LeBron James or pro-mining editorial?

Cleveland is really excited about LeBron James and Iron Range media is excited about nonferrous mining. Which will prove more rational in the long run?

Cleveland is really excited about LeBron James and Iron Range media is excited about nonferrous mining. Which will prove more rational in the long run? PHOTOS: You decide. One is a promotional shot from PolyMet, the other is from a March 22, 2008 Cavs/Bucks game by Elliot Connor, Creative Commons

Living most of my life on the Iron Range of Northern Minnesota I’ve always held an affinity for steel towns like Cleveland and Pittsburgh out East. That’s where the iron ore that passed by my house on steaming taconite trains would end up, and the fortunes of folks in those big cities often mirrored the ups and downs of our shared economy based on the merciless, volatile price of steel.

So, I was glad to see Cleveland have a run of good luck last week, including the announcement that the GOP would hold their national convention there in 2016 and that hometown son LeBron James would be returning to play basketball for the Cleveland Cavaliers.

In reading the Cleveland press about James’ return, however, I began to notice some tonal similarities to something I see all the time: pro-mining newspaper editorials. Here on the Iron Range, newspapers have an almost (but not quite) universal pro-mining editorial stance, including existing iron mines but also more controversial new copper-nickel mines that are currently ensnared in complex financing schemes and environmental reviews.

It’s not just that they’re for mining, it’s that the entire worldview is predicated on how new mining, no matter how much of it actually occurs, will  single-handedly repair the deep-seeded social and economic strife of the past 30 years. So, too, it goes for the press surrounding LeBron James and his return to Cleveland.

So, while I wish the very best for both Cavs fans and the Iron Range economy, here’s a game to test your skill. See if you can spot the real pro-mining excerpt and the real LeBron excerpt in a collection of quotes in which I traded the subjects:

  1. “We’re going to see the return of people from [Minneapolis] and [Duluth] coming in to [work in the mines],” says Kramer. (*)
  2. My blood boils when I see unfounded opposition to [LeBron James] or the opportunity for a [NBA championship for the Cleveland Cavaliers]. (*)
  3. FitzGerald said [mining’s] return is “huge” and worth “tens of millions of dollars.” (*)
  4. “[LeBron James] will create a surge in high-paying jobs for [Ohioans] and investment in our state for generations to come.” (*)
  5. “[Minnesota] is poised to become a [global] leader in [supplying critical and strategic metals, such as copper and nickel, that are essential to our way of life].” (*)
  6. “This means so much to the community as a whole and to downtown, the heart of [Cleveland],” says Nick Kostis. (*)
  7. “When it’s all said and done, I do believe that by the end of [this century], [copper and nickel mining will] go down as the best [economic story in Minnesota history, a true example of technology at its finest],” he said. (*)
  8. In [her] strongest statement yet of support for [LeBron James], [11th District U.S. Rep. Marcia Fudge] said [she] is “confident” the [Cavs will win the NBA title]. (*)

So, which one is the real pro-mining item? Which one is the real LeBron press item? Time’s running out …

10 …

9 …

8 …

7 …

6 …

5 …

4 …

3 …

2 …

1 …

ANSWERS:

Actual LeBron James item: 6

Actual pro-mining item: 5

The rest have been switched.

The point here is that a whole lot of people could end up disappointed if [LeBron] or [Mining] doesn’t pan out. On the plus side, the people of Cleveland and the Iron Range, respectively, are the LeBron Jameses of being disappointed. We’ve GOT this.

(h/t, the great and wise Matt Nelson)

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