Monday, May 18, 2009

Luke Can't Even Be Trusted To Get The Beer

The Penguins' playoff run has handed the boy mayor the one part of his job that I would have wagered he could handle, but it turns out Mayor Ravenstahl can't even be trusted with taking care of the beer:

If the Hurricanes best the Penguins, Ravenstahl will send Meeker Pittsburghers' favorite local food items including: five pounds of Islay's chipped ham, three dozen potato and cheese pierogies, and a case of Iron City Beer.
Yes, folks, that's Iron City Beer . . . the Pride of Rochester.

Perhaps the boy mayor is confused, because it seems like just yesterday he was handing more than a million ratepayer dollars (plus an additional $750,000 in grants and loans) to Pittsburgh Brewing to keep jobs in Pittsburgh, and declaring that he had "saved the brewery" and "kept those jobs" . . . shortly before the ownership group he enabled to get control of the brewery shipped production of canned and kegged beer to Rochester. Thanks to the Ravenstahl-Zober recovery plan, the workers at Pittsburgh Brewing reportedly are working five shifts a month these days. [Has anyone checked the mayor's campaign contribution report for Rochester postmarks?]

Several breweries produce beer in Pittsburgh (and, apparently, pay their taxes and water bills), but when Pittsburgh's mayor selects a beer to hand free publicity to, he walks right past Penn Brewery, Church Brew Works and East End Brewing and keeps on walking . . . all the way to New York State.

As I said, I would have wagered that ordering the beer was one job this guy could handle. I stand corrected, while a once-proud city continues to weep.

Am I the only one who expects Steve Carell to walk in any moment now, introduce Luke as our new Office mate, and pronounce Luke the bestest management trainee candidate he has ever seen?

No comments: