By Trevor SchubertContributor
From its inception as a Mormon settlement in 1855 to itsestablishment as the world’s foremost gambling destination by the NewYork Mafia in 1946, Las Vegas has undergone many face-lifts.
Today, travelers to Las Vegas can visit Ancient Egypt, strollthrough the streets of New York, Rome, and Greece, or bathe in thetropics of an island paradise – and they can do it all without everleaving Las Vegas Boulevard.
“Vegas is beautiful and tacky all at the same time,” CaliforniaState University Chico economics senior Leslie Goforth said. “I mean,the Venetian’s canals are really gorgeous, but when you look closelyat the sculptures they’re all just plaster and concrete.”
It appears this contradiction may be essential to the universalappeal of Las Vegas. The young and the old, the rich and the not sorich, the educated and not so educated all visit the city in droves.According to the Nevada Census Bureau, nearly 40 million touristsvisited Las Vegas in 2002, and this is lower than the figures beforeSept. 11.
Of those 40 million people, one-third have a high school educationor less, one-third have some college and one-third are collegegraduates. The numbers are evenly distributed in terms of incomedistribution as well. The common ground that brings these varyingwalks of life together is the unabated freedom Las Vegas has tooffer.
“I go to Vegas for the scene,” psychology senior Ricky Silbersaid. “It’s so close and it’s the 24-hour-a-day, seven-day-a-week,365-day-a-year party. There’s free booze, gambling and half-nakedwomen everywhere.”
“Vegas is all about gambling,” business management junior JaiCovey said.
The Bureau estimates 86 percent of all visitors hit the tables forat least three hours a day while in the “city of lights.” Theirdevotion to gaming grosses a reported $8.1 billion annually for thecasinos. This figure doesn’t include money made from merchandising,hotel rates, alcohol sales, etc.
When asked how long he had been at the Blackjack table for, RockyRoquet, University of Texas sports medicine junior said, “Not long,I’m only down a hundred bucks.”
But Las Vegas attracts much more than just the college-agedgambler.
“We come to Las Vegas once a year and have for over 14 years,”Blackjack veteran William Rowland of Denver, Color., said.
When asked why Rowland and his wife have made Las Vegas theirannual destination, he replied, “At the pool, we feel like we’re inHawaii; at the shows we feel like we’re on Broadway and in the casinoI feel like I’m in hell.”
The motto of Las Vegas is “What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas,”communication junior Kelly Kuntz said.
There also seems to be one thing guaranteed to stay in Las Vegas -your money.
