Drinking is a huge problem in Russia.  The average Russian drinks 18 liters of pure alcohol (or 9 two-liter bottles, for comparison sake) per year.  That’s a huge amount of booze, and that’s the reason why Russian President Dmitry Medvedev is cracking down on alcohol abuse through increased taxes and a minimum price for vodka.  Putting his money where his mouth is, all drinks stronger than wine, especially Russia’s favorite clear liquor, have been banned from the St. Petersburg Economic Forum, where Pres. Medvedev is the key note speaker.

Usually, when a politician decides something, it’s for you, not for everyone.  They’re big about that whole “do as I say, not as I do” thing, but this time Medvedev is putting his money where his vodka was, and organizers are scrambling to put screens in front of cognac cases and paint over vodka company logos on newsstands and the like.

Tags: St. Petersburg, Russia, St. Petersburg Economic Forum, vodka banned at economic events, vodka bans, vodka, Russian vodka, drinking banned at economic forum, President Dmitry Medvedev, alcohol bans

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