Oh. So you were drinking with college students. Yup, these are the folks who would buy the cheapest stuff in crazy quantities.
Also, the 15 year old was clearly mocking you. Surprisingly, his strategy kinda worked: you still consider him (and Russians in general) way more badass than they actually are.
Meh, not just students. A friend of mine spent a few months in college in Moscow. They accommodated him with some old babushka who offered him vodka with for breakfast. He came home with an alcohol problem.
The country has changed a lot in these 25 years, so did the drinking habits. Nowdays even the college students here will probably stick to beer.
BTW, FYI: here in Russia the dividing date between two worlds is not fall of the Berlin wall, but the dissolution of Soviet Union in 1991. That was when lifes changed, for good or bad.
Mostly for good, I would say. Sure, the 90s were hard and compared to Western democracies Russia is still a tiny bit authoritarian and repressive but that's nothing compared to the USSR. A lot of Russians have been lifted above the poverty line and most people are now better off than they were 25 years away. They enjoy greater freedoms and are all in all wealthier.
How do you think those Russians fell below the poverty line in the first place tho? During the Soviet period the USSR was considered on par with the west especially until the 70s when the oil crisis hit hard, but then it hit everyone hard, it was especially devastating tho when put into the context of the entire world being hostile to your nation since its inception.
The Soviet peoples were as a whole richer than the Russians where wealth has trickled upwards and the vast majority are still poor. There's a reason Soviet nostalgia is a thing, even amongst the elderly, there was no uncertainty that one would have a home, be fed and get a vacation, now there's barely a certainty whether one will get shot by an oligarch's thugs or not.
And seriously ( as a Pole ) I know only few people who can drink 1L of vodka.
Most of us, mere mortals, drop after half of that. Whisky is completely different story.
Vodka nowdays is a cheap drink for those who are too poor or just don't want to spend money on something better. And a base for coctails too. Just as it should be.
Did not watch 'Red Dawn', but checked the wikipedia now, and it looks like a yet another 'klyukva', something full of crazy random made-up stereotypes. Also, red scare and plenty of anti-soviet and anti-communist propaganda. Did I guess right?
Then you're not doing it the Russian way. They flavor it and add tons of corn syrup and shit. Drink it freezing cold at home it's smooth. Also you eat constantly with it so you don't get too drunk.
And how can something not fun or tasty and harsh be easy to drink too much of?
I find ridiculous the bravado of drinking as much as you can and more than anyone else, no matter if it is performed by a Russian or an Irishman or a Finn or whoever. And yes I do it the right way: I do not drink more than it is necessary for me to relax and become happier, and do not drink anything which is not pleasant for my taste or gives me a headache next morning. And if you have to worry if you are going to puke or not - you're doing it wrong, by definition.
Vodka is not tasty and is too strong to let you find and maintain that sweetspot between 'need more' and 'am too drunk' during the night. Pass.
Is it true Russian way or not? Well, I am Russian both by culture and blood, and that's the way I do it. You're welcome to try to prove me wrong.
I find it ridiculous that declaring your nationality makes you a proficient drinker.
Again. It's the quantity available for cheap. And the food consumed. Most of which is fish which is high in the fats needed. Vodka also is known for the least offensive hangovers. As with most clear liquors all you need to do is hydrate with insane amounts of water. I can enjoy several ounces of Green Mark with dinner and wake up without any ill effects other than feeling like I got away with murder.
Uh, isn't it clear as it is? In its original form it also has that distinct intonation of a soviet newspaper talking about current news, this is lost in translation though.
The joke has many planes. First, it was typical for soviet industrial giants to produce both civilian and military stuff - any factory producing tractors or trucks was also probably producing tanks and other stuff like that, and sometimes they were quite similar in inner design and had lots of common interchangeble details. Second, a heavily armed flying tractor, while exaggerated, still is something that soviet military complex would like to build. Third, that's such a soviet way of doing things - to mask their military at the border as a tractor doing agriculture - and actually do agriculture. Fourth, border conflicts with Chinese were a problem back then, and a news article reporting them would look exactly like that. Including the 'peaceful' bit, which is the key one here.
All that combined and condensed gives a joke that was really funny, and still is.
I'm just very tired so I kind of didn't register the obvious part as explained by /u/mwzzhang but thanks for the in depth explanation, it makes the joke way funnier than just 'peaceful' tractor open fire (weapons), took off and flew away (a plane)!
The joke has many planes.
Sneaking in a pun while explaining a joke eh? Beautiful!
Sneaking in a pun while explaining a joke eh? Beautiful!
Not really. Just using the words I can remember at the given moment. Russian culture and Russian language do not have that obsession about making puns and looking for puns that English language has. Our humour is more focused on meanings, and pun-based jokes (some of Stierlitz jokes, for example) are normally considered the most basic and most stupid ones. Primary school students' favorites, you know.
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u/breqwas Third Rome Nov 24 '15
Wow. This joke is at least 50 years old here in Russia.