Prohibition Czech-style

Agriculture Minister Petr Bendl told listeners of Rádio Impuls yesterday that his recommendation for avoiding poisonous bootleg alcohol is to not drink any hard alcohol at all. What, not even the Becherovka bought last year? Such professional erudition isn't so surprising from the minister whose other famous entrée into the realm of alcohol was a very purpose-built audit of Budvar brewery. A logical approach to the 17 deaths and 30 other cases of methanol poisoning would be to identify when approximately the deadly substance entered the supply chain and which types and brands of spirits seem to be affected. Otherwise, the government's approach reeks of disaster politics, where a catastrophe is used to push through measures that the population wouldn't otherwise tolerate. With Bendl making decisions, we'll soon be taking our shoes and belts off before entering a store that sells booze.