GlossyVeneer

Have you heard of the book Bowling Alone? I have not read this book and I only heard about it recently, but the concept behind it is intriguing to me. Basically the metaphor of “bowling” is used because once upon a time, thousands of people belonged to bowling leagues (or bridge clubs or other social groups that met on a regular basis) but now people are much more inclined to do things alone. The book proposes that the American society is falling apart because we isolate ourselves.

This is definitely true in the case of Kevin and me. Since moving to Vegas we don’t do things outside just the two of us very often. I haven’t met very many people since moving here and I’m not quite sure how to do so since I work inside my home. Kevin meets people at work, but he doesn’t go out and do things with them beyond work and co-worker lunches. We occasionally go to parties for his work, but that has only been 3 or 4 events the entire time we’ve lived here.

But the thing that was the most disconcerting proof of this theory to me was something I saw in the McCarran International Airport. We were early for our flight so the TSA could strip us down and look through our belongings so after getting through security we had ample time to wander around the airport. We passed a poster that was advertising a website. The site was an adult site and basically said, “If you check into a hotel with high-speed internet access, you can have direct video of these girls right in the convenience of your room.”

WTF!

This is Vegas… THE VEGAS! Just about anything that is “sinful” or “shameful” in the real world is perfectly legit here. It’s a pretend land where people come to escape their daily reality. To be perfectly clear… there are strippers and nudie shows and even whorehouses in the area. This is one area where you don’t have to um… “bowl” alone.

Of course, I’m sure that Robert Putnam didn’t really have that in mind when he wrote his book.

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