Vodka on the Rocks

For years the Soviet Union officially endorsed Friedrich Engels' argument that alcoholism is "a disease of capitalism" and would swiftly cease to be a problem for a Communist society. Gradually, however, the Kremlin has moved away from that rigid viewpoint and acknowledged that drinking has remained a serious problem. Now Russia's rulers have launched a pervasive propaganda campaign against Demon Vodka, and they are enacting stiff new laws to back up the words.

The Russians were heavy drinkers long before the Revolution, and Communism has not changed that. Lenin & Co. learned as much when, in an effort to conserve potatoes and grain, they continued a World War I liquor prohibition into the mid-1920s; during one six-month period, the Soviet militia uncovered no fewer than 75,296 illegal stills. Since then, sales of vodka, profits to the state and the number of chronic alcoholics have all grown right along with the population. The Kremlin does not publish official statistics, but one count of Soviet souses in 1965 put the number of heavy drinkers at 10 million. Today, says the government, drunks are responsible for a major portion of violent crime, including 60% of all murders. Officials also calculate that 90% of all Soviet citizens who report late to work or stay away do so because of a drinking problem.

Drinking and Drifting. Alcohol's drain on productivity has become especially dismaying to the party hierarchy-because of growing signs of sluggishness in the Soviet economy. Thus, while past antidrinking crusades have suffered from complacency and lack of enforcement, this time officials really seem to mean business. Last week the Soviet Trade Union Council ordered a crackdown on workers who "drink, loaf or drift." The council recommended that recalcitrant members be expelled and thereby deprived of sick leave and pension benefits.

Newspapers and television stations have been full of warnings against the dangers of drink, not to mention the expense. A pint of vodka sells for $3 to $4, which takes a big bite out of the average worker's $134 monthly salary. In addition, any time a drunk gets hauled off for a shower and a night's sleep in one of the sobering-up stations that are maintained by the government, he is charged another $8.90.

Deputy Interior Minister Boris Shumilin recently urged a comprehensive, nationwide approach to the problem. Heeding Shumilin's advice, the Moscow City Soviet (akin to a city council) adopted tough ordinances banning the sale of booze in the vicinity of industrial sites, schools and recreation areas. Where once a tippler could pick up a bottle at countless corner groceries and even special kiosks along major streets, henceforth only special liquor outlets, supermarkets and department stores will be permitted to sell the stuff. Other Soviet cities can be expected to follow Moscow's lead, and a national law is likely to be enacted shortly.

Action on another proposal offered by Shumilin will be longer in coming. Taking a sharp look at the average man's way of life, he urged the government to offer more cultural and recreational activity to occupy the increased leisure time Russians have enjoyed since the five-day week was adopted in 1967. All too often, the extra day off has been devoted largely to drink.

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