July 18, 2007
Say ‘no’ to rubber stamp Ian Thompson July 17, 2007
Many ways to back the troops Velma Berger July 12, 2007
Blame Rendell for budget mess Jeff Harris July 8, 2007
Repeating the big lie Stephen Kislock July 8, 2007
GOP has ruined the nation Matthew Maljevec July 8, 2007
Another abuse of power Ian Thompson July 5, 2007
Outsourcing America Robert Schmetzer July 3, 2007
‘Bush supports slave labor’ William Horter June 28, 2007
‘Impeach the president’ Carol Tritinger June 27, 2007
‘Aliquippa needs new bridge’ Brandon Williams June 27, 2007
‘United State [sic] empire’ James Nagy June 26, 2007
No exemptions to smoking ban Steve Rodich June 25, 2007
Address mass transit needs Michael Hankinson June 24, 2007
School aides treated shabbily Vivian Jackson June 21, 2007
Falwell’s bitter legacy Lonzie Cox June 20, 2007
Let smokers fund health care Eric Craft June 20, 2007
We need national health care Robert Schmetzer June 20, 2007
War profiteer William Smith June 20, 2007
Blame conservatives for decay Daniel Bosh June 19, 2007
Selective recall Vince Avedon June 17, 2007
Let military fund JROTC William Alexander June 10, 2007
No comparison Alex Yawor June 10, 2007
Bush is the true nitwit Tom Finch June 8, 2007
Firm has too much power Randy Shannon June 7, 2007
Bush, Cheney and Fonda Ed Hum June 6, 2007
Where are politicians’ kids? Matthew Maljevec June 3, 2007
Let’s be smarter on housing C. Gaido-Schmidt May 30, 2007
Think before signing up Brian Carter May 29, 2007
Keep shades of green alive Ryan Wisniewski May 29, 2007
Immigration plan is insane Marie Barkovic May 28, 2007
Pure bigotry Vince Avedon May 27, 2007
No way to fight a war Stephen Kislock May 27, 2007
Altmire’s vote disappointing Ian Thompson May 24, 2007
Death toll hasn’t budged much Ed Hum May 17, 2007
Vote down Iraq funding bill Robert Schmetzer May 17, 2007
Defeat on several fronts Larry Mason May 16, 2007
School prayer is no answer Brendan Jones May 15, 2007
Breast feeding [sic] isn’t offensive Michelle Roush May 14, 2007
Breast feeding [sic] is natural Jill Duff May 13, 2007
Children need health coverage James Scibilia May 13, 2007
Bush’s credibility is gone Arthur Brown May 11, 2007
VA bonuses an outrage Matthew Maljevec May 10, 2007
Bring the troops home J. Tomaszewski May 7, 2007
Bush failed us, not we him Rich Laughlin May 6, 2007
Stop beating a dead horse Donna Vickodil May 6, 2007
Recklessly inaccurate Gilda De Ferrari May 1, 2007
Let’s elect by regions Lonzie Cox April 30, 2007
Wrecking the nation Robert Schmetzer April 28, 2007
Cap-and-ball guns and Glocks Ed Hum April 27, 2007
This is improvement? Velma Berger April 25, 2007
Wrong place, wrong time Ed Hum April 25, 2007
Preacher don’t preach Stephen Kislock April 24, 2007
Blame massacre on PC Deborah Sturm April 24, 2007
Turn site into a memorial The Taylors April 24, 2007
Silence is acceptance Vince Avedon April 22, 2007
Taxpayers won’t forget Michelle Gennaro April 20, 2007
Hollywood as science source? Robin Cox April 19, 2007
Revitalizing older towns Andrew Macurak April 18, 2007
Fighting and dying for what? John Policaro April 18, 2007
The George Bush legacy Marie Barkovic April 16, 2007
Hunting truth James Nagy April 16, 2007
Moving toward ‘1984’ Oren Spiegler April 16, 2007
What about free speech? Joe Wesloskie April 15, 2007
Bring the troops home Tina Shannon April 11, 2007
Don’t they know already? William Alexander April 10, 2007
Scare tactics J. Tomaszewsli April 10, 2007
Critics are way off base Tom Finch April 9, 2007
Congress must end the war Mechelle Poling April 9, 2007
War is an extension of politics Casey Johnston March 25, 2007
Put the blame on Bush Rich Laughlin March 25, 2007
Exploiting Iraq for its oil Randy Shannon March 25, 2007
Win the war militarily Larry Mason March 21, 2007
Let the majority be heard Gilda De Ferrari March 20, 2007
Universal care is possible Peter Deutsch March 20, 2007
What about the poor elderly? John Sear March 20, 2007
Put blame for war on Bush Jack Krchmar March 19, 2007
Halliburton, Cheney and  more Robert Schmetzer March 19, 2007
Dirty politics Charles Summers March 19, 2007
Science backs global warming Bill White March 19, 2007
Words, mere words Brian Carter March 18, 2007
Drug tests and handouts Jerry Corbin March 18, 2007
Spending cuts hurt the poor Bruce Simmeth March 18, 2007
Dump ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ Ian Thompson March 18, 2007
Learning to manage decline Jon O’Data March 16, 2007
Paying for policy blunders J. Tomaszewski March 16, 2007
Blame Democrats for Iraq war Peter Homitz March 11, 2007
Stop gouging us at the pump Robert Nicol March 11, 2007
Putting profits before lives Randy Shannon March 11, 2007
Doesn’t anybody care? Ralph Cilli March 8, 2007
Lives could have been saved Lonzie Cox March 8, 2007
Health-care system is flawed Janet Calderelli March 7, 2007
Reasons for impeachment James Nagy March 6, 2007
Define ‘success’ Jane Delanko February 28, 2007
Why was jail report leaked? David Pyle February 25, 2007
All candidates are pro-Israel Stephen Kislock February 23, 2007
Journalistic ethics Gary Van Winkle February 23, 2007
A big void Lonzie Cox February 18, 2007
Politicans [sic] show true colors Robert Nicol February 18, 2007
Follow the money Vince Avedon February 15, 2007
Sharing the costs S. Catanzarite February 15, 2007
Out of harm’s way Ed Hum February 15, 2007
False advertising Vivian Jackson February 15, 2007
Strange way to define ‘greed’ Bob Budacki February 14, 2007
What sacrifices? David Matthews February 14, 2007
Do not fear science Jack Ciciarelli February 13, 2007
Apply common sense [sic] to war John Vukich February 13, 2007
It’s our duty to object Velma Berger February 12, 2007
‘No human being is illegal’ Rebecca Gimeno February 5, 2007
Ignoring the lessons of history Rich Laughlin February 2, 2007
Focus on the billing process Linda Davenport January 31, 2007
Put U.S. troops with Kurds Ed Hum January 31, 2007
Smokers vs. nonsmokers Steve Rodich January 31, 2007
Fourth Amendment trashed Stephen Kislock January 28, 2007
Another government diversion John Meyer January 28, 2007
Make tobacco illegal Bruce Prisuta January 26, 2007
Bush compounds his failure Alex Yawor January 26, 2007
Even TV has gone foreign Vivian Jackson January 25, 2007
The times are a-changing Jewel Robertson January 25, 2007
Bush violates the Constitution David Busang January 21, 2007
Smoking ban is for good of all Emily Moran January 18, 2007
America must disarm Iraq Larry Mason January 17, 2007
Oil company profiteering Earl Shoup January 17, 2007
Iraq could become WWIII Linda Sproul January 17, 2007
Who paid for Cheney’s trip? Earl L. Shoup, Jr. January 16, 2007
Inauguration was special William Alexander January 15, 2007
Hey, kids, help stop global warming Sarah Duplaga January 14, 2007
Get to work, Congress Alex Yawor January 14, 2007
Feeling no safer Velma Berger January 12, 2007
Mutual protection of rights James Nagy January 12, 2007
Don’t repeat Vietnam pullout J. Tomaszewski January 12, 2007
Smoking bans are fair Mary Smith January 11, 2007
Global warming a hoax Tony DiTommaso January 10, 2007
The truth be told Stephen Kislock January 10, 2007
Military has failed America Richard Piper January 10, 2007
Release Mumia from death row Rebecca Gimeno January 8, 2007
Paying the consequences Jerry Miskulin January 8, 2007
Wasted days and wasted lives Jack Krchmar January 7, 2007
Act now on global warming Sharon Pillar January 7, 2007
Hope for the best Oren Spiegler January 7, 2007
Sounds familiar Vivian Jackson January 4, 2007
Global warming threat is real Ted Spickler January 3, 2007
Smoking and dining don’t mix Victoria DeCanio January 2, 2007
     
Gino Piroli
It’s good thing Pens won’t move March 19, 2007  
Annual Tet fundraiser a grand event February 25, 2007  
Critiques of 2006 Piroli columns    
Critiques of 2005 Piroli columns    
Critiques of 2004 Piroli columns    
     

 

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Editorials
Family value July 10, 2007  
Thin gruel July 10, 2007  
The Libby outrage July 4, 2007  
Hard lesson July 1, 2007  
The Iraq vote May 27, 2007  
Hateful crime May 21, 2007  
Fair deal May 20, 2007  
Sick visit May 19, 2007  
Proper resignation May 12, 2007  
Perishable privacy March 13, 2007  
Libby’s guilt March 8, 2007  
Act of contrition February 12, 2007  
Asides February 11, 2007  
Minimum support February 4, 2007  
Beer here February 2, 2007  
Genteel sexism February 1, 2007  
Politics over policy February 1, 2007  
Coming up short January 30, 2007  
Tick-tock January 28, 2007  
Radical plan January 26, 2007  
Webb’s rebuttal January 26, 2007  
Feeble state January 25, 2007  
Healthy start January 21, 2007  
PNC plays Santa January 5, 2007  
     
Letters to the editor Author  
     
     
Commentary/Forum
Erasing America? Michael Gerson May 25, 2007
Of spies and cesspools Dan Simpson January 31, 2007
     

 

Pittsburgh Tribune-Review

Editorials
     
     
Columns Author  
     
     
Letters to the editor Author  
     

 

Lame ducks

   

 


© 2004-2007 Robert W. Cox, all rights reserved.