Free Republic

The American media is having a field day today mocking the Russians for some supposedly inadequate hotel accommodations....the proof for this is whining on Twitter. My suspicion is that the media has decided to AMPLIFY the complaints...which may be legitimate....merely to cast a pall on Putin's games. Consider: The entire Western media, along with Team Obama hates the unanimous decision of the Russian parliament to keep sodomite propaganda away from children. Yet they have to cover the story in a reasonable manner without risking getting the boot. I believe it is VERY FEASIBLE to that efforts are being made to...

How do you say "Kinsley gaffe" in Russian? Russia's deputy prime minister revealed that hotel rooms in Sochi have surveillance cameras -- even in the showers. Dmitry Kozak, who has been tasked with Olympic preparations, accidentally admitted what had been suspected and feared when trying to accuse outsiders of trying to sabotage Russia's image with stories about unfinished disasters in various hotels. "We have surveillance video from the hotels that shows people turn on the shower, direct the nozzle at the wall and then leave the room for the whole day," he said, according to the Wall Street Journal. His...

Julian Finney/Getty ImagesConstruction in the Gorky Gorod 540 Hotel in Sochi. Sochi officials say that the city's hotels are 97% complete on the eve of the Olympics.But given the nightmare travel stories rolling in from reporters in Sochi, that 3% difference goes a long, long way.There are reports of rooms without light bulbs or doorknobs. There are stories about unfinished hotels without lobbies or working elevators or running water. There are anecdotes from people who've checked into their rooms, only to find them occupied by stray dogs or construction workers napping in between shifts.The venues and Olympic Village all look...