Free Republic

(Editor's note: Chuck has postponed the second part of his series "Alcohol vs. Marijuana" until after the Winter Olympics so he can address some moments of inspiration from the games.) American snowboarder Sage Kotsenburg, a native of Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, made the decision of his life in Olympic competition over the weekend, and it paid off big-time, with the first American gold medal -- and the first gold medal in general -- in the Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia. Whatever our aspirations, his example shows us the way to our ticket to gold, too. After earning his place in the...

Hoping to prevent the killings of stray dogs who are roaming the streets of Sochi, a Russian billionaire has funded the creation of a shelter where the animals can find new owners. Oleg Deripaska’s shelter in Baranovka, a village near Sochi, houses around 40 dogs in basic pens, but city officials say such protection gives the dogs a chance of finding a new home, Reuters reports.

AMERICAN sennik . A spectacular opening ceremony - despite the lack of a fifth Olympic rings - somewhat hushed defeatists , but in English-speaking media, there are still voices of the Winter Olympics in Sochi, a Byzantine scam at $ 50 billion , an emanation of Putin's superpower ambitions sick , shameful turning a blind eye to discrimination against gays and Russian lesbians , etc. All these allegations are somewhat correct, but their constant repetition - as well as the awareness that they seem a bit late - it must cause in many a human soul what Goethe called the...

Ex-Olympic skater and current NBC commentator for the Sochi games Johnny Weir is not shy about protesting Russia's homosexual laws live on air, if his wardrobe has anything to say about it. Weir has appeared with full makeup -- blush, lipstick, etc. -- as well as silk blouses and gaudy jewelry. Hairstyles have ranged from piled on top to a braided tiara (seen below). This was his plan from the beginning...

An openly gay women's ski jumper says protests against Russia's law banning homosexual "propaganda" aimed at minors aren't worth it because "no one cares." Daniela Iraschko-Stolz of Austria, who is a gold medal favorite in the women's normal hill, married partner Isabel Stolz last year. After training Sunday, she said, "I don't think it's a good idea to make protests here, no one cares ... I know Russia will go and make the right steps in the future and we should give them time."

Well, not old to me anyway...Some of these had me on the floor. If you use Internet Explorer only and don't get this one, find a new browser...PLEASE...it's by far the worst browser EVER (ask any web developer). I already posted this one, but I'm throwing it in again for good measure!

Sochi has one gay club. It is called Mayak, or “light house,” and it is located behind an unmarked door right off one of the city’s lush parks. You have to buzz to be let in. Once you’re in, though, you’re just as likely to encounter a foreign journalist as a local. As Olympic preparations have ramped up and now that the Games are in full swing, Mayak has been mobbed by foreign journalists eager to capture how the local gays live now that Russia is now internationally known for hating gays. “Too many,” Zhanna the butch cashier says rolling...

Lowering his head, then crouching in a corner, Bode Miller lingered in the finish area after his slower-than-expected Olympic downhill run, contemplating where things might have gone wrong. Most everyone, Miller included, thought he was the man to beat entering Sunday’s race. Most everyone, the 36-year-old New Hampshire native included, thought he had a realistic shot at becoming the oldest Alpine gold medalist in Winter Games history. He didn’t even come close. Failing to produce the sort of near-perfect performance he came up with in practice, Miller finished eighth in the downhill, more than a half-second slower than champion Matthias...

Two of Russia's most famous dissidents are visiting the United States. I speak, of course, of Nadya Tolokonnikova and Masha Alyokhina, members of the feminist conceptual art group known as Pussy Riot who were recently released from jail by President Vladimir Putin. The U.S. media have been raving. "Pussy Riot gals stun Brooklyn crowd with powerful speech," blared the New York Post about the duo's appearance at a charity concert in New York this week. "Pussy Riot stole the show from Madonna," was the verdict from Time. They put in a bravado performance on the Colbert Report, and even had...

As the young Olympic gymnast competed in the all-arounds, the TV announcer said: "She messed up really well. This is so good, she got another deduction of points." Not the type of attitude you'd normally expect from a TV sports commentator. Unless the announcer is Russian, and the athlete is an American. Before Russian gymnast Viktoria Komova did her vault, Ivanova announced: "Vikochka (sweet Vicky), show these Americans how it should be done." After Komova made mistakes in her routine, Ivanova remarked with: "She made a few mistakes, but we did not notice them."

A British snowboarder in Sochi has had his post-event interview cut short by the BBC after it was feared he had sworn during a live broadcast. Billy Morgan, a favourite for Great Britain at the Winter Olympics, was all smiles and suspicious laughter when he spoke to the public broadcaster after finishing 10th in the men's slopestyle final. "I knew that maybe if I landed my run it'd put me up there on the podium, so I just thought, I'll just huck it," said grinning 24-year-old Morgan, to giggles by his teammate Jamie Nicholls. "Yeah, it was fun." "Huck it"...

The emergence of Twitter as a social media goliath has unleashed gossip and speculation as a media force. The long term consequences are unknowable, but in the meantime, with a far left president with a dicey past, it is producing some highly amusing results. Last night, President Obama explained to Bob Costas of NBC Sports why he wasn’t attending the Sochi Olympics, but the substance of what he had to say was lost in the controversy that erupted on Twitter over whether or not he was stoned. Yahoo writer Mike Oz took the high road, as would nearly any journalist,...

There has been no shortage of protests and calls for Olympic sponsors to take a firm stance on gay rights in the lead-up to the 2014 Olympic Games in Sochi, especially in light of Russia's anti-gay propaganda laws last year and international outcry following Russian President Putin's recent comments linking homosexuality and pedophilia.

It turns out that with the newfound fame as international human rights spokespersons, Maria Alyokhhina and Nadezhda Tolokonnikova have alienated their former musical group members, who now feel the pair have strayed from the movement's original goals. Six of the members of the Russian punk rock group known as Pussy Riot have decided to write a letter stating that they may no longer be listed as members of their group. In the letter, the collective accuses the two former members of no longer meeting up to the "aspirations and ideals of [the] group." The two newly disenfranchised members had performed...

<p>UNITED NATIONS (AP) — U.S. Ambassador Samantha Power traded jibes with Russia's U.N. Ambassador Vitaly Churkin on Wednesday over her meeting with two members of the Russian protest punk band Pussy Riot who were recently freed from prison.</p> <p>Power tweeted that she met "some brave 'troublemakers'" who discussed their time in jail.</p>

Somebody has to cover the cost of Sandra Fluke's contraceptives.  So, with that in mind, government mafia extortionists disguised as the IRS are eagerly awaiting the tally on Olympic gold, silver and bronze.  At the SOTU, Barack Obama said of the Sochi Olympics: "We believe in the inherent dignity and equality of every human being, regardless of race or religion, creed or sexual orientation." Then he said, "Next week the world will see one expression of that commitment when Team USA marches the red, white and blue into the Olympic stadium and brings home the gold."  Translation:  The president...

I follow many reporters on Twitter. They are usually free with their observations of the political scene—some more free than others. They have a caustic wit from years of covering hack politicians, but they also have a protective manner when it comes to President Barack Obama. A case in point is Obama’s interview with NBC Sports’ Bob Costas taped Thursday but broadcast Friday evening as part of the network’s coverage of the opening ceremonies of the Sochi Winter Olympic Games. As reported last night at the Gateway Pundit, viewers took to Twitter last night to express their astonishment at...

<p>You know how it is: once one thing goes wrong it just seems like everything else goes wrong too.</p> <p>Take Sochi for example. It started with the dangerous face water, and the “pee with a friend” toilets for two (my guess is they forgot to order and/or install the stall walls, butt who knows).</p>

No sooner did AdMe.ru publish racy pictures of Russia's female athletes competing at Sochi wearing next to nothing, did the shots go viral online. And then came the judgment. Column inches spoke of the 'demeaning' way Russia is marketing its female Olympians. Others said the photos were controversial, adding that it brings a whole new meaning to the phrase 'checking out the competition'. True, the photos are racy. True, these girls look like gorgeous pin-up models fit for a Pirelli calendar (well they are Olympic athletes; all those hours down the gym is bound to pay off). But what, really,...

A group of men with a lifetime of Eastern European authoritarianism to their names and the epaulettes and mustaches to prove it. Singing Daft Punk. The official name of this group is the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs Choir. Ahh, Russia.The spectacle is so wonderfully weird as to look like a Will Ferrel skit. It’s not ironic(?), but it looks ironic. Ironically. America’s going to love it, as the world did the first time around, when this went viral. Click to watch:What’s the best outcome for Sochi? I’ve been reveling in the widely publicized inconveniences of journalists— no shower curtains,...