Masks. Local vs Strip

Please keep this civil. Not looking to start a political fight or anything like that.

Wife and I stayed at the Bellagio for her birthday on the 18th and 19th. While we live here in town my wife had always wanted a room with a fountain view so I figured what the hell.

We noticed that by best guess around 25% of the people in the Bellagio were maskless, not even a chin diaper, and of that amount probably 75% of those didn't even have a drink or cigarette in their hand. Nothing was being said to these patrons either.

Since we live here in town we didn't gamble on the strip we went to our favorite place to play The M. My guess is less than 5% had a mask and most were with drink or smoke in hand, we later visited Green Valley and the same applied. Now most of the people at these two places are locals where as most at the Bellagio are most likely from out of town.

I asked a cashier at the Bellagio about it and she said they had given up, sick of being berated and the tantrums. She said a lot would say we are from so and so state and we don't have to wear a mask there. She got tired of telling Dorothy she wasn't in Kansas anymore.

My thinking on the subject is us locals understand that our economy depends on the casinos being open and we mask up even though we might hate it. The visitors don't give two shits about the people that live here since they don't, so screw the mask. You know the whole What Happens in Vegas Stays in Vegas BS.

So what are your thoughts?

 Speaking solely for myself, I don't understand the reluctance to wearing a mask. I do it for 4 reasons, - (1) because I am told to verbally and by signage whenever I wish to access or utilize a business - by being instructed to wear one, I have a choice. If I choose to proceed then I am saying I will comply. If I decide not to comply, I do not go further trying to utilize a business. (2)  I feel that any protection is better than none, no matter what the percentage of protection I am told a mask may or may not provide, (3) - I wear on in the hopes that it will keep others to not become infected because of my possibly being infected, and (4) - by wearing one neither I nor others will have to deal with the possible ramifications of not wearing a mask. 

My thoughts are I don't blame them for not enforcing the mandates. The people that don't want to comply with them are increasingly violent and unhinged.  A person like that is too dangerous for a mere casino employee to deal with. 

I live in a rural very conservative area. We constantly rank near the bottom in a bottom ranking state for COVID transmission.  It is about 99% of people not wearing masks here. I have had two shots of Moderna plus the booster. If I get COVID and infect a bunch of anti-vaxxers and anti-maskers because I am asymptotic, I call it karmatic justice.  

I am not a local but I have been to Vegas 6 times in the last 18 months. I am vaxed and boosted and have zero interest in wearing a mask. I do so on the plane and if asked. Masks are optional here. I have asked the casino I stay at a few times if it could be an option for hotel guests to show vax status to get relief on the mask rule as many conventioneers have done.

1. Wearing a mask doesn't make me grow antlers or explode. It doesn't turn me into a newt (so far, anyway). In fact, I hardly notice it any more. A few months ago, I ordered a burger and fries, and when the food came, I picked up a French fry and mashed it into my mask.

2. There's absolutely no reason for this to be a political issue, any more than, say speed limits are political. I live in a county with 91% vaccination (among those eligible) and virtually everyone wears a mask. I do realize that there are places where those rates are well under 50%--and people from those places go to Vegas.

3. Even if somehow covid would give me better muscle tone and remove unsightly blemishes, I'd still wear a mask. Why? Because it's killed almost a million people.

4. Public mandates are perfectly legal. So are private mandates. Period.

5. I completely agree with David Miller's four reasons to wear a mask.

I really do wish the Vegas casinos would enforce the goddamn rules. So they piss off a few morons by doing so. What of it?

Las Vegas attracts people who are both gamblers and bad at math - kind of an overlapping demographic - so it's no surprise that they would be risk-takers. My take is that locals are a tad more rational. They also tend to be older and have good reasons to be more cautious.

As far as Strip casinos enforcing the rules, if it were just a few idiots, they could handle it. But once a casino has a hundred or more scofflaws, there's not a lot they can do. 

Actually, there's a lot they could do. Stop any no-maskers and tell them masks are required. If they don't comply, forcibly eject them. No do-overs, no second chances. Tell all the chin-bra nimrods that they have to pull their masks back up between sips or puffs, and if they don't comply, forcibly eject them.

Post impossible-to-miss signage about this policy at all casino entrances. Make hotel guests sign a waiver that says that if caught without a mask, they will be ejected and forfeit their room. Don't admit anyone to a restaurant who isn't wearing a mask. Don't deal a hand to anyone not wearing a mask or allow them to make a bet. Nobody at the sports book without a mask. No one admitted to the movie theater. Nobody served a drink.

Anyone who isn't wearing a mask in the casino, security should blow their head off. OK, maybe not that last one. But there's plenty they can do, and low mask compliance is because they choose not to enforce the rules, not because they can't.

On my last 2 trips I saw that mask compliance was the same whether it was strip or local.  100% compliance at the tables.  Very low at the bars.  Slot compliance was about 50%.  Went to a show at the Wynn and people wore masks on the way in & most dropped the masks when people got in.  

Millions of people attend indoor & outdoor events every week & there has not been any outbreaks as a result of attendance.  NYC has the highest vaccination rate & the strictest mask rules but is being overrun & is 34,000+ short on medical workers.

Solutions are not that simple.

There actually have been hundreds of "outbreaks"--as in, dramatically increased case numbers and hospitalizations. NYC isn't being "overrun" by anyone or anything, but it's a very large city and the current weather is cold and snowy--plus, it's the holidays, so a lot of indoor gatherings.

No one ever said masks are a "solution," any more than seat belts prevent auto accidents. But it's been conclusively proved that masks lower the risk of both infection and transmission.

It is in fact very, very simple. People should wear their goddamn masks.

In a away I understand why they are not wearing a mask.

If all it takes is a cigarette or a beer in your hand to not have to wear a mask then why should anybody?

It really is kinda rediculous if you think about it. Shit, give me an empty beer can and I can walk around without a mask. Light up a smoke and just carry it you don't have to even have it in your mouth and you are exempt.

The gaming reg is going to start enforcing it more from what I hear. I guess one small casino lost their license and another has been fined twice, both were in rural NV though. Only thing I heard here in Vegas was Virgin on opening night got fined 60k for not following mandate.

60k is nothing to these casinos. It's like the companies that dump barrels of waste in the ocean and the EPA fines them 25k/day or pay millions to have the waste properly disposed of, no brainer to a bean counter.