McCarran Airport is Officially Harry Reid International, Nobody Really Knows Why

From Vital Vegas

https://www.casino.org/vitalvegas/mccarran-airport-is-officially-harry-reid-international-nobody-really-knows-why/

It's well known why the name was changed. Both McCarran and Reid were prominent Nevada grifter politicians who wielded a great deal of influence on the behalf of themselves and Las Vegas, in that order. But Reid was a little bit less overtly sleazy than McCarran, who ruled during the Mafia heyday and was as corrupt as it is possible for any human being to be. So Reidizing the airport is a minor and flaccid attempt to burnish Vegas's image.

There's a persistent effort to depict Vegas as a harmless and fun party destination. It started about 30 years ago with all the exploding tigers and pirate battles atop the Eiffel Tower. Vegas has never been any more "family-friendly" than, say, a massage parlor or a cockfighting arena, but they sure tried to sell it that way. This propaganda effort persists, albeit somewhat less blatantly than in the recent past.

I personally don't care if they name the place Hermann Goering International Airport and Slot Parlor. It would actually be fairly appropriate, given that he was an ex-fighter pilot and lived a dissipated lifestyle. I suspect he would have loved Vegas.

Naming McCarran airport the Harry Reid airport is like naming Jeffrey Dahmer as the Head Chef at 

Spagos.

Comparing Harry Reid to Jeffrey Dahmer is an example of the ridiculous political hyperbole that has divided this country. Being a member of a political party you oppose doesn't make someone a serial killer.

The truth is that McCarran and Reid were far more alike than different. They were both prominent Nevada politicians who wielded tremendous power and often, felt unconstrained by ethics in the process of spreading around the fruits of that power. The fact that one was a Republican and the other a Democrat matters very little. They both did the same things. The only distinction is that Reid was a wee bit less blatant about it, which is more a function of his operating in a later era than McCarran than any real difference in how they operated.

Vegas has always been about money and corruption, not necesssarily in that order, which is why I still think "Hermann Goering International Airport and Slot Parlor" is the best name. Leave politics out of it.

They should name it after Trump, Golden Showers & Rubber Sheets International.

I'd put Harry Reid's ethics history up against anybody in Congress.    He was a tough politician and prosecutor who did a lot of good things for the country and his state,    And he wasn't afraid to work with people on the other side of the aisle to get things done.    

you could find alot worse persons to name an airport after.