WI: Nevada never legalizes gambling?

When Nevada legalized gambling in 1931, Las Vegas was a relatively small desert town of about 5,000 people. Today, the metropolitan area is home to 2 million people, with 600,000 in the city proper. Considering how the casinos were the driving factor in the post-WWII growth of Vegas, what would have happened to the city had Nevada never legalized gambling?
 
To paraphrase a response to an old "Gang of Four retains control of China" thread, why would you do this, this is basically murdering Nevada
 
The Hoover Dam?? Maybe it aint Las Vegas but some city will happen.

That's what I'm thinking. Hoover Dam was approved at the same time gambling was legalized. Perhaps some growth could've happened in the area, though nowhere near as large as OTL. Could growth have come from someplace else? Vegas is hardly the only desert city to have flourished from the post-WWII Sun Belt boom. Phoenix, AZ comes to mind (1940 population is 65,000, 2010 population is 1.5 million), as well as Albuquerque, NM (1940 population 35,000, 2015 estimate 550,000).
 
Las Vegas is a easy drive from LA. So is the Salton Sea. Today and yesterday, its the hordes of gambling fools that makes the place
 
The people of Atlantic City would be happy that their possible competitor was thwarted.
On the other hand, West Coast people would moan that they should cross across the continent just for fun.
 
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Las Vegas' economy would probably be based on tourism to see nearby natural features instead. Possibly, hydroelectricity may fuel some industry.

Could Las Vegas be the centre of a solar power revolution? Or possibly a centre of film industry (westerns etc.)?
 
NV rejects gambling. NM takes a cue and legalizes it shortly after. Albuquerque becomes TTL's Las Vegas expy and Las Vegas New Mexico becomes the Reno expy. :)
 
It would probably be a lot easier for the US Government to test fly those captured UFOs it keeps out there without so many prying eyes...
 
Don't forget the hookers!

Prostitution in Nevada is really over-exaggerated. It's only legal in rural counties (which have to approve it on their own), none of which include Vegas or Reno. You'd have to drive a good distance away from Vegas to actually find a legal brothel, and from what I've heard most of them are pretty high end.
 
There are two issues here. The first, brought up in the earlier comments, is whether a "Las Vegas" is something that has to happen in post World War 2 American. Is there an alternative Las Vegas? I would say yes. America has a really weird puritanical culture that basically requires a Las Vegas. But Atlantic City developed in response to Las Vegas. I think the main candidate for the alternative Las Vegas is New Orleans. The other possibility is that it is built on an Indian reservation.

The other issue is that Nevada was a micro-state, basically created to get another three electoral votes for Lincoln in 1864, and didn't have anything going for it economically. So if they don't do Las Vegas they will do something else. Another accidental micro-state, Delaware, went in for lax regulation of corporations charted in the states and lots of tolls and fees of motorists passing through the state. Say if for some reason Delaware isn't as corporate friendly, Nevada will get in on that action.
 
I thought of two more ramifications of this.

The first is the career of Harry Reid. Reid was a lawyer who was appointed by the state of Nevada to regulating the gaming industry. He did a good enough job to get him elected as the Congressman from essentially Las Vegas in 1982, then he won a close Senate race in 1986 and spent thirty years as Senator as Nevada. Reid's two biggest accomplishments as a federal legislature was in blocking a plan to use social security to goose the stock market that the GW Bush administration floated in 1985, and to be instrumental in getting the Affordable Health Care act passed. Butterfly away Reid's political career, which no Las Vegas probably does, and there is a good chance you could see no ACA and social security pretty much destroyed, though if social security had been funneled into the stock market that might have delayed the 2008 financial crisis. So you have that.

Also, Hollywood really likes setting movies in Las Vegas. Off the top of my head, "Godfather part 2", "The Hangover", "Diamonds are Forever", and "Leaving Las Vegas" (of course) are all set mainly in Las Vegas, and "Rain Man" has some critical scenes in Las Vegas. Its pretty much a feature of every cross-continent road movie. No "Las Vegas" changes this, and even an "alternative Las Vegas" changes this since the alternative version would have a different look and feel.
 
Prostitution in Nevada is really over-exaggerated. It's only legal in rural counties (which have to approve it on their own), none of which include Vegas or Reno. You'd have to drive a good distance away from Vegas to actually find a legal brothel, and from what I've heard most of them are pretty high end.

I was in Vegas in 2014, and I recall seeing (the first) brothel about an hour and a half out. It was paired with a conveniece store and gas station. Not as sketchy as I expected either. I didnt inquire about prices.
 
I thought of two more ramifications of this.

The first is the career of Harry Reid. Reid was a lawyer who was appointed by the state of Nevada to regulating the gaming industry. He did a good enough job to get him elected as the Congressman from essentially Las Vegas in 1982, then he won a close Senate race in 1986 and spent thirty years as Senator as Nevada. Reid's two biggest accomplishments as a federal legislature was in blocking a plan to use social security to goose the stock market that the GW Bush administration floated in 1985, and to be instrumental in getting the Affordable Health Care act passed. Butterfly away Reid's political career, which no Las Vegas probably does, and there is a good chance you could see no ACA and social security pretty much destroyed, though if social security had been funneled into the stock market that might have delayed the 2008 financial crisis. So you have that.

Largely depends on your philosopgical approach to AH. At the barest minimum, the dates ought to be butterflied up. At the hard end of the scale, Harry Reid, if born at all, will be a different person (having been born after the 31 POD).

Also, Hollywood really likes setting movies in Las Vegas. Off the top of my head, "Godfather part 2", "The Hangover", "Diamonds are Forever", and "Leaving Las Vegas" (of course) are all set mainly in Las Vegas, and "Rain Man" has some critical scenes in Las Vegas. Its pretty much a feature of every cross-continent road movie. No "Las Vegas" changes this, and even an "alternative Las Vegas" changes this since the alternative version would have a different look and feel.

Absolutely.
 
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