Worse than offering nannies to a bunch of Swedes

August 6th, 2007 | Posted by PostmanE

Usually, when offering gifts to visitors, or making bets about your constituency’s favorite sports franchise, it is wise to offer some of the “local” flavor: peaches from Georgia, corn from Iowa, deep-dish from Chicago, assholes from New York. You know, really try to capture the essence of your humble community.

Which is why Philadelphia is giving Russia’s national baseball team … vodka:

Russia’s national baseball team, on a U.S. tour as it preps for the Beijing Olympics, will visit Friday to play a 1 p.m. game against the Greater Philadelphia Men’s Adult Baseball League Stars at La Salle University. Two players are from Philly’s sister city of Nizhny Novgorod, so the International Visitors Council of Philadelphia will extend an official welcome. Golden Gate restaurant in the Northeast will host a postgame dinner, and the IVC seeks a “vodka sponsor” to donate 45 bottles.

Really? You sure about that? You think a bunch of Russians are going to be impressed by vodka? You mean, more impressed than (insert plural nationality here) would be by a bunch of (vaguely ignorant items commonly associated with previous nationality)? Ha!

(HT: Philadelphia Will Do via BBTF)