NEWS: Russian Drinkers: Nyet Afraid of Alcohol, Poison, Death

CULTURE: Russian Drinkers: Nyet Afraid of Alcohol, Poison, Death

In a story that can only be called fucking insane, it seems that a startling percentage of Russian men not only live up to the stereotype of being drunks, but that they are actually rampaging, fearless, super-drunks who will consume anything. Like cologne.

New Scientist reports that, according to a new study, 43% of deaths amongst men between the ages of 25 and 54 are related to drinking non-beverage alcohol, such as cologne, antiseptics, cleaning agents, and other horrific shit. Researcher David Leon explains:

I guess it makes sense that there’s such a high percentage of deaths among the truly gung-ho poison-drinkers, but apparently the problem is widespread. According to the study, 8% of the men in the control group admitted to drinking the toxic spirits. That’s like, 1 in 12 -- not soooo bad, right?

Oh. Well, if you're still unsure that poisonous substances are unhealthy, or that Russia is wild about booze, I’ll leave you with some additional depressing stats:

• Men who drink non-beverage alcohol have a five-times greater risk of alcohol-related death.
• Men who drink only non-beverage alcohol have a 20-times greater risk of death.
• 72% of murders and 42% of suicides in Russia are related to alcohol.
• Due to a high death rate and a low birth rate (both related to alcohol), Russia's population is set to decline by about 30,000,000 people in the next 40 years.

Bottoms up!

I'll drink to that.

natural selection?

fuuuckkk...

nicely done!

does this mean the Irish lose our title for Drunkards of the World?

Da, konechno.

Looks that way. My French brethren, with all our wine and pissy beer, are surely no match either.

yeah, I heard about this on radio news today... crazy shit.

This is horrible... Is it lack of education, or is the situation in Russia so dire that one will attempt to get drunk on anything? If it is none of the above, then I nominate the non-beverage drinkers of Russia, for a Darwin Award...

Think of it as evolution in action.

(credit to Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle)


But that only really works if they drink themselves to death BEFORE they breed.

And we all know that reproduction is not just a gift to the wise.

Try nominating the assholes in charge for extinction. They send so many of their boys off to Chechnya leaving young men scarred when they come back and are then unable to find jobs or homes. And if service in Chechnya doesn't leave them with post-traumatic stress, the hazing might. Over a thousand conscripts were dying every year as of the late 1990s in non-combat "accidents" or depression-related suicides linked to the Dedovshchina (roughly "rule of the elders/uncles," I think) system of discipline.

+1

Absolutely not! We drink that which is meant to be drank (drunk? drinked?) and thus we live on to drink another day. A champion defends his title to prove that he deserves it and it's difficult to do that when you're choking on your own blood.

+1

Last time I checked you have to get it up before you could procreate. I also find it unlikely that drinking cologne raises your sperm count.

Dos vedanya, comrade.

I thought we had that particular title - either of you are welcome to it, mind.

wow. you know, i've never heard of any stoners O.D.ing on say, goldenrod leaves or something like that, yet weed is illegal and alcohol is not.

alcohol makes people act like fucking idiots, and finally, here's proof!

Are you seriously going to sit there and tell me that pot doesn't turn people into idiots? Weed does nothing good for a person's IQ.

It's not due to lack of effort.

Yeah, I work at a liquor store in a hugely Russian area, and they are fucking CRAZY, 3 pints-of-courvoisier-a-day drunks. Thankfully, I'm perfectly ok with this, as Russian fashion for women pretty much consists entirely of hooker fashion. And most of them have a very superior attitude that appeals to my masochistic side. Hot!

Srsly.