Lost Vegas?

Re “A losing gamble: Vegas dreamers go all in,” Sept. 6, and “A losing gamble: Luck runs out on Vegas boom,” Sept. 7

Ever heard of the phrase, “If it’s too good to be true, it probably is”?

True, this recession came fast and hard, but you can’t tell me it was impossible to see. For my generation -- just about out of college -- life at first is going to be rough. The competition for good jobs is going to be intense. People always chase the quick way to make a buck, but education will win out in the end.

The people in the article got jobs in what the writer called “no-college-degree-required” fields and got used to living a “good life” -- which really was a paycheck-to-paycheck way of life.

No matter how much money you make, if you live above your means and everything you buy requires a signature, eventually it will catch up to you.

Bart Krasnowski

Porter Ranch

Though I empathize with the struggles of the protagonists in the story, I do not feel sorry for them in the least bit. Did these people really think the good times would go on forever? What happened to common sense, to saving some money for the rainy days?

From the story, it appears that all they did with their nice big earnings was to pour them into large houses and indulge in lives of modest luxury. How are these people to be compared to hardworking families across the country who have not known the taste of a quick buck, yet have been hit equally hard by the recession?

The stories of these unfortunate uproots are only tiny footnotes in the mirage that the gaming industry has become. How many ruined lives will it take to understand we should not feed a monster we cannot control?

There is no such thing as a real good job in Vegas. And luck has nothing to do with it.

Mihai Giurgiulescu

North Hollywood

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Your photo of a dealer manning an empty blackjack table is quite appropriate. I was in Las Vegas a month ago and saw plenty. I walked downstairs to the casino from my off-Strip hotel room at 8 on a Tuesday morning. There were six blackjack tables in play. One table had four players with a $15 minimum bet. The other five were empty with a $25 minimum bet. Add that to the $25 buffets and I’m not seeing much of a reason to go back there.

David Hawkins

Anaheim Hills

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Vegas in a recession? Is this a joke? The Las Vegas Strip keeps getting bigger and bigger and adding hotels like nobody’s business.

Vegas will never be complete. There will always be construction going on.

Every weekend, I know someone going to Vegas -- for a birthday party, bachelor or bachelorette party, beer pong tournament, cheer or dance competition, concert, work convention or just to have fun.

Kari Walin

Simi Valley

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Like the Currans, I too frequently visit Las Vegas, and I definitely notice the slowdown.

It’s actually rather depressing to see progress of CityCenter at a standstill. Even the taxi drivers are struggling. On my last trip, I got kicked out of a taxi because the driver said my hotel was too close for him to waste his time. How rude.

It’s unfortunate this is front-page news, because it just shows how indicative it is of our economic situation. I know things have to get worse before they can get better, but when?

Katherine Efros

Northridge