Corporate Bootlicker' vs. Credit Card Fraud: A Night at the Front Desk
There are few places on earth quite as strange as the late-night hotel front desk. It’s a crossroads where hospitality meets the full spectrum of human behavior—from the sincerely lost to the outrageously entitled. But every so often, a “guest” appears who’s just brazen enough to try and twist fraud into a noble cause—while accusing you of betraying the working class for not letting them pull a scam.
This is the saga of a hotel night auditor, a would-be fraudster, and the most hilariously mangled Marxist appeal you’ll hear all year.
The Setup: When Fraudsters Go Full Comrade
Our story, as told by u/ReaperTheBurnVictim on r/TalesFromTheFrontDesk, kicks off on a typical weekend night. The arrivals list is empty, then—ping!—a single friends & family (F/F) rate reservation appears. Minutes later, a “sketchy looking dude” enters, translator app in hand, ready to check in under the F/F rate.
So far, so normal (for hotels, anyway). But things quickly go sideways when the guest admits he has no credit card. The reservation, he explains, was booked by his girlfriend—whose wallet, naturally, has just been stolen. (Is there a scammer handbook with this script?) All she can offer is a photo of her ID.
The front desk, still clinging to shreds of patience, explains: “No card, no stay—unless the cardholder comes in with valid ID.” What follows is a marathon of translation-app back-and-forth, ending with a call to the “girlfriend,” whose contact photo is suspiciously generic.
The Marxist Plot Twist: “Why Do You Care About That?”
Here’s where the story leaps from routine fraud attempt to Reddit gold.
The “girlfriend,” speaking in perfect English, tries to argue her way into the room with photos of her ID and card. On being told that this is against policy (and common sense), she delivers a line for the ages:
“Why do you care about that? You’re not the cops—why do you care where the money is coming from?”
The front desk’s reply is both honest and weary: “I… can’t really risk it, I’m not putting my job on the line…”
But the “girlfriend” doubles down, invoking the ghost of Marx: “Then don’t snitch! What are you, a fucking bootlicker? Why do you care about your boss’ money?”
It’s not every day that “corporate bootlicker” gets hurled at someone for refusing to abet credit card fraud. As the OP notes, “the incident got noted down in the passdown, and I was left to wonder when the hell petty fraudsters started to learn about (horribly mangled) Marxist principals.”
Community Reactions: Scammers, Shapeshifters, and the Art of Gaslighting
The Reddit comments section quickly turned into a roast—and a group therapy session for hospitality workers everywhere.
Top commenter u/CloneClem nails the scammer’s approach: “Let’s make it then that You’re The Problem here, so I can shame you into instigating my scam.” The OP responds, highlighting the absurdity: “I'm a bad person for not checks notes running a card that was probably stolen from some old lady to give someone a room to probably do sketchy things in.”
Others, like u/liketreesintheforest, offer a fascinating insight into scammer psychology: “People who are manipulators, especially scam artists, are like shapeshifters… they’ll appeal to your politics, to your ideals, to God, to your health, to your self esteem, to anything that they think will coerce you into doing exactly what they want.”
Some commenters, like u/NocturnalMisanthrope, cut to the chase: “I just fucking hate criminals. You are the reason we can't have nice things. So fuck you.” Hospitality workers aren’t protecting the boss’s money out of loyalty—they’re protecting their jobs, sanity, and sometimes their own reputations from being dragged through the mud by fraudsters.
And let’s not forget u/SkwrlTail’s wisdom: “If you’re doing something you shouldn’t be, be quiet about it!” Instead, our would-be comrades opt for a full-throated, expletive-laced guilt trip—never an effective strategy for getting keys to a room.
Policy, Paychecks, and Petty Insults: Why Rules Matter
It’s easy to forget that behind every front desk policy is a safety net—for guests, workers, and the business. As u/thewalkingwaif points out, “a photo on someone’s phone of their ID was not enough… it always made me kind of happy to be able to turn people away who tried to pull up a photo.” It’s not just about company rules; it’s about preventing identity theft, chargebacks, and real human harm.
Besides, as u/snootnoots jokes, “Well I like to do silly little things like eat and pay my bills and support my cat in the style to which she is accustomed, and all of those run into problems if I don’t get PAID.”
The reality is, most front desk workers would sooner take a bullet than risk their job for a stranger with a sob story and a suspiciously flexible sense of ethics. “I do care more about my paycheck than 2 random strangers,” quips u/Spollt14, “Take your problems, your jail time, and your attempt to get someone fired elsewhere.”
Conclusion: Don’t Be That Guy—And Don’t Be a Bootlicker, Either
If you take one lesson from this tale (besides “don’t try to scam hotels”), it’s this: the front desk isn’t the enemy. They’re not “the cops,” but they are the thin line between order and chaos, between you and a fraudster on a mission.
So next time you’re checking in, be kind—and if you see someone arguing Marxist theory at two in the morning, maybe just grab some popcorn.
Have you ever witnessed a spectacular scam attempt or been accused of “bootlicking” for following the rules? Share your wildest hospitality stories below! And if you enjoyed this post, give it a share—just don’t use someone else’s credit card.
Original Reddit Post: Let me commit cc fraud or you're not a true comrade