Double Your Rebate Check In Vegas

I wonder whether the Economic Stimulus Plan will truly benefit the American economy. Most people who receive a rebate check will either spend it at Walmart which will mostly benefit China, or put it in their gas tank,which will benefit the Arabs.

So, my suggestion is that you take your rebate check and use it for a vacation in Las Vegas. That way, you can assure that the money will mostly stay here in the USA, and stimulate at least one part of the American economy. If you have a choice, fly here, rather than drive. While the planes are still built here in the good ol' US of A. OOOPS! I almost forgot what just happened to Boeing with the recent Air Force tanker contract fiasco. And, of course, the airline industry has to get its Jet Fuel from you know who... what was I thinking?

NAFTA, CAFTA, cocka-doo-da do-dah! I still don't see how these new trade agreements are benefiting the average American worker. Who consulted with Joe six pack when they passed that crappy legislation? We are witnessing both the watering down of the American dollar and the dilution of American culture, all within the span of less than a decade. People are losing jobs everywhere and we are on the verge of stagflation or worse yet, the big "D" word. If you are on a fixed income watch your buying power dwindle down to bupkis. I am beginning to think that there is some truth to the conspiracy theory that says the Illuminati ( the people that really rule the world ) are trying to depopulate ( read: "genocide" ) the Earth to some "manageable" level. As if watching "An Inconvenient Truth" wasn't enough torture.

I'm glad I could get all this off my chest. Just don't forget to bring your rebate checks to Vegas. Remember, most all casinos will cash your US Treasury checks and even give you a chance to double it on their paycheck wheel. How American is that?!

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“Right now more than half the revenue in Las Vegas is off the casino floors. It’s very much a market built on $300 hotel rooms, $200 dinners and $100 show tickets,” said Robert LaFleur, an analyst at Susquehanna Financial Group. “Any softness in room revenue is almost a one-to-one hit to the bottom line. Its something we are watching very closely.’’

See Entire Fox Business Article: "Can Las Vegas Weather an Economic Slowdown?"

Las Vegas As A Libertarian Experiment?

( The following is the opinion of the author and not necessarily the staff and management of WHV. )

I am mostly apolitical lately, Republicans and Democrats seem to blend into each other like the choice between Pepsi and Coke; or more accurately, Pepsi and Pepsi Light. I lean towards the Republican party, only because Hillary Clinton as president would take this country to an extreme socialism and government control from which we may never recover. It seems strange that in the past presidential elections, people have voted not only (as they traditionally do ) for their self interest ( with their pocketbooks ) but also for what they consider to be the lessor of two evils. The crisis we are currently experiencing in this country has as much to do with the lack of leadership as it does the moral values of the people.

I do not think it is a good idea at the moment to introduce a serious third party candidate that might remove votes from the Republican side. But increasingly I see more wisdom in what the Nevada libertarian party stands for, although the devil lurks in the details:

The Libertarian Party of Nevada is committed to Nevada's heritage of freedom:

• individual liberty and personal responsibility
  
• a free-market economy with a low tax rate
  
• minimally intrusive state, county, and city government
  

Who could disagree with all that? On the surface, it is hard for me to disagree with these principles, its just seems much harder to put them into practice.

I think that Las Vegas, Nevada would be the perfect place for a "social experiment" to reduce government control a la Libertarianism. Here, of all places, the assumption that people can accept freedom and the responsibility that goes with it could be tested. Why not try decriminalization of drugs, legalization of prostitution, enforcement of individual privacy, etc. and carefully monitor what works and what does not work? Why not take away or at least mollify the laws regarding: prosecution of victimless crimes that are filling our prisons with non-violent offenders; control by government agencies of what we ingest into our bodies ( including foods and nutritional supplements ) ; overbearing, complicated tax laws that burden small businesses; attempts to control what we do in the privacy of our homes, etc.?

The mayor of Las Vegas, Oscar Goodman, has recently supported the idea of legalized prostitution in Clark County. Legislation has been proposed to decriminalize Marijuana. Nevada has the strongest laws to protect financial privacy. With legalized gambling as a start, the experiment has actually already begun in this "crucible in the desert" known as Las Vegas. Nobody can say what the long term effects of legalized gaming have been, but I would bet the final outcome would have a lot to do with individual choice and responsibility.

If it does not work here in Las Vegas, if the "social experiment" fails, it won't work anywhere, at least in this early 21st century. It will not be a refection on the overbearing government if we the people fail to accept the responsibilities that would come with these new liberties. We might have to wait another million years for mankind to evolve to the level necessary for people to truly govern themselves.

Maybe OJ thought that because he was in Vegas he could get away with threatening another person by force. But freedom does not mean acting in a way that is irresponsible and can negatively affect those around you. OJ confused liberty with license (freedom that allows or is used with irresponsibility; disregard for standards of personal conduct ). If liberty is abused, then we lose the right to liberty. Freedom ultimately means that individual conscience replaces governmental laws and makes them unnecessary.

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Read about why Hillary Clinton should not be president at NoHillaryClinton.com.

The Nevada Libertarian website is here.

Oscar Goodman's opinion on legalizing prostitution in Las Vegas from Wikipedia:

Legalized Prostitution

Currently, prostitution is legal in Nevada only in counties with populations under 400,000, which excludes Las Vegas. Mayor Goodman supports legalizing prostitution in the city, although a majority of Nevadans polled in 2003 opposed the mayor's position. Goodman's views on prostitution have been criticized by New York Times columnist Bob Herbert and Las Vegas Sun columnist Jon Ralston.

WHV blog entry on Legalizing Marijuana In Las Vegas.

Pardon Me Miss, Your Vegas Is Showing - WTF?

The following is from KOLO TV in Reno:

'Las Vegas tourism boosters plan to test a new slogan to compliment the wildly successful "What happens here, stays here" campaign.

Tourism officials have applied for a trademark on the phrase "Your Vegas is showing," the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported Friday.

The phrase has yet to be tested by focus groups and survey respondents, but if it fares well it could appear in print ads and on television as early as this fall, the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority said.

It might also end up on the cutting room floor...'

One would only hope so! What a lousy slogan!

The question is, doesn't Vegas pretty much speak for itself? Why does Vegas need yet another slogan? Wasn't "Vegas, baby!" bad enough? We all know why people come to Vegas (gambling, partying, sex, sex, gambling...) Why not let Vegas speak for itself?

What the frick does the new slogan mean anyway? Comes from the phrase "your slip is showing" I presume. Subliminal advertising? I see Freud in a slip. Superficially how would you show your Vegas? Under hypnosis, how would you display your Vegas, if that were suggested to you? Ladies and Gentlemen, please show us your Vegas. Might be an interesting experiment for a stage hypnotist. Where is your Vegas, anyway? Part of your wardrobe, anatomy, or psyche? I really don't get it!

Who came up with this slogan? Fifth graders could have done better. For example, "Vegas is a state of mind" -- now that has more of an intellectual ring to it - but New York City already took it with the "New York state of mind" catchphrase. Anyway, Vegas is more of a "turn off your mind" kind of place. How about "I left my money in Vegas"? Now I can identify with that!

Vegas Is Next To Google In Brand Name Rankings. And like Google, the name speaks for itself --- a slogan is redundant and unnecessary.

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Why Does This Slogan Just Sound Nasty? :)

The slogan sounds too much like:

"Your vagueness is showing" - after too much to drink?

"You vegus (nerve) is showing" - after too much to eat (you get gerd?)

"Your vague gas is showing" - well, excuse me!

The Realignment of America - Las Vegas Tops Cities Migrated To

From today's Wall Street Journal opinion piece titled "The Realignment of America". An interesting article, well worth reading in its entirety.

The author says that migration of population in the USA follows a fairly predictable pattern, with Las Vegas leading on "inflow" or net migration into the area. I guess I already knew this, it sure takes a lot longer to drive across town and the "rush hour" is starting earlier and earlier!

From the article:

"Domestic inflow has been a whopping 19% in Las Vegas, 15% in the Inland Empire (California's Riverside and San Bernardino Counties, where much of the outflow from Los Angeles has gone), 13% in Orlando and Charlotte, 12% in Phoenix, 10% in Tampa, 9% in Jacksonville. Domestic inflow was over 200,000 in the Inland Empire, Phoenix, Atlanta, Las Vegas and Orlando. These are economic dynamos that are driving much of America's growth. There's much less economic polarization here than in the Coastal Megalopolises, and a higher percentage of traditional families: Natural increase (the excess of births over deaths) in the Interior Boomtowns is 6%, well above the 4% in the Coastal Megalopolises."

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The Nevada Palace - Old Las Vegas, A Dying Breed

Artist's rendering of the Eastside Cannery Casino & Hotel



Nevada Palace Today

My wife and I have a favorite place to dine and listen to great musical entertainment. To me The Nevada Palace on Boulder Highway represents Vegas as it used to be, before the large corporations took over and homogenized every casino. They all (at least on the "strip") look the same inside now. When we walk into the Nevada Palace, it literally feels like the old sitcom "Cheers" in that you are only a stranger once. Many of the waitresses and casino employees do know my wife and me by name, come to think of it.

But, sadly, for my love for Vegas as it once was, even good old Nevada Palace will be a thing of the past in the near future. Plans are being made for breaking ground for a new casino within the next few months. It will take two years to build and will occupy the land where the RV park now stands. The land which the Nevada Palace casino currently occupies will eventually be a parking garage. I hope that when the new "Eastside Cannery Casino & Hotel" is built, it will keep some of the local charm that my wife and I have enjoyed; or we may wind up searching for the last remnants of "Old Las Vegas" somewhere up on Fremont Street!

I remember the Bingo Palace where the current Palace Station now stands ( on East Sahara ) and also the Santa Fe Casino where the Santa Fe Station now exists. These were the last local hangouts where I truly felt "at home". Also the older Plaza hotel downtown had that feeling once. I'm afraid those days are gone forever. The beginning of the end was when they stated handing out those darn players cards so we could all be tracked like mice in some grand maze marketing experiment. It's bad enough that the supermarkets have a record of everything I've ever bought there!

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The Nevada Palace - 5255 Boulder Highway, Las Vegas

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Related:
Article From Judy Thornburn's "Vegas Round The Clock" site


Cannery Plans Expansion

Jimmy Limo Plays Live At The Nevada Palace

Keep Violence Out Of Vegas

This will be my only semi-political rant for the entire year, I promise. If you do not agree with me that is fine. Post your comments below. But am I wrong or is Vegas attracting the wrong elements from LA and other parts of SoCal? I'm talking about gang bangers members who seem to think that there is an open shooting season whenever Vegas sponsors a big sporting event or entertainment events like the NBA All-Star Game or like the MTV awards in September.

Gang membership has increased significantly from 2004 to 2006: "Las Vegas police said there are now 7,447 adult and juvenile gang members in Las Vegas. This is a 26 percent increase from 2004, when there were 5,905 gang members in the jurisdiction."

I am not being racist when I say gang members, please confine your expansionist activities to LA - you have already destroyed one "nice" section of LA ( Westwood )that used to be perceived as a safe to visit. Please confine your gang activities to Cally!

The Las Vegas police department is already overwhelmed when big sporting (example: The recent NBA All-Star Game) or music events hit this town and they have to devote more and more resources to special anti-gang and anti-riot units. We don't need LV to become another LA.

Places like the Palms ( not meaning to pick on them, but they do seem to market to the gangsta wannabe crowd ) seem to be encouraging the attraction of these bad elements. Example: the upcoming MTV video awards in September. I wish they would change their tune and not encourage gang bangers to visit here. It is bad for tourism and definitely bad for tourists who may find themselves in the crossfire!

Vegas must be kept safe for both tourists and locals!

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Related (File under "Bad for Business") article from the Houston Chronicle: MGM Mirage Exec Blasts NBA All-Star Game

Why Would Anybody Want To Live In Las Vegas?

Judging by the statisics, maybe 5,000 people a month are moving here. An amazing statistic.

Let's observe the obvious: Las Vegas is one of the few cities where the local economy depends almost entirely on tourism ( just like our southern neighbor, the country of Mexico, depends mostly on tourism, - that is, if you discount illegal drug and other trafficking! ). If Las Vegas were a super-hero ( using a rather forced metaphor here - let's call this superhero "Oscar de la Godman" )and Oscar were stripped (pun intended) of his super powers, namely: hotels, gaming, and all forms of entertainment, then what would be left to give him amazing strength in that never ending fight for Truth, Justice and the Almighty American Dollar?

Unfortunately, very little. Bugsy Segal had a vision when this place was mostly desert that few of his Chicago "associates" shared. Why would anybody want to travel to the desert? And stay here? - it's either too hot or too cold, and the sand keeps blowing in your eyes. Bugsey had a vision, and as they say, the rest is history.

Ask any local why they live here and they will do that "eyes skyward to the forehead" gesture, and after a few moments may give you some reasons; and if gaming is one of them, it is most likely because they work in the gaming industry. Rule #1: you quickly learn, if you live here you can't gamble like a tourist (for very long- unless you are very affluent!) Of course there are exceptions, but not many. Most people who live here are no different than people who live in any other large Southwestern city. They go to work everyday, buy or plan to buy homes in the suburbs, pay their bills and taxes (but no state income taxes!), save for their kid's education, and yes: drive the kids to soccer practise. Then there are the retirees who hang out at the local casinos, always looking for the deals. And students attending the local colleges, and Air Force personnel on Nellis Air Force Base. And many other stories (millions of them) in the naked city.

People used to move to the Southwest for a variety of health reasons. For example, the dry air and sunshine were considered to be a treatment for such maladies as rickets (vitamin D deficiency) and consumption (tuberculosis) before the advent of modern antibiotics. If you were allergic to the flora back East and it triggered asthma attacks, chances are the desert was a good alternative to the ocean cruise as a way of avoiding the allegins like pollen. Arthritis symptoms could sometimes be ameliorated by a reduction of humidity. There are still some people who cite health reasons for living here, but the average relative humidity rises yearly due to watering all those lawns and golf courses, and all those native trees from back East have been replanted here. So there aren't too many specifically health related reasons to live here, anymore. On second thought: maybe mental health could be a reason, as I have heard perhaps apocryphal stories of many people suddenly dropping everything and moving here for a "new start". And, with all the days of sunshine, living in Vegas could easilly be a cure for Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD).

You may ask, and rightly so, "Why do I live here?" OK, here's my best shot at an answer: I live in a retirement community. The golf course is available most days. The outdoor heated pool is almost always available. If you drive in any direction it doesn't take long to be in the desert and away from the smog of the city. I suffer from insomnia, so it's nice to know that there is a place to go at 3:00 AM . I like the access to the casinos, and the shows and glitter of Vegas, knowing it is always there if and when I want it, but always tempered by the fact that it is always there! Too much of any good thing..., well you know! Las Vegas is also a good central location as a point of embarkation for visiting some of my other favorite Southwestern cities, like Albuquerque, LA, Tuscon, Sedona (AZ), San Diego; and other not-so-Southwest cities like San Francisco and Seattle. But I always come back here, and I like calling Vegas my home.

Somebody summed it up: you either love or hate Vegas, there is very little in between.

I would be interested to hear from other locals about why they like it here. And visitors who would like to live here.

The Changing Las Vegas Real Estate Market

My wife just informed me that she was told by one of her insurance agent friends that there is the beginning of a dip in the real estate market here in the Las Vegas Valley, evidenced by many people she knows losing their jobs in real estate and construction. The reason for the dip is probably a glut due to overbuilding and also the effect of projected higher interest rates. Las Vegas homes are currently about 33% overpriced, according to one statistic I've read. Many investors in second (vacation) homes in Vegas are now taking a more cautious "wait and see" attitude. Not having dutifully researched the statistics myself and not knowing any real estate agents personally, I can only give a phenomological summation of my experiential evidence (see my disclamer below, I've never posited myself as an expert on anthing) - in other words, there aren't quite as many for sale signs on my block as there were a few months ago, and those that are there aren't being removed, 'cause the homes are not selling.

No wonder. When I was in the market for a house in the late 90's, I saw some real bargains in the low 100's as the signs say. Now you have to fork out at least a quarter mil for the same house.

This is causing a local recession in the construction industry which has been booming for years. This boom was fueled by a long term trend of a general flight to the Southwest by retirees, cheap construction labor from migrating Mexican workers, the flight from neighboring Californians taking advantage of the price differentials and lower taxes, the marketing of Las Vegas for vacation condos and homes, etc., etc., - all this making Las Vegas and neighboring communities like Henderson the fastest growing areas in the country. The prices of homes has more than doubled since I moved back here in late 1999.

Also, obviously, the real estate companies are cutting back due to the slowing down of sales. Houses for sale are remaining on the market for longer number of days, currently averaging over 50 days, up 10% from last year and increasing. This might explain why our property management company just recently renewed our annual lease at the same rental rate as last year, when I was expecting a large (no rent control here in Henderson) rent increase. Luckily the owners have no intention to sell at this time.

I beleive that Las Vegas is destined to be a town where the "help" (dealers, maids, cooks, cocktail waitresses, show girls (?) etc.) can not afford to live here. The areas, now relatively sparsely populated, within an hour or two commute of the city will become the more affordable bedroom communities of the future. That's where I would buy. A recent trip "over the hump" to Pahrump revealed that there is a price frenzy there too. Maybe the commute distance from Sandy Valley ain't so bad? But, I've never been that very lucky predicting real estate trends, so take all this with a grain of desert sand.

I invite any of you "really real" real estate experts out there, and I know there are many of you, to comment here with corrections and elaborations. I won't be offended, promise! Thanks!

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See, for example, the following thread from the Valley 702 - Las Vegas Locals Forum: Home Prices Topped Out?


Expert Opinion Found?


MercurialMike

Las Vegas Growth Pains

Las Vegas Growth Pains

OK. My turn to rant. I'm losing my beautiful Vegas.

I remember when New York City had a campaign to reduce crime in the city. At the time the murder statistics were something like one murder a day in Manhattan, which was deemed shocking at the time. Now the newest statistics are out for Las Vegas - it is something like the forth most dangerous city, according to the newest survey. Vegas now has the same murder rate that motivated Mayors Koch and Giuliani to clean up the city. Besides the diurnal murder, Vegas has a robbery every hour, a car is stolen every 10 minutes, etc., etc...

I used to frequent restaurants and casinos in some of the worst areas of Vegas (see my web page) and not feel especially threatened, I took normal precautions - just circumspection and vigilance walking to and from my car. Now I'm having second thoughts about visiting some of these crime ridden areas of the city. Just the other day, for example, an off duty police officer was car jacked in one of these bad areas, not far from the casinos on Fremont Street - he did not fight back for his own safety, thank God they didn't kill him. The crazy thugs took his gun, his badge, and his privately owned vehicle.

My wife is a nurse who visits peoples' homes in Las Vegas, and I find I have to accompany her wherever she goes, especially in some Vegas neighborhoods after dark. She carries mace and I sometimes wish I had a concealed weapon permit. (Yeah, all you gun control people out there read my lips: if it meant saving your family's life you probably would wish you had a weapon available too!)

Don't try to find too many local or even national news articles on Las Vegas' ranking in this new survey. It's bad for business in Las Vegas, and somehow this information is magically suppressed. But I doubt if these new statistics will affect the nearly 300,000 visitors who come here every weekend, they are probably safe enough in the big hotels on the strip. I don't live in Vegas. I live in Henderson, a suburban city in its own right, just south of Vegas. Henderson fared much better in the new survey. It does not yet have the influx of gangs and illegal aliens that is plaguing Vegas, but it does have the same tremendous growth that will inevitably lead to the same problems neighboring Vegas has.

I just tuned into the "new" morning news talk station KDWN and they have changed their programming format to sound just like a Los Angeles station I used to listen to. Instead of the old format of some old guy sharing recipes with grandma, it now reports every damn crime as it is occurring. I understand that bad news sells, but I will no longer listen to this station - I'd rather not think too much about what is happening to my beautiful Vegas.

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For more information - order latest Morgan Quitno Report

Legalize Marijuana In Las Vegas?

A new radio spot on the Las Vegas airways argues that there are 5,000 Marijuana related arrests annually in Nevada and there are also 10,000 unsolved violent crimes annually. They conclude that the crime rate is already worsening and that legalizing Marijuana would free law enforcement's already overburdened resources to catch the really bad guys. Can't argue the main point, but I wonder how many so called Marijuana possession arrests involved people engaging in other criminal activities at the time, what attracted law enforcement to them ? For example, if they were driving a motor vehicle, then they obviously should be prosecuted.

This is an issue that separates the conservatives from the liberals, like abortion and gun control. Nevada has already gone a long way toward decriminalizing Marijuana use when the state took away the felony stigma on the possession of Marijuana ( first offense ).

I personally tend to want the government out of our lives as much as possible, yet bow to the necessity for government to protect the people from all adversaries, domestic and foreign. This includes protecting us from others, but not necessarily from ourselves.

Is smoking Marijuana a privacy issue or a public safety issue? If the government's job isn't necessarily to protect people from themselves, then Marijuana smoking in the privacy of one's home could be reduced to a public health issue, like alcohol consumption. As long as you are not operating heavy equipment or a motor vehicle (as the warning label states on my prescription sleep medication) are you free to ingest anything you want into your body? Marijuana is safer than alcohol, so the proponents claim - this proposition has yet to be proven scientifically. There are more poisons and carcinogenics in Marijuana smoke than in cigarette smoke, and this is a proven study. Another study shows evidence that smoking Marijuana is a "gateway" drug that leads to use of more dangerous recreational drugs like amphetamines and cocaine and ultimately the opiates like heroine. Although Marijuana is thought to be "merely" psychologically (as opposed to physically) additive, the long term effects of Marijuana smoking on brain function, particularly memory loss, are beginning to be suspected.

But there might be an argument for limited legalization for those like cancer patients who get relief from the side affects (like nausea) of chemotherapy. Using San Francisco, California, as a model, this has led to some major abuses, and the government has every right to clamp down on the abusers. Mostly, the government tends to look the other way when large numbers of people in society begin to act like a particular law does not exist. Witness the abolution of prohibition. Witness the lack of enforcement on the illegal alien issues.

But before I make a final decision on Question Seven ---Somebody from Amsterdam --- please comment here and let me know how legalization of Marijuana has affected society in general in Holland?

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Disclaimer: This is obviously all my opinion - I am not writing here as an expert by any means, just an observer of society. If some of my assumptions or conclusions are erroneous then I apologize up front. I welcome any corrections or elaborations on this subject.




MercurialMike