Some of the Western media has been picking up on the story of the summer here in Russia: our leaders have declared a war on alcoholism, which some consider to be a certain political grave.

Consider the odds: A ticket to the movies in Moscow costs more than a bottle of vodka. The entrance fee to a museum or an exhibition is also more than a bottle of vodka. A bottle of high quality beer (not to be confused with the swill drank on the trading floors) costs more than a bottle of vodka. Practically all wine – be it good or bad (except for one wine made by the French in Krasnodar Kray, all Russian wines, in my view, are bad) – costs more than a bottle of vodka.

On Wednesday at seven in the morning I saw a drunk young person beside the Mariyno metro. He was greedily drinking beer beside a kiosk. Beside him was an automobile with a running engine. Everything suggested that it was precisely its owner who was avariciously quaffing the beer. It’s not an uncommon sight.