Today's paper says that Maryland is the richest state in the union and has the lowest poverty rate.
That's based on the 2006 American Community Survey (an annual survey by the Census Bureau). The numbers may not be as definitive as what you'd find in the decennial Census, but these estimates come out every year instead of every decade.
What struck me is that if you go through household income data by county, you'll find that Howard County is, by far, the richest in the state. Even above Montgomery County.
I used to live in Howard, but I think I lived in the "poor" part. (There were plenty of car repair shops, up and down the main drag (Rte. 1).
I live in a nicer area, today, but my county (Baltimore) is not as affluent overall (that is, according to median household income).
If you compare Howard to any of the listed California counties, a state I used to be quite familiar with, it's still significantly richer.
I doubt that Howard is richer than, say, Beverly Hills, but 90210 is not a county. It's included in Los Angeles County, which is the most populous county in the country. (over 9.5 million). And that means some pretty tough turf is included, as well.
For example, Compton, is part of L.A. County. And I'm sure ya'll know that Compton has a murder rate that rivals Baltimore city.
Well, maybe things are looking up for Compton. According to an Oct. 29 article in the LA Times, the murder rate, there, has been declining for the past 2 years:
COMPTON'S HOMICIDE RATE IS DROPPING
An antigang task force has been ridding the streets of guns and violence. At 29 slayings, the city is on track to have its lowest total in more than 20 years.