Where I Stand — Brian Greenspun: The head of the class

Tuesday, Jan. 5, 1999 | 11:40 a.m.

I'M NO. 1! I'm No. 1!

No, Y2K hasn't come a year early and made my computer go daft along with its owner. And no, I'm not a self-appointed marketing department for Brian Greenspun's 21st century-style image, although there are any number of people in town who would suggest such a move would be a significant improvement over this century's version.

I am merely giving notice to what a weekly throwaway decided would be the ultimate slap in my face by publishing its list of the 10 most desirable people to be sent packing from this valley. The theory, of course, is that Las Vegas would be a better place to live if the 10 of us -- and the honorable mentions -- moved someplace else.

Normally, I wouldn't pay an article like this any mind but this is different. This time they made me No. 1 on the list.

That's right. I am king of the hill, A-No. 1 and the head of the pack and it is hard to ignore such an honor -- even if the intention of the writers was to dishonor me and my fellow list-makers. I am sorry to disappoint you fellows, with whatever you've got stuck in your craws, but I'm kind of happy about heading your list.

It is not often, if ever, I can lead a list full of names like Steve Wynn, Yvonne Atkinson Gates, John Ensign, UNLV President Carol Harter and UNLV's new football coach, John Robinson. So, even if the intentions were all bad, the company is pretty good and that's about all you can ask for in this life. Oh, yes, Siegfried and Roy also made the top 10. If ever there were two giving individuals who did more for Las Vegas' entertainment image outside of town and Las Vegas' needy people inside our city, then I don't know who they could be. Put me with them any day and that would be one heck of a day.

So why the list? I don't know. I suppose the editors have nothing else to do but pick on those who have worked hard to fulfill dreams, create opportunities and generally do good things for family, friends and neighbors. It kind of goes with the territory these days where some people are happier pulling those who succeed down to their level of failure so they'll not have to work so hard.

We see all over the country where neighbors forget how to take pleasure in their neighbor's success, choosing, instead, to berate the achievement and write it off to some unfair advantage they never had. We see it in our politics, where winners are treated like losers and the losers, instead of assessing the reasons for their failure and getting it right the next time, choose to berate their opponents sufficiently to turn off the voters -- in most cases, all the way off. And we see it in business, where competition and the benefits that come with winning are oftentimes berated by those with lesser ideas, lesser strength of purpose and lesser belief in themselves.

So I and the others who have been told a U-Haul and the open road are the best things we can do for this city we love, must accept the criticism in the spirit in which it's made. Which is about as far from the charity and good will of the holiday season just passed as any human being can get.

Even though bad faith and bad manners drove the list-makers to pick on some very fine folks, I can understand why they settled on me as their top choice. This has been a particularly good year, and those don't come along that often. So the jealous and misfits in our society have to strike while the striking is good.

What I don't understand, though, is why people like Steve Wynn get the invitation for a change of address. Especially considering the timing. I am not sure what the final number is but his Bellagio hotel-casino rang in the new year at just under $2 billion. It is a remarkable place and one which set new standards for the hotels that will certainly follow. In short, he took a huge chance, and one which only time will tell whether he was right. And in the meantime, he created thousands of new jobs for Las Vegans.

And what about my new partner, Cox Communications? It made the honorable (read that dishonorable) mention category. It just got to town after paying almost $1.4 billion to get here. The company has already added close to a hundred new jobs with many more coming and it brings the hope and promise of competition in all forms of telecommunications for Las Vegans. In short, this valley will be a national leader in one of the next century's most important industries. All because of Cox Communications!

And speaking of newcomers, why on earth would they pick on John Robinson? His job is going to be tough enough without his being slammed before he ever unpacks his clothes. Fair comment is fine. But criticizing the coach before he ever fields a team is over the top, even for this group of malcontents.

Oh well, what can one person do in the face of all this bad publicity? Enjoy it, that's what. So thanks, fellas, for the top rating. If you really want to hurt me, drop me down a notch or two. And, if you really want to make me mad, leave me off the list altogether.

For 1999, though, I'm top dog. I'll start packing my bags as soon as my head returns to normal size.