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Lawsuit aimed at Big Pharma a welcome step

One disturbing aspect of the opioid addiction crisis is the legal and commercial avenues through which it was propagated. Long known and abused for their pleasing, analgesic effects, opioids gained force in this latest deadly resurgence amid the marketing of pain-killing opioid drugs. Starting in the late 1990s, pharmaceutical manufacturers downplayed the addictive potential of powerful opioid painkillers and the prescription rates soared to the point where in some states, they outnumbered the number of people living there, as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found. ...

Beware, Chinese big brother

Upset because Facebook and Google invade your privacy? Be glad you don’t live in China. Facebook and other Western apps are banned there. The government views their openness as a threat. So the Chinese use platforms like WeChat and Alibaba. Now the Chinese government takes data from those platforms to assign all people who use them a “social credit score.” In other words, the government monitors your web activity and gives you a grade. Your purchases, social interactions and political activity will determine what privileges you get. Having a low score — because you ...

Politicos to hold gov’t accountable

Political leaders often talk as if the right to vote is our most powerful tool for holding government accountable. Voting is important, but its impact is limited by an electoral process that protects incumbents and offers voters few meaningful options. Fortunately, as the Seattle City Council learned recently, there are other ways to hold politicians and governments accountable. Seattle politicians passed a law requiring big companies to pay a special tax for every person on the payroll. This “head tax” was the brainchild of a socialist council member Kshama Sawant. She ...

AG Shapiro failed in Higgins’ case

On April 4, Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro issued a press release regarding criminal charges against Bedford County District Attorney William Higgins. In his press release, Shapiro told us all the sordid details of the alleged conduct, which shocked the conscience of everyone. The information provided included, among other things, allegations of years of conduct which allowed drugs to flow freely — including the very drugs that are fueling the worst drug epidemic ever. It also included exposing police officers whose jobs are already tough enough. These officers ...

Redistricting reform starts to show focus

The clock is ticking down on redistricting reform in Pennsylvania, a long-delayed effort to scrap the state’s uber-partisan redrawing of congressional districts. The state House of Representatives and Senate have about a month to agree on a bill outlining a constitution amendment — a redundant, two-step legislative process that will require statewide voter approval, hopefully in time for the redrawing of districts after the 2020 census. The issue is far from resolved in Harrisburg, even though solid majorities of Pennsylvanians tell pollsters that they want to move their state ...

NFL owners have more work to do

It took two years, boycotts by fans, declining TV ratings, growing alarm among advertisers, a drop in the sale of gear and especially a public shaming by President Donald Trump, but the owners of NFL teams have finally decided their players will not be allowed to kneel or make other protests during the playing of the national anthem. The NFL Players Association claims the owners’ decision violates the players’ “free speech rights.” No it doesn’t. Players are perfectly free to protest anywhere, anytime they wish, just not at the start of games for which the owners pay ...