George Manley Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Hershey is a good example where they
> shut down all their plants in the US and went to
> Mexico...but still sell their product in the
> USA...How unamerican can you get....


You actually can't get more American than squeezing every last ounce of profit from an operation regardless of what happens to the country and labor force. Anyone subscribing to the notion that the "American Way" isn't a strict adherence to cutthroat unsentimental capitalism is living in a fantasy world. American companies started shipping jobs out of the country in the '60s, with Latin America becoming a new frontier for cheap labor. Manufacturing dollars have since followed cheap labor to various parts of Asia. Soon the companies themselves became commodities to leverage and sell lock, stock and barrel.

As for the AB railroad at the heart of this thread, it's a not surprising that InBev would want to get out of the railroad business when a non-union contractor could do the job cheaper. UP uses contract operators at intermodal facilities, and of course they ARE in the railroad business.

As for the beer, the notion that InBev bought AB just to increase the market penetration of Stella is ludicrous. The corporate brewing business has always been about economies of scale. Much like the railroads, the list of fallen flag once great regional brewers is seemingly endless. Large multinational conglomerates are the logical conclusion of decades of mergers and acquisitions.