Libertarian Mecca
This past Sunday in one of the poorer editions of the Chicago Tribune, there was a commentary offered by a gentleman with the libertarian outfit Reason. Radly Balko lamented Chicago falling dead last in a series of measures over how free the city was. This lament has its foundation in a Reason Magazine study of 35 U.S. cities. The report evaluated cities based on “how much freedom they afford their residents to indulge in alcohol, tobacco, drugs, sex, gambling and food.” They included other unique factors like gun control laws and surveillance cameras. (I cannot find a link online to Reason Magazine’s report. Here is a link to their website.)
So Chicago came in last, by a long shot. The mecca of freedom is of course Las Vegas. I know a number of people who like Las Vegas. More specifically, I know a lot of people who like to visit Las Vegas and then leave it. I have never been to Las Vegas, and I am basically to the point of consciously choosing never to go there just so that I can always I say I’ve never been to Vegas. Enough about me. There are a number of reasons people don’t stay in Vegas, and on the top of the list is that freedom isn’t the most important thing in life, at least as freedom is conceptualized in legally available hookers and all night buffets with extra trans fats. Las Vegas is ordered toward hedonism. Some people enjoy that, many of them include relatives. Followers of Catholic thought will not be shocked to hear me say that authentic freedom is ordered toward achieving heaven.
There is nothing particularly Catholic about finding Las Vegas – oh how do I put this? – less than the pinnacle on an assortment of measures. If we were to look to culture, we can recognize New York City’s greatness in her Broadway shows, her architecture like St. Patrick’s Cathedral and the Guggenheim Museum, and her meccas of commerce like Wall St. and Times Square. If we are to look toward social thought, anyone’s first stop would have to be Washington, D.C., with her great universities and the headquarters of myriad think tanks. Even on the entertainment side, in a heresy of all heresies, one could make compelling arguments for Orlando, FL, and greater Los Angeles. For those who aren’t familiar with my views by the way, I have nothing in principle against gambling; I haven’t done so in close to a decade.
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Even though I have, shall we say, libertarian tendencies, I agree with you. I travelled to Vegas once, and I really have no strong desire to go back. There are more meaningful things in life than walking down the street and having a bunch of guys try to hand you fliers for strip clubs. Plus, from a purely practical standpoint, I’ve never seen a city that was both pedestrian and vehicle unfriendly.
But Cirque du Soleil is kinda cool.
Vegas has a few interesting things, but like you, I could take it or leave it. It is kind of neat to see NYC on one corner, the pyramids down the street, and Paris a little further down. They do have some decent shows. But once the novelty wears off (rather quickly) there isn’t much to it. And I never really got into gambling. It is basically Hedonism Central.
I can’t believe this, but I am about to offer a qualified by defense of Las Vegas. I don’t gamble, not out of any moral objection, but because I have very limited patience and quite frankly couldn’t be bothered. Nor do I drink alcohol because I don’t particularly like the taste, and because I don’t like waking up feeling unwell.
But I to Vegas in February with my wife’s extended family, including her 90-year grandmother, and we had a grand time. We’re foodies, so we really enjoyed the access to so many fantastic restaurants. You can stay in relative luxury relatively cheaply. And we saw a different show every night– I especially enjoyed the “La Reve” water show. But you guys are also right: walking is a nightmare, and the sleaze just makes my skin crawl. But the sheer tackiness of the decor is so awful that it’s almost cool!
TBH, I’ll just say the heck with all cities: give me a small house out in the country, room for kids to play, and a church a mile or two away.
I wouldn’t want to live in any city where 95% of the people are tourists. But there are libertarian cities that I wouldn’t mind living in.
You guys are acting like Las Vegas is nothing but the strip. There’s a whole town there away from the tourists, and Nevada in general has one of the highest rates of people moving in from other places in the country. Most people who live in Vegas never visit the Strip or the casinos.
I don’t know about Chicago specifically, but Illinois has had a large population decrease lately, perhaps because it’s an unfriendly place for business and all that (or perhaps because of Blago).