Happy Paratrooper Day!

Aug. 2 is Paratrooper Day in Russia: 

Officially, the day is celebrated with cadet marches and memorials. Unofficially, the elite troops start drinking at sunrise, then head off to city parks to brawl. Migrant workers from Central Asia have been targets of violence on past Paratrooper Days, and the Federation of Migrants of Russia issued a public warning to avoid parks, train stations and commuter trains, and anywhere else paratroopers might be celebrating on Thursday. The U.S. Embassy in Moscow similarly sent out an announcement, saying that while the majority of the celebrations are “jovial and peaceful,” Americans in Russia would be wise to steer clear of “any large crowds and public gatherings that lack enhanced security measures.”

And in order to protect the drunks, Gorky Park fountains are drained to help keep the drunks from drowning.