[VincentVera]

Hello guys. I am new to the forums and have been living in Las Vegas for my entire young life (I am only 19 years old ). Basically the purpose of me starting this thread is to ask a few questions to my fellow Las Vegas locals. I know I am very young, but I still like to keep up with the news and whatnot, and I am just overall interested to know your opinions on living in this city. So I'll get right to the questions I wanna ask. (Sorry, each question is gonna be very long since I like to elaborate and ask lots of sub-questions)

Question 1. Do you guys think that Las Vegas is too dangerous in regards to its population size? Las Vegas has a population of a little over 600,000 and a metropolitan area of a little over 2 million. However, Las Vegas gets more homicides than many cities with a larger population, such as San Francisco. Like I said earlier I pay attention to the news and what not, and the crime just seems to be off the charts in the Las Vegas Valley lately. I know crime is everywhere, as people tell me all the time, but don't you think in this city that it's maybe a little bit out of control? Not even just homicides, I mean robberies and burglaries as well. I guess it just all seems too chaotic for such a medium sized city.

Question 2. Okay so next question. Do you think that Las Vegas has hopes of diversifying its economy? I recall reading an article on the internet that stated Las Vegas was a one trick pony whose economy is only strong because of one industry: Entertainment which breeds lots of tourism. I wish i could recall where I read that, but it got me thinking, maybe we should try and become a bit more economically diverse. After all, we practically are paying all of our bills with the revenue we generate from tourism, right? But the bigger question is, is it even possible for us to become more economically diverse, or are we doomed to forever rely on the entertainment industry? The article I mentioned earlier compared Las Vegas to Detroit, saying that Detroit was a one trick pony that fell into bankruptcy after the slow decline of their major industry(automobiles). I'm not sure how true that is, but essentially the article was saying that if we don't diversify our economy we could eventually end up like Detroit. What is your opinion on that?

Question 3. Does it irritate you that a lot of tourists (and just people not from Las Vegas in general) think that a lot of the locals do nothing but party on the strip all the time? I know that sounds like an exaggeration, but I have a few online friends from different states, and when they find out I am from Las Vegas they instantly assume I eat, sleep, and drink Las Vegas Blvd. Which I don't. I barely even visit the strip that often LOL. Also does it annoy you that people kinda have a misconception about people who live in Las Vegas? Just because we live in "Sin City" doesn't mean we aren't just as hard working, friendly, and family loving as people who live in other cities, am I right? I feel like the crazy stuff that tourists do on the strip, stays behind for us Locals to have to deal with.

Question 4. Final question. So my last question is: Do you think Las Vegas has little to no culture? I know Las Vegas will never be a cultural hub like New York City, Philadelphia, D.C, etc. but I always wondered if we technically actually have culture. I'm unsure because I've had discussions with my friends about this, and it usually seems to be a very polarizing debate.
Alright that is all the questions I wanted to ask! Please respond my fellow Las Vegans! (Sorry that my post was so long. Also, I apologize if you find any of my questions to be "dumb". Like I said, I'm young and I just like to ask whats on my mind.)

[Raiderman]

My thoughts, off the cuff..


Q1 - There does seem to be quite a bit of crime. How it stacks up against other cities, I don't know. I think one of the reasons it is higher is that the cost of living coupled with the climate is attractive to people who may not have the means to make it elsewhere. Poor areas tend to be where you find the most crime. Yes, there are crimes all over the valley, but there's not arguing that it is more common in the poorer neighborhoods. The only solution, as far as I can see, is either deal with it if you're in the socio-economic subset of the population who must, or live in a place where crime does not occur to the same level as in the poorer areas if you can. Call it rose-colored glasses, but the only crime I see is not on the news, and it, for the most part, is not near me and does not affect my life.


Q2 - Las Vegas is a one trick pony, although we have pretty much every industry represented, at least to a small extent. However, I don't see that pony dying any time soon. Las Vegas is a vacation destination. That is its strength. I don't see the city turning into Detroit, as entertainment is more recession-proof than auto manufacturing. Businesses are still going to book conferences here, and people are still going to come here. They may spend less in a recession, but they're coming.


Q3 - No. People's perception of the city doesn't affect me. I enjoy showing first timers the entire valley and surrounding areas, as many don't know it exists, but if they think I live (or even work) on the Strip, that is neither here nor there. All I can do is inform and educate.


Q4 - Culture is too broad. What some may find as culture, such as the usual comments about no zoo or art museums, others won't. For some, gambling is a culture. For others, availability of outdoor activities is a culture. For me, I haven't had an opportunity to get bored here yet, although it's only been a little less than 3 years since I've been here. I've lived in Boston, Chicago, San Diego, the San Francisco Bay Area, etc. I didn't go to the zoo on a daily basis, and once I went to the art museums, while I enjoyed them, I found I didn't frequent them. Whether they were there or not did not have a positive or negative influence on me. I have been to the museums here in the valley, hiked the areas surrounding, enjoyed the parks, enjoyed the live music nightly, etc. I haven't found anything that the valley lacks that I REALLY miss except the ocean.

[Buzz123]

#1; Although it seems that lately the chaos report from local news has been filled with death and destruction, I understand that we don't have any more crime than any other city of 2 million. Crime is rampant everywhere though. It's because of drugs, and it's because of something you wouldn't be aware of at 19 - that is the schools no longer teach right from wrong. Since the 60s psychiatry has been in charge of our schools, and they want people to defer to them about right and wrong. And, of course, they teach that there is no right or wrong, and when you act up they drug you. And that is the reason the whole world has a serious drug problem.

I'm originally from a small town of 32,000 that has shrunk to about 15,000 now. When I was growing up, serious crime was kind of rare. I knew a guy who smoked pot in the 50s and he was just an outcast for doing it. Now they have a serious drug problem just like everyone else, and crime is out of control there also.

#2; I've been in Las Vegas for the best part of 51 years, and they were talking about how we have to diversify before I got here. If you really think about all the jobs there are in Las Vegas, we actually are pretty diverse. The #2 employer in Nevada is mining - yes, mining. With 42 million tourists coming to Las Vegas alone in a year, we are not in any danger of losing our goose that lays the golden eggs. When the economy has been down in other parts of the country, yes it has effected us. But I remember a study one time by UNLV that showed when things get bad, people want to be entertained to help them forget about it. That has certainly been the case that I've noticed since 1964.

#3; People have a Hollywood version in their heads about Las Vegas. Don't worry about it because it's the version that the LVCB wants them to believe. It brings in a lot of business from people who want to think they can come here and not be their usual boring selves. Like I said above, I came from a small town. I could go to just about any small town back there and find, in about 20 minutes, drugs, prostitution, and gambling - all of it very illegal. So don't worry about what outsiders think of us. Just tell them to come on out and bring money. Remember, it's those people who think we are place of sin that want to be part of it for a while, and they make us sin city ...not the locals.

#4; We have culture. But our culture is different than other people's culture. If you mean the highbrow stuff, it keeps getting better (or worse, depending on whether it's a musical or ballet. ). Most places in this world have very little culture if you compare it to New York City, Chicago. or Santa Fe, NM - yes Santa Fe, NM. Most people I know aren't really that interested in high brow culture anyway - no mater what they claim.

[von949]

1) yes
2) no
3) no
4) yes

[C_A_Braun]

You had me right up to the part where you said that your friends think that you (a 19 year old) live your entire life on the strip.

[Tek_Freek]

#1 (My only response) Keep in mind that reporting news is a joke pretty much everywhere.

Reporters go for the lowest common denominator and the easy pick. The lowest common denominator being those who also watch soap operas and "survivor" shows, etc. The easy pick being listening to the police radio. Therefore murder, stabbings, drugs, accidents, whores, porn, blah, blah, blah. When they deviate from these subjects their numbers drop. The Lowest Common Denominator aspect.

For the other questions that I bow to those who have lived here longer.

[Vegas_Cabbie]

1. Although we are mid sized as far as population (our metro area is equal to that of Kansas City & Cleveland) we add on more than 42 million visitors a year... which is an average of over 800,000 extra people in town each week.
The nature of the Strip can definitely create a sloppy environment... people gambling and possibly losing big money... everyone being fed booze left and right... people coming to a city where they feel there's no consequences for questionable decisions... you put that all together in one place and there will be crime.

2. The diversification of the economy is starting to take shape in my opinion. Soon, we will be home to not one, but two electric car facilities, the southwest portion of the 215 is absolutely blowing up with various corporate buildings and HQs and the possibility of landing professional sports teams will help further "normalize" our city.
We could definitely be doing more though. Southern Nevada is one of the sunniest areas of the country... and the fact that we aren't capitalizing on it and becoming a world leader in Solar energy efforts is disgraceful.

3. I actually get this question in the cab a lot. Some people are shocked that we aren't sitting down at a blackjack table every chance we get. I tell them that a huge portion of the population works down there... so coming down on an off day just feels like coming back to work. Another thing I like mentioning is other high volume tourist areas... think of Bourbon Street in New Orleans... or Times Square in New York... locals may work in those places, but they definitely aren't hanging out there on their off days.

4. Las Vegas is a very new city. We don't maintain/preserve... we bulldoze and build new. This kind of goes back to my point that we really need more "normal" forms of entertainment in this city. I'd like to see us build a legit art museum... for US, not just the visitors... and I hate to fall back on it again, but we need something to start to unite this city and the people living in it. For being a city where so many millions of people flock to each year, the people of Las Vegas have very little sense of pride about this town. We ARE special... that many people wouldn't keep coming if we werent. We must work on getting a pro sports team. Sure, not every person is into it... but it would feel good to be surrounded by thousands of other Las Vegas locals United as one actually rooting for something Vegas related instead of just tearing everything local related down.

[Caltovegas]

Go out and see the world.

[VincentVera]

Originally Posted by C_A_Braun

You had me right up to the part where you said that your friends think that you (a 19 year old) live your entire life on the strip.

Haha, yeah my friends aren't really the brightest, are they?

[VincentVera]

Q1 -

I think one of the reasons it is higher is that the cost of living coupled with the climate is attractive to people who may not have the means to make it elsewhere

I didn't think of that. Good point!.

Call it rose-colored glasses, but the only crime I see is not on the news, and it, for the most part, is not near me and does not affect my life.

Same here honestly. The crime that I see does not affect my life nor is it near me, but I still occasionally have my concerns that perhaps this city is a bit too violent? Maybe I am just worrying too much.


Q2 -

However, I don't see that pony dying any time soon. Las Vegas is a vacation destination. That is its strength. I don't see the city turning into Detroit, as entertainment is more recession-proof than auto manufacturing.

Thanks for enlightening me on this one. That is really reassuring. I was thinking that perhaps our economy would be doomed in the future.


Q3 -

I enjoy showing first timers the entire valley and surrounding areas, as many don't know it exists, but if they think I live (or even work) on the Strip, that is neither here nor there. All I can do is inform and educate.

I'm glad that you show them the entire valley, and not just the well known, vital parts of the valley.


Q4 -

I've lived in Boston, Chicago, San Diego, the San Francisco Bay Area, etc. I didn't go to the zoo on a daily basis, and once I went to the art museums, while I enjoyed them, I found I didn't frequent them. Whether they were there or not did not have a positive or negative influence on me. I have been to the museums here in the valley, hiked the areas surrounding, enjoyed the parks, enjoyed the live music nightly, etc. I haven't found anything that the valley lacks that I REALLY miss except the ocean.

It's funny because a lot of those places that you mention having lived before, I would love to live. I guess it's mainly because I figured those cities had so much more to offer than Las Vegas(including the ocean! ) but after reading the second part of your post, I think I will start to appreciate this city a bit more. Not that I hated it, but I will try to enjoy living here for however many years left I choose to remain in this city. Just like you, I have never been TRULY bored here yet, and if anything that is a good sign. Thanks so much for posting. I appreciate it.