Reasons I have been to Vegas:
I have not been back since getting sober. I would need a pretty good reason to go, but I probably would if I had one.
Nicely put. I went once out of curiosity - never again.
I went once for the WSOP with my wife in tow. The idea was that I would play some poker, and she would go to the pool, walk around, and whatnot. I was still enamored with poker at the time and loved it. She found the entire experience revolting. It might be her least favorite place on earth.
Impossible not to love a city that has a casino themed after Ellis Island.
My wife is the same. I can’t imagine getting her there again.
I was in Newtown the day after it happened for a Christmas party at an old college roommate’s house. Was a really surreal experience stopping in the local grocery store. It was mostly silent despite it being packed with people as everyone was pretty much in a state of shock still. I think the non-response to that event is what really disillusioned me about politics.
Voted yes, but I was 20.8 years old at the time, so not sure that counts.
What initially disillusioned me was realizing Republicans are legitimately evil, which occurred when they launched the Iraq War. What really cemented it over time has been the lack of a coordinated, forceful movement to acquire and use power to crush them.
The interleaving of these two conversations is a little disconcerting, but…
Vegas really is revolting for many different reasons, but nevertheless can be a fun place sometimes/for some.
For the ways you guys find Vegas revolting…I have found pretty much every major American city the same for such? Like I dont see the difference in inequality or whatever in Vegas vs Chicago or NYC or LA.
Not even close. Vegas is a celebration of all the worst parts of large American cities.
It’s the gambling, alcohol, degeneracy. It’s like the city is actively trying to hurt the people that live there.
I just dont see this as much different from Wall Street? Maybe it’s slightly more subtle, but idk.
There’s more to NYC than Wall St. There is hardly anything to Vegas other than the degeneracy.
There is some legitimately awesome food.
Thats true.
What sets Vegas apart from other cities is the concentration of all the vices and debauchery with a scarcity of anything else. Sure, you can get away from the casinos and strip clubs and the bachelor bros and the drunks and the homeless and the hustlers and the willfully self destructive, but once you do you’re in the middle of the blandest most suburbaniest suburbs that ever suburbbed, and it’s surrounded in turn by a shitty desert that doesn’t even have any cool rocks or cactus in it.
I love going to Vegas by myself, but I’m weird. I just play poker, go to the pool, maybe get a massage and/or do a workout each day, and eat great food.
When I’m on Vegas, it’s business, so I evaluate it from that perspective.
What creates some inner tension for me is that I can agree with both of the below…
To zikzak’s post, I would add that it’s a city built on exploitation. Every thing in Vegas is designed with the express purpose of extracting money out of your wallet. Everybody is hustling and scams are everywhere.
Also, it is an environmental nightmare.
But then, to add to Riverman’s post, the sheer spectacle of the strip and the downtown experience is pretty unique. If you have money, are free with spending it, and don’t think too much, you can have a really good time.
Of course, even if you do have money and spend it freely, you can have a horrible time, but that’s what it is…