http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/09/sports/basketball/09araton.html
Miami in Pinstripes: the New Evil Empire
HARVEY ARATON
July 8, 2010
In the moment LeBron James uttered the words “South Beach” on Thursday night in front of a national television audience, the country witnessed the birth of an Evil Empire — the Yankees of professional basketball — with that slick-haired hombre, Pat Riley, at the helm.
James and Dwyane Wade have been likeable enough fellows in their various selling poses, including James as a mischievous puppet and Wade as Charles Barkley’s co-star in clever cellphone commercials. But together in Miami, with Chris Bosh rebounding for the superstar wingmen, they have created something fascinating, potentially fearsome and possibly quite loathsome.
Who outside of South Florida wants to root for Miami after the way James walked out on Cleveland and his home territory of northern Ohio in a mercenary reach for championship rings? On the other hand, who won’t want to see the fledgling super team take a big fall?
Had James stayed in Cleveland, he would have had the support of a nation wanting to see The Loyal One rewarded. Teaming up with Wade, Bosh and Darth Riley makes him more anti-hero than hero — but an even stronger marketable commodity for the N.B.A. brand. That loud noise emanating from out West is Commissioner David Stern cheering from his vacation spot in Sun Valley, Idaho.
Bad guys sell tickets, too. In the course of one week, James switched personas, like a professional wrestler, and the way he explained it Thursday night, his mother, Gloria, gave him permission.
“I thought I’d hear a different reaction,” he said of the phone call he made to her Thursday morning. “She felt it was going to make me happy.”
Funny, though. Jon Barry on ESPN said he thought James didn’t look happy. Maybe that’s because the view from the mountaintop of leverage that he carefully constructed to be the springboard to the rest of his career turned out to be something short of breathtaking.
In all directions were shining cities ready to welcome him with open arms and ready checkbooks. But there also were flaws in the windows of James’s lofty perch, cracks that might have been invisible to the eye of the average pro basketball star, but not to the man who envisioned crystal-clear free-agent perfection.
As early as November 2008, James was calling July 1, 2010, “a very big day,” beating the drum for when suitors would come calling, or begging, and all he would have to do was say “eeny, meeny” and then board his chosen starship Enterprise.
Along the way, there were disquieting playoff power outages in Cleveland, no ultimate N.B.A. credential to anoint him as a genuine savior and not a single suitor that could guarantee him a bed of roses to go along with his ransom.
By the time James made his grand announcement, it wasn’t as if he was choosing among the lesser of evils. But if heaven is a playground, it hasn’t yet been granted an N.B.A. franchise, and James’s blatant overreach for attention only intensified the pressure not to beam into a situation that could damage his carefully crafted brand.
Miami lured him with his Olympic team running mates, Wade and Bosh, but he joins them on Wade’s turf, where the latter has already achieved sainthood by winning a championship in 2006. He leaves fans cursing him in Cleveland, where the owner, Dan Gilbert, called his ESPN show “narcissistic,” his departure “cowardly” and vowed — foolishly, no doubt — that the Cavs would win a title before James.
James can also count on rabid booing in New York, where the Knicks assiduously courted him, tanked two seasons for him and created their own bloated market for Amar’e Stoudemire for him.
“It takes courage to play where the lights shine the brightest,” James L. Dolan, the Knicks’ owner, said while introducing Stoudemire Thursday at Madison Square Garden. Was he suggesting that his $100 million power forward had something in his belly that James didn’t, or utilizing his last good bargaining chip, challenging James to be a man by taking on Manhattan?
Losing out to Riley, their former coach and sworn enemy, has to be the worst part of this. The Knicks will have to fill the blanks around Stoudemire, settle next season for low-level playoff contention at best. In Newark, the Nets will dream about better days in Brooklyn. Turns out James didn’t want to be the leader of a basketball renaissance in a great basketball city. The King followed Bosh to Dwyane Wade’s team.
A longtime friend and high school teammate, Dru Joyce III, argued that James’s critics are missing the point. “People always think it always has to be about the one superstar,” Joyce said in a telephone interview. “But I think what LeBron is saying is it’s about the team. He’s going against the grain and it’s hard for people to accept that.”
James made a more grandiose show of free agency than anyone ever has, but he didn’t create the culture of entitlement. He’s just the latest to exploit it, and Joyce was right about one thing: all would have been forgiven had he just told his interviewer, Jim Gray, he was staying in Cleveland, basking in his own stardust.
Maybe that was the main selling point in Miami. When the playoff dust finally settles, it won’t all come down on him.
A version of this article appeared in print on July 9, 2010, on page B10 of the New York edition.
Showing posts with label Cleveland. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Cleveland. Show all posts
Sunday, July 25, 2010
LeBron James dumps Cleveland for Miami
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5gHG3AMVw-CGtPxYhkoio-K9KEIowD9GRD2O00
LeBron James dumps Cleveland for Miami
TOM WITHERS
7-9-10
When the months of suspense peaked, LeBron James delivered a few words that rocked the NBA and changed two cities and franchises.
At 9:27 p.m., James, looking nervous and somewhat unsure, finally announced his plans from a small stage in Greenwich, Conn.
"This fall, and it's very tough," James said to a national TV audience. "I'm going to take my talents to South Beach and join the Miami Heat."
In Florida, there was rejoicing.
In Ohio, only heartbreak and tears — then anger.
The most wanted man in league history decided Thursday night that it was time to leave the comforts of home to chase a championship.
The two-time MVP, a player with supreme skills but without a title, decided to join forces with fellow superstars, good friends and U.S. Olympic teammates Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh — a dominant threesome that could rule the league for years to come.
"I can't say it was always in my plans, because I never thought it was possible," James said of this union with the two perennial All-Stars, players he has known for years. "I've looked forward to it. Those are two great players, two of the greatest players that we have in this game today. You add me, and we have a really good team."
Landing James was a huge victory for the team president Pat Riley, who was able to corral the top three stars in an unprecedented free-agent class and now must resist the temptation to leave the front office to coach them.
James' announcement ended weeks of speculation and capped a multi-ringed media circus in this age of social networking that spun out of control. It also concluded a somewhat embarrassing courtship of a player by cities, celebrities and franchises who fawned over the 25-year-old who doesn't have a finals win on his resume.
New York, Chicago, New Jersey, Los Angeles and every other NBA spot came up short, finishing out of the money.
So did Cleveland. As it always does.
This time, losing was tainted with bitterness.
Once James shared his secret, fans poured out of the same downtown bars and restaurants that have thrived during these tough economic times. A few set fire to his No. 23 jersey while others threw rocks at the 10-story-tall billboard featuring James with his head tossed back and arms pointing skyward.
"We Are All Witnesses," the mural says.
This was something Cleveland never thought it would see.
Cavs owner Dan Gilbert was as upset as anyone. He posted an open letter to fans on the team's website ripping James and told The Associated Press he believes James did not play up to his abilities in Cleveland's second-round loss to Boston.
"He quit," Gilbert said in a phone interview. "Not just in Game 5, but in Games 2, 4 and 6. Watch the tape. The Boston series was unlike anything in the history of sports for a superstar. ... People have covered up for him for way too long."
Not Gilbert, not anymore.
"As you now know, our former hero, who grew up in the very region that he deserted this evening, is no longer a Cleveland Cavalier," Gilbert wrote. "This was announced with a several day, narcissistic, self-promotional build-up culminating with a national TV special of his 'decision' unlike anything ever 'witnessed' in the history of sports and probably the history of entertainment. Clearly, this is bitterly disappointing to all of us.
"The self-declared former 'King' will be taking the 'curse' with him down south. And until he does 'right' by Cleveland and Ohio, James (and the town where he plays) will unfortunately own this dreaded spell and bad karma.
"Just watch."
Cleveland could offer James $30 million more than any team, but that wasn't what interested James this time. He was willing to make less for something else — a title. Maybe a bunch of them with the 28-year-old Wade and 26-year-old Bosh in their primes.
"It's about a team," James said.
After leaving Connecticut, James touched down at a private terminal at Miami International Airport at 2:30 a.m. He was met by Heat officials, shook Riley's hand, climbed into a car and was driven away while a small group of fans, paparazzi and other news media waited outside.
Meanwhile, outside the W Hotel on Miami Beach, 17 more celebrity photographers and about a few dozen fans lurched toward every SUV that neared the hotel entrance, eager to get a look at the two-time MVP. Also inside that club was Bosh, who walked in virtually unnoticed earlier in the evening.
Meanwhile, in Cleveland, fans so accustomed to disappointment, were let down again — this time, by one of their own sons.
Not long after James' decision was announced, one of his jerseys was shown being burned in the city's streets.
"I can't get involved in that," James said. "I wanted to do what was best for LeBron James ... At the end of the day, I feel awful. I feel even worse that I wasn't able to bring an NBA championship to that city. I never wanted to leave Cleveland. My heart will always be around that area. But I also felt like this is the greatest challenge for me, is to move on."
Even one of James' teammates was distraught.
"I feel like my heart has been pulled out," Cavs guard Mo Williams posted on his Twitter account. "But I'm happy for my friend."
James' decision ends nearly two years of posturing and positioning by teams hoping to add the 6-foot-8, 260-pound physical force of nature to their roster. He famously announced at New York's Madison Square Garden in November of 2008 that "July 1, 2010, is going to be a big day."
He wasn't kidding. When the clock struck 12:01 a.m. last Thursday, a free-agent frenzy unlike any before it — in any professional sport — got under way with the enough speculation, rumor and second-by-second intrigue to last a lifetime.
March may be madness, but this was a year's drama crammed into eight days.
LeBron James dumps Cleveland for Miami
TOM WITHERS
7-9-10
When the months of suspense peaked, LeBron James delivered a few words that rocked the NBA and changed two cities and franchises.
At 9:27 p.m., James, looking nervous and somewhat unsure, finally announced his plans from a small stage in Greenwich, Conn.
"This fall, and it's very tough," James said to a national TV audience. "I'm going to take my talents to South Beach and join the Miami Heat."
In Florida, there was rejoicing.
In Ohio, only heartbreak and tears — then anger.
The most wanted man in league history decided Thursday night that it was time to leave the comforts of home to chase a championship.
The two-time MVP, a player with supreme skills but without a title, decided to join forces with fellow superstars, good friends and U.S. Olympic teammates Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh — a dominant threesome that could rule the league for years to come.
"I can't say it was always in my plans, because I never thought it was possible," James said of this union with the two perennial All-Stars, players he has known for years. "I've looked forward to it. Those are two great players, two of the greatest players that we have in this game today. You add me, and we have a really good team."
Landing James was a huge victory for the team president Pat Riley, who was able to corral the top three stars in an unprecedented free-agent class and now must resist the temptation to leave the front office to coach them.
James' announcement ended weeks of speculation and capped a multi-ringed media circus in this age of social networking that spun out of control. It also concluded a somewhat embarrassing courtship of a player by cities, celebrities and franchises who fawned over the 25-year-old who doesn't have a finals win on his resume.
New York, Chicago, New Jersey, Los Angeles and every other NBA spot came up short, finishing out of the money.
So did Cleveland. As it always does.
This time, losing was tainted with bitterness.
Once James shared his secret, fans poured out of the same downtown bars and restaurants that have thrived during these tough economic times. A few set fire to his No. 23 jersey while others threw rocks at the 10-story-tall billboard featuring James with his head tossed back and arms pointing skyward.
"We Are All Witnesses," the mural says.
This was something Cleveland never thought it would see.
Cavs owner Dan Gilbert was as upset as anyone. He posted an open letter to fans on the team's website ripping James and told The Associated Press he believes James did not play up to his abilities in Cleveland's second-round loss to Boston.
"He quit," Gilbert said in a phone interview. "Not just in Game 5, but in Games 2, 4 and 6. Watch the tape. The Boston series was unlike anything in the history of sports for a superstar. ... People have covered up for him for way too long."
Not Gilbert, not anymore.
"As you now know, our former hero, who grew up in the very region that he deserted this evening, is no longer a Cleveland Cavalier," Gilbert wrote. "This was announced with a several day, narcissistic, self-promotional build-up culminating with a national TV special of his 'decision' unlike anything ever 'witnessed' in the history of sports and probably the history of entertainment. Clearly, this is bitterly disappointing to all of us.
"The self-declared former 'King' will be taking the 'curse' with him down south. And until he does 'right' by Cleveland and Ohio, James (and the town where he plays) will unfortunately own this dreaded spell and bad karma.
"Just watch."
Cleveland could offer James $30 million more than any team, but that wasn't what interested James this time. He was willing to make less for something else — a title. Maybe a bunch of them with the 28-year-old Wade and 26-year-old Bosh in their primes.
"It's about a team," James said.
After leaving Connecticut, James touched down at a private terminal at Miami International Airport at 2:30 a.m. He was met by Heat officials, shook Riley's hand, climbed into a car and was driven away while a small group of fans, paparazzi and other news media waited outside.
Meanwhile, outside the W Hotel on Miami Beach, 17 more celebrity photographers and about a few dozen fans lurched toward every SUV that neared the hotel entrance, eager to get a look at the two-time MVP. Also inside that club was Bosh, who walked in virtually unnoticed earlier in the evening.
Meanwhile, in Cleveland, fans so accustomed to disappointment, were let down again — this time, by one of their own sons.
Not long after James' decision was announced, one of his jerseys was shown being burned in the city's streets.
"I can't get involved in that," James said. "I wanted to do what was best for LeBron James ... At the end of the day, I feel awful. I feel even worse that I wasn't able to bring an NBA championship to that city. I never wanted to leave Cleveland. My heart will always be around that area. But I also felt like this is the greatest challenge for me, is to move on."
Even one of James' teammates was distraught.
"I feel like my heart has been pulled out," Cavs guard Mo Williams posted on his Twitter account. "But I'm happy for my friend."
James' decision ends nearly two years of posturing and positioning by teams hoping to add the 6-foot-8, 260-pound physical force of nature to their roster. He famously announced at New York's Madison Square Garden in November of 2008 that "July 1, 2010, is going to be a big day."
He wasn't kidding. When the clock struck 12:01 a.m. last Thursday, a free-agent frenzy unlike any before it — in any professional sport — got under way with the enough speculation, rumor and second-by-second intrigue to last a lifetime.
March may be madness, but this was a year's drama crammed into eight days.
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
LeBron trades one drama for another
http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news?slug=aw-lebroncalipari051410
LeBron trades one drama for another
By Adrian Wojnarowski, Yahoo! Sports
May 14, 2010
BOSTON – The clock struck midnight, the locker-room door swung open and LeBron James marched out a liberated man. Out of the playoffs, off the Garden floor, and barely out the tunnel before he ripped off that No. 23 Cleveland Cavaliers jersey on Thursday. As James marched his way toward the interview room, his stable of agents, middlemen and childhood chums had to walk fast to keep up with him. They never do like letting King James out of their sights.
Together, they have big ideas, bigger plans and the biggest agenda this sport’s ever seen. The playoffs move on without LBJ, but deep down it reassures him that the Boston Celtics and Orlando Magic will never be as big of a story as the suspense he and his hangers-on will spin together.
“Me and my team, we have a game plan that we’re going to execute,” James said.
Yes, his team. That’s where James’ loyalties lie, where together they’ll chase the one title he’s forever chased: the biggest free agent of his generation.
Together, they’re going to hold the NBA hostage. They’re going to flush out a thousand scenarios, manipulate front-office decisions in Cleveland, New York, Chicago and beyond. Kentucky’s John Calipari is along for the ride, working with agent Leon Rose and middleman William Wesley, and all hell promises to break out now.
The plan they’re talking about includes Calipari coming to Cleveland as James’ hand-picked coach. “He’s got to listen if they come calling,” a source close to Calipari told Yahoo! Sports on Thursday night. He was talking about the Cavaliers and Bulls, and Calipari’s camp is determined to open bidding to multiple teams.
Together, these narcissists will manufacture a drama that will undermine the conference and NBA Finals, the NBA draft and Fourth of July parades in small towns and big cities across America. James and the Cavs lost Game 6 of the conference semifinals to the Boston Celtics, 94-85, but he hardly seemed devastated in the losing locker room. James had a triple-double that was devalued with nine turnovers. He shot 44 percent for the series, turned the ball over 27 times and behaved like a lousy leader.
Truth be told, James did something no champion would’ve ever dared: He quit on his teammates in Game 5 and that made it easy for the rest of them – and James – to quit in the final minutes of Game 6. This has been an indictment of the coaching staff and organization, but James, too. Mostly, James. The Cavs have turned out to be a great regular season team unfit for the playoffs, but James was the most responsible for this collapse in the conference semifinals. There was no culprit even a close second.
Still, James will get over it fast because he engages in so little self-examination. In his mind, and that of his cast of sycophants, blame belongs on his coach, Mike Brown, for his lousy adjustments and game plans. It belongs to general manager Danny Ferry for the unworthy teammates. James was no MVP in this series, but no one stays in his employ with impure thoughts of accountability.
The next time you hear James, as the franchise star, say, “This was on me,” will be the first. All around James, his yes men never require him to deal in the currency of truth. Aaron Goodwin, his old agent, tried to be honest with him and his high school buddies, and it got him fired five years ago.
James is on the market, a free agent for the ages, and maybe now the kid out of small-town Akron gets to live out his big-city, bright-light dreams. Where next? Oh, James isn’t worried about that now. He wants the guessing to continue through July 1 and beyond. He backed over Brown one more time on Thursday night, and Brown’s as good as gone as the Cavs’ coach. Ferry has been fiercely loyal to Brown, but his mismanagement of matchups and in-game adjustments compounded an earlier playoff exit with a larger payroll and deeper roster.
Brown goes now, and Calipari moves into the forefront of the discussion. James is forever seeking leverage, and hand-picking his own coach with the Cavs could be the most appealing part of staying with them. What James’ crew will do is force an NBA market for Calipari that exists in only two scenarios: The promise of keeping James or the promise of luring James away.
For Rose and Wesley to attach the prime years of James’ career to Calipari would speak more to an economic power play and monopoly than a functional, workable and winning NBA environment. For some college coaches, talk of them going to the NBA hurts their recruiting. It’s just the opposite for Calipari: It isn’t those stiff owners and GMs who want Calipari, but King James himself. Calipari tells the kids it’s all rumor, except for the part about James, the MVP, wanting him. The Bulls deliver the bonus of Derrick Rose(notes) as the star point guard, and Rose does love his old college coach at Memphis.
Yet, the desperation of Cleveland owner Dan Gilbert makes Calipari’s hiring at $5 million-$6 million a genuine possibility, should James simply say the word. Nevertheless, one Eastern Conference executive close to Ferry told Yahoo! Sports this week: “I think Danny would resign before he’d hire Cal.”
Ferry understands that it would be a hollow, joyless existence, and he doesn’t need the job that badly. He has too much money and too much sense to sign on for more years of being held hostage. Nevertheless, his contract is up, too, and maybe he just walks once James makes his decision. There’s a reason Calipari sat courtside with Rose at Tuesday’s Game 5 in Cleveland, and it had everything to do with thrusting himself into the Class of 2010 conversation. As narcissists go, Calipari and James probably belong together. It would be a partnership constructed for all the wrong reasons and doomed to spectacular failure.
When it comes to free agency criteria, James insisted late Thursday, “I want to win. … That’s my only thing … my only concern.”
Winning is nice and all, and James will eventually get himself a title or two. He’s too talented. At the end of his seventh NBA season, James lost one more chance at it Thursday, and it hardly felt like the end of the world for him. He’ll get over it fast because that enormous ego will be nourished with the courtship of his lifetime, his free agency, and perhaps the hardest part will come sometime in July when James has to make a choice, pick a team and play there. Only then, the wooing of LeBron James will be complete and you have to wonder: How will King James ever live without that?
Adrian Wojnarowski is the NBA columnist for Yahoo! Sports.
LeBron trades one drama for another
By Adrian Wojnarowski, Yahoo! Sports
May 14, 2010
BOSTON – The clock struck midnight, the locker-room door swung open and LeBron James marched out a liberated man. Out of the playoffs, off the Garden floor, and barely out the tunnel before he ripped off that No. 23 Cleveland Cavaliers jersey on Thursday. As James marched his way toward the interview room, his stable of agents, middlemen and childhood chums had to walk fast to keep up with him. They never do like letting King James out of their sights.
Together, they have big ideas, bigger plans and the biggest agenda this sport’s ever seen. The playoffs move on without LBJ, but deep down it reassures him that the Boston Celtics and Orlando Magic will never be as big of a story as the suspense he and his hangers-on will spin together.
“Me and my team, we have a game plan that we’re going to execute,” James said.
Yes, his team. That’s where James’ loyalties lie, where together they’ll chase the one title he’s forever chased: the biggest free agent of his generation.
Together, they’re going to hold the NBA hostage. They’re going to flush out a thousand scenarios, manipulate front-office decisions in Cleveland, New York, Chicago and beyond. Kentucky’s John Calipari is along for the ride, working with agent Leon Rose and middleman William Wesley, and all hell promises to break out now.
The plan they’re talking about includes Calipari coming to Cleveland as James’ hand-picked coach. “He’s got to listen if they come calling,” a source close to Calipari told Yahoo! Sports on Thursday night. He was talking about the Cavaliers and Bulls, and Calipari’s camp is determined to open bidding to multiple teams.
Together, these narcissists will manufacture a drama that will undermine the conference and NBA Finals, the NBA draft and Fourth of July parades in small towns and big cities across America. James and the Cavs lost Game 6 of the conference semifinals to the Boston Celtics, 94-85, but he hardly seemed devastated in the losing locker room. James had a triple-double that was devalued with nine turnovers. He shot 44 percent for the series, turned the ball over 27 times and behaved like a lousy leader.
Truth be told, James did something no champion would’ve ever dared: He quit on his teammates in Game 5 and that made it easy for the rest of them – and James – to quit in the final minutes of Game 6. This has been an indictment of the coaching staff and organization, but James, too. Mostly, James. The Cavs have turned out to be a great regular season team unfit for the playoffs, but James was the most responsible for this collapse in the conference semifinals. There was no culprit even a close second.
Still, James will get over it fast because he engages in so little self-examination. In his mind, and that of his cast of sycophants, blame belongs on his coach, Mike Brown, for his lousy adjustments and game plans. It belongs to general manager Danny Ferry for the unworthy teammates. James was no MVP in this series, but no one stays in his employ with impure thoughts of accountability.
The next time you hear James, as the franchise star, say, “This was on me,” will be the first. All around James, his yes men never require him to deal in the currency of truth. Aaron Goodwin, his old agent, tried to be honest with him and his high school buddies, and it got him fired five years ago.
James is on the market, a free agent for the ages, and maybe now the kid out of small-town Akron gets to live out his big-city, bright-light dreams. Where next? Oh, James isn’t worried about that now. He wants the guessing to continue through July 1 and beyond. He backed over Brown one more time on Thursday night, and Brown’s as good as gone as the Cavs’ coach. Ferry has been fiercely loyal to Brown, but his mismanagement of matchups and in-game adjustments compounded an earlier playoff exit with a larger payroll and deeper roster.
Brown goes now, and Calipari moves into the forefront of the discussion. James is forever seeking leverage, and hand-picking his own coach with the Cavs could be the most appealing part of staying with them. What James’ crew will do is force an NBA market for Calipari that exists in only two scenarios: The promise of keeping James or the promise of luring James away.
For Rose and Wesley to attach the prime years of James’ career to Calipari would speak more to an economic power play and monopoly than a functional, workable and winning NBA environment. For some college coaches, talk of them going to the NBA hurts their recruiting. It’s just the opposite for Calipari: It isn’t those stiff owners and GMs who want Calipari, but King James himself. Calipari tells the kids it’s all rumor, except for the part about James, the MVP, wanting him. The Bulls deliver the bonus of Derrick Rose(notes) as the star point guard, and Rose does love his old college coach at Memphis.
Yet, the desperation of Cleveland owner Dan Gilbert makes Calipari’s hiring at $5 million-$6 million a genuine possibility, should James simply say the word. Nevertheless, one Eastern Conference executive close to Ferry told Yahoo! Sports this week: “I think Danny would resign before he’d hire Cal.”
Ferry understands that it would be a hollow, joyless existence, and he doesn’t need the job that badly. He has too much money and too much sense to sign on for more years of being held hostage. Nevertheless, his contract is up, too, and maybe he just walks once James makes his decision. There’s a reason Calipari sat courtside with Rose at Tuesday’s Game 5 in Cleveland, and it had everything to do with thrusting himself into the Class of 2010 conversation. As narcissists go, Calipari and James probably belong together. It would be a partnership constructed for all the wrong reasons and doomed to spectacular failure.
When it comes to free agency criteria, James insisted late Thursday, “I want to win. … That’s my only thing … my only concern.”
Winning is nice and all, and James will eventually get himself a title or two. He’s too talented. At the end of his seventh NBA season, James lost one more chance at it Thursday, and it hardly felt like the end of the world for him. He’ll get over it fast because that enormous ego will be nourished with the courtship of his lifetime, his free agency, and perhaps the hardest part will come sometime in July when James has to make a choice, pick a team and play there. Only then, the wooing of LeBron James will be complete and you have to wonder: How will King James ever live without that?
Adrian Wojnarowski is the NBA columnist for Yahoo! Sports.
Thursday, March 11, 2010
America's Most Miserable Cities 2010
http://realestate.yahoo.com/promo/americas-most-miserable-cities-2010.html
America's Most Miserable Cities 2010
Kurt Badenhausen, Forbes.com
Feb 18th, 2010
Cleveland leads a slew of Midwestern towns on our annual list, but thanks to high taxes New York and Chicago make it too.
The city of Cleveland has had a colorful history. The Cuyahoga River, which runs through the city, famously caught fire in 1969 thanks to rampant pollution, and it wasn't the first time. In 1978 it became the first U.S. city to default on its debts since the Great Depression. Cleveland sports fans have had to endure more anguish than those in any other city. The city has been dubbed with a less than endearing nickname: the Mistake by the Lake.
This year Cleveland takes the top spot in our third annual ranking of America's Most Miserable Cities. Cleveland secured the position thanks to its high unemployment, high taxes, lousy weather, corruption by public officials and crummy sports teams (Cavaliers of the NBA excepted).
Misery was on the rise around the country last year. Sure the stock market was up big, but so were unemployment, foreclosures and bankruptcy filings. Meanwhile housing prices, the U.S. dollar and approval ratings for Congress continued their downward spiral.
The widely tracked Misery Index initiated by economist Arthur Okun, which combines unemployment and inflation rates started 2009 at 7.3 and rose to 12.7 by the end of the year thanks to soaring joblessness. That is the highest level since 1983.
Our Misery Measure takes into account unemployment, as well as eight other issues that cause people anguish. The metrics include taxes (both sales and income), commute times, violent crime and how its pro sports teams have fared over the past two years. We also factored in two indexes put together by Portland, Ore., researcher Bert Sperling that gauge weather and Superfund pollution sites. Lastly we considered corruption based on convictions of public officials in each area as tracked by the Public Integrity Section of the U.S. Department of Justice.
We expanded the list of cities under consideration this year to include the 200 largest metropolitan statistical areas (in years past we've examined 150), which led to a shuffling in the ranks. Any area with a population of more than 245,000 was eligible.
Cleveland nabbed the top spot as a result of poor ratings across the board. It was the only city that fell in the bottom half of the rankings in all nine categories. Many residents are heading for greener pastures. There has been a net migration out of the Cleveland metro area of 71,000 people over the past five years. Population for the city itself has been on a steady decline and is now less than half of it what it was 50 years ago.
Cleveland ranked near the bottom when looking at corruption. Northern Ohio has seen 309 public officials convicted of crimes over the past 10 years according to the Justice Department. A current FBI investigation of public officials in Cuyahoga County (where Cleveland is located) has ensnared more than two dozen government employees and businessmen on charges including bribery, fraud and tax evasion.
On the housing front Cleveland is dealing with thousands of abandoned homes. The city contributed to its foreclosure problem by providing down payments to many people that could not afford homes through the federally funded Afford-A-Home program. Cleveland led by Mayor Frank Jackson sued 21 large investment banks in 2008 who he felt were complicit in the subprime and foreclosure crisis that hit Cleveland hard. A federal judge dismissed the suit last year, but the city is appealing the ruling.
A 19% decline in foreclosures last year is possibly a glimmer of hope that the housing situation is starting to improve, although Cleveland still ranks in the top third of all metros for foreclosure rates according to RealtyTrac, an online marketer of foreclosed property. Cleveland and Cuyahoga County were awarded $41 million last month from the Department of Housing and Urban Development. This money will go towards demolition of homes, foreclosure prevention and the rehabilitation of homes.
There are certainly bright spots in Cleveland. Downtown has experienced a revival over the past 15 years helped in part by the construction of three new sports venues for the city's NFL, NBA and baseball teams. The Cleveland Clinic is one of the top medical centers in the U.S. and the largest employer in northeast Ohio.
Mayor Jackson's chief of staff Ken Silliman calls 2010 a very exciting year for Cleveland. He points to three projects in development for the city. The first is the Cleveland Medical Mart which is a convention center that targets the medical and health care industries. Next is a casino plan. In November Ohio voters approved casinos in four cities, and Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert is leading a group that hopes to have a Cleveland casino up and running in three years. Lastly is the Flats East Bank project, which ran into funding issues during the financial crisis. The waterfront development will include an office tower, hotel and space for retail and dining.
"Clevelanders over the years have developed a tenacity to deal with these kinds of situations, and we are very aggressive in attempting to solve our problems rather than awaiting someone else's solutions," says Silliman.
Other cities on the list include Memphis, which came in third thanks to the second-worst rate of violent crime in the U.S. and an alarming rate of convicted public officials. Detroit, ravaged by the ailing auto industry was forth. Flint, Mich., was fifth. Also on the list? Chicago (No. 10) and New York City (No. 16). Torturous commute times and nosebleed-inducing taxes are the high prices locals pay for the cultural opportunities and corporate headquarters located there.
Our most miserable city last year, Stockton, Calif., nabbed the second spot on this year's list. Unemployment and crime continue to be major issues. Stockton ranked seventh worst in both of these areas. Stockton residents have average commutes that are among the highest in the country and, like all Californians, they suffer from onerous sales and income taxes.
Stockton Mayor Ann Johnston says the city is working to fix its problems. It has seen a reduction in crime in recent months as it targets troubled areas with an increased police presence. On the economic front, the city recently expanded the Port of Stockton, which it hopes will attract new companies. Stockton is an agricultural community, but the Mayor says the city is working to diversify its economic base and echoes Silliman's comments about Cleveland. "We're an All-American city," says Mayor Johnston. "And it's not because we sit on our hands and do nothing. It's because we recognize our problems and work to solve them."
America's Top 5 Most Miserable Cities
1. Cleveland, Ohio
2. Stockton, Calif.
3. Memphis, Tenn.
4. Detroit, Mich.
5. Flint, Mich.
America's Most Miserable Cities 2010
Kurt Badenhausen, Forbes.com
Feb 18th, 2010
Cleveland leads a slew of Midwestern towns on our annual list, but thanks to high taxes New York and Chicago make it too.
The city of Cleveland has had a colorful history. The Cuyahoga River, which runs through the city, famously caught fire in 1969 thanks to rampant pollution, and it wasn't the first time. In 1978 it became the first U.S. city to default on its debts since the Great Depression. Cleveland sports fans have had to endure more anguish than those in any other city. The city has been dubbed with a less than endearing nickname: the Mistake by the Lake.
This year Cleveland takes the top spot in our third annual ranking of America's Most Miserable Cities. Cleveland secured the position thanks to its high unemployment, high taxes, lousy weather, corruption by public officials and crummy sports teams (Cavaliers of the NBA excepted).
Misery was on the rise around the country last year. Sure the stock market was up big, but so were unemployment, foreclosures and bankruptcy filings. Meanwhile housing prices, the U.S. dollar and approval ratings for Congress continued their downward spiral.
The widely tracked Misery Index initiated by economist Arthur Okun, which combines unemployment and inflation rates started 2009 at 7.3 and rose to 12.7 by the end of the year thanks to soaring joblessness. That is the highest level since 1983.
Our Misery Measure takes into account unemployment, as well as eight other issues that cause people anguish. The metrics include taxes (both sales and income), commute times, violent crime and how its pro sports teams have fared over the past two years. We also factored in two indexes put together by Portland, Ore., researcher Bert Sperling that gauge weather and Superfund pollution sites. Lastly we considered corruption based on convictions of public officials in each area as tracked by the Public Integrity Section of the U.S. Department of Justice.
We expanded the list of cities under consideration this year to include the 200 largest metropolitan statistical areas (in years past we've examined 150), which led to a shuffling in the ranks. Any area with a population of more than 245,000 was eligible.
Cleveland nabbed the top spot as a result of poor ratings across the board. It was the only city that fell in the bottom half of the rankings in all nine categories. Many residents are heading for greener pastures. There has been a net migration out of the Cleveland metro area of 71,000 people over the past five years. Population for the city itself has been on a steady decline and is now less than half of it what it was 50 years ago.
Cleveland ranked near the bottom when looking at corruption. Northern Ohio has seen 309 public officials convicted of crimes over the past 10 years according to the Justice Department. A current FBI investigation of public officials in Cuyahoga County (where Cleveland is located) has ensnared more than two dozen government employees and businessmen on charges including bribery, fraud and tax evasion.
On the housing front Cleveland is dealing with thousands of abandoned homes. The city contributed to its foreclosure problem by providing down payments to many people that could not afford homes through the federally funded Afford-A-Home program. Cleveland led by Mayor Frank Jackson sued 21 large investment banks in 2008 who he felt were complicit in the subprime and foreclosure crisis that hit Cleveland hard. A federal judge dismissed the suit last year, but the city is appealing the ruling.
A 19% decline in foreclosures last year is possibly a glimmer of hope that the housing situation is starting to improve, although Cleveland still ranks in the top third of all metros for foreclosure rates according to RealtyTrac, an online marketer of foreclosed property. Cleveland and Cuyahoga County were awarded $41 million last month from the Department of Housing and Urban Development. This money will go towards demolition of homes, foreclosure prevention and the rehabilitation of homes.
There are certainly bright spots in Cleveland. Downtown has experienced a revival over the past 15 years helped in part by the construction of three new sports venues for the city's NFL, NBA and baseball teams. The Cleveland Clinic is one of the top medical centers in the U.S. and the largest employer in northeast Ohio.
Mayor Jackson's chief of staff Ken Silliman calls 2010 a very exciting year for Cleveland. He points to three projects in development for the city. The first is the Cleveland Medical Mart which is a convention center that targets the medical and health care industries. Next is a casino plan. In November Ohio voters approved casinos in four cities, and Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert is leading a group that hopes to have a Cleveland casino up and running in three years. Lastly is the Flats East Bank project, which ran into funding issues during the financial crisis. The waterfront development will include an office tower, hotel and space for retail and dining.
"Clevelanders over the years have developed a tenacity to deal with these kinds of situations, and we are very aggressive in attempting to solve our problems rather than awaiting someone else's solutions," says Silliman.
Other cities on the list include Memphis, which came in third thanks to the second-worst rate of violent crime in the U.S. and an alarming rate of convicted public officials. Detroit, ravaged by the ailing auto industry was forth. Flint, Mich., was fifth. Also on the list? Chicago (No. 10) and New York City (No. 16). Torturous commute times and nosebleed-inducing taxes are the high prices locals pay for the cultural opportunities and corporate headquarters located there.
Our most miserable city last year, Stockton, Calif., nabbed the second spot on this year's list. Unemployment and crime continue to be major issues. Stockton ranked seventh worst in both of these areas. Stockton residents have average commutes that are among the highest in the country and, like all Californians, they suffer from onerous sales and income taxes.
Stockton Mayor Ann Johnston says the city is working to fix its problems. It has seen a reduction in crime in recent months as it targets troubled areas with an increased police presence. On the economic front, the city recently expanded the Port of Stockton, which it hopes will attract new companies. Stockton is an agricultural community, but the Mayor says the city is working to diversify its economic base and echoes Silliman's comments about Cleveland. "We're an All-American city," says Mayor Johnston. "And it's not because we sit on our hands and do nothing. It's because we recognize our problems and work to solve them."
America's Top 5 Most Miserable Cities
1. Cleveland, Ohio
2. Stockton, Calif.
3. Memphis, Tenn.
4. Detroit, Mich.
5. Flint, Mich.
Monday, June 29, 2009
Shaquille O’Neal Traded to Cleveland Cavaliers
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/26/sports/basketball/26shaq.htmlShaquille O’Neal Traded to Cleveland Cavaliers
By HOWARD BECK
Published: June 25, 2009
For the third time in four years, Shaquille O’Neal is on the move, rumbling across the N.B.A. landscape, forcing adjustments, reassessments and revisions from coast to coast.
The Cleveland Cavaliers, in a bold stroke aimed at winning the championship, acquired O’Neal from the Phoenix Suns, in a multiplayer trade that will have ramifications across the league.
O’Neal, a 15-time All-Star, will join LeBron James, the league’s reigning most valuable player, to form one of the most powerful tandems in the league. The Cavaliers were already an elite team — winning an N.B.A.-best 66 games last season — but one that was missing any star power, or reliable scoring, beyond James.
That will no longer be a problem. Even at 37, O’Neal remains a fearsome threat in the low post. He averaged 17.8 points and 8.4 rebounds for the Suns last season, played in 75 games — his highest total in four years — and was named to the all-N.B.A. third team.
With O’Neal, Cleveland now has an answer to Orlando’s Dwight Howard, who bulldozed through the Cavaliers in the Eastern Conference finals.
James’s championship dreams were crushed in Game 6 of that series, and he left the arena in a deep funk, without congratulating the Magic or speaking to the news media.
The depression that settled over Cleveland in late May has now cleared.
The Suns and Cavaliers had been discussing parameters of a deal since before the February trading deadline. At the time, it was deemed too great a risk by the Cavaliers, given their dominant season and their enviable chemistry. What appeared like a gamble then looks essential now.
Although the Suns initially held out for a better package, they settled for a deal that gives them financial relief, and little else. Phoenix will receive two marginal rotation players, the past-his-prime center Ben Wallace and the swingman Sasha Pavlovic, plus $500,000 and a future second-round pick.
If the Suns waive Pavlovic, whose contract is only partially guaranteed, they can save around $9 million in salary and luxury-tax payments. They could save millions more if Wallace decides to retire and accept a buyout, a possibility he has entertained.
Where that leaves the Suns is unclear. They have been dangling Amare Stoudemire, their other All-Star big man, in trade discussions all year. Their All-Star point guard, Steve Nash, is entering the last year of his contract and has been notably disconcerted by the team’s direction.
Once a perennial contender in the West, Phoenix has traded away three essential players — O’Neal, Boris Diaw and Raja Bell — since December. They traded Shawn Marion, once a core player, 16 months ago, in the deal for O’Neal.
If the Suns embark on a wholesale rebuilding effort, Stoudemire and Nash could be the next to go. Nash has openly entertained the idea of reuniting with Knicks Coach Mike D’Antoni — with whom he had his best years in Phoenix — if not via trade then as a free agent in 2010.
The trade also has implications for Orlando and the Boston Celtics, the last two Eastern Conference champions, who will now be revisiting their defensive schemes to cope with O’Neal, the most dominant big man of his era, and James, perhaps the best all-around player in the league.
“It’s a great move for Cleveland,” said D’Antoni, who coached O’Neal for a half-season in Phoenix, “and I think that Shaq being closer to New York, playing four times against us, it’s not good for us.”
Although O’Neal is not the powerhouse he was earlier in the decade, when he led the Los Angeles Lakers to three straight titles, “he’s still one of the better players in the league,” D’Antoni said.
The trade could reverberate right into next summer. James is expected to become a free agent in July 2010. At least a dozen teams — including the Knicks — have been clearing salary-cap space to pursue James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh, among others.
If O’Neal, who won titles with Kobe Bryant in Los Angeles and Wade in Miami — can help James secure his first ring, it will make it harder for James to leave his home state. At a minimum, the Cavaliers’ owner, Dan Gilbert, and General Manager Danny Ferry have again demonstrated to James that they will go to great lengths to win a title and keep James happy.
The Cavaliers will be O’Neal’s fifth team in his 17-year career, and his fourth since 2004, when the Lakers traded him to Miami. He has been partners with some of the best perimeter players of the modern era, including Bryant, Wade and Penny Hardaway. Now O’Neal will wind down his career next to one of the most talented players in N.B.A. history.
In Cleveland, James is known as the Chosen One and the fans as “witnesses.” O’Neal will now be the most significant face in the crowd, The Big Witness.
Tuesday, September 9, 2008
How did O.C. warehouse manager beat LeBron?
http://www.ocregister.com/articles/kalb-james-shot-2145871-shots-feetThursday, September 4, 2008
How did O.C. warehouse manager beat LeBron?
By JANIS CARR
The Orange County Register
David Kalb was more anxious than nervous Wednesday. After nearly two hours of waiting and shooting baskets on Venice Beach’s famed blue court, he wanted to see the competition.
“I was interested to see how big he was,” Kalb said.
Kalb’s opponent eventually emerged from a black Excursion, all 6 feet, 8 inches and 250 pounds, wearing the latest in his signature shoe line and a skin-tight sleeveless basketball shirt that showcased his muscular arms.
“He’s a big dude,” Kalb said.
The dude was Cleveland Cavaliers star LeBron James, who showed up to play Kalb, a warehouse manager from La Habra, in the Cub Cadet Trick Shot Challenge. Kalb was selected by James, who chose his trick shot video from “thousands and thousands” of others that the star viewed.
On the video, Kalb is seen making a shot into a basket 32 feet high and another into a basket strapped onto a rotating forklift.
“David was able to come up with some shots that I don’t know how he did it or where his mind was, but he definitely showcased his talents,” James said.
The two were supposed to be a single game of H-O-R-S-E, where each player gets to pick fancy shots and the other has to match. Many of Kalb’s were high-bouncing, off the backboard or swinging around the backboard pole that delighted the eclectic crowd that gathered.
James stuck mainly to outside – way outside, 45-feet out – shots.
But after Kalb edged him in the first game, James declared a best-of-three. Kalb won the second handily then the two delighted the crowd with dunks and flips by Kalb.
“I was glad he was missing those outside shots because it gave me a chance to do the ones I had been practicing,” Kalb said.
When asked how Kalb, who stands 6-foot-1, could match James’ monster one-handed dunk, he said “that was adrenalin. Besides, it was a basic dunk. There’s no way I could have done something fancy, like a 360-degree dunk.”
James was asked if this was harder – playing in the ocean breezes, bright sun and a trick shot artist – than winning gold at the Olympics. The Cavs star laughed and said yes.
“Because I didn’t have Chris Bosh, Kobe Bryant, Dwight Howard, Carmelo Anthony and Dwyane Wade to help me out,” James said. “I was all by myself.”
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
Obama Fails to Win Over `Archie Bunker' Voters
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aKf6J9nuZt4Q
Obama Fails to Win Over White `Archie Bunker' Democratic Voters
By Heidi Przybyla
March 5 (Bloomberg) -- Barack Obama has an Archie Bunker problem.
The white, blue-collar voters personified by the 1970s fictional television character cost Obama yesterday. His rival for the Democratic nomination, Senator Hillary Clinton of New York, beat him 54 percent to 44 percent in industrial Ohio, and 58 percent to 40 percent in heavily Catholic Rhode Island.
In Ohio's 10th district of Cuyahoga County, a suburban enclave on Cleveland's west side that includes a large population of Polish-Americans, Clinton trounced Obama 61 percent to 37 percent, according to exit polls. In the state's Belmont County, an economically depressed Appalachian border area that is predominantly white, she had a 50-point lead over Obama, the first black candidate to have a shot at the White House.
``Race played a significant factor in Ohio,'' said Cuyahoga County Commissioner Timothy Hagan, who supported Obama. ``These people are not necessarily bigots, but the image they see every day of black America is drugs, crime, guns and violence.''
Clinton's victories yesterday in contests in Texas, Rhode Island and Ohio -- and just one defeat, in Vermont -- pumped new life into her candidacy after 11 consecutive losses to Obama. She now has renewed momentum heading into the next big test on April 22 in Pennsylvania, where the electorate looks much like Ohio's.
Wider Problem
The weak showing among the white working class in Ohio and Rhode Island represents a wider problem for Obama, said Joe Trippi, a former senior strategist for John Edwards, who had broad appeal among those voters until he dropped out of the Democratic race last month.
Obama, 46, has ``had a problem with lower-income, downscale, blue-collar Democrats from the beginning,'' Trippi said. ``He typically appeals to better educated, upscale Democrats.''
Ohio exit polls show Clinton beat Obama 62 percent to 35 percent among Catholics, 58 to 40 percent among those with no college degree and 56 percent to 42 percent among those who earn less than $50,000 a year. In Rhode Island, she won Catholics 66 percent to 34 percent, those with no college degree 61 percent to 38 percent, and those earning less than $50,000 by 59 percent to 39 percent.
The Illinois senator is still the Democratic front-runner and has shown strength attracting independents and younger voters. While yesterday's results were welcome in the Clinton camp, she barely cut into Obama's overall lead of about 150 pledged delegates.
Next Round
In addition, the next states to hold contests, Wyoming and Mississippi, are likely to increase his margin. Wyoming on March 8 holds a caucus, a type of contest in which Obama has generally prevailed. Mississippi, which holds a primary on March 11, has a heavy concentration of black voters. Neither state has big populations of white ethnic voters.
Yet Obama will need to do better with the white ethnic working class in places like Pennsylvania and to build a majority in a general election if he is the nominee.
The challenges he faces with these groups are evident in his hometown of Chicago, where voters know him and he is popular. Still, he faces resistance in working class, white ethnic neighborhoods.
``I can't support him,'' said Richard Dorsch, a 53-year-old paramedic fire chief from Chicago's Edison Park. Dorsch, who said his kids liken him to Archie Bunker, voted for Clinton in the primary, though he plans to support Republican Senator John McCain of Arizona if Obama wins the nomination.
`Talking Down'
``When he talks to you, it's like he's talking down to you,'' Dorsch said. ``He doesn't have the experience to talk like that.''
Dorsch's 41st Ward, which gave Clinton, 60, a six- percentage-point advantage, is 90 percent white, dominated by German, Polish and Irish ethnic police officers, teachers and city workers.
Obama has had problems with similar types of voters in Chicago since he began running for public office, though he has made some progress. He beat his white Democratic rivals in the 2004 Senate primary in places like the 41st Ward.
Yet communities like Edison Park remain a challenge for Obama, said Kent Redfield, a professor of political studies at the University of Illinois in Springfield.
``When Democrats win national elections they really do put that old New Deal coalition back together,'' he said. ``They have to get that Reagan Democrat.''
Working-Class Neighborhood
Chicago's 41st Ward is a classic white working-class neighborhood of bungalows, modest two-flats and Dutch colonials that shuts down on Pulaski Day, the March holiday celebrating Casimir Pulaski, a Pole who fought in the Revolutionary War.
An informal survey of employees at a local bank, gym, library, and neighborhood restaurant turned up no Obama supporters. Some residents said they were concerned that he might not take into account the concerns of whites.
``If Obama gets in, it's going to be a black thing and it's going to be all blacks for blacks,'' Victoria Mikulski, a 63- year-old clerk in Edison Park. ``Everything's got to be equal.''
Some residents still harbor resentment from 35 years ago, when a growing black population on the city's west side pushed whites north into Edison Park and Norwood Park, said Mary O'Connor, who owns a local bakery. Brian Doherty, the 41st Ward alderman, said he was ``shocked'' by Obama's success in the 2004 Senate primary.
New Generation
O'Connor, a Democrat who voted for Obama and recently won a seat as ward councilwoman, said a new generation that is less concerned with racial politics and history is taking over.
Far more important are the Iraq war and the economy, said O'Connor, who met with many residents during her door-to-door campaign this year.
Some younger voters said are turned off by the race.
``It's a gender and race war; that's why I'm just not interested in it,'' said Nicholas Georgopoulos, a 27-year-old auto technician and Democrat who lives in Norwood Park. ``They're not concentrating on the right things,'' he said. Dorsch, the fire paramedic, said race isn't a factor in his vote.
The importance of white, working-class neighborhoods like the 41st isn't lost on Obama. When in late 2003 the then Illinois state senator was considering a run for the U.S. Senate, he invited Senate colleague and close friend Larry Walsh for breakfast in Springfield.
Walsh represented Joliet, a majority white rural community south of Chicago.
``He said, `if I cannot appeal to the constituency that you represent how am I going to ever think about wining statewide?''' said Walsh, who is now Will County executive.
To contact the reporter on this story: Heidi Przybyla in Washington at hprzybyla@bloomberg.net
Obama Fails to Win Over White `Archie Bunker' Democratic Voters
By Heidi Przybyla
March 5 (Bloomberg) -- Barack Obama has an Archie Bunker problem.
The white, blue-collar voters personified by the 1970s fictional television character cost Obama yesterday. His rival for the Democratic nomination, Senator Hillary Clinton of New York, beat him 54 percent to 44 percent in industrial Ohio, and 58 percent to 40 percent in heavily Catholic Rhode Island.
In Ohio's 10th district of Cuyahoga County, a suburban enclave on Cleveland's west side that includes a large population of Polish-Americans, Clinton trounced Obama 61 percent to 37 percent, according to exit polls. In the state's Belmont County, an economically depressed Appalachian border area that is predominantly white, she had a 50-point lead over Obama, the first black candidate to have a shot at the White House.
``Race played a significant factor in Ohio,'' said Cuyahoga County Commissioner Timothy Hagan, who supported Obama. ``These people are not necessarily bigots, but the image they see every day of black America is drugs, crime, guns and violence.''
Clinton's victories yesterday in contests in Texas, Rhode Island and Ohio -- and just one defeat, in Vermont -- pumped new life into her candidacy after 11 consecutive losses to Obama. She now has renewed momentum heading into the next big test on April 22 in Pennsylvania, where the electorate looks much like Ohio's.
Wider Problem
The weak showing among the white working class in Ohio and Rhode Island represents a wider problem for Obama, said Joe Trippi, a former senior strategist for John Edwards, who had broad appeal among those voters until he dropped out of the Democratic race last month.
Obama, 46, has ``had a problem with lower-income, downscale, blue-collar Democrats from the beginning,'' Trippi said. ``He typically appeals to better educated, upscale Democrats.''
Ohio exit polls show Clinton beat Obama 62 percent to 35 percent among Catholics, 58 to 40 percent among those with no college degree and 56 percent to 42 percent among those who earn less than $50,000 a year. In Rhode Island, she won Catholics 66 percent to 34 percent, those with no college degree 61 percent to 38 percent, and those earning less than $50,000 by 59 percent to 39 percent.
The Illinois senator is still the Democratic front-runner and has shown strength attracting independents and younger voters. While yesterday's results were welcome in the Clinton camp, she barely cut into Obama's overall lead of about 150 pledged delegates.
Next Round
In addition, the next states to hold contests, Wyoming and Mississippi, are likely to increase his margin. Wyoming on March 8 holds a caucus, a type of contest in which Obama has generally prevailed. Mississippi, which holds a primary on March 11, has a heavy concentration of black voters. Neither state has big populations of white ethnic voters.
Yet Obama will need to do better with the white ethnic working class in places like Pennsylvania and to build a majority in a general election if he is the nominee.
The challenges he faces with these groups are evident in his hometown of Chicago, where voters know him and he is popular. Still, he faces resistance in working class, white ethnic neighborhoods.
``I can't support him,'' said Richard Dorsch, a 53-year-old paramedic fire chief from Chicago's Edison Park. Dorsch, who said his kids liken him to Archie Bunker, voted for Clinton in the primary, though he plans to support Republican Senator John McCain of Arizona if Obama wins the nomination.
`Talking Down'
``When he talks to you, it's like he's talking down to you,'' Dorsch said. ``He doesn't have the experience to talk like that.''
Dorsch's 41st Ward, which gave Clinton, 60, a six- percentage-point advantage, is 90 percent white, dominated by German, Polish and Irish ethnic police officers, teachers and city workers.
Obama has had problems with similar types of voters in Chicago since he began running for public office, though he has made some progress. He beat his white Democratic rivals in the 2004 Senate primary in places like the 41st Ward.
Yet communities like Edison Park remain a challenge for Obama, said Kent Redfield, a professor of political studies at the University of Illinois in Springfield.
``When Democrats win national elections they really do put that old New Deal coalition back together,'' he said. ``They have to get that Reagan Democrat.''
Working-Class Neighborhood
Chicago's 41st Ward is a classic white working-class neighborhood of bungalows, modest two-flats and Dutch colonials that shuts down on Pulaski Day, the March holiday celebrating Casimir Pulaski, a Pole who fought in the Revolutionary War.
An informal survey of employees at a local bank, gym, library, and neighborhood restaurant turned up no Obama supporters. Some residents said they were concerned that he might not take into account the concerns of whites.
``If Obama gets in, it's going to be a black thing and it's going to be all blacks for blacks,'' Victoria Mikulski, a 63- year-old clerk in Edison Park. ``Everything's got to be equal.''
Some residents still harbor resentment from 35 years ago, when a growing black population on the city's west side pushed whites north into Edison Park and Norwood Park, said Mary O'Connor, who owns a local bakery. Brian Doherty, the 41st Ward alderman, said he was ``shocked'' by Obama's success in the 2004 Senate primary.
New Generation
O'Connor, a Democrat who voted for Obama and recently won a seat as ward councilwoman, said a new generation that is less concerned with racial politics and history is taking over.
Far more important are the Iraq war and the economy, said O'Connor, who met with many residents during her door-to-door campaign this year.
Some younger voters said are turned off by the race.
``It's a gender and race war; that's why I'm just not interested in it,'' said Nicholas Georgopoulos, a 27-year-old auto technician and Democrat who lives in Norwood Park. ``They're not concentrating on the right things,'' he said. Dorsch, the fire paramedic, said race isn't a factor in his vote.
The importance of white, working-class neighborhoods like the 41st isn't lost on Obama. When in late 2003 the then Illinois state senator was considering a run for the U.S. Senate, he invited Senate colleague and close friend Larry Walsh for breakfast in Springfield.
Walsh represented Joliet, a majority white rural community south of Chicago.
``He said, `if I cannot appeal to the constituency that you represent how am I going to ever think about wining statewide?''' said Walsh, who is now Will County executive.
To contact the reporter on this story: Heidi Przybyla in Washington at hprzybyla@bloomberg.net
Kucinich Wins Ohio Primary
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/03/05/politics/politico/thecrypt/main3907881.shtml
Kucinich Wins Ohio Primary
Mar 4, 2008
(The Politico) Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-Ohio) prevailed in the Democratic primary against a insurgent primary campaign from a well-funded Cleveland city councilor, Joe Cimperman and three other Democratic challengers.
With all precincts reporting, Kucinich has defeated Cimperman by a 50 to 35 percent margin. Three other Democrats -- North Olmstead Mayor Tom O’Grady, anti-war activist Rosemary Palmer and 2006 candidate Barbara Ferris -- split the remainder of the vote.
Cimperman attacked Kucinich for neglecting the needs of his Cleveland constituents while running a quixotic campaign for president. He was the first candidate to air television ads parodying Kucinich’s absence from the district.
But Kucinich quickly abandoned his presidential bid to focus on the newly-competitive Congressional race, and his last-minute efforts paid off. He raised over $700,000 in the last two months, tapping into his large national donor base.
He will be facing former GOP state Rep. Jim Trakas in the general election.
Kucinich Wins Ohio Primary
Mar 4, 2008
(The Politico) Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-Ohio) prevailed in the Democratic primary against a insurgent primary campaign from a well-funded Cleveland city councilor, Joe Cimperman and three other Democratic challengers.
With all precincts reporting, Kucinich has defeated Cimperman by a 50 to 35 percent margin. Three other Democrats -- North Olmstead Mayor Tom O’Grady, anti-war activist Rosemary Palmer and 2006 candidate Barbara Ferris -- split the remainder of the vote.
Cimperman attacked Kucinich for neglecting the needs of his Cleveland constituents while running a quixotic campaign for president. He was the first candidate to air television ads parodying Kucinich’s absence from the district.
But Kucinich quickly abandoned his presidential bid to focus on the newly-competitive Congressional race, and his last-minute efforts paid off. He raised over $700,000 in the last two months, tapping into his large national donor base.
He will be facing former GOP state Rep. Jim Trakas in the general election.
Sunday, March 2, 2008
Jay-Z, James relationship should worry Cavs
http://sports.yahoo.com/nba/news;_ylt=At.hobCz9yapxql.FNlU2SPTjdIF?slug=aw-lebronjayz022508&prov=yhoo&type=lgns
Jay-Z, James relationship should worry Cavs
By Adrian Wojnarowski, Yahoo! Sports
Feb 25, 2008
As Jay-Z made a toast next to his co-host, LeBron James, at a VIP dinner during All-Star weekend, he spoke of branding, about a new world order of celebrity businessmen. They declared this the Two Kings dinner in New Orleans and the star-studded list of invitees included NBA owners and stars, music label executives and A-list performers. Jay-Z talked of a tomorrow when these two monuments to music and basketball will transform the rules of engagement for the iconic performer, one witness said. He talked of making history.
For the Cavaliers officials watching, there had to be something of a collective gulp. They have been uneasy witnesses to a dance between James and Jay-Z, a bond between a generation’s most celebrated entertainer and athlete. These two spend a lot of time together – traveling, talking and sharing big ideas.
What’s unnerving to Cleveland is that Jay-Z happens to be a part owner of the New Jersey Nets with unlimited access to James’ heart, mind and ambitions. Of course, the Nets are plotting a move to a sparkling new arena in Brooklyn, perhaps as soon as the 2011-2012 season. They’re clearing cap space and planning a pursuit of James when he can opt out of his contract in the summer of 2010.
Cleveland officials won’t talk about James and Jay-Z, but if you were wondering about the franchise’s fear of losing him to the brighter lights and bigger city, understand that the trade owner Dan Gilbert and general manager Danny Ferry made had everything to do with winning now and crushing James’ concerns that Cleveland is unable to surround him with a championship cast.
LeBron doesn’t want to just win titles. His stated wants include becoming sport’s first billionaire athlete. Among his advisors, he counts Warren Buffet. Jay-Z has helped James focus his mind on chasing something bigger than basketball. The question will be this: For the kid out of Akron, will his hometown – will even winning – be enough to hold onto LeBron James?
So yes, Sonny Vaccaro has been fascinated to study the burgeoning partnership since the days Jay-Z – whose real name is Shawn Carter – visited James at Vaccaro’s high school All-American camp in New Jersey. Vaccaro is responsible for some of the most profound marketing marriages in basketball history. He sold Nike on paying college coaches to be billboards for shoe companies, on spending everything they had on North Carolina’s Michael Jordan. When everyone else believed Jordan had a chance to be an excellent pro player, Vaccaro was convinced he would be transcendent for the company.
Vaccaro is out of the game, but forever connecting and consulting with those shaping the landscape. If nothing else, he is sure of this: In two years, Cleveland could be fighting a perfect storm of circumstances.
“I think that LeBron will have to look long and hard about leaving Cleveland,” Vaccaro said. “Dan Gilbert and the city have embraced him. They’ve done everything they can to make a championship-type trade. Danny Ferry did a good job with that. But knowing LeBron and knowing the world as I see it, the most appetizing thing would not be the New York Knicks for him, but the Nets with Jay-Z.
“Jay-Z is the one person that I can put in a parallel universe with LeBron from where they started and where they are now. If LeBron has a role model in life, it’s Jay-Z. I’ve never been around a more perfect match of young genius. What would be better than these two kids in New York?
“Maybe this is only able to happen once, when the money is there in New Jersey, and his contract is up in Cleveland. When you think of the marketing roll that LeBron could be on after winning gold in Beijing, wow. …I’m not sure the sun and moon have ever aligned like this.”
Jay-Z is a Grammy Award-winning rapper, the ex-president of a record label, a club owner, a clothier, a hotelier. Now, he has started a new ad company – Translation Advertising. This is the kind of fortune, the kind of legacy, that James is chasing for the long run.
This drive and determination isn’t lost on Gilbert, the Cavaliers owner who absorbed several million more dollars in salary and luxury tax with the trade that brought Ben Wallace, Joe Smith, Wally Szczerbiak and Delonte West to the team on Thursday.
James initially sounded cautious about the trade. After a blowout victory over Memphis on Sunday night, James gushed over its promise. Ferry delivered James shooting and the ultimate wildcard, Wallace. If Wallace has nothing left from his Detroit days, this deal could be doomed. Still, Cleveland feared the status quo in the East. Between the Cavs and the conference’s two best teams, Boston and Detroit, the gap has grown too profound.
Two years ago, the Cavaliers heard Jay-Z’s public position on LeBron’s future and could only imagine what might be said in private. When asked about the possibility of him someday joining the franchise, the Nets’ part-owner paid no mind to league tampering rules and gushed, “How amazing would that be? I tell people all the time, he’s my friend first. If Cleveland is building a championship team around him then my advice is to stay there. If it’s the Nets who are building a championship team that could be around him then my advice is to come to the Nets.”
The league office noticed the comments, but never leveled a fine for tampering. What can Cleveland do? Complain? No chance the Cavs will try to tell James who his friends can be, especially when they pre-date his days in the NBA.
When it comes to branding, nothing and nowhere could be bigger for James’ global profile than becoming the King of New York. There has always been a belief that his endorsement deals, including Nike, include clauses that trigger bigger payouts if James lands in a major market.
The Nets are clearing cap space for a free-agent class that includes James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh, but James is the unmistakable target. So much so, the Nets have an internal business plan for the move into the new Brooklyn arena that includes a modest section on his eventual recruitment, estimates of his marketing worth and the salary-cap space that needs to be cleared for his signing.
This is the kind of advanced planning every team does, but there’s a credibility to the Nets’ pursuit that comes out of Jay-Z’s relationship. As for changing the landscape as iconic branders, it was no coincidence that James showed up at a New York-Cleveland American League division series game in October wearing a Yankees cap. Whatever calls of traitor ensued in Cleveland, the deed was done: Suddenly, the world identified LeBron as a Yankees fan.
Mere months later, Nike has a LeBron-Yankees shoe planned for March release. For those wanting to believe James is setting the stage for a move to the big city, the line of shoes does forward the idea that he wants to be identified with New York.
Between now and the summer of 2010, this promises to be a fascinating story line. Jay-Z has opened LeBron James’ mind to looking far beyond basketball, beyond the traditional journeys to superstardom. Together, they talked about changing everything for the global icon. Between now and 2010, the Cavaliers have to sell LeBron James that all that can still happen in Cleveland.
Adrian Wojnarowski is the NBA columnist for Yahoo! Sports.
Jay-Z, James relationship should worry Cavs
By Adrian Wojnarowski, Yahoo! Sports
Feb 25, 2008
As Jay-Z made a toast next to his co-host, LeBron James, at a VIP dinner during All-Star weekend, he spoke of branding, about a new world order of celebrity businessmen. They declared this the Two Kings dinner in New Orleans and the star-studded list of invitees included NBA owners and stars, music label executives and A-list performers. Jay-Z talked of a tomorrow when these two monuments to music and basketball will transform the rules of engagement for the iconic performer, one witness said. He talked of making history.
For the Cavaliers officials watching, there had to be something of a collective gulp. They have been uneasy witnesses to a dance between James and Jay-Z, a bond between a generation’s most celebrated entertainer and athlete. These two spend a lot of time together – traveling, talking and sharing big ideas.
What’s unnerving to Cleveland is that Jay-Z happens to be a part owner of the New Jersey Nets with unlimited access to James’ heart, mind and ambitions. Of course, the Nets are plotting a move to a sparkling new arena in Brooklyn, perhaps as soon as the 2011-2012 season. They’re clearing cap space and planning a pursuit of James when he can opt out of his contract in the summer of 2010.
Cleveland officials won’t talk about James and Jay-Z, but if you were wondering about the franchise’s fear of losing him to the brighter lights and bigger city, understand that the trade owner Dan Gilbert and general manager Danny Ferry made had everything to do with winning now and crushing James’ concerns that Cleveland is unable to surround him with a championship cast.
LeBron doesn’t want to just win titles. His stated wants include becoming sport’s first billionaire athlete. Among his advisors, he counts Warren Buffet. Jay-Z has helped James focus his mind on chasing something bigger than basketball. The question will be this: For the kid out of Akron, will his hometown – will even winning – be enough to hold onto LeBron James?
So yes, Sonny Vaccaro has been fascinated to study the burgeoning partnership since the days Jay-Z – whose real name is Shawn Carter – visited James at Vaccaro’s high school All-American camp in New Jersey. Vaccaro is responsible for some of the most profound marketing marriages in basketball history. He sold Nike on paying college coaches to be billboards for shoe companies, on spending everything they had on North Carolina’s Michael Jordan. When everyone else believed Jordan had a chance to be an excellent pro player, Vaccaro was convinced he would be transcendent for the company.
Vaccaro is out of the game, but forever connecting and consulting with those shaping the landscape. If nothing else, he is sure of this: In two years, Cleveland could be fighting a perfect storm of circumstances.
“I think that LeBron will have to look long and hard about leaving Cleveland,” Vaccaro said. “Dan Gilbert and the city have embraced him. They’ve done everything they can to make a championship-type trade. Danny Ferry did a good job with that. But knowing LeBron and knowing the world as I see it, the most appetizing thing would not be the New York Knicks for him, but the Nets with Jay-Z.
“Jay-Z is the one person that I can put in a parallel universe with LeBron from where they started and where they are now. If LeBron has a role model in life, it’s Jay-Z. I’ve never been around a more perfect match of young genius. What would be better than these two kids in New York?
“Maybe this is only able to happen once, when the money is there in New Jersey, and his contract is up in Cleveland. When you think of the marketing roll that LeBron could be on after winning gold in Beijing, wow. …I’m not sure the sun and moon have ever aligned like this.”
Jay-Z is a Grammy Award-winning rapper, the ex-president of a record label, a club owner, a clothier, a hotelier. Now, he has started a new ad company – Translation Advertising. This is the kind of fortune, the kind of legacy, that James is chasing for the long run.
This drive and determination isn’t lost on Gilbert, the Cavaliers owner who absorbed several million more dollars in salary and luxury tax with the trade that brought Ben Wallace, Joe Smith, Wally Szczerbiak and Delonte West to the team on Thursday.
James initially sounded cautious about the trade. After a blowout victory over Memphis on Sunday night, James gushed over its promise. Ferry delivered James shooting and the ultimate wildcard, Wallace. If Wallace has nothing left from his Detroit days, this deal could be doomed. Still, Cleveland feared the status quo in the East. Between the Cavs and the conference’s two best teams, Boston and Detroit, the gap has grown too profound.
Two years ago, the Cavaliers heard Jay-Z’s public position on LeBron’s future and could only imagine what might be said in private. When asked about the possibility of him someday joining the franchise, the Nets’ part-owner paid no mind to league tampering rules and gushed, “How amazing would that be? I tell people all the time, he’s my friend first. If Cleveland is building a championship team around him then my advice is to stay there. If it’s the Nets who are building a championship team that could be around him then my advice is to come to the Nets.”
The league office noticed the comments, but never leveled a fine for tampering. What can Cleveland do? Complain? No chance the Cavs will try to tell James who his friends can be, especially when they pre-date his days in the NBA.
When it comes to branding, nothing and nowhere could be bigger for James’ global profile than becoming the King of New York. There has always been a belief that his endorsement deals, including Nike, include clauses that trigger bigger payouts if James lands in a major market.
The Nets are clearing cap space for a free-agent class that includes James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh, but James is the unmistakable target. So much so, the Nets have an internal business plan for the move into the new Brooklyn arena that includes a modest section on his eventual recruitment, estimates of his marketing worth and the salary-cap space that needs to be cleared for his signing.
This is the kind of advanced planning every team does, but there’s a credibility to the Nets’ pursuit that comes out of Jay-Z’s relationship. As for changing the landscape as iconic branders, it was no coincidence that James showed up at a New York-Cleveland American League division series game in October wearing a Yankees cap. Whatever calls of traitor ensued in Cleveland, the deed was done: Suddenly, the world identified LeBron as a Yankees fan.
Mere months later, Nike has a LeBron-Yankees shoe planned for March release. For those wanting to believe James is setting the stage for a move to the big city, the line of shoes does forward the idea that he wants to be identified with New York.
Between now and the summer of 2010, this promises to be a fascinating story line. Jay-Z has opened LeBron James’ mind to looking far beyond basketball, beyond the traditional journeys to superstardom. Together, they talked about changing everything for the global icon. Between now and 2010, the Cavaliers have to sell LeBron James that all that can still happen in Cleveland.
Adrian Wojnarowski is the NBA columnist for Yahoo! Sports.
Monday, September 3, 2007
The Richest (and Poorest) Places in the U.S.
http://finance.yahoo.com/real-estate/article/103432/The-Richest-(and-Poorest)-Places-in-the-U.S.
The Richest (and Poorest) Places in the U.S.
by Les Christie
Thursday, August 30, 2007
Maryland knocked New Jersey out of the top spot this year, while Mississippi and West Virginia were the poorest states in the Union.
Maryland is now the wealthiest state in the union, as measured by median household income, according to the latest stats from the Census Bureau.
The typical Maryland household earned $65,144 in 2006, propelling it past New Jersey, which came in second with earnings of $64,470, but had led the nation in 2005. Connecticut finished in third place both years, recording a median income of $63,422 in 2006.
Maryland's income was nearly double that of Mississippi, which, with a median of $34,473, was the nation's poorest state. West Virginia, where the median household earned $35,059, was second poorest and Arkansas, at $36,599, was third.
The median income for the United States as a whole came to $48,451.
Income growth was highest in the District of Columbia, where it rose 6.4 percent for the year. Median income in both Nevada and New Mexico jumped 4.5 percent. Delaware, down 2.9 percent, took the biggest dip, followed by Rhode Island (down 2.0 percent) and Maine (down 1.6 percent).
Among places with 250,000 or more residents, the affluent Dallas suburb of Plano, Texas, boasts the highest median income: $77,038. San Jose came in second at $73,804 and San Francisco was third with $65,497.
The list of the 10 poorest cities was filled with mostly old, northeastern and mid-western industrial locales. Cleveland had the lowest median income of any city in the nation with more than 250,000 residents; households there earned just $26,535. Miami was the next poorest at $27,088, followed by Buffalo ($27,850), Detroit ($28,364), St. Louis ($30,936) and Cincinnati ($31,103).
Other poor sun-belt cities included Memphis ($32, 593) and El Paso (33,103). With median income of $33,229, Philadelphia was the only city among the nation's 10 biggest that was also among the 10 poorest cities.
Among towns of between 65,000 and 250,000 in population, Yorba Linda, California, where six-figure incomes are the rule, had the highest median income at $121,075. The Orange County town is considerably wealthier than the second place city, Pleasanton, California, in the Bay area, which had a median income of $105,956.
The lowest income town of any with more than 65,000 population was Youngstown, Ohio at $21,850, which finished last by a large margin. Muncie, Indiana was its closest rival for this dubious distinction, with residents there earning $25,859, a difference of 18 percent.
Top 10 wealthiest states
Here's where the median household income is highest
State Income
Maryland $65,144
New Jersey $64,470
Connecticut $63,422
Hawaii $61,160
Massachusetts $59,963
New Hampshire $59,683
Alaska $59,393
California $56,645
Virginia $56,277
Minnesota $54,023
Source: U.S. Census Bureau
The 10 poorest states
The states with the lowest median household income
State Income
Montana $40,627
Tennessee $40,315
Kentucky $39,372
Louisiana $39,337
Alabama $38,783
Oklahoma $38,770
Arkansas $36,599
West Virginia $35,059
Mississippi $34,473
Source: U.S. Census Bureau
CNNMoney.com
The Richest (and Poorest) Places in the U.S.
by Les Christie
Thursday, August 30, 2007
Maryland knocked New Jersey out of the top spot this year, while Mississippi and West Virginia were the poorest states in the Union.
Maryland is now the wealthiest state in the union, as measured by median household income, according to the latest stats from the Census Bureau.
The typical Maryland household earned $65,144 in 2006, propelling it past New Jersey, which came in second with earnings of $64,470, but had led the nation in 2005. Connecticut finished in third place both years, recording a median income of $63,422 in 2006.
Maryland's income was nearly double that of Mississippi, which, with a median of $34,473, was the nation's poorest state. West Virginia, where the median household earned $35,059, was second poorest and Arkansas, at $36,599, was third.
The median income for the United States as a whole came to $48,451.
Income growth was highest in the District of Columbia, where it rose 6.4 percent for the year. Median income in both Nevada and New Mexico jumped 4.5 percent. Delaware, down 2.9 percent, took the biggest dip, followed by Rhode Island (down 2.0 percent) and Maine (down 1.6 percent).
Among places with 250,000 or more residents, the affluent Dallas suburb of Plano, Texas, boasts the highest median income: $77,038. San Jose came in second at $73,804 and San Francisco was third with $65,497.
The list of the 10 poorest cities was filled with mostly old, northeastern and mid-western industrial locales. Cleveland had the lowest median income of any city in the nation with more than 250,000 residents; households there earned just $26,535. Miami was the next poorest at $27,088, followed by Buffalo ($27,850), Detroit ($28,364), St. Louis ($30,936) and Cincinnati ($31,103).
Other poor sun-belt cities included Memphis ($32, 593) and El Paso (33,103). With median income of $33,229, Philadelphia was the only city among the nation's 10 biggest that was also among the 10 poorest cities.
Among towns of between 65,000 and 250,000 in population, Yorba Linda, California, where six-figure incomes are the rule, had the highest median income at $121,075. The Orange County town is considerably wealthier than the second place city, Pleasanton, California, in the Bay area, which had a median income of $105,956.
The lowest income town of any with more than 65,000 population was Youngstown, Ohio at $21,850, which finished last by a large margin. Muncie, Indiana was its closest rival for this dubious distinction, with residents there earning $25,859, a difference of 18 percent.
Top 10 wealthiest states
Here's where the median household income is highest
State Income
Maryland $65,144
New Jersey $64,470
Connecticut $63,422
Hawaii $61,160
Massachusetts $59,963
New Hampshire $59,683
Alaska $59,393
California $56,645
Virginia $56,277
Minnesota $54,023
Source: U.S. Census Bureau
The 10 poorest states
The states with the lowest median household income
State Income
Montana $40,627
Tennessee $40,315
Kentucky $39,372
Louisiana $39,337
Alabama $38,783
Oklahoma $38,770
Arkansas $36,599
West Virginia $35,059
Mississippi $34,473
Source: U.S. Census Bureau
CNNMoney.com
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