Las Vegsa
We went to Las Vegas to meet friends who had come in for a conference from Massachusetts. What is there to say about the place? Does it symbolize America for the rest of the world? If so, that's a pretty sad commentary.
The scale of the buildings and their symbols is BIG. In fact, everything on the strip of hotels and casinos that are the most famous parts of the place are BIG, giant in scale, and if some is good, more is better, or so the philosophy would seem to go. The signage is spectacular, the hotels and casinos mind-bendingly , overwhelmingly large and ostentatious, loud and filled with sensory overload. One goes into any of the interchangeable casinso and first one is nearly overcome by the smell of stale cigarette smoke. After one's eyes stop tearing, you see zombie-like people sitting and staring lifelessly at the slot machines they're lined up at, with only one arm moving to put in the money and pulll the lever, over and over again. Their eyes are dull, their skin pallor pasty.
The hotels have buffets with sumptious amounts of food, most of which is well prepared. To not overeat is a major accomplishment. To attend one of these without feeling vaugely guilty is another major accomplishment. Hedonism and excess rein in Las Vegas, and, for many, this place is as good as it gets. I found it utterly exhausting.
Our friends treated us to a show, Cirque d' Soleil's "O", which is all water-based. The skill and scale of the show is tremendous. The design is beautiful; the acrobatics at a high level. Good choreography. I had no idea what it was all about, and it evaporated into the night the moment it ended. It was great style with little substance to my way of observation.
The amount of money that gets spent in Las Vegas is nothing short of phenomenal. What this money could do, and who it could feed is something we all ought to think about. We Americans who have so much - what are we doing with it all? What do we think money is for? Why do we think it will all be here forever? It's no wonder this country is despised.
The scale of the buildings and their symbols is BIG. In fact, everything on the strip of hotels and casinos that are the most famous parts of the place are BIG, giant in scale, and if some is good, more is better, or so the philosophy would seem to go. The signage is spectacular, the hotels and casinos mind-bendingly , overwhelmingly large and ostentatious, loud and filled with sensory overload. One goes into any of the interchangeable casinso and first one is nearly overcome by the smell of stale cigarette smoke. After one's eyes stop tearing, you see zombie-like people sitting and staring lifelessly at the slot machines they're lined up at, with only one arm moving to put in the money and pulll the lever, over and over again. Their eyes are dull, their skin pallor pasty.
The hotels have buffets with sumptious amounts of food, most of which is well prepared. To not overeat is a major accomplishment. To attend one of these without feeling vaugely guilty is another major accomplishment. Hedonism and excess rein in Las Vegas, and, for many, this place is as good as it gets. I found it utterly exhausting.
Our friends treated us to a show, Cirque d' Soleil's "O", which is all water-based. The skill and scale of the show is tremendous. The design is beautiful; the acrobatics at a high level. Good choreography. I had no idea what it was all about, and it evaporated into the night the moment it ended. It was great style with little substance to my way of observation.
The amount of money that gets spent in Las Vegas is nothing short of phenomenal. What this money could do, and who it could feed is something we all ought to think about. We Americans who have so much - what are we doing with it all? What do we think money is for? Why do we think it will all be here forever? It's no wonder this country is despised.
posted by Rich Sigberman at
9:15 PM
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