Should You Stop Drinking Stoli Vodka In Order To Completely Transform Longstanding Russian Political Structures That Are Rooted In Deeply-Held (And Even Longer Standing) Russian Societal and Religious Beliefs?

Gay and lesbian Russians are being persecuted by their government because of their sexuality. If you order an Appletini with Ketel One instead of Stoil, could you be helping to save their lives?

No.

Russia has historically been a country willing to let its citizens starve to death if it meant preserving its so-called moral traditions and its reputation of being the strongest, boldest, most proud bunch of ass-backwards lunatics on the face of the earth. So even if Stoli is produced in Russia and even if its CEO is a rich Russian man living in the Motherland with ties to the government (I would link you to the 78 million op-eds both disputing and asserting each of these points if any of them weren’t just regurgitated press releases from self-serving megalomaniacs like Dan Savage or the editorial staff from GayCities’ Queerty, which is literally being paid by Stoli) and even if Stoli were to somehow collapse because of some hunky bartenders from Boxers NYC and The Abbey and Sidetracks pouring one out for their comrades, no serious person can honestly believe that any of it would actually persuade one single Russian politician—not to mention the majority of Russian citizens, many of whom are crazy, violent, murderous fascists—to re-think what has been a fundamental component of their national identity for over 300 years.

—In 1716, Tsar Peter the Great enacted a ban on male homosexuality in the armed forces. The prohibition on sodomy was part of a larger reform movement designed to modernize Russia and efforts to extend a similar ban to the civilian population were rejected until 1835.

—In 1832, Tsar Nicholas I added Article 995 which outlawed muzhelozhstvo. While this could have created a ban on all forms of private adult voluntary homosexual behavior, the courts tended to limit its interpretation to anal sex between men, thus making private acts of oral sex between consenting men legal. The law did not explicitly address female homosexuality or cross-dressing, although both behaviors were considered to be equally immoral and may have been punished under other laws. Persons convicted under Article 995 were to be stripped of their rights and relocated to Siberia for four to five years.

—In 1933, Article 121 was added to the criminal code, for the entire Soviet Union, that expressly prohibited male homosexuality, with up to five years of hard labor in prison.

—On 27 May 1993, homosexual acts between consenting males were legalised. However, there have been reports that by 13 August 1993, “not all persons serving sentences under the old legislation have been released from jail”, and there have been “cases of homosexuals being re-sentenced and kept in jail, cases of imprisoned homosexuals who cannot be located and of missing files”. The reform was largely the result of pressure from the Council of Europe.

Many delusional gay men are pointing to the boycotts of Coors Brewing Company and Target as proof that refusing to buy a corporation’s products can influence that corporation’s stance on the issues for which they are being boycotted, but do these people not realize that Coors is a beer company and Target is a grocery store and Russia is…a country? I am not pro-Stoli or pro-Russia, but I am anti-stupid, and meaninglessly boycotting something that may or may not be tangentially related to your cause—which will most certainly not bring about the desired change—is stupid, so don’t do it. Or, go ahead and do it. I don’t care.

Just today, Russian Sports Minister Vitaly Mutko announced that gay athletes would be arrested if they didn’t obey the country’s “homosexual propaganda” law, which directly contradicts recent statements from the International Olympic Committee that gay athletes participating in the 2014 Sochi games had nothing to worry about. Considering this new development, maybe people will give up on the worthless Stoli boycott and focus on a real target. Maybe people will do something that can actually hurt Russia and, more specifically and importantly, Russian nationalism: Boycott the Russian Olympics. Boycott the whole event. Don’t go, don’t watch it, and boycott every single product from every corporation that sponsors it.

I’ve heard ridiculous complaints that boycotting the Olympics would be “devastating” to the athletes who have trained “their entire lives” for the games, to which I say….and? So what if Tonya Harding Jr. has to wait a few years to put on the sequined leotard she’s been training her entire life to wear. Gay Russians don’t even have actual lives.

 

28 thoughts on “Should You Stop Drinking Stoli Vodka In Order To Completely Transform Longstanding Russian Political Structures That Are Rooted In Deeply-Held (And Even Longer Standing) Russian Societal and Religious Beliefs?”

  1. Lolz,

    You just called politico non-partisan? That’s real funny. As for the linked article, it’s clear you didn’t read it, so let’s stop. Peace.

    1. The whole world needs to boycott the Russian Olympics. This is not just an American LGBT issue it’s an insult to all. Shame on the Olympic Organizing Committee for not moving the games to another venue. Boycott Russian everything!!!

  2. Honestly a boycott of the Sochi Olympics probably wouldn’t do anything either. Many countries boycotted Moscow’s 1980 Olympic Games, and in return Russia along with its allies boycotted the 1984 Los Angeles Olympic Games. People went on about their way like it never even happened.

    The winter olympics are already much less popular and financially successful than the summer olympics, so if nations started boycotting it no one would really say anything. Personally I feel that Russia is using this in anticipation of seeing a few countries and athletes boycotting the games, and that will only benefit Russia.

    Russia has been having terrible success in many winter sports being contested at the winter olympics. They won no gold medals in all figure skating disciplines the last olympics (silver in mens, bronze in ice dancing), and they are currently having abysmal results by their standards in all disciplines except pairs skating.

    They only earned 3 gold medals in the last winter olympics, making it their worst performance they’ve ever had in all of Winter Olympics. I’m not sure if they’ve improved or not, but I haven’t seen them succeeding at all in alpine skiing, which is one of the disciplines that awards so many medals. I actually would rather have all olympic athletes to participate at their very best, with the chance of completely humiliating the country in their own soil!

    1. What are you blathering about…Olympic figure skating? Yeah. The Russians really give a shit about that sport, or overall medal count.

      You should be watching news channels more. Then you won’t make erroneous connections with figure skating. What a stereotype of a vapid gay man!!

      1. You have some fucked up issues. Yes I was referencing Olympic figure skating as an example of how they are no longer a powerhouse in the Winter Olympics. I found it fitting especially since Zach used an example in his last paragraph that had a focus on figure skating. Jr. Tonya harding being an imaginary athlete that is in reference to US figure skater tonya harding, and sequined leotards as the outfits that some skaters wear.

        And you may not believe this, but they actually do take the olympics very serious. And they don’t consider figure skating a gay stereotype like Americans do. Evgeny Plushenko, probably the gayest ever figure skater that ever lived, is actually straight and is revered as one of the best athletes in Russia. He won silver medal at the 2002 and 2010 olympics, and won his gold in 2006. He was actually paid a hefty amount of money to return to the olympics to get Russia another gold medal in men’s figure skating, which he didn’t.

        If there’s a sterotype of a vapid gay man around here, it’s you.

        1. Dude, it isn’t like you were revealing anything significant to the conversation. Like, seriously, no one gives a shit about figure skating and medal counts for the Olympics.

          There are more relevant issues to the topic, such as the economic needs of a Russia, versus something like Olympic medal counts, an international pissing contest.

          EVEN according to you, “The winter Olympics are already much less popular and financially successful than the summer Olympics, so if nations started boycotting it no one would really say anything.”

          So why are you bringing it up, when I’ve already stated that Syria has more of a pressing issue on the needs of Russia?

          And you wanna talk to me about fucked up issues?? Um, yeah. Sure.

    1. Quite frankly, boycotting anything isn’t worth crap.

      You are basically harming people caught in the middle of this diplomatic issue.

      Yeah, there are Russians who are brutally attacking gays. But also think about how many brutal attacks happen in the States? Savagery isn’t unique to any culture. I can find brutality in America as well.

      IF you want to take something back, from horrendous acts, you try to act in accordance of your own life. You become more charitable to the people around, as it has a greater impact, instead of the people in foreign parts of the world who you cannot do anything except stew about. Be the change you want to see in the world instead of trying to change others.

  3. Russia is in the middle of a shit stew:

    Russia vetoed with China UN sanctions against Iran and Syria. (Russia’s economy needs them)

    They banned international adoptions for US couples. (retaliation for the horrible PR about the Americann returning the orphan; also, earlier sanctions.)

    They gave amnesty to Snowden. ( Again, Sanctions.)

    They enacted anti-gay legislation.( Again, semi-sanctions/anti-western influence. Plus, Putin’s image was taking hits as too “liberal” for some in the country.)

    Obama may not be the best LGBT ally, but he doesn’t want to negotiate with Russia about Iran and Syria. Snowden and all this stuff comes from anti-american sentiment which originates from UN sanctions. They claim that America throws too much weight in foreign politics. Sometimes I would agree. However, in this case, I do not.

    So, Stoli vodka or Syria sanctions?? Hmm. Which will do more harm??

    Gays, use your brain. They don’t care about Stoli, they care about Syria.

    1. Russians think Putin is too liberal because he isn’t doing anything drastic in response. I’m sure they’d call him a hero if they did something militaristic rather than diplomacy.

      Obama will not say a word to the public about this, and he’s considering not going to G20. But that would cause more diplomatic breakdown. So, I doubt it. But they are assessing it nonetheless.

      1. It wasn’t at the expense of his re-election!! He didn’t take a hardline until after his second term began.

        He shrewdly played the political dance to avoid being taken into repub family values rhetoric, that could have damaged his ambition of a second term. And gay advocate supporters of his in the first election were, rightly so, getting impatient by the end of the first term.

        I’m NOT saying the man is the devil, but I’m certainly not going to turn him into a saint. He is a politician after all!

        He ‘evolved’ because he was elected a second term. He is a centrist at heart to play the political game.

        His priorities were his own interests. Just like the Bush family–they have in the past been pro-choice and gay marriage supporters. However, they didn’t publicly do it until official duties were over. And NO I’m not a repub I’m democrat. I just understand how politics work.

        Many politicians don’t care about homosexuality, but they cater to the 1% fundie vote that puts people in office. The same fundie voters who vote against their own interests. In fact some of the repubs are closeted gays, who cater to their base of fundies.

        1. It is this reason why we need ACTIVE gay voters and those who are allies voting…otherwise the 1% fundie vote will dominate political discourse for another two decades.

          And when I hear some fucking stupid ass know-it-all porn star suggesting that your vote doesn’t matter…as evident by prior rants, I get pissed.

          1. “I believe marriage is between a man and a woman. I am not in favor of gay marriage. But when you start playing around with constitutions, just to prohibit somebody who cares about another person, it just seems to me that’s not what America’s about.” – Nov. 2, 2008, while running for president, in an interview with MTV.

            “I believe that marriage is the union between a man and a woman. Now, for me as a Christian — for me — for me as a Christian, it is also a sacred union. God’s in the mix.” – April 17, 2008, while running for president, defining marriage at the Saddleback Presidential Forum.

            Full article– http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0512/76109.html#ixzz1uOlsh4ip

            You still don’t refute what I’ve said. Like most politicians, flip-flops or makes ambiguous statements to avoid certain rhetoric…”I believe marriage is between a man and a woman…” And who are you to debate this if you aren’t trying to make him into a saint, anyways?

          2. I wouldn’t visit gay star news to get a full account of his stance. Visit nonpartisan politico for accuracy.

            You have to understand that PR firms are hired to do damage control and maneuver media stories to be favorable as much as possible.

            Who owns gay star news? Is it someone who is a ardent supporter?

            Look at the relationships between entities and corporations. How close are they? And what are the agendas of those organizations?

  4. Boycotting the games in Russia would be the only way for the international community to make their point. Imagine if the same had been done for the games in Nazi Germany long long ago.

    1. Hitler wasn’t known as a war criminal and a genocidal maniac at that point. Some even agreed with his politics prior to start of WWII.

      Fact: America even had a Nazi party in America for a short stint prior before pearl harbor.

  5. You have to give regular people something so they feel like they matter (elections, boycotts, petitions, demonstrations, recycle bins, gluten free products, donating for a cause, etc.).

  6. Beast of Burden

    Doing something is always better than doing nothing in a case like this. Any attention brought to it even by a mediocre-sounding boycott is at least helping to increase awareness and get people riled about how pathetically bad the gay situation is over there. It may be a drop in the bucket at this point, but like that line from Cloud Atlas (watched it last night) went, “what is the ocean but a collection of droplets” (something like that anyways). I’ll boycott anything if it might even REMOTELY help one person there.

  7. Well, I wouldn’t be so dismissive of Tonya Harding Jr. Most Olympics athletes have a limited window to compete and to earn a big payday. That might not be the same as an oppressed Russian kid, but it’s still worth consideration.

    With that said, a boycott of the Winter Olympics is worth serious consideration.

    1. The Winter Olympics will have some potential fallout. Some of the people will not participate in the games.

      Another American boycott may happen, again.

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