Posted on 02/06/2014 5:42:34 AM PST by Kaslin
The decedent past of Soviet Russia, it turns out, is not that far behind us. Oh sure, Russians might have Wi-Fi, post-soviet sedans, and Hugo Boss… But it’s not exactly the revolutionized and reformed former communist state we’re supposed to believe. And Sochi, home to this year’s Winter Olympics, is not exactly the Salt Lake City, or the Vancouver, of the Black Sea. As Sochi struggles to make their resort town mildly bearable for visitors, in time for the winter Olympics, the world has been given a glimpse into the lack of progress Mother Russia has made since the fall of the “evil Empire”.
To an extent, the Soviet Union is apparently alive and well. At least in practice. With the eyes of the world on Sochi, it is becoming apparent that the façade of progress has changed little since the days of soviet propaganda efforts during the Cold War. The same tactics of deception and public-relation puffery plague the corruption-clad Kremlin. As reporters poured into the resort community for coverage of the year’s biggest sporting event, the blatant incompetence of good-old-fashioned Russian grandstanding was prevalent. (Heck, even New Jersey would have been a better location judging by the tweets from American reporters… And that analysis is coming from a guy in Colorado.)
In fact, the images and initial reaction to Sochi’s “preparedness” (seriously... it's worse than you think) for the winter games begs the question: How is Russia still considered a Super Power? (Well… I guess nuclear weapons do go a long way.) So far, the images and stories that have been reported would seem to be originating from a third world dictatorship. Given the horror stories thus far, it seems more like North Korea was hosting a national press conference rather than a developed nation preparing for the World’s Games. Water has been declared unsafe for contact (I don’t want to know what happens when you drink it), plumbing is non-existent in some locations, and even basic infrastructure needs have been largely neglected. The problems plaguing reporters would be comical if they weren’t so depressing.
The biggest problem seems to have been a quality that Russia carried over from the era of Soviet rule: Corruption, and good-old-fashioned government incompetence. And while corruption is not exclusive to former communist states (or for that matter, currently communist states), it is largely exclusive to big government and statism. After all, it’s pretty difficult for big business to climb into bed with politicians when they have little power or influence over the nation they govern. Next to black market weaponry and top shelf vodka, corruption seems to be among Russia’s most plentiful commodity.
The Soviet Union – like North Korea, Cuba, and even China today – was notorious for its grandstanding and propagandistic efforts to portray itself as cutting edge. Of course the image of Gorbachev using a dial phone was hilarious to a nation that just discovered the potential of fax machines. And today, the image of Sochi hotel rooms missing light bulbs, doorknobs, and clean water incites a similar response from the West. More than two decades after the collapse of the world’s largest communist government, it’s tradition of centralized power and malicious governance continues with devastatingly incompetent results.
When the Bolsheviks first implemented their revolution in 1917, they portrayed themselves as the savior of the “everyman”. They were dedicated to “freeing the workers” from the slavery of business. And they even promised a life of affluence through communal involvement and paternalistic centralization.
But the truth is, the Bolsheviks were like Guy Fawkes… They only wanted a different brand of elitism and authoritarianism. (Guy Fawkes, by the way, wanted to blow up Parliament as the first step in implementing a Catholic dictatorship upon the good subjects of King James I. Not exactly the V For Vendetta freedom fighter that vagrant vigilantes envision when they veraciously invoke his visage.) The brand of government that emerged from the ashes of communism’s failure had similar intentions. Given Putin’s crackdown on political opponents, and his penchant for rewarding the politically connected, the resurgence of a grandiose communist-era-Kremlin seems to be more important than competent governance.
The abject failure of Sochi to ready itself for the 2014 Olympic Games (despite a $50 billion spending spree) only offers the world a glimpse into the stagnation of Russian evolution since the early 1990’s. Contracts were handed out to firms with personal ties to Putin (almost $7 billion to Arkady Rotenberg, a childhood friend of Putin) and the politically connected. Why? Because big government begets big corruption.
In fact, the abysmal (and quite frankly embarrassing) display in Russia is merely the end result of leftism, and collectivism. More to the point, this is the failing of central planning and governmental monopoly. While the Soviet Union might have died decades ago, the impression that 70 years of communism wrought upon the Russian people has yet to be undone. KGB strongman, Vladimir Putin, is a throwback to the power hungry statists of Soviet politics – and it shows.
While Moscow, and a few key cities, have managed to produce great wealth (ironically through their pursuit of capitalistic commerce) much of Russia continues to lag behind. Mother Russia, to the generations that grew up in a post-Stalin world, will always be viewed as a paternalistic government. And when governments fails to achieve on their nannyistic promises, third-rate PR gimmicks (like doorknobs glued onto hotel doors) are all that are left. There may be no more Iron Curtain, but we are still peering into the world that it left behind.
The games will still be fun to watch, despite the glimpse into Russia’s traditionally despotic form of cronyism. But I’m glad I’m doing so from the comfort of my living room in America, and not in the communist-era-relic of Sochi. Maybe Vladimir Putin should have asked for Republican Mitt Romney’s help in saving Sochi before the Games began… It would probably have cost much less, and local hotels might actually have little things like running water, light bulbs, and lobbies.
A Russian cousin of my father’s got out in the mid-’90s. I asked him what it was like to finally have the Communists out of power.
He said, “Same wall, different wallpaper.”
The KGB is like the Mafia - once you’re in, you can never get out. Putin isn’t merely a KGB agent on temporary assignment, he was a General, and one of the higher-ranking ones at that. Anyone think that he’s given up on what he absorbed with his mother’s milk and protected for most of his life? Bueller? Bueller?
And, of course, the only reason its an “issue” is because a bunch of pampered mainstream media reporters went there and found that they weren’t going to be covering the Olympics in the usual luxury they were accustomed to.
On the other hand, I find it rather aggravating to see spoiled, pampered American Journ-O-Lists ripping the Russians to shreds over the quality of their accommodations. While at the same time they will gladly travel to the West Bank and extol the virtues of the Palestinians, while never making a peep about horrendous living conditions there.
Bingo - only 'progressives' want to live in the hell socialism creates.... the rest of us can watch it 'from the comfort of our living rooms...'
The Russian propaganda machine isn't what it used to be, I suppose--unless the object was to induce journalists to give you even more crappy coverage.
Sochi isn’t about pampered western media elites level of comfort is it?
Let me know when the athletes start complaining...
It was with regret that I saw this in Canada' Globe and Mail (left wing). The highlights and the reverse are paragraphed.
Wed. February 5th 2014. (A8)
Mark McKinnon and photographer John Lehmann.
Most depressing moment.
Visiting Nochlezhka, the lone homeless shelter in St. Petersburg, where 70,000 people sleep on the streets and 1000 die each year from the cold.
We learn that even the few resources available have been cut back at the homeless shelter. I sipped my Tim Hortons coffee as I read the Globe. Surely, surely, some of those billions expended could have been used for good works? I hope those figures are wrong, but it must be a living hell for some people there. Sure we have our problems with the homeless, not on that scale though.
What Sochi has done is open up a shot at hosting the Winter Olympics to hundreds of wonderful towns in semi-tropical regions across the world. (Not to mention here in the good ole USA!)
This means the next Winter Olympics might be held in Tallahassee, or Tampa! Santa Monica leaps to mind, with the skiing and other cold weather type stuff held on Mt. Baldy, a mere 80 miles east. El Paso?
They are just as close to really good snow as Sochi and already have wonderful hockey rinks. But remember, Sochi, (The Rodina's Answer to Asbury Park, NJ) also offers the chance, once you actually get to the slopes, to the ski biathlon guys to shoot at live terrorists rather than stationary targets.
Question:
Dmitry Kozak, the deputy prime minister responsible for the Olympic preparations, seemed to reflect the view held among many Russian officials that some Western visitors are deliberately trying to sabotage Sochi’s big debut out of bias against Russia.
“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.
http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702304680904579366712107461956
Aw dang, now I got have that etched into my brain...
...and you consider surveillance video cameras in your shower to be a good thing?
Dear Americans,
Here, I am, a person born in Germany, Russian Citizen, lived in the Netherlands, Russia, Germany, US and Ukraine, well travelled around Europe and Asia. I have never met more close minded and ignorant people like the US public. Just reading this article and reading your comments , I become even more convinced that you show yourself as most arrogant, ignorant, close minded, narrow-minded and brain-washed nation on earth.
Where do you get all your anger from? Why do you think that your form of government is the right one? If you think that life in the US is ideal and cosy and not corrupted then that shows even more how brain-washed you are. Tons of the hotels in the US have missing bulbs, you have rats roaming around in Washington DC in the political center of the country on the streets in the parks, in regular neighborhoods, people dying from cancer and other deceases because they have no health insurance and can’t afford treatment, women who have to go to work almost right after they deliver a baby, maternaty is non-existent here, 15 % of your population live under poverty line, you have the worst education in the world. An american student from the 8th grade would be placed into 5th grade in the Russian school system., you still have houses that lack electricity and gas, people live in the eternal debt by constantly borrowing. Average americans do not own anything at the age of 45. At the age of 45 you still pay off your school loans and you pay for you house till almost you are dead. Well, let me tell you sit in your God Blessed Cozy USA, but personally I would not wish to live in the country such as yours. Freedom of Speech? well it is controlled by two parties here, I would not say it exists here either.
You so angrily criticize Russia, just because it is Russia, if such small things like missing bulbs would miss at the Italian hotels or French, I doubt americans would waste so much energy and their time writing about that.
Instead of spending your energy criticizing MY COUNTRY, go and fix your problems and we are very happy with our government. You are happy with yours , we are happy with ours. Redoing the entire infrastructure takes many years, what we have done within 24 years you petty Americans would never have done within that timeframe. Why am I even talking to you… If you had to relive 90s, you would never even servive, you are so used to your insignificant level of comfort.
so, some americans did not like the food, oh poor americans, you are so used to your shitty, non-organic, full of calories Mc.Donalds, well go ahead and continue eating it and continue suffering from high cholesterol and heart problems. Too bad, you did not like Russian food, one of the most delicious and organic foods. Go ahead eat producs from Junky Safeway and Giant. Only very small % can afford Whole Foods, SAD!!!!!!
Yes, go ahead and criticize Russia spoiled brats, you are like dogs who like to bark, powerless dogs from rotten capitalism who destroy the world by bombing innocent countries and killing innocent people.
Tiresome, stop projecting yourself as evil and ignorant nation. I do hope though there are some educated and open-minded people in this country!
Consider it a sneak preview of our future.
Looks like there’s a few light bulbs missing over at the State Department also...
One of the most moronic articles I’ve read in a while.
Drop dead.
ACCOUNT HAS BEEN SUSPENDED OR BANNED.
What’s the difference between Sochi and Las Vegas, that has skiing just an hour away?
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