Leaving Las Vegas

Per the Las Vegas Gleaner:

One other thought: The local political industrial complex is always running off at the mouth about how Nevada's Democrats are "different" than Democrats in the rest of the country, more conservative, hence the importance of bringing the Wonderful West into play, blahblahblah. As the prez wannabes parade through the state and campaign not on the issues that the West As Savior Movement says they should be talking about, but actual issues that people ask them about, that long-held conventional wisdom might get more than a few holes poked in it, and might even be exposed as flat-out bullshit.

There is some truth there although perhaps not in the way the Gleaner might have intended to highlight.

I don't think there is much of a case to be made for Nevadans being "more conservative". I mean after all, we're the home of legal gambling, legal brothels and the 5 minute divorce. Las Vegas is among the nation's leaders for child prostitution, substance abuse and where else could one expect to find bodies stuffed in suitcases on a regular weekly basis and former mob lawyers can grow up to be mayor? If Nevada is conservative then all it is conserving is it's right to be an assmonkey.

Now certain Las Vegans can rant on about those stupid, pesky, backwards rurals but the truth is that one of the greatest obstacles to democrats being able to gain any ground in Nevada has been Las Vegas. Yeah you. Republicans in Democratic clothing.

Gleaner is right about one thing, the same issues that concern the rest of America concern the average Nevadan.

We are concerned about what is happening to our environment, we aren't real keen on the BLM rapidly divesting itself of our lands by auctioning it off to Las Vegas developers either. Tip of the day: Taylor and friends, get rid of the big, gas-guzzling pick-em-up trucks and SUV's sporting "NV Democrat" vanity plates. While you're on it, update your MySpace page, if you're 19 years old then I'm Beyonce Knowles and you can kiss my black ass.

We're also concerned about the economy, especially as it relates to the middle class and "working poor" (such lovely terms we come up with for such ugly realities). Those things concern us a lot because they affect the overwhelming MAJORITY of small town and rural Nevadans. Unlike some of you city folk who would prefer to debate ideological points at the club while sipping cocktails.

Foreign policy is a big deal to us too because surprise, surprise, those are OUR children over in Iraqmire getting blown to pieces. Ours, not yours.

A whole lot of us don't begrudge anyone equal rights, gay or straight, religious or not, black, white or brown. As a group we haven't often been very vocal on these issues because see, you guys forgot about ours and we're fighting for our lives here.

You want to take our water so you can build more condos and put in more golf courses then you want to tell us how to vote.

You want people to come work in your casinos and industry, clean your houses, staff your hospitals and teach in your schools but you don't want to pay enough for them to be able to afford a home of their own. Everyone knows the real story of Las Vegas – enormous power concentrated in the hands of casinos, unchecked by government and oblivious to community responsibility.

You have a mayor who calls himself a Democrat but I didn't hear your outrage when he decided to make it illegal to feed the homeless.

You claim to root for the party that stands for fairness and equality but you're ok with rating women for their "bimbo appeal" and treating the less financially privileged like house pets.

All of that then you want to call us dimwits, nuts and idiots. Who really is the jackass here?

Do I think think all Las Vegans are like this? Nope. Just a large percentage of the ones who've been "speaking for the party". My party. What you are is a black eye in the face of real democrats everywhere and the best people to guarantee continued republican control of the state for years to come.