A Cure For Swine Flu?

The solutions to some of life’s most vexing problems are usually right in front of our faces. Take this recommendation for coping with swine flu, made by our friends in Russia:

MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russian soccer fans have been told to drink whisky on their trip to Wales for next month’s World Cup qualifier to ward off the H1N1 swine flu virus, the head of the country’s supporter association (VOB) said Monday.

“We urge our fans to drink a lot of Welsh whisky as a form of disinfection,” VOB head Alexander Shprygin told Reuters.

“That should cure all symptoms of the disease.”

My kind of people, the Russians.

I was lucky enough to spend some time in St. Petersburg in my twenties, and a Russian friend of mine, noticing I was feeling a bit ill, told me I should drink vodka. “My friend’s a doctor,” he said, “And he told me that if you’re coming down with a cold, a little vodka is good for you.”

I explained that I wasn’t coming down with a cold, but had a stomach ache instead.

“Oh,” he said, “a little vodka is good for a stomach ache, too.”

I replied that my stomach ache was from vodka, lots of it, consumed the night before.

Guess what he said?

“Vodka is the very best cure for a hangover.”