One of the downsides, and there are many, of the gilded age redux is that we have to hear the details of these narcissist's sordid lives. It's not easy to come across as sleazier than Donald Sterling, but Dolan did it. I can't wait until the good folks with the torches and pitchforks show up at his luxury box.
4
Why does a sports-writer, Powell, get into the class-envy business & go out of his way to smear all rich people? It's very tiresome, as there are of course plenty of nice, kind & decent rich people, just as there are plenty of nice, kind & decent poor people. And the reverse is also true in all the income brackets. There are jerks in each bracket too. And let's not deny that Powell's article has the effect of smearing all the 1 percenters. "Consummate," from the headine, means among other things, "complete or perfect." So according to the headline, and upon listing the litany of Dolan's faults, we the reader are to conclude that Dolan is the perfect example of that most evil of persons--a 1 percenter of the New York variety. Stick to sports Powell, stay out of the Marxist class-envy business.
1
Unfortunately for all of us Knick Fans... Mr. Dolan's ego is even larger than his wallet...
And the NBA should have fined him for his rebuttal e-mail to Mr. Bierman.
That showed the class he really has - none.
And the NBA should have fined him for his rebuttal e-mail to Mr. Bierman.
That showed the class he really has - none.
5
At first I didn't get the title of this article, since pretty much every professional sports team owner is a "1 Percenter" Then, I got it. In the NY Times world view where everything is framed in income inequality terms, anybody in the 1% is evil, so calling someone the "Consummate 1 Percenter" means he is evil extraordinaire. Since this is the sports section, perhaps the focus should instead be on sports rather than what income bracket the owner belongs to, particularly since all the players, coach, team president and the fans sitting in those arena level seats are all members of the 1% as well. (The article didn't bring up Mr. Bierman's net worth, but if he is also a member of the 1% maybe his complaints have less weight as well?) No question, Dolan is one of the worst owners around based on his basketball decisions alone, but trying to somehow weave in an inequality theme is just lame and lazy journalism.
This is more than just about Dolan and the Knicks. This is about a man, whether qualified or not, who was installed in his position, by his father in an effort to create a management aristocracy. One may ask "How can shareholders tolerate such repeated bad behavior and the associated costs to the parent company?" The concept of a publicly held company means little to people like the Dolans - they have created various classes of stock in order to their maintain control, while continuing to burden shareholders with shame and poor performance.
3
I don't need his advice. I stopped rooting for his dysfunctional, losing, whining sack of basketball *losers* a long time ago.
1
Great article, Mr. Powell. I wonder what sort of retribution you will have to suffer as a result. Dolan is a pathetic spoiled brat, who was handed everything by his father and his earned very little as far as I can see.
Kudos to you and The Times for having the guts to print this, straight up.
Kudos to you and The Times for having the guts to print this, straight up.
4
A recovering alcoholic accusing someone else of probably being an alcoholic - well, that's way lower than a snake's belly, but likely reflexive for Dolan. He projects onto a complete stranger what he hates about himself.
It doesn't take a genius figure out that Dolan might benefit from some AA meetings, except he'd have to admit there's a "higher power" than himself, which I'm sure he doesn't think is true.
In my own opinion, Dolan can have all the money and arrogance and power in the world, but it won't make him a better person or less of a loser.
It doesn't take a genius figure out that Dolan might benefit from some AA meetings, except he'd have to admit there's a "higher power" than himself, which I'm sure he doesn't think is true.
In my own opinion, Dolan can have all the money and arrogance and power in the world, but it won't make him a better person or less of a loser.
9
People who support clowns such as this man get what they deserve, and it is difficult to believe that people could enjoy the absurdity of pro basketball aside from owners such as the owner of this team or people like the owner of the Dallas team . I would not sit through a quarter of a basketball game if I was given the best seat in the house, and suppose that people who do, are so desperate to fill vapid lives that they will do anything to further deaden their brains. Incredible that anyone would put up with such idiotic nonsense and drivel as dispensed by owner, and the grossly overpriced players.
4
The spiteful email was pretty much par for the course for the internet. Cruise over to virtually any site with unmoderated commenting and you'll see comments just like those in spades. Clearly, our schools have failed to teach what "ad hominem" fallacies are. Or perhaps the kids were too busy insulting each other electronically to hear the message.
2
Class article. Nice to see somebody over there in America standing up for some old pensioner against some ridiculously rich guy who hasn't the grace or class of Chuck Feeney to rise beyond the crass arrogance of wealth.
9
Magisterially put.
Are spectator sports really worth putting up with so many horrible people like this clown, the clown that owned the Lakers, a fraud like Lance Armstrong, all the creeps and abusive jerks. Does a game transcend so many awful people and what appears to be many poisonous cultures?
3
Terrific column -- deft, smart, decent, devastating to those of us (yes, we exist) who until now didn't know Dolan but care, very much, about behavior and the corruption of civility and good manners that too much money bestows. First column!
9
excellent piece
but does dolan really differ from most of the other owners in nfl, nba, mlb?
but does dolan really differ from most of the other owners in nfl, nba, mlb?
3
This isn't about being wealthy or a "1 percenter". This is a badly behaved man who only rarely hears the word no. There are jerks at every level of the socioeconomic ladder. This article makes is sound as though wealth is an excuse to be a boor.
And don't mention poor, demented Donald Sterling in the same breath with this boor - this is a lifetime pattern, not a moment of extreme weakness with a younger woman out to get something from him.
And don't mention poor, demented Donald Sterling in the same breath with this boor - this is a lifetime pattern, not a moment of extreme weakness with a younger woman out to get something from him.
7
Don't forget that this is the same egomaniac that assigned his own blues band (sic) to be the opening act when the Eagles played the Garden. Was THAT what Ringo meant when he sang "Gotta pay your dues if you want to sing the blues, and you know it don't come easy?"
5
A fine column, Michael Powell, thanks for clueing us in on the clueless Mr. Dolan. For all his wealth he obviously lost his stash of humility and humanity, two things money can't buy. I'd say the Knicks are what he deserves, but then, I'm a Celtics fan. That said, I'd also say New Yorkers deserve better.
5
Hey...this has the makings of another moronic movie, doncha think? It could be called "Weekend at Carmelo's"! I mean, c'mon...after tonight, he's got the time and the place to film it. No more silly basketball to get in the way... Maybe Kevin Costner could play Bierman?
2
Nah, Jack Nicholson should play Bierman...
1
ah ha ---
finally:
a competitor for Donald Sterling at the bottom of the barrel ...
with a turn to good-fortune, Knick aficionado's will awake one morning to a new Dolan-less sports franchise with which to share their collective cheers...
while all sports events require both a loser along with a winner, such enterprises generally do much better with at least a small amount of effort to improve themselves from season to season...
the current practices at MSG/Knick-dom suggests that even the entreaties of long-suffering consumers can be cast aside with aplomb...
as with the earlier West Coast version: what a waste of time, talent and humanity.
finally:
a competitor for Donald Sterling at the bottom of the barrel ...
with a turn to good-fortune, Knick aficionado's will awake one morning to a new Dolan-less sports franchise with which to share their collective cheers...
while all sports events require both a loser along with a winner, such enterprises generally do much better with at least a small amount of effort to improve themselves from season to season...
the current practices at MSG/Knick-dom suggests that even the entreaties of long-suffering consumers can be cast aside with aplomb...
as with the earlier West Coast version: what a waste of time, talent and humanity.
4
Mr. Powell,
Greatest article. Ever.
Greatest article. Ever.
17
He's apparently an insecure man who knows he couldn't make it without the trust fund. I have heard of similar types where psychologists determined that such callousness related in large part to the age when they were potty trained. That might explain it, but who knows.
6
Sounds like Mr. Dolan can offer Chris Christie some tips on gaucheness.
20
Foolish words by one owner forced a sale of the LA Clippers. Shouldn't the foolish words of James Dolan compel the NBA to force a sale of the Knicks?
21
Great column, Mr. Powell. Your next column on Dolan should be on why he continues to get that $54 million tax exemption. I understand that the NY City Council voted to terminate that extension. That is $54 million not going to the city that can use it so much better in so many ways. So what happened?
Councilman Johnson said: “They are the only private corporation in the State of New York that has a section in the tax code that is written specifically for them,” he said. “They don’t need this tax break anymore.”
Get that story and earn the permanent gratitude of all New Yorkers, not just Knick fans.
Councilman Johnson said: “They are the only private corporation in the State of New York that has a section in the tax code that is written specifically for them,” he said. “They don’t need this tax break anymore.”
Get that story and earn the permanent gratitude of all New Yorkers, not just Knick fans.
50
Mr. Dolan's reputation does him no value when it comes to hiring talented professionals for Cablevision.
Recruiters have been desperately reaching out to me and my peers to find anyone, just anyone who is worth their salt to join that firm. We joke about it uniformly agree that they could not pay us enough to work for him and his family members.
Were it not for their desperate clutching of their TV sports rights exclusives, cablevision would have long ago crumbled under their management.
Recruiters have been desperately reaching out to me and my peers to find anyone, just anyone who is worth their salt to join that firm. We joke about it uniformly agree that they could not pay us enough to work for him and his family members.
Were it not for their desperate clutching of their TV sports rights exclusives, cablevision would have long ago crumbled under their management.
18
I would have been relieved if Mr. Dolan had just apologized for the intemperate remarks. Not to apologize, having been so intemperate, was to me what was most inexcusable.
20
I found the letter written by Mr. Dolan in response to a fan's criticism, completely intemperate, scarily intemperate.
16
Dolan should fire himself. What if one of his employees personally insult one of his customers and tell the customer to go away? Wouldn't he fire them? Owners can refuse to do business with abusive or any customers, but this should be done in a professional matter. Is this high school? Or even junior high? Another reason to tune out the Knicks and MSG, besides them being a semi-professional b-ball team.
9
I am no longer a Knicks fan. It has been a while. What still bothers me is the tax exemption these owners get. Thanks for reminding me during tax season.
20
We have the James Dolan we deserve. Honor, civility, tolerance and respect in dealing with the public seem to be a distant memory for this Knicks fan of many years . Mr. Dolan is just the reflection of all that we have lost in the past few decades. We are wallowing in a desperate age of money providing immunity for bad behavior among athletes, owners and plutocrats who consider it their privilege to bleed the common person on everything from ticket prices to taxation because they can. The powerlessness of Irving Bierman and we taken-for-granteds is right out of Howard Beale's "We've Had Enough" playbook, and is symptomatic of our love of the game. Following sports has turned into a 24 hour addiction which blinds us to the immorality of self righteous cheaters, egotists, misogynists and liars . James Dolan will not be going away in my lifetime and choosing to call him out, however heroic, misses the opportunity to reexamine the value of decency, respect and class in our behavior in and out of the world's most famous arena.
38
Yeah, let me add to this just in case Dolan is reading.
Dude, it's not so hard. Steinbrenner figured it out, you can too. It's not a Broadway show. You can't just put the name Amar'e up on the billboard and turn a profit. That's not enough for NY. Let Phil be. Don't undermine him like you did Walsh. Face it. You got slaughtered in the Carmelo deal. Then threw good money after bad with Bargnani.
If no one really great wants to come in 2015 wait until 2016 and then maybe Durant. Hey, you'd only drink Dom, right? Why not the best for our city and our beloved Knicks? Be patient. Grow the team. Stop trading draft picks. Steinbrenner trusted Gene Michael and it all started there. He didn't trade Bernie or Jeter or Mariano. Hopefully we get Okafor and he turns into the next Duncan.
Seriously Jim, you could be beloved. Just make amends.
Dude, it's not so hard. Steinbrenner figured it out, you can too. It's not a Broadway show. You can't just put the name Amar'e up on the billboard and turn a profit. That's not enough for NY. Let Phil be. Don't undermine him like you did Walsh. Face it. You got slaughtered in the Carmelo deal. Then threw good money after bad with Bargnani.
If no one really great wants to come in 2015 wait until 2016 and then maybe Durant. Hey, you'd only drink Dom, right? Why not the best for our city and our beloved Knicks? Be patient. Grow the team. Stop trading draft picks. Steinbrenner trusted Gene Michael and it all started there. He didn't trade Bernie or Jeter or Mariano. Hopefully we get Okafor and he turns into the next Duncan.
Seriously Jim, you could be beloved. Just make amends.
4
Absolutely. Knick fans have demonstrated that they will show up for a young, relatively promising team. Maybe not sell out the house - but show up in reasonably large numbers.
We'll all ready to sacrifice in order to win long-term. But is Jimmy?
The Steinbrenner kids put up that ludicrous, over-sized plaque to honor their father in Monument Park; but without Gene Michael's contribution, their father would would ended his tenure as one of the most hated owners in professional sports.
If was Gene Michael who saved the Yankees - not any Steinbrenner.
We'll all ready to sacrifice in order to win long-term. But is Jimmy?
The Steinbrenner kids put up that ludicrous, over-sized plaque to honor their father in Monument Park; but without Gene Michael's contribution, their father would would ended his tenure as one of the most hated owners in professional sports.
If was Gene Michael who saved the Yankees - not any Steinbrenner.
2
A fan tells Dolan he's done "lots of STUPID things". Dolan writes back using standard New York street YoMama talk. Your grandmother from Kansas would be shocked. But folks from New York know that this is what New Yorkers do. New Yorkers are tough, their street-smart, and they know that sometime tempers flare. No f-bombs, no ethnic slurs, and no bloodshed? Time to move on. Nothing happening here.
4
Nothing to see here except two decades of ineptitude in the biggest sports market in the world. Dolan is an unprofessional pestilence and a nasty guy. Want some New York moxie - Stay out of it, Phoenix!
30
Knicks fans hate to lose, which is admirable, and they hate their hateful owner, also admirable. My Red Sox were owned by a Southerner who undermined efforts to acquire Mays and other top black prospects. New Yorkers may be better than Bostonians in identifying the bad guys and giving them their due. But Bostonians understand better that sports are an escape and usually make the best of it. Maybe Bostonians need more of a social conscience. Maybe New Yorkers need more humor.
Well done sir. However, in rightly pegging Jimmy D. as a card-carrying member of the 1% you forgot to make explicit the single most important criterion Dolan satisfies for membership -- like the vast majority of this contingent he never actually earned anything on his own. All that he has was bequeathed to him by his wealthy father. Equally applicable to JD are the words of the late Ann Richards used so memorably about Bush 41 (another 1%ER and worthy Times headline fodder today as it would so happen), "he was born with a silver foot in his mouth".
32
Superb, as always, Michael Powell. Along with Messrs Krugman, Blow and the taken-far-too-early David Carr, you are the very best of the Times, speaking truth to power from the belly of the beast that is Manhattan. You have delivered the skewering that Dolan so richly deserves.
28
One question... Why isn't this guy in prison?
13
Exactly what did the commissioner mean that he was the consummate New Yorker. Talk about the consummate insult.....
20
Mr. Dolan has long been an embarrassment to himself, his family, his corporation, and to this city. The only thing more embarrassing is the Commissioner's response. Connsummate New Yorker? No. Is Mr. Silver a self loathing sycophant? Sadly, yes. Should we expect anything else from the plantation which is the NBA? No.
36
Calling Mr. Dolan a consummate New Yorker is an insult to all New Yorkers. Dolan is a miserable excuse for a businessman. Many team owners are so because they love their teams and the game above all, Dolan only sees the dollar signs and that is why New Yorkers should teach him a lesson and stop attending the Knicks games with their inflated price tags for every seat so that a normal family of four cannot possibly afford to take the kids to a game.
Dolan has fostered bad behavior among his players and managers and blatantly ignored the possibilities to build a winning team. He may not be as bad as Donald Sterling but bullies and bad guys come in all shapes and forms and if New Yorkers have any backbone they should all work to get rid of the festering basketball cancer that is James Dolan.
Dolan has fostered bad behavior among his players and managers and blatantly ignored the possibilities to build a winning team. He may not be as bad as Donald Sterling but bullies and bad guys come in all shapes and forms and if New Yorkers have any backbone they should all work to get rid of the festering basketball cancer that is James Dolan.
31
It's said that what we find wrong with others is subconsciously what we believe to be wrong with ourselves. In that context Mr. Dolan's remarks make a lot of sense. Read it again and realize that Mr. Dolan is directing his wrath at himself:
“I am just guessing but I’ll bet your life is a mess and you are a hateful mess,” Dolan wrote to 72-year-old Irving Bierman. “In fact I’ll bet you are a negative force in everyone who comes in contact with you. You most likely have made your family miserable. Alcoholic maybe.”
Fits like a glove, Jimbo.
“I am just guessing but I’ll bet your life is a mess and you are a hateful mess,” Dolan wrote to 72-year-old Irving Bierman. “In fact I’ll bet you are a negative force in everyone who comes in contact with you. You most likely have made your family miserable. Alcoholic maybe.”
Fits like a glove, Jimbo.
59
Nailed it.
5
Has anyone, ever, been more closely associated with losing? James Dolan would turn any venture to a loss. He has a gift.
5
Personality or business decisions aside, James Dolan does good with his pancreatic cancer philanthropy. As an Irish woman, too bad to see an Irishman without wit, graciousness or sense of humor.
3
The public boycotting won't happen, the half-empty Garden won't take place, celebrities won't stay away, but one thing does change: the financial value of the franchise. It just keeps going up and up.
Dolan is a jerk, to say the least, but he no longer has the only game in town. I trust those who don't care for Dolan and what he has done to Knicks will look elsewhere. As it's Dolan's team and Dolan's money, there's not much anyone else can do but look elsewhere..
3
New York sports have an impact all the way out here to Phoenix and beyond. Even when Times sports coverage is local, it tries to speak to matters of broader significance. Dolan is a creep. That's well-established. The Wanamaker mile has been run for more than a century. It is to track what the Boston Marathon is to marathons. Its champions are legendary. Yesterday, the finishing sprints of Centrowitz and Willis were thrilling. In the woman's race, the near collapse of Rowbury was initially frightening, but then inspiring. There was a nice story related to track legend Bernard Lagat. And local favorite Mary Cain ran as well. Maybe there will be a follow up. But the cursory piece today is woefully inadequate. Great athletes doing great things in a New York competition oozing with tradition is a far more compelling story than yet one more account of Dolan acting like Dolan.
5
Dolan is a poster child for why the Founders fervently believed that a wealthy aristocracy--built upon inherited wealth, passed from generation to generation without any regard to merit or ability--just birth--was a terrible and toxic force in human society.
For proof of that statement--in the context of Mr. Dolan--just visit any one of The Wiz electronics and entertainment stores in your area--like writing intemperate and abusive emails to longtime fans--the chain was one of Mr. Dolan's bright ideas.
And "was" is the operative phrase there.
For proof of that statement--in the context of Mr. Dolan--just visit any one of The Wiz electronics and entertainment stores in your area--like writing intemperate and abusive emails to longtime fans--the chain was one of Mr. Dolan's bright ideas.
And "was" is the operative phrase there.
20
The writer is too generous in assuming Dolan has any redeeming qualities at all. What a cancerous personality!
19
Mr. Bierman's email may have been intemperate but he was only stating the truth when he said that Dolan had made a lot of stupid mistakes running the
Knicks. On the other hand, Dolan's response was a vicious personal attack (
" alcoholic" " hateful mess", " negative force") on a man he had never met. Why the heck did Adam Silver have to get involved. For Silver to call Dolan " the consummate New Yorker" is an insult to New Yorkers.
Knicks. On the other hand, Dolan's response was a vicious personal attack (
" alcoholic" " hateful mess", " negative force") on a man he had never met. Why the heck did Adam Silver have to get involved. For Silver to call Dolan " the consummate New Yorker" is an insult to New Yorkers.
45
Mr Powell, you wrote a good article regarding my husband, Irving Bierman and Dolan. It reinforced the underpinning of my husband's email. Your article exposes the lack of character of Dolan for those who did not know of all his negative dealings. Thank you for enlightening the public
127
DId James Dolan train Daniel Snyder? Or vice versa?
1
At least Mr. Snyder earned his own money. Mr. Dolan is a primary example why we need larger inheritance taxes.
8
I didn't know Mr. Dolan is a recovered alcoholic but if he is, it's especially despicable that he, without any knowledge of Mr. Bierman, said he might suffer from this disease. In fact, Mr. Dolan's response might call into question how solid his own recovery is.
61
The critical juncture in this franchise's recent history is Dolan's complete and utter mutilation of Donnie Walsh's roster rehabilitation.
There was no need to jettison some of the team's best young players for two months of Carmelo Anthony, when he would've been available as a free agent after the season.
The gutter-stank of Dolan's involvement rivals the Wilpon's restructuring Bonilla's contract on the back of Madoff money. America Grotesque.
There was no need to jettison some of the team's best young players for two months of Carmelo Anthony, when he would've been available as a free agent after the season.
The gutter-stank of Dolan's involvement rivals the Wilpon's restructuring Bonilla's contract on the back of Madoff money. America Grotesque.
3
Consumate 1% ? Have you seen all that Gates, Zuckenberg, Buffett, etc. have done for others? Take your shots at Dolan but when you use the term consummate, you're putting too many successful people in his category.
9
Yet another walking, talking, living, breathing argument for a 100% estate tax.
68
I suppose if you want to prevent Dolan from inheriting money in the future, then yes, a 100% estate tax would accomplish that... but his father is still alive, so such a tax would have done zilch for what Dolan has done up to this point.
he is very lucky he chose his father very well......
13
Michael Powell's article is dead on. Dolan and his decisions over the years - and the Garden's contempt for fans who aren't buying courtside seats - have left fans wondering why, leaving us with only fond memories of what it was like. It's one thing to put up with the team on the court but an owner's contempt is a different type of letdown. And this from the guy who imposed Isiah Thomas on us. I'm with Irving, proudly ! And I've re-discovered all the local Division 1 basketball that will pass the time until Dolan moves on.
One observation: I understand one doesn't become a "recovered" alcoholic but is "in recovery." I wish Dolan luck, but hope he spares us the rehab righteousness in the future.
One observation: I understand one doesn't become a "recovered" alcoholic but is "in recovery." I wish Dolan luck, but hope he spares us the rehab righteousness in the future.
14
What a miserable mistake for a man James Dolan is. A true New Yorker he is not. Adam Silver wouldn't know what true New Yorker looked like unless he got out of his silver spoon laced limo.
20
Why make this a class issue and attempt to further polarize our society?
Dolan is a jerk apart from his net worth and would likely be so no matter what his income or wealth. There are many examples of good and bad people from all walks of life, and your generosity of spirit, or lack thereof, is not determined by your social class...
Dolan is a jerk apart from his net worth and would likely be so no matter what his income or wealth. There are many examples of good and bad people from all walks of life, and your generosity of spirit, or lack thereof, is not determined by your social class...
6
You ask why...because only a jerk with his kind of power can make hundreds, if not thousands, miserable because he controls their livelihoods and thus their lives. There is a big difference between a jerk with power and one without it.
32
James Dolan is a powerful jerk and maybe even one who is more effective than most at making others unhappy due to his position. This does not address the main issue of my post, which is that jerks come in all shapes and sizes and one's socio economic status is not a determinant of whether you are a good or bad person. There are many bad people who have brought pain or misery to thousands of people without being rich or powerful. As I said, there are many examples of good and bad people from all walks of life, and your generosity of spirit, or lack thereof, is not determined by your social class. Mr. Powell takes away from the power of his article by writing that James Dolan is typical of the 1%, fueling an already overused stereotype and unfairly equating wealth with a lack of character.
2
New Yorker, it's not because he a jerk per se. You are missing the point.
It's because he's a jerk who is incompetent but not remotely held responsible for his actions at all. And he is not held responsible because of his wealth. He runs his company -the team - into the ground but continues to lead them. He takes millions in tax cuts, supported by corporate welfare, but gives nothing. When a loyal fan writes to him - an elderly man - he responds in a way that is frankly unbalanced (no, no normal New Yorker would write that) and that would get anyone else fired in two seconds.
But because he is not held accountable for his actions at all, he is not fired. He even has his hired hacks to trot out enabling excuses. This is what people mean by the 1 percent---not that they're wealthy per se but that they don't earn the wealth, they don't deserve the tax breaks, they add nothing of value to our society at all, they in fact spit on us--but we still support them. He is a symbol of this.
It's because he's a jerk who is incompetent but not remotely held responsible for his actions at all. And he is not held responsible because of his wealth. He runs his company -the team - into the ground but continues to lead them. He takes millions in tax cuts, supported by corporate welfare, but gives nothing. When a loyal fan writes to him - an elderly man - he responds in a way that is frankly unbalanced (no, no normal New Yorker would write that) and that would get anyone else fired in two seconds.
But because he is not held accountable for his actions at all, he is not fired. He even has his hired hacks to trot out enabling excuses. This is what people mean by the 1 percent---not that they're wealthy per se but that they don't earn the wealth, they don't deserve the tax breaks, they add nothing of value to our society at all, they in fact spit on us--but we still support them. He is a symbol of this.
5
Mr. Dolan needs to understand that even though he owns the franchise, the Knicks don't belong to him.
6
My teenage son is seeking a career in sports journalism. After he read Powell's article this morning, he asked me if you have to have Communist ideologies if you want to work for the NYT. I said : "No, son. But it helps".
1
I hope you will explain to your son that there is not a lot of money in journalism and urge him to take up some other profession.
11
Pitiful.
16
Easily the most ridiculous post in this thread. And it's not close.
16
I don't know anything personally about either of the "gentlemen" in this story, but it is a fact that Dolan is loser and as long as he owns the Knicks, they will also be losers.
6
Years ago, when the then NY Football Giants had driven the franchise well into the ground, a plane was flown overhead at a game, with the banner (I think) saying "20 years of lousy football - we've had enough." Others gathered to burn tickets. When "The Boss" made a mockery of the Yankees, attendance waned. Knicks fans have only themselves to blame, for packing the Garden game after game. Granted, those who can afford tickets may also be "One percenters," at least for the lower level, but maybe just maybe, those who regularly attend are more interested in the social side of being there. In that regard, Dolan provides. As for the Rangers, I suspect Dolan doesn't know hockey enough and the subtleties of assessing talent, and leaves much of that task to others - not to mention there are less personality maniacs in hockey than basketball, as things go.
2
Very few people make a greater case for a higher estate tax than James Dolan.
33
Hey Knicks fans, it's real easy: vote with your feet.
There's hardly a reason to go to the Garden anyway....
There's hardly a reason to go to the Garden anyway....
15
There is a certain class of wealthy who remain children because they've surrounded themselves with cheerleaders and yes men, people who know which side of their bread is buttered. Who doesn't want a little more of that sugar?
Dolan is apparently unused to hearing words that aren't back-slappingly fawning, so even the mildest criticism sends him into a seething rage. It must be tiresome, if lucrative, working for someone who flies into tantrums so easily. The child is running that family, and the results are sadly predictable.
Dolan is apparently unused to hearing words that aren't back-slappingly fawning, so even the mildest criticism sends him into a seething rage. It must be tiresome, if lucrative, working for someone who flies into tantrums so easily. The child is running that family, and the results are sadly predictable.
20
This is a human being?
11
No matter how much money Dolan has, or will continue to make/milk, and no matter how many games/championships etc. his team wins, Dolan will forever be a LOSER.
And a SORE loser at best.
And a SORE loser at best.
18
How many millions have YOU contributed to charity? How big a payroll do YOU have?
There are 1-percent creeps everywhere. Dolan ought to apply to lead them. He's more than well qualified to do so. He'd surely do a better job with that useless lot than with the Knicks. As for the Rangers, which are doing well, it's the team, not the man, that is successful.
2
Can you spell, "BOYCOTT?" I can.
4
Yes, Mr. Dolan has an awful record as the Knicks' owner, he is probably a jerk and of course as a 1 percenter he must be evil, but why the criticism for writing an in-your-face email to a fan? Is the time making too much of this? He didn't curse, he didn't threaten, he spoke his mind and expressed his opinion. Maybe it was a boorish email but so what? Too much PC here. When in many parts of the world free speech is coming under attack and people are being killed for voicing their opinions, isn't it wonderful to see outspoken opinions? You can disagree, you can think he's jerk, but let's celebrate that he is speaking out. Even 1 percenters have freedom of speech.
1
Dolan is offensive. He has no "right" to be disrespectful to anyone. His contemptuous email is an insult to all fans.
And we will NOT celebrate Dolan because he does not deserve our respect.
Freedom of speech is ours as well. And, Dolan violates everything good about sportsmanship. Dolan is a vile role model for our youth; he is disgrace to his family, team, and New York. His narcissisim is revolting.
And we will NOT celebrate Dolan because he does not deserve our respect.
Freedom of speech is ours as well. And, Dolan violates everything good about sportsmanship. Dolan is a vile role model for our youth; he is disgrace to his family, team, and New York. His narcissisim is revolting.
15
Freedom of speech applies only to government restraint, and it has absolutely nothing to do with insulating you from the criticism of others, or the effects of your own toxic speech. James Dolan has sown the wind, and he is rightfully reaping the whirlwind.
11
Can't expect much from a buffoon. He got his money the old fashioned way, he heads a company whose industry is still allowed to be a monopoly. Maybe, just maybe, if we allowed for competition in the cable industry, like we allow for phone companies, Dolan may act more responsible to his customers and fans of his team.
12
dolan may be a recovered alcoholic but that has ZERO bearing on the content of his character in the guise of an allegedly sober person. simply put, dolan is a LOWLIFE. a malignant narcissist who cannot help but destroy, no matter how much money is thrown at a problem.
and how else can one tell if he is a lowlife? why, by the people he hires and the people who find ways to get "unhired." isiah thomas, stephon marbury, carmelo anthony-- these three individuals have "issues" and are, in effect, symptomatic of dolan. most of the men and women who get "unhired" under his watch tend to be decent, honest folks. the bottom line is that a lesser man cannot abide the presence of his betters so he must resort to hiring or attracting people like himself. (the jury is still out on phil jackson but i am beyond hope at this point.)
the fish rots from the head down!
and how else can one tell if he is a lowlife? why, by the people he hires and the people who find ways to get "unhired." isiah thomas, stephon marbury, carmelo anthony-- these three individuals have "issues" and are, in effect, symptomatic of dolan. most of the men and women who get "unhired" under his watch tend to be decent, honest folks. the bottom line is that a lesser man cannot abide the presence of his betters so he must resort to hiring or attracting people like himself. (the jury is still out on phil jackson but i am beyond hope at this point.)
the fish rots from the head down!
8
The bottom line here is that Dolan makes it impossible for people like me to ever consider rooting and supporting the Knicks again. Like many I'm an "old" Knicks fan and those past glories are magical to me and I guess when one compares the present to the past that's a real problem. But I just can't bring myself to root for a team with an owner who's an insult to true Knicks fans. It's really sad but this is what we have to live with. The league will never do anything about him and I'm afraid I don't see any likelyhood he will ever sell the team.
4
Dolan will be free to run his horror show until the suckers who pony up their dollar to watch the Knicks cease doing so. If the Garden sat half-empty during Knick games, even clueless Jim might take the hint. In the very short run, how about some of the most high-profile Knick fans (are you listening, Spike Lee?) publicly boycotting the Knicks and leaving those courtside seats conspicuously empty?
3
Dolan, for all his money, is the definition of the 'loser'. It's a state of being wherein all he touches turns to nought (the Rangers being too strong, for the moment, for him to infect). Strangely, I get the feeling that this guy a very unhappy man, too. I'm not sad for him. I wish he would sell the Knicks and recognize that he would be much happier joining the Putin cronies he acts like. Thanks for a great article!
3
Dolan did the unimaginable, not only did he turn me into a Nets fan, but also a Nets season ticket holder! I am a rabid NY sports fan coming to age when the Jets, Mets and Knicks all won a championship and the hearts and minds forever of NYC fans. As much as I love baseball and football , nothing compared to the adoration and fierce I had devotion to my NY Knickerbockers. I still see people wearing a number 10 Knick jersey and feel compelled to say; 39/ 19/ 7 , forget Jordan, best game 7 ever! But after the first 11 years of Dolan and his attitude I said no more. Nepotism at its worst. Here's a guy who by luck of birth is a billionaire despite his best efforts to ruin everything his Dad worked for and he still finds time and hate for the common man. What a horrible excuse for a human being!
5
Carmelo Anthony is a one-on-one schoolyard basketball scorer that James Dolan confused with a terrific NBA player who makes his team better. After this year, Anthony is untradeable not because of his physical condition but because he stinks at competitive, winning NBA basketball over a full season and playoffs. But he is Ex. A on Mr. Dolan's Knicks "resume" of improving the team. Why can't Mr. Dolan be a "big player" with the political party that each of us opposes with all of our heart, mind and soul (take your pick but having Mr. Dolan making decisions for the other side would make each of us feel very comfortable with the election result). Perhaps if Mr. Dolan is ultimately found liable for personally violating the labor laws in firing the Brooklyn cablevision employees, the NBA can invoke SOMETHING in the ownership agreement and suspend him for two years (or at least as long as the people he fired were out of their jobs).
2
Dolan has never achieved anything in his life. Everything has been given to him; he even sued his father; hence, the attitude.
Shakespeare, in Twelfth Night wrote-
"Some men are born great, some achieve greatness, and others have greatness thrust upon them. "
Pretty obvious which category he falls into.
Shakespeare, in Twelfth Night wrote-
"Some men are born great, some achieve greatness, and others have greatness thrust upon them. "
Pretty obvious which category he falls into.
2
Dolan is playing with daddy's money. He is the epitome of the guy born on third base who thinks he hit a triple. He has done nothing for Cablevision or Madison Square Garden and its teams. He thinks he knows basketball and has destroyed the Knicks by meddling in too many decisions. He knows he knows nothing about hockey and has left decisions to General Manager Glen Sather. Sather did a horrible job for many years but Dolan was too dumb to see this and fire Sather. After 15 years, Sather finally figured it out and assembled a competitive team and hired a great coach. But the only thanks Dolan gets from Rangers fans is for staying too busy with the Knicks to ruin the Rangers too. All Rangers and Knicks fans pray for the day when Dolan finally sells the teams and we get competent management at MSG.
1
Mr. Dolan, like most in his class, are under the delusion that they have created their own financial success. It pains them to have to share any part of their success. Its his money and he gets to say how much and under what conditions he will dole out a little to workers, who are really just so much dead weight. And, if anyone criticizes him he must be dealt with even if the response has neither wit nor substance. Remember how Mr. Bloomberg pouted and grew angry if questioned? Its nice for once to see one of these guys skewered even if it won't do much for the public and the poor people who work for him. Bravo Mr. Powell!
11
Dolan is just like another New York "hero" Donald Trump. Given multi-millions by Daddy, they somehow think they did it themselves. They mock the middle class for whom they have no use, unless it's to take their tax dollars and use them for their personal gain.
16
Dolan, Trump, Knicks, Mets, Jets, Rangers all have one thing in common. NOO YAWK. Losers all.
I am older than Birman and remember all those guys like he does. But my attitude is somewhat the same as his except I have come to the conclusion that being an adoring for for mediocrity just feeds that mediocrity. Watching a grown artistic, successful person like Spike Lee dancing on the floor rooting for Mediocrity, like Justin Bieber, gives me severe Agita. Watching Melo saying he is going to "shut it down" for the year makes me wonder ":shut what down?" IR, IL, POTF, what??? Oh "my knee is swollen". $22 Million a year and you will "shut it down"? The Knicks are the Cubs without being "lovable"? Same with Jets, Mets, Nets. I feel one thing for teams that are nothing but losers APATHY. Stop supporting MSG on TV and in person and you know something, they may have to win.
3
I think the question REALLY is: can I petition NY State to have more than one cable provider in our home's region so that I don't have to support a union squasher like this?
12
The Knicks were once a class act: Ivy-Leaguer Bill Bradley, major league pitcher Dave Debusscher, Clyde, Cazzie, and, of course, Willis. I call on all Knick fans to inundate Dolan w/ e mails demanding his departure. If that doesn't work, a fan strike makes sense. Let's give up on the Knicks (not so hard to do right now) until they throw the bum out!
6
The Knicks are a legend in their and their fans' own minds. It's as if they were once basketball royalty like the Celtics or the Lakers. Two championships 44/45 years ago? Please!
In truth, they are the basketball equivalent of teams like the Detroit Lions in football, the Maple Leafs in hockey and (there's really no equivalent in baseball.) I would exclude expansion teams and the Cubs, while futile, are cute. There is nothing cute about the Knicks.
That just tells you what hopeless losers the Knicks are. With the All-Star game in NY, the question is posed about how the NBA will fare without a winner in New York.
Very nicely.
In truth, they are the basketball equivalent of teams like the Detroit Lions in football, the Maple Leafs in hockey and (there's really no equivalent in baseball.) I would exclude expansion teams and the Cubs, while futile, are cute. There is nothing cute about the Knicks.
That just tells you what hopeless losers the Knicks are. With the All-Star game in NY, the question is posed about how the NBA will fare without a winner in New York.
Very nicely.
2
As a die-hard Toronto fan, I disagree with lumping the Maple Leafs in with the Detroit Lions. The Lions appear to have promise for next season.
I'm sorry for the Knicks' fans and for basketball cognoscenti the team is not more successful creating their greater happiness and satisfaction. I don't know whether its failure is Mr. Dolan's fault, but I do know Mr. Powell's voluminous and whiney rant here is sad and factually not accurate. Over its storied history, The New York Times was the world's greatest newspaper. Today, as it makes space in its pages for writers as Mr. Powell to hemorage nonsense, it continues its freefall from grace.
Our writer's logical process: "here is a rude entitled hateful 1 percenter who got wealthy by taking advantage of the common worker. Therefore, all 1 percenters are rude and entitled and hateful and got wealthy by taking advantage of YOU." Hey that's easy, let me try! "Here is a politically biased stereotyping intellectually lazy NY Times writer. Therefore, all NY Times writers are politically biased, stereotyping, and intellectually lazy whose main goal in their publications is to further class warfare."
Mr. Dolan's comfort zone is built on your cable tv subscription checks, New Yorkers.
You don't like him? Cancel your subscription.
The value of the team lives and dies with the value of Cablevision. Cripple it, and you cripple the owner, who would be forced to sell the Knicks.
Think that's hard? Do what I do. Read the Times everyday and listen to NPR. You won't need the endless SportsCenters and Reality TV shows. Honest.
The power in this fan / owner relationship has shifted your way. Start using your leverage. Imagine how easy it would be using Social Media to start the #TurnOffCablevision.
Then watch Dolan squirm.
You don't like him? Cancel your subscription.
The value of the team lives and dies with the value of Cablevision. Cripple it, and you cripple the owner, who would be forced to sell the Knicks.
Think that's hard? Do what I do. Read the Times everyday and listen to NPR. You won't need the endless SportsCenters and Reality TV shows. Honest.
The power in this fan / owner relationship has shifted your way. Start using your leverage. Imagine how easy it would be using Social Media to start the #TurnOffCablevision.
Then watch Dolan squirm.
10
Excellent article, New York Times. Quality stuff.
Even better than perusing the cover of the National Enquirer while on the checkout line at the market.
Even better than perusing the cover of the National Enquirer while on the checkout line at the market.
Dolan sounds like a 'dry alcoholic. He is recovered only in the sense that he has stopped drinking. His personality acts as if he is still a drunk. His behavior is of a drunk with money. This is fairly obvious. The man needs treatment. Unfortunately, as Mr Powell points out, there are no repercussions for foul-mouthed, bad actors with poor judgment and inflated sense of themselves, as long as they have money.
6
After leaving Cablevision for FIOS during Cablevision's tiff with the YES network, I never looked back. Recently a Cablevision solicitor offered a tremendous deal to come back. I told him I would consider switching back only if Dolan sold the Knicks and Rangers. The salesman, a professed NY sports fan, could only nod his head in agreement
1
This is my take on the Dolan email.
He fell off the wagon.
He was wallowing in self hate.
He was assessing his personal relationship with others.
the Beirman email arrived.
Who was he really referring to in his reply email; Mr Beirman or himself?
He fell off the wagon.
He was wallowing in self hate.
He was assessing his personal relationship with others.
the Beirman email arrived.
Who was he really referring to in his reply email; Mr Beirman or himself?
3
When hiring, general qualifications focus on education, training and experience. Take away daddy and the family control of company stock, James Dolan sounds like a good fit to do the same kind of work that a person we in New York grew up, see over and over, and have strong feelings about: Art Carney's Ed Norton from THE HONEYMOONERS. Remember, Norton worked in the sewers. Mr. Dolan's character is a good fit for what is down there.
5
Ha! I said this since I was 18 ( or around that time)- "Insults, from some people, are compliments." But, if you got lots of money, heck, you're always right. This ain't gonna happen, but ....what would an empty Garden do for ya? Boycott! On a coincidental side note- I tried to watch last night's NBA events. A fashion show? Skills contest? The "three point misses event", the team "whatever that was" (aaaah the Harlem Globetrotters could hit that half court shot more times than 'real' players). What is this? Summer Camp for pre-teens or prime time TV? Answer- Summer Camp
1
"“In fact I’ll bet you are negative force in everyone who comes in contact with you. You most likely have made your family miserable."
This is a textbook example of the Freudian Defense mechanism known as Projection. Dolan Jr. is a guy who really does not like himself very much.
This is a textbook example of the Freudian Defense mechanism known as Projection. Dolan Jr. is a guy who really does not like himself very much.
4
Give the devil his due. Somehow he fills that arena every night charging the highest ticket prices in the world to watch the worst professional basketball team in North America play meaningless game after meaningless game. Face it-the man is a genius or New York fans are complete suckers.
6
New Yorkers are like Parisians...Being rude is a matter of personal pride.
Every empire has its intentional losses for tax write-offs, the Nicks provide that to Dolan's.
Every empire has its intentional losses for tax write-offs, the Nicks provide that to Dolan's.
1
Dolan is typical of sons of people who make fortunes. Fat, stubby hands, he tries to create his music and foist his opinions and "talents" on those he deems insignificant. It must be tough knowing that you have never and will never create anything of value on your own. He strives but his arrogance and ignorance will always keep him from attaining anything on his own. Only someone who was pathetically insecure would respond the way he has. Once an alcoholic ALWAYS a dependent...it must be difficult to realize how below average one is in all respects, and to understand that because of the circumstances of his birth he will never be able to say he accomplished anything because of his own talents and efforts. In this case, for him and Knick's fans, money is indeed a curse.
3
Speaking as someone who has attended more than a few meetings of Alcoholics Anonymous, I have to say that Mr. Dolan's response to this fan sounds more like it came from someone 21 DAYS sober than 21 YEARS!
5
The $54 million property tax break was worth $15 million in the early 80's when the Knicks were also terrible and the Garden was losing money.Sonny Werblin decided one afternoon that unless the City gave the Garden the tax break, (he argued that they were as much of a tourist attraction as the Statue of Liberty and Central Park), and Con Edison sold them power at the reduced rate, worth another few million, that the City got, he would threaten to move the Knicks and Rangers to the recently opened Meadowlands arena and close the Garden, There was no negotiating with the City, much less advance notice that these demands were coming. The Garden just issued a press release and it was front page news the next day. There was little pushback from the City and both demands were met pretty quickly. Now that MSG makes millions they should go back on the property tax rolls. Although the Meadowlands arena, (Izod Center), is again empty and Dolan could again threaten to move the teams there.
1
Except that if he threatened to move the teams now, nobody would object.
2
Keep complaining about Dolan folks, what is it 14 years?, and keep going to and watching the games. Did you forget, Dolan's game is called MAKING MONEY, not basketball or hockey.
Your contributions to His Game are welcomed but don't expect a thank you. Its al a voluntary gift giving on your part. His letter to the fan said all you need to know about him.
If you want quicker results in dealing with him stop going or watching the games, he'll eventually come around.
Your contributions to His Game are welcomed but don't expect a thank you. Its al a voluntary gift giving on your part. His letter to the fan said all you need to know about him.
If you want quicker results in dealing with him stop going or watching the games, he'll eventually come around.
4
The only thing uglier than Mr. Dolan's team is Charles Luckman's decrepit Garden, the mausoleum in which the Knicks die week in and week out. This monstrosity ought to be torn down and Mr. Dolan, no help to this great city, ought to be tossed into the river with the refuse.
Then, perhaps, NYC can have the decency to rebuild the great Penn Station the way it once was and always should have been...before the 1 percent tore it down.
Then, perhaps, NYC can have the decency to rebuild the great Penn Station the way it once was and always should have been...before the 1 percent tore it down.
7
“Jim is a consummate New Yorker,” Silver told The New York Post last week. “Jim got an unkind email and responded with an unkind email.”
Having Adam Silver around to help the country make ethical judgments about James Dolan and Donald Saunders makes me feel much better about pro basketball. Not.
Having Adam Silver around to help the country make ethical judgments about James Dolan and Donald Saunders makes me feel much better about pro basketball. Not.
2
Same is true for the NFL, NHL, MLB. - we know who pays the commissioner 's salary and who he protects. Bottom line: owners/commisioners only care about the bottom line.
1
James Dolan is such a consummate 1 percent he has done nothing his whole life. His money and power come from his father who started Cablevision. On his on, he would be a broke, poorly trained musician with a history of drug abuse.
4
I'm pretty sure the L in James L. Dolan stands for "Loss". It's a family name.
1
Expropriate the Knicks! Dolan, an arrogant plutocrat, does nothing but take from others. The whole idea of private ownership of sports franchises should be challenged. Teams should belong to the community, not to the billionaire class.
2
The NY Rangers are successful and on their way to the playoffs once again.
The Knicks are a disaster.
Why, then, NY Times Editors - why? - do you continue to afford each NYR story nothing more than a tiny, one-line header buried toward the bottom of the "Sports" section of your website, while splashing story after story about the embarrassimg NYK and their disfunctional owner front and center?
If you're going to sensationalize losing, please glorify winning with equal space and time. And please... send a beat writer to every NYR game. Stop pulling stories off the wire. This team deserves it.
The Knicks are a disaster.
Why, then, NY Times Editors - why? - do you continue to afford each NYR story nothing more than a tiny, one-line header buried toward the bottom of the "Sports" section of your website, while splashing story after story about the embarrassimg NYK and their disfunctional owner front and center?
If you're going to sensationalize losing, please glorify winning with equal space and time. And please... send a beat writer to every NYR game. Stop pulling stories off the wire. This team deserves it.
4
Phil Jackson was told by Dolan that he had to keep GM Steve Mills, one of the men who as president of the Knicks ignored the sexual harrassment charges that were being leveled against Isiah Thomas and Stephon Marbury. Yet he was brought back and made GM after being fired and unable to find work in the NBA.
Even after Phil Jackson was hired, Dolan forced Jackson to keep Mills, who Dolan rehired because you can never have too many flunkies. As long as the Knicks are turning a profit Dolan doesn't care how many games the Knicks lose. Dolan would rather lose then have to possibly concede that this team only became success after he was completely out of the picture. As long as Dolan is telling Jackson that he can't hire his own GM among others, nothing has changed.
Even after Phil Jackson was hired, Dolan forced Jackson to keep Mills, who Dolan rehired because you can never have too many flunkies. As long as the Knicks are turning a profit Dolan doesn't care how many games the Knicks lose. Dolan would rather lose then have to possibly concede that this team only became success after he was completely out of the picture. As long as Dolan is telling Jackson that he can't hire his own GM among others, nothing has changed.
1
The story here is that Dolan revealed his disregard of fans, who ultimately provide the financing for all over-the-top pro sports. Other owners carefully groom an attitude of great sensitivity, as do players. And each year, they happily shake more dough out of the fans in overpriced tix, concessions, tv contracts, and endorsed merchandise. What a racket. And we marvel that people were once conned by snake oil salesmen.
2
The article refers to Mr. Bierman as “a customer.” As George Steinbrenner correctly said: “Fans watch on TV, customers come to the ballpark.” Mr. Bierman who lives in SC is likely just a “fan” and not a customer of the Knicks. So he thinks, just because he watches games on TV, he can contact James Dolan to sell the team? Like me writing to the Mr. Sulzberger to “sell the Times” because I don’t like its editorials. Furthermore, James Dolan also owns the Rangers who came within a “whisker” of winning the Stanley Cup last year and are right atop the division this year. Agreed Mr. Dolan’s remarks about Mr. Bierman being an alcoholic were misplaced, but Mr. Bierman’s email was also misplaced.
1
A pity that Michael Powell (the article's author), and many others, feel that just because someone is wealthy they can not express their views. After all, free speech is a right that all citizens enjoy .... yes .... even the 1%.
The author perhaps should be the recipient of a similar e-mail? His article reams with anger, hatred, and bitterness ... I am just guessing, but I'll bet the author's life is a mess, and perhaps he is a hateful mess ... probably a negative force in everyone's life that he comes in contact with?
Regarding Dolan's business practices and tax breaks ... he is probably creting hundreds of jobs per year for New Yorkers. His Madison Square Gardens (that gets a $54 million tax break) probably gets the tax break precisely because hundreds of jobs are created, and because the city probably earns not only $54 million, but $100's of millions, the proceeds of which benefit the 99%'ers.
I am a 99%er, not wealthy, and certainly not angry that there are super rich people in the world. Their efforts and entrepreneurialism is what makes America great, and what provides jobs (and news stories) that help feed the 99%ers who are so ungrateful.
The author perhaps should be the recipient of a similar e-mail? His article reams with anger, hatred, and bitterness ... I am just guessing, but I'll bet the author's life is a mess, and perhaps he is a hateful mess ... probably a negative force in everyone's life that he comes in contact with?
Regarding Dolan's business practices and tax breaks ... he is probably creting hundreds of jobs per year for New Yorkers. His Madison Square Gardens (that gets a $54 million tax break) probably gets the tax break precisely because hundreds of jobs are created, and because the city probably earns not only $54 million, but $100's of millions, the proceeds of which benefit the 99%'ers.
I am a 99%er, not wealthy, and certainly not angry that there are super rich people in the world. Their efforts and entrepreneurialism is what makes America great, and what provides jobs (and news stories) that help feed the 99%ers who are so ungrateful.
There's noun that captures the essence of this guy. A noun I've never seen in the "the Old Grey Lady". But we all know what it is don't we?
I'm sorry, but there are 3,200,000 individuals in America's top 1%.
Major league sports franchises owners are more like in the Top Ten Thousand.
Major league sports franchises owners are more like in the Top Ten Thousand.
1
And, let us remember: Mr. Dolan did not make his billions; he is just the son of Charles Dolan who did.
4
Why does Silver get away with stereotyping all New Yorkers?
Meanwhile Knicks.fans need to vote with their feet and bucks...stop going to games and stop paying for any other Knick related products.
It was only the fear of losing money that made the NBA penalize Donald Sterling.
Look how the NFL has let the deflated balls cheating scandal fizz away...no money lost for them so what do they care?
Start watching other sports .
I love sports but will not attend any NBA or NFL games.
Let's banish youth football...it's bad for the kids' brains... and replace it with team handball. I wish that sport had been promoted when I was a kid.
Meanwhile Knicks.fans need to vote with their feet and bucks...stop going to games and stop paying for any other Knick related products.
It was only the fear of losing money that made the NBA penalize Donald Sterling.
Look how the NFL has let the deflated balls cheating scandal fizz away...no money lost for them so what do they care?
Start watching other sports .
I love sports but will not attend any NBA or NFL games.
Let's banish youth football...it's bad for the kids' brains... and replace it with team handball. I wish that sport had been promoted when I was a kid.
2
The only think at which Dolan is "consummate" at is being a consummate oafish jerk. Over and over and over...
And maybe a consummate case of a little rich kid, who never grew up into a semblance of a responsible adult and yet is given unbelievable toys to play with--and utterly and totally ruins the toys, with no consequences and no sense of personal responsibility for his many failures, all the while pouting and somehow thinking he's always the poor guy being wronged. (Not a very sober attitude, that.)
Dolan is really a case-study in how money, power, and assets passed along from father to incompetent, self-entitled son is bad all around.
And maybe a consummate case of a little rich kid, who never grew up into a semblance of a responsible adult and yet is given unbelievable toys to play with--and utterly and totally ruins the toys, with no consequences and no sense of personal responsibility for his many failures, all the while pouting and somehow thinking he's always the poor guy being wronged. (Not a very sober attitude, that.)
Dolan is really a case-study in how money, power, and assets passed along from father to incompetent, self-entitled son is bad all around.
8
I fail to understand why people get so worked up about professional sports franchises and still attend the games and follow the teams. All the major professional sports and most of the others are just a business. The money has dwarfed what they used to be. The grandeur and soul of professional sports was sucked out by greed long ago. If you hate the owner, the fact that it costs several hundred dollars to take your family to a game, or that most of the stars are uneducated boobs who have little but contempt for the fans that pay their outrageous salaries, then don't watch or attend the games. Imagine how quickly things would change if the fans stopped being pawns in this charade. Wake up, there is no grace or beauty any more in professional sports. If you want to see athletes who really love their game, go to a high school, or better yet, middle school or Little League (not Willamsport) game.
1
I always enjoy your columns, Mr. Powell, but as an ex fan who now only follows the consistently entertaining sociopathy of sport, I gotta wonder: if the knicks were winning and Mr Dolan was just as big of a, well, pick your own term, would any of y'all care?
1
Well, the 1 percent boy bandleader met his match. If he really was smooth he'd offer Bierman a seat. Wait 'till the cows come home for that.
I see two different views here. Knick fans, of course, want a winner. Mr. Dolan, the team owner and a businessman, wants to make money. In this situation, he seems to be doing, in the words of that great sports and business philosopher Triple H, "what's best for business." Mr. Dolan has what every businessman wants--a (cable) monopoly from which he's making bank, a lot of bank. This reporter could have easily written a story detailing and highlighting Mr. Dolan's business spirt and acumen, just as easily as he wrote this scathing piece. Like I said, I can see two different points-of-view and the socially popular one seems to have carried the day. Not to mention that there is more a little irony in the world of the NBA...
Money talks but the truth just walks. Mr. Dolan ran a once-proud franchise into the ground. He has his millions but I fear even with the presence of Phil Jackson, Dolan will not build a winner in the Garden.
27
Is the fact the Knicks so bad why Dolan is the worst owner in PRO sports AJ. He also owns the Rangers who went to the Stanley Cup finals last year and are doing pretty damn well. How can he be the worst owner when one of his teams is pretty darn good. This isn't to dismiss that Dolan is a jerk (I could use nastier words), and despite the Rangers being currently successful, he may be the worst owner in Sports, but we do have this guy named Snyder in DC and I am sure others as well.
4
Ron, the Rangers are doing well now that Dolan has left the team alone. Go back a few years when this Doltan was obsessed with the team and you'll see a much different picture.
1
That's because he didn't understand hockey and leaves the rangers alone. He only owns the rangers because he owns msg, he bought the place and the two teams that were in it. ....unfortunately for the Knicks, he thinks he knows something about basketball. This guy is a sad sack and a joke. ....but he laughs all the way to the bank with all of the tax breaks and quasi monopolistic cable money. ...
3
Dolan doesn't care about hockey and leaves the Rangers alone - that's why they've been winners.
Wow, Dolan actually reads at least some e-mails from Knickerbocker fans. We should all write and inundate the miserable tyrant, with our own gripes. We are his customers after all.
66
The value of a sports teams to its city should never be downplayed or overlooked. Sports act as a beautiful distraction, in this it serves as a tonic to frazzled nerves and quiets large fears. A sports team also serves to unite a City, giving strangers something in common. They turn cities into communities.
Basketball's purpose is to take over when the bright lights of the NFL dim after the Super Bowl, February in New York City is the one month devoid of Baseball and Football, and with the miserable weather, the City needs the cozy rhythms of Sport. But alas, in the Dolan Reign as King of the Knicks, except for a Jeremy Lin miracle a couple of years ago ( a player Mr Dolan decided he didn't need) February inside MSG has been just as cold and grim as the Weather outside.
Not that any of that matter to Mr Dolan, his Daddy gave him a present, and like most spoiled kids do with their Toys he proceeded to break it. Dolan has no idea what makes a sports team important to the regular people who live in a city. He has no idea about regular people.
Back in the Riley years, when the Knicks were a great team, they owned this city, and they gave a buzz to it, the knicks excited this city in a pure and perfect way the way only sports can do.
Since the Dolans took over, our NBA team has become the kind of afterthought that noiseless evaporates into thin air. There is no Joy in NYC these days, no cheers, Just the sound of ice hardening on the River.
Thanks James.
Basketball's purpose is to take over when the bright lights of the NFL dim after the Super Bowl, February in New York City is the one month devoid of Baseball and Football, and with the miserable weather, the City needs the cozy rhythms of Sport. But alas, in the Dolan Reign as King of the Knicks, except for a Jeremy Lin miracle a couple of years ago ( a player Mr Dolan decided he didn't need) February inside MSG has been just as cold and grim as the Weather outside.
Not that any of that matter to Mr Dolan, his Daddy gave him a present, and like most spoiled kids do with their Toys he proceeded to break it. Dolan has no idea what makes a sports team important to the regular people who live in a city. He has no idea about regular people.
Back in the Riley years, when the Knicks were a great team, they owned this city, and they gave a buzz to it, the knicks excited this city in a pure and perfect way the way only sports can do.
Since the Dolans took over, our NBA team has become the kind of afterthought that noiseless evaporates into thin air. There is no Joy in NYC these days, no cheers, Just the sound of ice hardening on the River.
Thanks James.
29
There is an extremely easy way to end this man's miserable tenure: 6,000 unsold tickets at the Garden forty-one times a year for the next two years. If your local coffee shop presented you with coffee this bad day after day, would you keep buying it? If every time you bought a certain brand of car, you got a lemon, would you continue with your patronage of that brand? Met fans have left tens of thousands of seats empty in Citifield because of the quality of the team recently. Yankee fans are leaving thousands of seats empty for most games though though the new Stadium is smaller than the old one. Those two teams have not been nearly as bad as the Knicks. Frankly, I am baffled that Mr. Dolan has managed, to not even accidentally come up with the right combination of players and coaches to make this a successful team again. It's almost as if the he has made an extraordinary effort to make mistake after mistake. A more basic problem is that Mr. Dolan does not need real fans like Mr. Bierman and so can indeed tell them to take their business to Brooklyn. He's got his TV contract. He's got people filling 18,000 seats who may or may not be Knick fans of Mr. Bierman's type, but are more interested in being seen at the game or doing business at the game or simply view basketball as just another piece of expensive entertainment they have the shekels to buy tickets for. Why should Mr. Dolan change his ways when he is making money hand over fist the way things are?
5
Great teams win championships. The Knicks had two great teams and neither was coached by Pat Riley, or Jeff Van Gundy either.
And the sound of money being deposited into the Dolan companies' sports empire; the Garden and its teams and cable companies, and the cable supplier (cablevision). The only way to get a new person at the helm of the Knicks is not to inundate James Dolan with letters that he does not understand; but to send them to all of the other members of the Board of Directors of the Knicks and the Garden and whatever company in the empire owns a controlling interest in the company that has a legal right to run the Knicks.
3
Dolan is not a one percenter; he is a not even a one tenth of one percenter. He is in the next cohort of the superrich.
17
Here on the North Coast we are fortunate enough to have the "Good Dolans."
Sorry NYC is stuck with the loser branch of the family.
Larry Dolan (Indians owner), his son Paul (team President) and the rest of the family have never been in any kind of trouble. They give a lot of money to charity and are just decent people. Worst gripe about them is that they don't spend enough on the Indians.
Yet. still, they are more than happy to spend public money on the facility.
Sorry NYC is stuck with the loser branch of the family.
Larry Dolan (Indians owner), his son Paul (team President) and the rest of the family have never been in any kind of trouble. They give a lot of money to charity and are just decent people. Worst gripe about them is that they don't spend enough on the Indians.
Yet. still, they are more than happy to spend public money on the facility.
15
Amen to that! <3
Dolan and the Knicks had a good young roster that they traded away for Carmelo Anthony. How stupid was that? With resources of the NYC market, how hard is it to put together a talented and competitive team if you have even an average IQ? Dolan is one more example that getting rich is more often a product of connections than of intellect and hard work.
70
Dolan to Knicks' fans: "Let them drink Rheingold!"
7
You do have to question the obsession of Mr. Bierman and others like him who root unthinkingly for this terrible and undeserving team. "My Knickerbockers" indeed. Find somebody else to root for already.
22
Real fans don't "find somebody else". We wait for Dolan to sell or to die. And until then we remember 1970.
25
There was a moment back in 2010-11 when the Nets appeared a potential alternative for frustrated Knick fans, including myself. But then Prokhorov and Billy King proceeded to wreck their own franchise, with moves that made Dolan and Isiah Thomas appear comparatively judicious. The Nets, for instance, do not control their own #1 pick for at least the next three years - and gave away the pick that Portland used for the gifted Damian Lillard in the abysmal Gerald Wallace deal.
The Knicks have been a disaster ever since Dolan fired Dave Checketts - and the best a NY basketball fan can do is attempt to gently persuade the Knicks' owner to more closely study how the more successful sports franchise have been assembled.
We can wish that Dolan would sell the team - but why should he, so long as fans continue to make it insanely profitable for him to keep it?
The Knicks have been a disaster ever since Dolan fired Dave Checketts - and the best a NY basketball fan can do is attempt to gently persuade the Knicks' owner to more closely study how the more successful sports franchise have been assembled.
We can wish that Dolan would sell the team - but why should he, so long as fans continue to make it insanely profitable for him to keep it?
7
Well, that makes you part of the problem. Suspend your fandom as a sort of civil protest. Until fans take charge, nothing will change. If you don't, you receive what you deserve.
1
NBA commissioners, Stern and Silver should never let 'flagship cities' like NYC flounder for so long. Case in point:NFL stepped in with the Maras NY Giants in the early 80's getting them to hire George Young who brought in Parcells. This was when fans were wearing paper bags and flying planes with banners as grand old Wellington hired crony after crony like Webster and Robestelli. I'll bet most of the other owners would support such intervention for the sake of the sport.
14
Jim Dolan is the WORST owner in all of pro sports. I cannot think of a worse owner, and it is not simply because no other basketball team has performed quite as poorly as the Knicks have during his ownership tenure.
The happiest day in any Knicks fan's life should be the day Jim Dolan decides to sell the team and disappear from sight.
#firedolan
The happiest day in any Knicks fan's life should be the day Jim Dolan decides to sell the team and disappear from sight.
#firedolan
80
uh - how about Dan Snyder, how about Donald Sterling (just recently gone)?
Bruce Sterling, but whatever.
and we thought billionaire jerks lived elsewhere. this one owns a favorite team and has run it into the ground. Money can insulate you from being forced to sell the team but it won't protect you from popular scorn. Other than Nate Silver would anyone defend Dolan?
28
As well as he handled the Donald Sterling affair, Adam Silver's behavior here is disappointing at best and insulting and demeaning of NBA fans at worst.
2
If you can be forced to sell a team for attitudes demeaning to 12% of the population should the same imperative not exist when you actually harm 99%?
31
well written and sadly so true
12
Why be easy on the NBA commissioner, in this latest Dolan incident. All that glitters isn't Silver.
35
There is so much wrong with the Dolan empire that it's hard to know where to start. Unfortunately the bigger picture often gets obscured by the day-to-day dribble of bad news about the Dolans and Knicks.
A bigger issue is the fate of Penn Station, which was obliterated to make way for Madison Square Garden. The Dolans should be made to move Madison Square Garden so that Penn Station can be redeemed from its current status as the biggest rat-maze ever devised for human use, and opened up to create a more humane environment. As the architecture critic Vincent Scully famously lamented of the destroyed Penn Station, "One entered the city like a king; now one scuttles in like a rat."
The city owes the Dolans nothing; in fact the reverse is true. Madison Square Garden should be moved when the current lease is up. Let Dolan take his dysfunctional basketball team eslewhere so the rest of New York can have a decent train station instead of a rathole.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2014-10-23/penn-station-boosters-...
A bigger issue is the fate of Penn Station, which was obliterated to make way for Madison Square Garden. The Dolans should be made to move Madison Square Garden so that Penn Station can be redeemed from its current status as the biggest rat-maze ever devised for human use, and opened up to create a more humane environment. As the architecture critic Vincent Scully famously lamented of the destroyed Penn Station, "One entered the city like a king; now one scuttles in like a rat."
The city owes the Dolans nothing; in fact the reverse is true. Madison Square Garden should be moved when the current lease is up. Let Dolan take his dysfunctional basketball team eslewhere so the rest of New York can have a decent train station instead of a rathole.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2014-10-23/penn-station-boosters-...
133
I agree it should have been moved to the Javitz center location years ago, they could have put an NFL stadium next to it there as well.
Too bad they just finished a 1 billion dollar renovation at MSG. I find it hard to believe they'd knock it down after that.
Too bad they just finished a 1 billion dollar renovation at MSG. I find it hard to believe they'd knock it down after that.
We need to be careful here. Remember, it's the oligarchs who put up the big money that gets candidates elected to congress and the presidency. Insulting the 0.1% can have consequences.
If I were a boss of a major corporation and one of my employees sent an email similar to Mr. Dolan's, I would fire him/her. Unfortunately, Mr. Dolan cannot fire himself!!
80
Daddy could but won't.
2
Free speech baby. No insults, no threats, just opinions. He may be a jerk but he has a right to send out boorish emails.
1
as a longtime Knick and Ranger fan, I am disgusted by the way Dolan treats his customers--I'm not surprised that he treats the "help" badly. It's easy for me to cut the Knicks and Rangers out of my life; very difficult to disconnect my TV and email access. NYC may be the nation's largest cit, but, as far as that family is concerned, it's just a company town
3